One day I realized.. ‘Hey…here’s a hot (and infinitely clichéd) topic I can write on…I mean…everyone has written something about life….whether in a book or on the internet or in a private diary…I can’t make that big a botch of it so….here goes…’
The first thing that strikes me is how people (a lot of them, I think.) feel that it is your moral obligation to do your bit for the world….and how other people (called classic ‘rebels’) think that you should do whatever the hell you want with your life (it’s your’s isn’t it ??)So which of them is right….On one hand it is perfectly logical that you can and should do what you enjoy in your life…After all you only get one. You should go out there and follow all your dreams…whether they be fishing at Cornwall or living out an idyllic existence as a small time farmer in Spain….irrespective of whether you have awesome analytical skills or if you can fly and shoot laser beams from your eyes…(Yes, it’s superman…sigh..)Life out your life with your friends and family and don’t create that huge laboratory that could invent safer forms of energy or create super efficient engines….
On the other hand it also seems like your duty to do what you can for the benefit of the society that you are a part of… “Society...”You argue… “What the hell did society do for me? My parents brought me up and I’m caring for them now… Screw society man…”
But the fact remains that you could have been treated much badly….Small good deeds were done which probably helped you..Remember the funda that one small event can change all of history(Like the battle of Panipat incident (death of prince which apparently altered course of battle)…or the death of Remus at Romuluses(Founding of Rome) hand and what would have happened if the fight had gone the other way…)
Who knows some small event like that gone in your favour because of someone’s good deed made you what you are…Maybe your mother almost fell during pregnancy(Mental Retardation or maybe non existence ??) and was saved by some good Samaritan or your father was saved from bankruptcy by one single client at that particular time (poverty ?)
Leaving aside these incidents which one could dismiss as bullcrap and the fantasizing of a twisted mind… (Mine !) there still remains the fact that millions of unlucky people(in terms of environment and upbringing: financial state , mental gifts or family life) lead a life of crime… killing raping mugging and conning people out of their money….thus contributing to the screwing up of normalcy in society…Who screwed with their lives..God..You say...Then who blessed you……….
One could go on and on….It is true that a man with the will can overlook the most logical arguments ever just because he is determined to do such and such a thing and damn everyone else ….he has decided… After all the words responsibility and moral duty were created by men who were after all human… with certain biases maybe and opinionated definitely…… If these words (and thus…these concepts) did not exist as rigid definitions…who knows what might have been the socially acceptable outlook…
Several other questions can be asked on the topic of life… or rather living…For example… since we do good voluntarily….having a thought process similar to…If I do good people will like me and respect me….. or I’ll go to heaven…..or I’ll be repaying my debt to society….. how are we different from the people who think…I’ll donate my wealth and be on the cover of every newspaper….or I’ll get those extra votes…. Or I’ll be perceived as ‘good’ which will work to my advantage as I will be trusted by a lot of people….
Why is gain in money or power or fame (as illustrated by the last few examples) thought of as more selfish than gain in respect or comfort in the afterlife(smirk !!) or maybe a little less red in the (guiltily ??) red moral balance sheet…..Strange huh…
And I believe that almost everything we do in this world is done with some selfish need(selfish meaning concerned with ones needs and desires…and not the traditionally deadly sin… !!)so is it true that selfishness is essentially man’s nature…. “Of course. So don’t worry!!”
And according to Ayn Rand….Egoism(as in self pride or self respect or selfishness(!!) as opposed to arrogance and egotism !) is an essential quality of the perfect man…..then who’s to say what is the absolute truth…..
Who’s to say…anyway……
well i agree that every human is selfish....even the most "selfless act" as some might want to or will be inclined to call it, is also carried out only because the concerned person wanted to help others....that is the person is helping others not because they are need of help but because that person has the "desire" to help people who he thinks are in need of help.....so according to me everything...well almost everything....done by humans are nothing but acts of selfishness....the only instance when humans dont act selfishlly is when they are forced to act against their own will.....selfishness is the root cause of survival i guess(too philosophical!!)....
ReplyDeleteThere are so many thoughts floating around in that mind of yours and you seem to have put down a whole bunch of them in this one post......
ReplyDeleteWhat I like about this post is that it's just an outpouring of what you're thinking but it seems like you're typing at the speed of lightening, which is actually how our mind really works, constantly moving from one thought to the next.It really gives the reader an insight into your thoughts.
Keep writing!!! It makes for very interesting reading.
-Ms.Lynette