Punked!

Disclaimer: The following verbiage lacks any kind of structure and is purely a flow of ideas jotted down as they occurred to me. It might seem like a mixed bag of thoughts and that's exactly what it is. My thoughts and ideas are an ongoing stream of wonderful and infinite possibilities which are far from being contained. Any attempt to contain them is futile and I'm thankful for that!

While warm, sunny weather usually attracts people out of their houses, I at times, prefer cuddling up and reading. Not just any light fictional novel but books based on science or technology. Not just any science but radical and, preferably borderline controversial, science. One such book talks about how science needs a fresh outlook and that it's time we start borrowing concepts to lead us into discovering spirituality the "scientific" way. Sounds cool, doesn't it! Well it is, that is, for those who can relax and look at fresh new ideas with enthusiasm. For the others, who aren't yet ready to overlook scientific dogma, don't bother!

So, the other day as I was reading through this book, it struck me how similar we all are towards our approach of an established ideology. Be it science or religion, once we are convinced of a set of beliefs, its only a handful who would venture out of the ordinary to step into the unknown, to explore brilliant possibilities. It amazes me, how intelligent, reasonable men and women suddenly seem to lose their senses when it comes to religion. Not just their senses, what they lose is a prized possession, it's their inner voice. Even those who insist that they don't really care about religious rituals seem to give in to certain practices, purely because they aren't sure about what would happen if they shun those practices. Seriously! Do you really, honestly, expect to cause havoc in your lives, purely because you "messed" up some traditional practice! Geez!

I, personally, couldn't care less about religion, not my own, not others. What I do care about is appreciating all that I have (personally and globally), being a valuable resource to others and most of all, keeping myself happy, come what may! Yes, it's selfish and that's exactly my point! Being happy all the time has sort of gathered social disapproval. It seems inappropriate to do so. Especially being happy/calm/at peace when your near and dear ones are troubled is supposedly a sign of indifference or heartlessness. Many years back, I would have agreed with this view, but lately this idea doesn't resonate with me at all. I don't see how I can be of value to someone else when I myself have lost my balance. This doesn't mean I promote belittling others' concerns, worries or disappointments. Far from it. Being happy doesn't always mean grinning from ear to ear and frolicking around. Just being at peace and absolutely enjoying your current action, whatever that may be, can be a source of immense joy. Some people refer to this as their meditation and that is exactly what it is! Such chronic peace brings a kind of strength and stability that can be a source of wonderful inspiration to others in hard times (for them. B'coz once you have learnt to pave your way towards happiness, you pretty much set sailing through life at top speed :D) I've been on either sides of the equation, so I know!

So if it's all so easy and simple, why are we over complicating things? Well, for one, we love the drama of it. Face it, we are all one big global Bollywood family! We don't feel completely satisfied until we've "overcome" failures, faced "challenges" and dealt with "difficulties". Sometimes we get so into the character that we kind of forget the whole purpose of our being here. That's when it's a good idea to take a break, step back and view our lives from a distant perspective, quite literally, imagine looking down upon your lives from outer space. It appears oh, so small, minuscule and at times, silly! Yup, the higher perspective game helps me snap out of everyday drama and look at the bigger picture. And once you are there, the right words and right actions just come to you at the very right time.

So as I took you through my flow of ideas, what do you think was my point? Surprise, surprise! None, whatsoever. It was all for the joy of it, for the fun of it and purely for the exhilaration I felt when I wrote all of it down.'Wait, what!', you'd say. Read this again and you might just begin to see that statement applying to the bigger picture here. Have you got the cosmic joke yet?. It's not about the destination, it's all about the journey.