Whose scorecard are you using?

Do we really need any scorecard to evaluate our lives? Not really, but we all use one. It is inevitable to review and judge our personal and professional lives using some parameters or scorecards. The problem is we all use the scorecard handed over to us by either our parents, friends, family, religion, or society. We are told what it means to be a successful person. Some common items of that scorecard are a degree from a reputable college/university, a high-paying job in a reputed company, a nice home, and a car, even better if you have a private jet, a loving family with kids (better if they are biological), regular vacations at exotic locations, and early retirement. These are just a few parameters ingrained in our minds to evaluate a successful person. The question is not whether these parameters are right or wrong, or whether we should judge our lives based on these parameters, but whether these parameters are selected by us or by someone else. There is nothing wrong with desiring things prescribed for a successful person by the media or society if that's what we want. However, the question is do we really want them? It would be really odd if everyone in any society wanted to live their life based on one standard scorecard. Humans are complex animals and it is impossible for all of us to desire the same things unless we all are brainwashed. We all should have our own scorecard to live a more balanced and fulfilled life. But the problem is we are not taught to develop our own scorecard. Neither our family nor education teaches us to do that. We are given examples of previously successful people are are told to idolize them. The result is most of us either have no clue how to develop our own scorecard or adopt a scorecard handed to us as our own and evaluate our lives. Once we fail to develop our own scorecard, we may score high on the one we are using but still feel empty or unhappy from inside and keep wondering why are we not feeling the happiness and fulfillment that we are supposed to feel. The reason may be that what we chased we never wanted in the first place, it's like running in the wrong race and after winning not being happy with the award. Everyone has to climb their own Everest, my challenges, difficulties, and limitations are different than most around me, I cannot judge my success or failure based on someone else. Similarly, everyone needs to have their own scorecard, other's scorecards can be used as a template but ultimately we need to come up with our own. Only and only a scorecard prepared by us by carefully analyzing our goals and limitations will do justice to measuring our success and failure. 

We all have our outer success, based on the parameters that society, our family, and other people around us value, and our inner success, this what we feel based on our own desires and passions. Most of us care a lot about outer success because that's what we are made to believe to be a universal parameter to measure success. However, only we know what defines and matters for our inner success, it may or may not include all or any of the parameters set by others defining everyone's outer success, this is why I am emphasizing preparing our own scorecard and evaluating our life based on that not based on some standard template. So, whenever you feel frustrated, feel that you are a failure, or going through a low phase in your life, don't forget to ask, whose scorecard are you using?    

Thank you for reading and please share your views on this topic. 

© Vinay Thakur, All rights reserved, Vinay can be reached at thevinay2022@gmail.com 

Take a break

We all struggle to find free time in today's fast-paced world. Now with the added dimension of the work-from-home option in our professional life, it is easy to fall into the trap of constant productivity and busyness. With the advent of social media, everyone seems to be happy and rich. We often feel pressure to work long hours, take on additional work, and always be available to others so that others are happy with us and we keep our good professional standing as many things in our life depend on it. In all this, we neglect one thing, "taking a break," even though we all know that it is necessary to take a break regularly for our overall well-being and productivity. 

Many of us know that taking a break is necessary for us to recharge and renew our energy, but we fail to practice this in our daily lives. When we are constantly working or doing anything without a break (like binge-watching TV shows), our physical and mental energy levels get depleted. This can lead to burnout, stress, and even physical health problems such as fatigue, anxiety, headaches, and insomnia. Energy drinks, tea, coffee, or any other stimulants can help a little but they can add their own complexity and it is best to avoid getting dependent on any stimulant. A regular break from our routine work gives our bodies and minds a chance to rest and recover, it allows us to return to work with renewed energy and focus. 

Taking a break can improve our creativity and problem-solving abilities. It may sound like a stretch, but think about it. When we are constantly working on any given task, our minds can become stagnant and saturated, making it difficult to come up with new ideas or solutions thus hampering our creativity. A simple occasional break allows us to step back from the problem and approach it from a different angle, a fresh mind can lead to fresh insights and creative solutions. There is another unintended benefit of taking a break, it can improve our relationships with others. When we are constantly working, or are busy with some personal stuff, we may unintentionally ignore and neglect our relationships with friends, family, and colleagues. Taking a break allows us to spend time with our loved ones. It allows us to participate in more social activities, catch up with the lives of others, and build stronger and mutually rewarding relationships with those around us. This can lead to a sense of connection, belonging, and fulfillment that can improve our overall well-being. I don't think everyone appreciates this aspect of taking a break, but I feel this is one of the important benefits that is often ignored.

Taking a break also improves our overall productivity and well-being. While it may seem counterintuitive, taking regular breaks can actually help us to get more done in less time. Working continuously for long periods is not always the most efficient way to finish a task, it often leads to fatigue and stagnation. By taking regular breaks, we can avoid burnout, maintain our energy levels, and maintain our creativity. This often leads to a more productive outcome by increasing our focus and allowing us to accomplish more in less time. Therefore, taking regular breaks is essential for our overall well-being and productivity. Please take a break. Allow yourself to rest and recharge. This will improve your physical as well as mental health. It will also improve your creativity and strengthen your relationships. Take a break. 

Thank you for reading and please share your views on this topic. 

© Vinay Thakur, Vinay can be reached at thevinay2022@gmail.com

Failure can be an option

We all want to succeed. Mainly because we are taught that success is the most desired outcome of any activity in which we voluntarily engage, this is true for both, our personal and professional lives. We are taught to stay away from failures, as they hurt our careers, and our image, and make us less desirable entities. However, even though failures are not desirable, they are inevitable, especially for people who take risks or proactively seek new challenges and want to get out of their comfort zone. Failure is not easy to handle, not just because it is not on the list of desired outcomes when we start but also because we are not trained to deal with failures. We are not even taught to expect failures, even if someone predicts or suspects failure we label that person as a pessimist, a naysayer. These are just a few reasons why many people think that failure is not an option. However, failure can be an option, should be an option, and is an option, especially when we want to tread an unknown terrain.

Success or failure, both teach unique lessons, many of these lessons are exclusive to each other, what we learn from success cannot be learned from failure and vice versa. No doubt, success has its own charm and teaches us a lot, at the same time, failure has its own ways to enrich our lives. The lesson here is we need them both to experience our life to its fullest. If we fear failure, the first drawback is we become risk-averse, we try to be overcautious about everything. Being cautious is necessary and is a good thing, but being overcautious makes us fearful of every unknown aspect of life. One has to strike a balance between caution and risk, it can be different for different people, but too much of one thing is not good. Also, it is important to remember failure can be an option and is an option if we are willing to learn the valuable lessons that it provides. Without having the ability to learn lessons from failure and moving on we might only repeat the same mistakes resulting in the same results again and again.

Our fear of failure stops us from changing the status quo, challenging traditions, traveling unconventional paths, and being a risk-taker. To be a risk-taker does not mean to play with fire, that's stupidity. There is a difference between being adventurous and being stupid, there is a very thin line, but there is a line, and it's important to understand that. People who take risks or let's say dare to do something different are prone to fail. There is a reason why many don't try to break the conventional mold or try to travel a less-traveled path, there is a risk of failure, and many are not willing to face that risk. Apart from teaching us humility and the fact that there can be other factors apart from one's hard work that contribute towards the final outcome, once we make failure one of the options we open many more avenues for ourselves. If we do not worry about failure we are more prone to try new things. If we start considering failure as one of the possible and acceptable outcomes we will be more fearless in our approach, we should be able to put our 100% effort and not overly concerned about the final outcome. These things are only possible if we accept that failure can be an option.

Thanks for reading and please share your opinion about this topic. 

Randomness

Randomness plays a huge part in our day-to-day lives. Whether we like it or not, we want it or not, it does affect us in many ways, shapes our behavior and thinking, and many times, the path we choose is the result of how we react to many random events in our lives. People may call this randomness by different names, some may call it destiny, god's will, luck, opportunities, or whatever name they find fit to describe that event. The reason why we don't call it randomness is that we humans hate randomness, we love and crave predictability. Humans love to find answers to all their questions and this is one of the main reasons for our progress so far. The innate curiosity of the human mind has resulted in many inventions and discoveries which transformed our lives dramatically. Our need to have certainty in our lives is monumental, it is evident from the ways we have structured our surroundings. This need for certainty is the reason why we invented and preserved the concept of family, marriage, homeownership, money, national boundaries, laws, etc. This list is very long and can go forever. The point is, that we strive to have certainty in our lives as much as we can, we are not comfortable when things become uncertain. At the same time, humans are curious about what's next? At some point in our lives, most of us ask the question why me (when something bad happens to us)? Or why not me (when something unusually good happens with others)?

Randomness is so prevalent in our lives that it is hard to ignore it, that is why we give call it by so many different names. Many things that happen around us are a result of random happenings. We can always find reasons once the event occurs, as it is said, it is always easy to connect the dots backward. It is easy to explain once you know the full picture after the event has happened. Most of the time we can find out why an ambulance arrived within minutes and saved someone's life or why it was late and the person couldn't be saved, why some team lost from the winning situation, why we got the job, or why we didn't, why some businesses work and why some don't. However, it is hard to predict any fullproof formula for any of these things. As I said, we try our best to structure things around us so that we can avoid randomness as much as possible, but it still plays a huge role in our lives.

So, what shall we do? Just keep quiet and wait for random things to happen to us? Definitely not. We should try our best to do what we want to do and factor in the role of randomness. If things work, good, if they don't, move on. If we try our level best, the result is not in our hands, and if it's not as per our expectation, not our fault. Remember, there are many things apart from our own efforts which can be a deciding factor towards the final result. The purpose of this post is not to discourage or demotivate anyone but to make readers aware of the role of randomness and appreciate it. Once we recognize the role of randomness we tend to focus on our own efforts and not worry overtly about the end result. Anxiety, stress, tension, etc. are parts of our day-to-day lives, many times, they help us to stay focused and act as a reminder of what needs to be done. We must use all these feelings to our advantage. Appreciate the role of randomness, maybe it will help to understand or ignore some things happening around us, including some election results that even experienced pollsters get wrong. 😀

Thanks for reading and please share your opinion about this topic. 

The dangers of stereotyping the definition of fun and enjoyment

"Why don't you go on a vacation and have some fun, what's the point in working so much and earning those big bucks if you don't want to have some fun?" A coworker asked one of my friends. My friend could not come up with any explanation as he didn't have any. He knew that his coworker wouldn't believe if he said that he loved his work so much that he didn't need any other enjoyment to really enjoy his life. For him his work was fun and that's all he needed to feel content and happy. However, for most of us, this is not true and I feel stereotyping the definition of fun and enjoyment is the main reason behind this.

There are indeed some people around us who love their work more than anything else and they don't feel the need to do anything else. But many of us can't even imagine that work or studying can be so much fun. The problem is we have stereotyped the definition of fun and enjoyment. We are told that ONLY fun is going on vacation, partying in pubs, having drinks with friends, spending time with friends and family, or watching movies, almost anything but not our work. Many or all of these activities indeed are entertaining and many people enjoy engaging in these activities, but it is not necessary that everyone needs to do them to have fun. I don't understand why people find it hard to digest that someone can have fun while doing their job or while studying? Why study or job is stereotyped as boring and hard, why can't they be super fun and entertaining like other so-called entertaining activities? The main reason behind this stereotyping is that most people don't do a job of their choice or study in the area they really love. They stay in their job even though they don't enjoy a bit of that work and they study subjects in which they have zero interest. Most people do these things (job and study) just because someone told them that this is what everyone does and this is the only way to be successful in this world. They were made to believe that this is how the world works. The effect is, that most people feel that they are stuck with this so-called routine life and try to seek refuge in enjoyment methods which are again prescribed to them by their surroundings to make up for their boring life.

Our society has stereotyped definitions of work, fun, and enjoyment. Why does work need to be always boring? Why weekend culture is so prevalent as if people don't live their lives during the weekdays? Why people who don't go to parties, go on vacation, drink, or watch movies but focus on their work and studies are perceived as boring and someone who is not having any fun? The danger behind such stereotyping is that many people start believing in such categorization and they feel increasingly unsatisfied with their lives. They feel that their life is boring due to their job and students feel they are trapped in studying and they need to do something different to have fun and enjoyment in their lives. The reason for this misunderstanding is simple, we fail to understand that someone can also have fun while working on their job, studying for their degree, or doing research because we are not taught that these things can be fun. Yes, one needs to have a healthy atmosphere at a workplace to enjoy it, one needs to love the subject and have to have great teachers to enjoy their studies, but these things are not hard to find in today's world. There are a variety of industries where one can choose to work as per their liking. The number of universities and courses they offer is vast and one can choose any subject of their liking to study (online or on campus). We can have fun while working if we find our work really exciting and find some purpose behind doing it. If we look forward to the knowledge and wisdom we could get by studying the subject which we like studies will not be boring. One needs a break from everything, there is nothing wrong with taking breaks, not because that particular thing is boring or torturous, but to bring a variety in life and this could be a good reason to do different activities.

Strenuous physical or mental efforts are part of work and study, these things can be very demanding physically and mentally, and some people might say that this is the part that makes these things less interesting and boring. But, gym or sports also demand physical and mental stamina, but many enjoy going to the gym or playing some sport. They don't mind the physical and mental rigor that sports and gym demand. Similarly, if we can have the same attitude towards our work and studies these things can also give us the same enjoyment. Please try this approach and then you will realize that there is no need to live life only during weekends, but weekdays can also be equally rewarding and exciting. Our work consumes a major part of our active lives and we invest the best part of our youth in studying, so it is better if we also enjoy these things. Let's fill our lives with unlimited fun and excitement.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

The art of happiness

A disclaimer first, this post has nothing to do with the book "The Art Of Happiness" written by Dalai Lama, I have not read the book but only came to know about it when I was searching if anyone has already used this title and no surprise that Mr. Dalai Lama has already written a book about it. The post is about my own experiences and struggles, it has nothing to do with the above-mentioned book.

If we look at the history of human civilization, the level and type of stress changes generation after generation. We improved our physical comforts a lot because of progress in technological aspects of our lives. Our generation has more access to travel, education, clean water, food, information, medicines, and many other things compared to our previous generations. However, our generation also has more complicated psychological problems. We also have two parallel worlds now: the real world and a virtual world in which we live simultaneously. Despite all this progress in the physical world, why are we struggling to keep up the same speed in the psychological or mental world? Why suicide rates are going up? Why are we not happy and more connected with each other and help each other in moments of need and desperation? Questions are many, and each individual needs to search for an answer for himself or herself. We humans are extremely complex organisms and hence our problems are complex and their solutions are going to differ from person to person.

Can we learn how to be happy on our own or is it something that entirely depends on our surroundings? Is being happy is a habit or an art? I think one can definitely learn how to be happy. Happiness is extremely personal and this is what people are forgetting, they are getting more into comparative happiness. I see that many people base their own happiness on how happy others are around them. They want to buy that dream house because everyone in their age group has such a house, they want that car because that's a status symbol, they want to have a job with a six-figure income because that's what they are being told a successful career is. Many of these perceptions and beliefs are acquired without giving any serious thought to what we actually want and what are our own needs and desires that make us happy. The biggest problem is that this conditioning of mind starts so early in our lives that we don't even develop a capacity to think about our own needs and desires. This conditioning wires our minds in such a way that we knowingly or unknowingly start walking on a path paved for us by culture, religion, media, society, or people around us. Mind it, this conditioning is very intense and organized, it's impossible to escape it.

So, how to learn the art of being happy? The basic question is, do we even know what the real happiness means? Is the pursuit of personal happiness worth the effort it will take, or it is better to surrender to what our society dictates to us? Why anyone should believe whatever I am writing is the right way to think about happiness? Actually, that's the whole point of the post, the post is not about educating you on what is happiness and how to be happy, but it is about recognizing the problems that are prohibiting us from being happy and being aware of forces that are pushing us on a fabricated path of happiness. The first step that anyone can take is to stop engaging in comparative happiness. Not everyone has to go on a vacation, and not everyone needs to own a house or a car. We all are different and there is nothing wrong with it. Our sex, sexual orientation, race, nationality, or any other trait doesn't make us any better or worse. We all are unique and we must recognize this aspect not only about ourselves but about others around us as well. We also need to become aware of what are we actually seeking, for example, education is important not from which college or university you get it. It is important to have fun while doing your job, so if you are dragging every day to work then it is not the right area of work for you, it's time to try something different. There are many small steps that we can take to take control of our own lives. 

We need to enjoy the journey, struggle, efforts, and preparations as much as we enjoy the destination. If we focus too much on the end product then we miss so much which is equally important and on which we spend more time than the end result. We need to recognize that failures, fear, anxiety, depression, stress, joy, and grief all are an integral part of our lives. These emotions are bound to come we need to recognize them and be conscious of our mental hygiene. We should give equal importance to our mental hygiene as we give it to our physical hygiene. All these things will help us to learn the art of happiness. But please remember, there is no universal formula to learn this art. Everyone has to find their own way, you can only decide what makes you happy or sad. You can only decide when you want to buy the house or what type of profession you want to choose, others can always help you to make these decisions, but the final decision should be yours and yours only. 

Learn to spend some time with yourself, and try to understand your own identity and value. We get too busy in our daily struggles. These struggles consume us so much that we don't get time to think about who we are and what we really want. If this post kindles a desire to search for your own path of happiness, then it has served its purpose. No matter how different that path is, how weird you think you are, this is your path. Take all help that you can, find people who love and support you, and find people who are willing to invest in your wellbeing, this all will help you to find your own path. We must try to spread love and compassion, this is a duty of every human as there is always a need for more love and compassion. Imagine a world where all are happy and no matter how impossible that task looks we can at least give it a shot. Let's try to make this world a happier place, and let's start by making happy ourselves first. 

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

When life gets busy

There are times in everyone's life when a person gets extremely busy, there is no question of so-called work-life balance as your professional work completely takes over your daily routine and everything else gets a back seat. This is not a bad situation as such, but because of some perceptions, many people don't enjoy it. I personally have no problem if this happens once in a while as being busy is always better for me rather than having no work at all. Presently I am facing one such phase, things are so busy that I didn't find time to write a blog post, this never happened since I started writing this blog. But I can't complain, work is as important as anything else in my life so it gets the attention it requires and I try to do it to the best of my abilities. I see sometimes people complain about their work, and talk about the myth called work-life balance. This mainly happens if you consider your work as a not integral part of your life. According to me, our professional life (which we all call work) is an integral part of our life, so when we separate work and life that means we consider our work as something that is not part of our life or something which always affects our life adversely. Actually, our professional work is a very important part of our lives. For many, it becomes an integral part of our identity, so, we should not look at it as something separate from the rest of life. Ultimately, when things get busy we need to prioritize the stuff as time becomes more valuable, this is the best strategy to deal with this situation, complaining doesn't help much.

This post is going to be very brief as I have some other things to do. Writing a blog, playing cricket, reading, exercising, and spending time with friends and family are among many things that I enjoy. At the same time, I also enjoy my work. No matter what I try to find some time to do most of the things that I enjoy, this is why I am writing this post today. Nowadays I am having a great time with my colleagues in the lab, the same way I enjoyed playing cricket at East Rock Park. It is good to remain busy in life, but the choice has to be ours about in what ways we want to remain busy.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Sara's encounter with rural India

During my India visit this time, my daughter Sara visited my ancestral villages in the state of Uttar Pradesh (UP) for the first time. She was less than a year old when she visited my paternal village, but she didn't have any memories of that visit. There is a huge difference between the lifestyle of today's city kids and life in undeveloped rural places. Because of this, I was really curious about how she would react to this visit. The weather in August is not very kind in most of UP, it is extremely hot and humid, and occasional rain brings some relief but otherwise, it is somewhat extreme weather, especially for someone who is not used to living there. When we came out of Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport, it was like entering a hot oven, one could clearly feel the difference between the temperature and humidity of the air inside the airport and outside of it. 

Her first impression of the holy city of Varanasi was not that great, she really disliked excessive honking by drivers on the road. Initially, she tried to count how many times my cousin who was driving the car honked, but after 10-15 times within a short span of 2-3 minutes, she gave up that task. The presence of stray dogs and other animals on the road was also surprising for her. Actually, she has seen these things in movies, however, in Pune where we spend most of our time during India visits, this scene is not very common, but this is not the case in Varanasi or other parts of the UP. Also, her utter discomfort with Indian-style toilets and lack of toilet paper was clearly visible, she didn't complain about this, but I could see that she was trying as much as possible to avoid using such toilets. Then there were these mosquitoes, who bothered me also, I was at least familiar with these problems, but for Sara dealing with them was a nightmare. The presence of a cow shade in the close vicinity of the room where she slept didn't help the cause, but she managed to survive and still trying to figure out why the heck people keep cows in their home when cow dunk stinks so much? She also visited a few homes in Varanasi with air conditioners and really loved the cool and less humid environment, it was like an oasis for her. Thanks to one unwritten political rule in UP, which is if an MP or MLA representing your area is occupying some important post in government, that area gets a good supply of electricity and preferred treatment. The current prime minister Mr. Modi is an MP from Varanasi, therefore, it has a reasonably uninterrupted supply of electricity, so, Mr. Modi should get credit for this. I do criticize him or his government whenever I feel that they are not doing a good job, so, I must give him credit wherever it is due. One should appreciate Mr. Modi's effort to make his constituency a better place, I hope people cooperate with him. 

From Varanasi we went to my paternal and maternal villages, we just stayed there for a couple of days. The supply of electricity follows the same political rule in UP villages also, as our village representative is not from the ruling party, it didn't get any preferred treatment. Electricity went off at 8 PM on the day we reached and supply was not restored for the next 36 or 40 hours. We had to rent a power generator to survive that brutal heat and humidity, even sitting right in front of the cooler was not that comfortable, but it was better compared to not having anything. Among all these inconveniences and discomfort, Sara had a great time meeting some really wonderful people. Wherever she went people greeted her with a lot of enthusiasm and joy. They all went out of their way to make her feel comfortable, they tried to make sure that she didn't feel discomfort because of the harsh weather of lack of certain facilities. This was a really special part of her experience, she disliked the place but loved the people. She was amazed to see their tolerance level and ability to adjust to harsh conditions. I was also surprised to see her efforts to adjust to a totally alien environment. This was a surprise for me as it was coming from a girl who used to make a big deal about a slow internet connection. She also tried her best to communicate with those people and engage in conversation to learn about their lives and problems (especially with kids of her age). Wherever required she tried to break the ice and initiate discussions and also tried her best to make those kids feel comfortable. She commented on various gender discriminatory practices like ghunghat pratha, which is similar to the burqa where women are expected to cover their faces in front of elders or strangers. Most of the time, people ignored her comments, but even then she tried to tell them that these things were not right. We also traveled to the river Ganga near my village, I love to visit the Ganga River at this spot rather than on any ghats of Varanasi. At Varanasi, the ghat water is very dirty and the atmosphere is heavily commercialized, a lot of so-called holy men (pandas) try to mob you to do some useless rituals and extract money. But the same river near my village appears really calm, clean, and friendly. Its natural surroundings with birds like peacocks and many trees along with one small temple make it more beautiful. For me, this river is not any more special than many other rivers, but just because some of my childhood memories are associated with it, I love to visit this place whenever I can.

Sara's encounter with Indian railways was not that pleasant, two of our trains got canceled on very short notice, and the one that actually departed left almost 16 hours later than its scheduled departure time. I wrote about this experience in my one of previous blog posts. Actually, this experience had a really negative impact on her mind about the state of governance in India, she was shocked to see utter chaos at the train station with no one having any clue about at what time exactly the train would depart. I had to make a lot of effort to tell her that this was not a regular scenario, but she was not at all convinced. I don't think she will dare to travel by Indian railway again. But the good part is that her overall experience was positive, she really loved people and will always remember their loving and caring nature. I am sure love and affection for these people will bring her back again to this place. I wanted her to have a wholesome experience of India, I wanted her to know that India is not just a city like Pune or Mumbai where things are very comfortable (except for traffic and pollution). When we experience things personally we learn more compared to just hearing about it, watching it on screen, or reading in a book. I am glad that she chose to come with me on this journey to rural India. I also discovered a new person in her which I didn't know so far. It was a learning experience for both of us and I hope she takes all the positives from this experience and uses them to grow as a person.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Let go of the need to be right

We all like to be right all the time, in every situation, in every discussion, and during every argument. We all assume that we are right while pursuing any argument, and I don't think there is anything wrong with it. Most of us feel that it is not only important for our reputation, but it is our duty to be right, and most of us hate when someone proves us wrong. Some of us are so convinced by our beliefs and thoughts that we feel that whatever we say is always right and people opposing us are always wrong, this belief is especially very predominant and strong among fanatics. It is all so good and nice if everything goes according to our expectations, we feel happy if we manage to win arguments, and score points over our opponents during discussions and debates. This feeling of being right drives us to participate in many debates and discussions passionately. We expect ourselves to be on the right side all the time and many of us take the easier route we start believing that whatever side we support is the right side. This makes us defend our religion, political party, ideology, and political or religious leader, no matter what they do or what they say, we use all our talent and intellect to defend them. This need to be right all the time has created rigid walls within our society. People are not willing to find any common ground to solve many important problems that we are facing today. People are more interested in proving themselves right and others wrong rather than finding solutions. I think that no single ideology, religion, political party, or any other discipline has the answer to all the questions and problems that we face today, we need to take the best from each field and try our best collectively to solve the issues in front of us. But the need to be right all the time is one of the major hurdles in bringing all interested parties on board to create some amicable solution for many solvable problems.

As a person who has both political and social views, I participate in a variety of discussions, some of them very fruitful and rewarding where I learn some new things, and some of them total waste of time leading to useless arguments. I try to enjoy both types of discussions and participate in them as long as I have some fun and get some knowledge. I always say that I like it when people prove me wrong, especially when they do it by producing reliable and verifiable evidence against the points which I am arguing for. I like it not because I love being proven wrong, but because when it happens, I learn something new, I learn something that I ignored or failed to notice, it teaches me something, and allows me to grow and improve my knowledge. I would be lying if I said that I don't feel bad or disappointed when this happens, but in the end, I feel good to learn something new, after all, I don't know everything and I don't have answers to all the questions. Because of my desire to learn something new, I don't feel the need to be right all the time, rather I am always looking for updated data to update my views and opinions. My aim in participating in any discussion or watching any debate is to know more about various facts associated with that topic. As humans we all are bound to make some mistakes, we all are bound to mess up or say something which is not right. The best way is not to deny it or sulk over it if someone proves us wrong, but to look at the evidence and accept the mistake, learn from it, and move on.

I have to be prepared to accept that I might be wrong. This is one of the basic understandings one should have while participating in any discussion. Thinking that we are always right puts a lot of pressure on us as well as makes us lose our ability to learn any new things from our opponents. Once we let go of the desire to be right or stop thinking that we are always right, then we become more tolerant of new ideas and views. Once we get rid of this desire to be always right, we become more receptive and open to alternate views. It is very difficult to get rid of our bias of being right all the time, but at least we should try. Please broaden your horizons and let go of the need to be right. Don't be afraid to commit mistakes or accept that you were wrong, but also don't forget to learn a lesson from them and move on.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

The importance of simplicity in my life

It is said that simplicity is a virtue, and many of us also believe that we are living a simple life. People loved the simplicity of Mahatma Gandhi, the way he dressed, the way he lived, and the way he presented himself. He is perceived as one of the icons of simplicity in real life. I am personally not a big fan of lavish or exuberant lifestyles, I prefer simplicity, but I don't do it just for the sake of showing it off but I really like it as a way of life. Let me say in the beginning that this is going to be a very personal post, I will be talking a lot about myself, so, anyone who is not interested in reading about my life should feel free not to read this post. Simplicity can be defined by different people differently and here I am discussing my interpretation of it.

I remember reading a comment about Gandhi's lifestyle, "it costs a great deal of money to keep Gandhi living in poverty." This statement may or may not be true, and I am not very sure about the intention of the person who said it. But it is also a fact that simplicity is more appreciated or noticed more when it is practiced by people who can afford to live lavish or exuberant lives. So, the simple lifestyle of celebrities or business tycoons or any famous person is appreciated more than the simple life of some common person who is not well known. The simplicity of life which poor people are forced to practice is not something we talk about as we know that they don't have any other choice. I do recognize that Gandhi really believed in simplicity and his life is a great example of that, I am also one of the people who are greatly influenced by some of his thoughts. But in today's world, it is not easy to live that type of life unless you really believe in it. I am telling this from my personal experience. In today's world of consumerism and aggressive advertisement, where markets and corporations dictate almost everything in our lives, it is not easy to escape the force of consumerism. Today we live in a world where everything is judged by perception created by many alternate realities. Aggressive and attractive advertising creates many different perceptions about many things in people's minds. People are told what it means to be happy, how to live a perfect life, what it means to be beautiful, and so on. People all over the world are literally bombarded with messages where others tell them how to live their lives. This is how we get attached to a particular brand or crave only a particular model of phone, car, or clothing. It is not easy to escape this, these advertisements are designed to be very effective and are based on a lot of research about human psychology and data based on how the human mind works and responds to different stimuli. Slowly but steadily we start believing in these ideas. We start thinking about what these institutions want us to think. Having our own car becomes a need but not a luxury, going on a family vacation is considered a basic element of a happy family life, and owning our own home becomes a social necessity it is not enough just to have a reasonable comfortable accommodation. These are just a few examples I am citing to give an idea about the point of how we are slowly brainwashed by different elements of society. Many perceptions like these become an integral part of our lives and we start judging the world around us based on these standards prescribed to us by the market. 

I come from a very humble background, and my parents really worked hard to keep us afloat. They immigrated from their home state to a totally new state with a different culture and language in search of a better life. They tried their best to provide us with everything and I believe they did a great job within their own limitations. They wanted their kids not to face the same struggles and problems that they faced in their lives. For us, there was no other option than living a very simple life as we couldn't afford anything more, so, for us back then, simplicity didn't seem like a virtue but it felt like a forced thing, a bad joke by destiny on us. But slowly as I read more and as I matured as an adult I realized that it can be a virtue and can be a purposely chosen way of life, since then I decided to live as simple a life as possible, simple in terms of thinking and simple in terms of living within my own limits. It was a very conscious decision which was influenced by some great people about whom I read that time. I also understand that everyone can make their own definition of simplicity. Simplicity can differ from person to person. Therefore, let me make it clear that whatever I am talking about here is my interpretation of simplicity, my own definition of what I think is simple, others can define simplicity based on their own experiences. At the same time, I must also clarify that I don't judge people by their choice of lifestyle. According to me, everyone has the right to choose how to live their own life, it is a matter of personal choice. I totally understand that everyone's needs are different and we all have the right to pursue what we think is best for us. So, my advocacy of simple life should not be taken as criticism or condemnation for any other type of lifestyle. 

As I said, it is easy to live a simple life when you don't have any choice. Back in the days when I used to tell people that I liked this simple way of living and would try to live like this even if my financial situation changed, very few people believed me. Most of them thought that I was advocating simplicity just because I was forced to live that type of life because of our financial situation. It was the same when people didn't believe me when I talked about gender equality. They all said to me that I was talking about this just because I didn't have a daughter and that my thinking would change once I had a daughter of my own. Fortunately, our first child is a daughter and I still believe in gender equality. So far, I managed to hold on to my core beliefs but the truth is things can change any time. I am writing this based on where I stand today and what I believe today, one can argue that there is no guarantee that things will remain the same in the future and I totally acknowledge this concern. But things like equality, simplicity, freedom of expression, and kindness are very important to me and I value them immensely. People around me also help me by giving their continuous feedback which keeps me on track. I love my choice and I hope everyone gets to live the type of life they want, after all, happiness and success are all about the freedom to make our own choices. Simplicity is my choice, what is yours?

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Am I important?

At some point in our lives, we all get frustrated, feel dejected or depressed, and ask this question to ourselves, am I important to anyone? This question is then followed by many other related questions like, what is the purpose of my life? Why am I here? Why am I doing this? What's the purpose of doing all this hard work? Does anyone care about what I think or what I do? Is this all going to change anything? Questions like these are many but there is no single or easy answer to all these questions. Depending on the situation or phase of life one might think about any one of these questions more than others, but they all are somewhat related to each other. Once these questions dominate our minds, we start doubting ourselves, we question our abilities, we sometimes feel helpless, and we wonder why people don't understand us? Some people also feel dejected or depressed in such situations. Most of the time, these questions are the result of some not-so-favorable incidents happening around us. When our best efforts don't produce the desired results, we doubt our capabilities. When we face unwarranted personal criticism just for expressing our opinion, we doubt whether it is worth expressing them. Sometimes consistent personal attacks and inability to connect with others make people wonder about their self-worth. Such situations are not easy to handle for everyone, some people face so much trauma and agony that they take the extreme step like committing suicide because of such depressing feelings. Some could handle these feelings considering them as a part and parcel of daily life but for some, they get really serious and complicated, which is why it is necessary to address these questions seriously.

There is nothing wrong with these questions or feelings but none of this should result in chronic negativity, depression, or self-doubt. Many of us face this problem of self-worth sometime in our lives. Whatever work we do, no matter how small or big, it has some relevance and meaning. We all contribute towards our society in some way and every contribution is meaningful and important. When we realize that we all may not be the same, but we all are equal, then we learn to respect each other, and once we respect others, we also receive respect in return. None of us have answers to all the questions, therefore we all are here to learn from each other, and we should understand and acknowledge this fact. Accepting that we could be wrong helps us to listen to others. Once we start listening, we realize that there are many like us who face similar problems and doubts and we can help each other. Any problem we try to solve alone might look impossible to solve, but collectively we may be able to find some answers. Polarization and intolerance towards each other are major concerns today. When they cross certain limits, they take the form of racism, communal riots, wars, genocides, or some other form of violence. Our mind can be our best friend or worst enemy. It is not always possible to control or avoid negative feelings altogether, they are bound to come in some form, and we need to deal with them. We don't need anyone's validation to prove our self-worth, our own belief in ourselves is enough.

According to me, the correct answer to the question "Am I important" is; yes, I am important and I am significant and so is everyone else. We all are important so none of us should underestimate our powers and the significance of our role in this world. Sometimes we see the results of our efforts immediately and sometimes it takes time to see them. There are examples of many great people from history where their efforts showed desired results much later after their death but this didn't stop them from giving their best towards their goal. Things like self-respect, the ability to honor others, listen to other's views, and kindness automatically come to us once we realize that we all are equally important. The question "Am I important" doesn't intend to display the feeling that others are not important, rather this question arises in mind when we somehow start feeling that we are less important than others. So, it may not be easy to avoid such questions coming to our mind but we can try not to get affected negatively by it. This blog is just a small effort to provide a simple answer to this complicated question.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Self-discipline is the best discipline

Most of us struggle to bring some discipline into our day-to-day life. Few people can manage to live a very disciplined life, but most of us struggle. We all want to exercise regularly, but find some excuse not to do it, want to read books, but watch more TV, we want to eat healthy food, but can't resist the temptation of junk food. We try to get some motivation to bring this much-needed discipline which can make our lives better. Some find a remedy somewhere to overcome this problem, but most just keep on struggling for that much-needed discipline.

I feel the major problem here is that we always look for solutions outside as if the problem is imposed on us because of some external force. The actual problem is that I indulge in all these not-so-good (or bad) habits myself no one forces me to do these things. I prefer to eat unhealthy food, and I choose to watch TV instead of doing exercise so it should be me who need to believe that this is wrong and should be changed rather than someone else telling me to do this. As long as I feel that I am a victim of these bad habits and not the perpetrator who is doing this I will always blame those habits but not myself for whatever effect they have on me. Smoking, eating a lot of sugar, and watching a lot of TV can have a bad effect on health (sedentary lifestyle), we all know this. So, why do we still do these things? I agree that some of these things are really addictive and sometimes it's really difficult to control but the truth is we all know the bad effects of these habits and still, we do it. There are many articles, research papers, and books that explain the side (or bad) effects of these things on our health, most of us read about them, and we are aware of these things but still fail to act accordingly. Rarely any of us is forced into these habits, we all choose them ourselves. Aggressive marketing by food companies and heavy advertising affect our minds and influence our choices but I feel all this happens mainly because lack of self-discipline.

The initial part of our life is often spent under some adult supervision, they protect us, they also try to introduce some discipline in our lives. This external force imposes some rules and regulations on us. Most of us learn many good habits while going through this process. Once their control on our lives gets reduced (college days and life after that) we are free to do whatever we want. This is where self-discipline becomes really important. Self-discipline is very necessary when there is no external control. When there is no external force or pressure that can stop you from doing something (right or wrong) then self-discipline plays a major role. It's only our own mind which has ultimate authority, it controls our reactions to every stimulus from our environment. There are many laws, rules, and regulations but still, people commit crimes and break laws, that's why I feel self-discipline is a must for everyone as external constraints can only help so much. Self-discipline teaches us how to behave, and what is proper or improper under given circumstances. Patience, tolerance, and humility are some of the qualities that are becoming rare and rare. External force or pressure works only up to a certain extent, no one can force anyone to be humble or respect others' opinions. This has to come from that person's mind. Any number of rules or laws can not eradicate all corruption or discrimination from our society, only self-consciousness and self-discipline can do this, that's why self-discipline is the best discipline.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Is there life after death?

"Is there any life after death?" this question has been debated for centuries and still we don't have any conclusive answer. There are many speculations from different groups who believe in after-death, they also speculate about what might happen to a person after their death. Some of the descriptions sound very interesting, but at the same time, they sound more like fiction stories than reality. I never bothered about this question because it really never caught my attention. But recently I heard a few wonderful lectures by Professor Kagan from Yale University where the topic of death was discussed in somewhat detail and while listening to some of those lectures this issue came to my mind. I thought blog readers might be interested in this topic as it's closely related to most religions. Many religions talk very interesting things about life after death. I also see many people are worried about this, sometimes they worry about this more than their life before death. The curiosity of people in this subject prompted me to do some more reading in this area. Personally, I am not that much interested in this subject but as this subject is very closely related to organized religion I think it's worth discussing it here.

It will be interesting to see how we define death? Normally end of life is considered death. Whenever anything stops working completely (for whatever reason) and can not be revived under any circumstances we pronounce it as dead. Basically, death is considered the end of life, so how there can be life after the end of life? The question itself doesn't make much sense, it sounds very contradictory. According to Professor Kagan, this is like asking if is there any food on my plate after I finish my food or if is there any movie after the end of the movie or something like that? Either you have not finished your food (so it means it is still there) or you finished it (it's not there). Similarly,  either you are alive or you are dead. These two events are separate from each other, they are two ends of one linear thread. But many people still believe that there can be a life after the end of life, they don't see any contradiction in this belief. This means either definition of death as the end of life is wrong or no one really dies (as according to them life continues after death). For many people and religions, it is not a full stop (end) but a comma (intermission). Some religions (like Hinduism) believe in many cycles of life and death but in this case also there is no very clear definition of life and death. For many other religions, death is the end of life on this planet and there are no life-death cycles. According to them after death, there is an evaluation of our personal performance (about what you did in your life on this planet).  Based on your report card you get a reward or a punishment. So there are quite a few different theories about life, death, and what happens after death. They all try to tell us what happens after a person's death. Many of them also believe that there is something called soul, which continues to exist even after our death.

It will be also interesting to know how we understand the presence of life? On what basis do we say that particular person or thing is alive? We normally use certain parameters (like pulse rate and heartbeats), check for certain signs, and then based on them we can say whether that person is alive or not. Can we use similar tests to check the presence of life after death? The answer is "No."

According to most religions that believe in after-death events all these post-death events happen with our soul (because our physical body is destroyed after death). There is no scientific (direct or indirect) evidence about any of these theories no matter from which religion or scripture they come. These theories exist because people believe them blindly. There are some news reports and even published books that talk about the near-death experiences of some people. Based on these accounts authors of these books try to claim that their scriptures give accurate descriptions about heaven or hell. These books or interviews are often cited as proof of that religion's claim about the existence of after-death life or some extra-terrestrial world where the Gods live. But the truth is that there is no scientific evidence for any of these theories and claims. Even though some of these books are written by professional medical doctors, they lack unbiased verifiable scientific data about their claims. These types of books don't serve any real purpose other than making people believe in concepts like heaven and hell. So far, I haven't found any reliable evidence that confirms the presence of heaven, hell, or life after death. I think this is more of a philosophical debate rather than a scientific one. The concept of life after death offers people some solace in the event of death of loved ones. It also helps them to overcome the fear of their own death. This gives them a ray of hope that not everything is lost after the death of their dear ones, they are somewhere safe and sound, and one day they will reunite with them. This thought of after-death life is a very beautiful and comforting concept for many, and that's why people want to believe in it. This thinking or belief helps to take away some pain and suffering from tragic events like death, that's why I think it's very popular.

The purpose of this post is not to hurt anyone's feelings but just to have some discussion about this age-old question. I personally feel that whatever good or bad exists, it exists here on our planet. We live our entire life on this planet, our life begins here and ends here. We all, as an individual or as a group, create all good or bad things around us. Most of us face the consequences of our own actions. Our actions produce favorable or unfavorable results for us. I think that if people want to find they can find their own heaven (things that make them happy) or hell (things that make them terribly sad) on this planet itself, no need to look somewhere else. I feel we need to worry more about our lives before death than about any life after death.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Follow your dream

The title of this blog is a very lovely line to read, I don't know who said it, but we all must have come across it many times. We especially hear it during motivational talks or can find it in any motivational material. No doubt its meaning is very beautiful and it's one of the very inspiring quotes. But how easy it is to practice this thing in real life? How many people are lucky to have just one dream in their life that they can chase? What to do if one has more than one dream, how can one follow or chase all of them? There are many questions like this and this is my attempt to find some practical answers for some of these questions and also try to explain what I take from this quote. This is by no means my recommendation for others but just my point of view about following one's dreams, everyone needs to derive their own meanings from these types of lines.

At least in my case, my dreams kept on changing many times in my life till now. During various phases of my childhood and teenage, I wanted to become someone based on who influenced me during that phase of my life. I didn't even consciously choose my current career path, actually, this was not possible at least for me for various reasons. I never had the luxury of choosing what I wanted to study, my marksheet decided it for me. I am sure very few at that time or even today do this in India (choose a career path of their own interest). There can be various reasons for this like market demand and scope for that particular field, fierce competition, lack of awareness or options, and parent's pressure and expectations. I just walked in the direction in which life took me, gave my best possible efforts, expected good results, and landed where I am today. I have no major regrets for that and I am very happy with my overall journey. So far it has been an exciting and very rewarding experience for me. Eventually, I started liking the field that I chose and today I love it (chemistry, drug discovery), but honestly, it was not my dream or conscious choice to work in this field. I am sure many like me must have traveled a similar path in their life as far as their career choice is concerned. Now I dream of discovering a drug that can cure some major illness, want to work towards making people understand the usefulness and limitations of drugs, want to explain to them how and why drugs work or fail and what they can do to remain healthy. But honestly, none of these was my passion or dream when I entered this field as I had no clue about any of these things at that time.

Follow or chase your dream is easy advice to offer but can be very confusing to follow. No doubt, it sounds very romantic and inspirational and can motivate many people to pursue their own interests. This advice helped me many times in my life and this blog itself is the result of my dream to share my thoughts with others on a larger platform. But sometimes situations or our own limitations stop us from doing what we want to do, then depending on the situation it's better to take a pause and think about our next step and if required keep our dream on hold (but this doesn't mean to forget or to squash or kill it completely). This detour may help us to get to the situation where we can give it a try to bring it into reality. This is a practical way of pursuing our passions without getting too much in trouble because very few of us have the courage to put it all on the line to chase our passion. Many times things done purely with emotional instincts without much serious thinking may not produce the desired result. By this, I don't mean emotions are not important, but we need to strike a proper balance. It's also true that people learn from mistakes so one needs to make mistakes first to learn from them, at the same time, we can learn from others' mistakes also. We should not be scared to take risks or make mistakes for things we really care about and really want. After all, we live only once and we need to make the most out of it.

I chase my dreams as much as possible, and I take some calculated risks. So far this approach has suited me and produced the desired results for me. I see some people take enormous risks to chase their dreams, I admire them and respect them but I am not one of them (but you never know). I hope everyone finds their dream and figures out their own way to chase them because dreams are important, they give us new aims and new goals, give us a reason to wake up and work hard and we all need at least one such reason.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Pregnancy - a God's wish or just a biological phenomenon?

A few days back US Senate candidate from Indiana Richard Mourdock was in the news for his comment about abortion. Many so-called pro-life people (I don't know on what basis they call themselves pro-life) are against abortion and they debate heavily about when human life begins and how we can't reject a gift of God even if the person who is receiving it doesn't want to have that gift. It's really surprising, but even in a developed country like the USA this debate has been going on for decades and still, people don't have any consensus on this issue. 

The whole notion or hypothesis that human life is a gift from God sounds very unrealistic to me. We are also products of a biological process of reproduction like any other animal or insect on this planet. People don't call earthworm's life a gift from God. We don't call diseases like cancer, Malaria, small pox as gifts from God and try to preserve them. We rather call them deadly diseases and fight against them. Then what's so special about fertilization or conception? We interfere in many natural processes, that could be called God's will or wish like earthquakes, hurricanes, diseases, and our original appearance (by doing plastic surgery, makeup, growth hormones, etc. However, no one calls these acts a sin and condemns our efforts to eradicate them. Rather the techniques or inventions that help us to fight against all these things are considered as boons for the human race and we all feel lucky to have them. If we look closely human history is full of incidents about our fight against natural calamities (call them God's wish). Many battles we already won and some of them we are still fighting.

This post is not pro or anti-abortion. I personally think abortion is and should be the choice of a woman, after all, she has to bear that child and she must have the right to decide what is good for her health and her life. When we bring the topic of God and its will into to discussion of abortion and issues related to it clearly we are going off the track and blowing this issue out of proportion. These so-called pro-life activists don't want to support a gun ban in the US even after so many incidents that prove that it's dangerous. The right to bear arms is considered a fundamental right given by the Constitution (nothing pro-life here) but when it comes to abortion they think we should not interfere in God's will. There is no question here about the fundamental privacy rights of women regarding their health and body. They don't think it's pro-life to support the fight against global warming. Many of them don't even accept that human actions contribute to global warming. They even want to get rid of the Environment Protection Agency (EPA), which helps protect the environment and people but still, they call themselves 'pro-life' because they want to protect every fertilized human egg, no matter by what means it gets fertilized and whether that woman wants it or not.

The natural beginning and end of human life (or for that matter any life) are purely biological or natural phenomena. There is nothing divine here, we are a product or I must say a byproduct of some act that humans do for their pleasure (sexual intercourse). This is a simple fact about the origin of our life. For most animals, the sexual act is a mere seasonal or biological phenomenon for reproduction so that their species can survive, but not for humans. Like many other things (like eating, clothes, shelter) we have glamorized this act also. We are different from other animals in many ways because of our behavior and imagination and that includes our reproductive and sexual activity. Biologically it's the same. To fertilize an egg, a sperm has to meet with the egg and this initiates the reproductive process. There is nothing divine in it, natural reproduction won't happen unless these two things come together (whether God's will or not doesn't matter). Today, because of advanced technology same thing can be done in a test tube, and if we want we can create a new life in a lab (another proof that there is nothing divine in it because even humans can do it). At least in the case of other animals, their sexual desire and acts are controlled by the environment but we humans are immune to this, we control our sexual desires and acts. Rape, sexual abuse, extramarital affair, casual sex, or for that matter any sexual act between male and female has the potential to create a new life. It's not that only after certain rituals or social permissions (like marriage) reproduction happens. So why these people are still pretending that there is something divine in it? What's the problem in accepting that it's a mere biological phenomenon?

It's a woman who has to bear a child and face psychological and physical issues related to pregnancy and its aftermath. She should get to choose when she wants to take that responsibility that's why it's her right to have options for contraception and abortion. In many cases, mistakes happen or something goes wrong, then also it should be her decision to choose what she wants to do with her pregnancy. Teen pregnancy is a social issue and we need to educate kids about it but politicians and lawmakers should not decide whether women should bear a child or not. It's a personal choice of that woman. It's not an easy decision for a woman to take but nature has given her that right and we should not mess with that.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic. 

(Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing) 

Reference:
1. http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/richard-mourdock-god-at-work-if-rape-causes-pregnancy/2012/10/24/dc81932f-480d-468d-bae5-5c8dea35e97c_video.html
2. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/24/richard-mourdock-rape-pregnancy_n_2008385.html?utm_hp_ref=elections-2012
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shitala
4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Todd_Akin_%27legitimate_rape%27_and_pregnancy_comment_controversy

What Is the Purpose of Human Life?

Many religious texts dwell on this question. Many people also think about this question. After all, what is the purpose of human life? How are we different compared to other animals? Why do humans control most of the things on this planet? How do they get this superiority? Is there some special reason for it? Is there any special reason for the presence of humans on this planet? Different texts take somewhat different approaches to this question, but if we read religious texts, most of them say that the ultimate purpose of human life or birth is to serve the supreme entity, God. Some even go to the extent that we are all born to entertain that superpower! Many offer different rewards or explanations for why one should serve God, some say we have to liberate ourselves from the cycle of life and death, and some say we need to do this to go to some higher planet where life is better than what we get on this planet that is without old age, disease, miseries, and death. Some say to achieve liberation from human suffering. There are many explanations for why we have to indulge in the service of that superpower. There are many ways or methods recommended for that service. We can't see that superpower in person so there are many indirect ways recommended to fulfill our service requirement, some say by serving its creation (humans, we are believed to be created) we can serve God. We can engage in prayers or worship imagining God in some form or in a formless way to achieve that goal and I think this is the most popular way (praying in temples, Churches, Mosques, Synagogues, Gurudwaras or any other place).

So, what is the purpose of human life? We don't see many people following whatever is recommended in those books of various organized religions. Many people who claim or seem to be following that path are also filled with tremendous hatred toward people who are not from their camp, and their only purpose seems to be to bring more and more people into their camp so that it becomes bigger and bigger. Their ultimate aim seems to be to conquer the whole world and make it mono-religious. Are we supposed to be camp followers?  There are so many camps, which camp to follow? If the whole purpose is to serve God, why don't we start doing it since our childhood and leave all other distractions aside (like family, school, job, etc.)? Are we missing something?

Human beings have a more developed brain compared to other animals on this planet; the capabilities of our brain have allowed us to conquer many of our physical limitations. We can do many things easily for which our body is not designed; other animals can't do it because their brain is not developed like ours. Our universe functions based on some laws or principles, some we know, and many we are still trying to understand. We now know more about the origin of life on this planet, the process of evolution, the reasons for many diseases, and their possible treatments. Science and technology have helped us to solve many mysteries. Can it help us to solve this one??

According to me, there is no universal purpose of human life; all of us are different and unique. We are social beings and have some social responsibility and role to play, but apart from that, we are different. Everyone has to find their own purpose in life. Michael Jackson was born to dance, Sachin was born to bat, Lata Mangeshkar was born to sing, Michael Jordan to play basketball, and Pelé to play football (soccer). They were lucky to discover the purpose of their life. Somehow, we have attached a very grand meaning to the phrase 'purpose of life'; most of us think that the purpose of life has to be something grand, big, and spectacular. I think it's not necessary; one can have very simple aims in life and still live a very happy and successful life. Money, fame, or social status cannot be the only criteria to judge a successful or happy person. A housewife who takes care of her family and plays a major role in the upbringing of her kids or teachers who train future citizens of this world, are equally successful people like any other entrepreneur or celebrity. I hope we all can discover our purpose in life and work towards it. We all serve humanity by discovering the purpose of our own lives.

Thanks for reading, and please share your comments.

(Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing)

What is the material world?

Humans are often criticized for their attachment to the material world. It's considered some sort of trap where once you get stuck, it's difficult to get out. The reason for our spiritual and moral decline is often blamed on our desires and attachments associated with this material world. What is this material world after all? Is it our planet, our surroundings, our possessions, people around us? What is it?

If we assume God is the creator of all living beings, then this whole earth or universe is its creation, so how can it be a trap or a bad thing? If this material world is so bad, or it's a trap full of so many distractions and evil things, then why did God send us here?  For me, Earth is the best planet in the entire universe, and we are lucky to be on it; that's why we call it our mother planet/Earth. How can our mother be a distraction or a source of our downfall? We are still trying to find evidence of life on other planets, and it’s very much possible that we might find evidence on some of them, but still, our Earth will be the most beautiful planet for us.

Now let’s see why this planet, or material world, or attachment is often criticized in scriptures/religions. This is the place where we are born and live our entire life, and during that process, we get attached to many things, which is quite natural. Most religions believe either there is life after death or there is some other planet or world that is supposed to be better than ours, where one goes after death. It’s also believed that your attachments on this planet hinder your journey to that unknown destination. All religions paint different pictures of that promised land (heaven or hell, whatever you want to call it) and also prescribe different ways to qualify to go there. We use everything available on this planet to fulfill our needs and desires. After serving us so well and honestly, his poor material world gets blamed for our attachments and miseries.

The aim of religion was to replace all our attachments with only one attachment, God or whatever other entity that religion preaches. They see these material attachments as the biggest threat to them and want to eliminate their competitors; that's the only reason I see they criticize it. People many times use wrong ways to satisfy their desires or greed, but they don't do this only for their material desires; there are enough examples of religious extremism, forceful conversions, hatred of non-believers, communal riots, etc. All these are due to human attachment to religion/God. People think it's God's will to preach their religion, and they are serving/pleasing God by doing this. It is even said that “Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from a religious conviction.” How come only material desires or attachments are blamed/criticized in scriptures, but not religious attachments? 

These so-called distractions and attractions around us are part of life, and life is interesting because of them. Running behind them is not the whole purpose of life; everything has its own importance and meaning in life. For example, eating is necessary for living, but if you only pay attention to eating and do nothing else, if you eat as much as you can without any control, then you know what will be the result, and it might become the cause of all your problems and destruction. Give importance to things as much as they deserve, and to know how to do this is to live a balanced life. Every person is different, and different things have different importance to different people.

This planet is our home for the rest of our lives, and we are privileged to have it. Whatever we learn, achieve, discover, and create is all from this so-called material world. It's the source of all our happiness, problems, and sorrows. There is a perfect world around us that provides us with everything we need; it has enough for our needs but not for greed. The real material world, its imperfections or attachments, or distractions are not outside, but they are inside our mind, and we need to control that; no point in blaming anyone for that. So-called heaven or hell, everything is here, and we experience it so many times during our life, but don't realize it. It's our duty to take care of this planet, as generations to come will be living here. We should try to make this place more beautiful than it was before we leave.

Thanks for reading and please share your opinions about this topic.

(Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing)