Perceptions unveiled…

With much anticipation and after a brief stretch of what seemed like ages, here we are again, with you wondering what’s in store as you read on and me hoping you’d perceive as much as you can of what’s to follow. When I was first asked to ‘work on’ The Wall blog, I was nothing short of bewildered. Often presumed as a creepy fellow, owing to my grim demeanor, I’m very particular about how I express myself. Especially when the whole college is out there to monitor your work and you find yourself completely flummoxed as every assertion you make is gonna be thoroughly frisked, putting you at risk of being despised or perhaps admired. But be wary, I am not going to affirm dictums in any sense which would lead you geniuses to decipher the nature of this composition even before you take a dip into it. The only prerequisite you might carry- is to take off the critical hat and ‘perceive things as they are and not how you are’.

Such is the plight of words, as in its capacity to illustrate all there is. As vague as it may seem, there’s more to catch than what’s thrown. I want you to contemplate on the fact that ‘words’ are mere insignias, symbols of expression which attempts to captivate our intensive cognition. Ofcourse we can always paint a brighter picture, accruing more details to our descriptions, to make it more apparent; but there’s only so much that can be portrayed and the distinct fragmentation of the expression remains conspicious. Limited words yielding limited perceptions, our imagination weaving the rest. These symbols(words) which I speak of, trigger a response in the brain which recollects the memory of all the instances pertaining to the symbol, inclusive of the kind of emotions prevalent during the first encounter of the word. The sequence of buttons pressed in our brains, as we read will induce a different interpretation, at different times. The point of my futile attempt to explain this complex phenomenon is that you will never discern the same sentence in the same way, everytime you perceive it. Assuming you don’t offer a blind eye to what you’ve already examined before, new aspects will always add up to your previous understanding.
Try re-reading this work, if you really want to know what I am talking about.

Its so amusing to observe how feeble our perceptions of reality has become, the limitations defined by ourselves- of thoughts and of their expressions. The apprehension of treading on the uncharted realms serves only to offer a false sense of security in our destitute domains. The restrictions and prejudices that we barricade our lives with, does not fortify us, but rather put us in confinement. Dwelling in our caged reality, laying in stupor, heavily convinced that this is all there is to it. It’s like wearing a colored pair of glasses which filters every other color but itself or those blinders which prevent the horses from glancing anywhere but the front.
Just like in a conversation, instead of truly comprehending what the other person is saying, merely assimilating it in parts which confirm to our versions of truth (selective hearing).
We even have life mapped out for us in intricate details.
Carrying out, incontrovertibly, an anonymous version of life- the complete whats and hows- devoid of whys;
at the behest of someone else we’re obligated to (the authoritarian elements of the system we’re part of.)
Have you ever asked yourself:

Why do we..

.. choose to wear a personality cloak that the world around us endorse rather than projecting our genuine selves?

.. judge almost everything at its face value?

..belittle the elements that are at odds with our own impressions?

..unreasoningly defend our affirmations against everything else that puts it in contrast with those of others?

..get terrified at truly expressing ourselves for the fear of deprecation from our colleagues?

.. adhere to the primeval doctrines so mechanically, without even caring to realize the nature of its intention?
 
I’d come across this story in a book which clearly explains the context:

The wife was preparing dinner one day, she cut the corners
off the ham before putting it in the pan.
“Why do you do that?” her husband asked.
“I don’t know – my mother always used to do it.”
“Why did your mother cut the corners off the ham?”
“I don’t know, she just did – what’s it matter?”
“Ring your mother and ask her why she cut the corners off the ham.”
She rang her mother.
“Mum, you know when I was a girl and you used to cut the corners
off the ham? Why did you do that?”
“Because my pan was never big enough!”

The results from the reverberations of such a temperament is lamentable.
Nonetheless, there are a few individuals who manage to retain their idiosyncrasies and invariably demonstrate their distinctness in various measures. Such people never fall short to impress me and have always earned my appreciation. Whenever a so called taboo is broken, we can always feel the tremendous energy emanating far and near. Most of the bourgeois who are in awe, at such events, are the ones who unquestionably follow what they are ‘supposed’ to and form an integral part of Sheeple(Sheep+people). If there is anyone more delusional than the rest, it’s these privileged sheeple. Yes, they are special and have the privilege of their prerogative to ignorance and of having others pull their own strings. If there is one thing they are very efficient at, is keeping the rest of the herd in line. The constant evaluation carried out at the hands of the sheeple is astonishing. It’s sad to realize how most of us, have this natural inclination of scaling others from our reference- pass a verdict and cease to look beyond that assessment frame. It’s more of ‘who’ is saying rather than ‘what’ is being said. Juxtaposing ourselves to others, is an absolute way of being perpetually restless. Comparing people is like comparing shades of colors, there are no pleasant or repulsive ones- just different aspects of the same panorama.

“Where are you from?”
“What’s your dad’s occupation?”
“What’s your line of interest?” and the like shite you’ll find people asking you nonchalantly, doesn’t figure a person inside out. The integrity of an individual is immeasurable unless and ofcourse you submit to the asinine dogmas of the system and choose to wear the character casing which it grants you after the half-baked scrutiny. Truly, a make-believe world it remains.
 
We constantly find ourselves battered from the pressure of proving our worth and the need for ‘getting ahead’ in life. Entrapped in the time prison, we cease to live in the present- always planning or worrying about the future. Think about it; most of the time is spent on wondering about the outcome of events over which you have little or no control of, or existing in the future events that we’re looking forward to. All the while, flushing out the present. And what happens when we do land on the anticipated time period? We’d fret how things didn’t exactly work out the way as ‘planned’ and at the same time synthesizing the wrong lessons, eventually forming convictions which we so passionately defend. The magnitude of its vehemence proportional to the time invested. Bigotry seems to have them enchained to the core. This, generally, lands in the experience of a person who are inclined to script almost every aspect of their lives.
Chanting: Life’s hard, complicated, unpleasant etc. I don’t know how easy it then becomes for these unfortunate people to understand ‘Life’ as they continue to drag on with it; but sure does set the right configuration for the younger lot, that follows, to inherit the legacy- of having a default hard mode of life. The people we see around ourselves racing around haphazardly, once which I believed was an effect of healthy motivation is infact nothing but a fear-fuelled drive to an unknown destination. The fear of being unsuccessful, not being able to live upto someone else’s expectations, of being incompetent and the worst of all – the feeling of being unwanted. 
It’s only the realization of truth that will deliver people from such agony.
If a seed is left to germinate on its own, undisturbed and unruffled, thrives to its culmination. Consistent meddling only tends to hamper growth, preventing its thoroughgoing development. Likewise, noticing the situation around us, we can gather jillions of intrusive elements hurtling in our direction which prevents us from realizing our true and complete expression.
What will others think/say of me? Would that be uncool? Would I seem ridiculous? What if they mock me??
And thus, we inadvertently allow others to have the power to influence our lives.Continually battling ourselves to project an image which we believe matters most. The complacence it offers is illusory in nature.
You don’t need other’s approval to feel good about yourself.
If people don’t acknowledge you for what you actually are, they don’t deserve your company. Solitude offers more comfort than that obtained from living a lie. Else life seems a compromise.
Moreover, mourning over your supposed misfortunes, just to garner attention and sympathy is undesirable. Smarter people, in their desperate attempt of humor, have the tendency to mock their miseries while still holding hands with it.
The bizarre status quotes that furnish on facebook during the exam period clearly illustrates this.

If there is something one needs to understand is that miseries are no joke; the only mockery that remains is that of a person who continues to live with it. It takes courage to shatter the artificial shell and give way for your true self to emerge.       
You have every right to unfold to your whole expression. Unleashing the unwavering spirits that once held you high.

Embrace yourself and be the child you once were: living in a world that has no boundaries or restraints of any sort. A world where anything is realizable.
Whenever we observe a child, we look at a reservoir of endless possibilities- the nondiscriminatory discretion, demeanor unfettered and innocence that’s priceless. I’d like you to rediscover that facet and liberate yourself.

Shikhar Morodia
Blog Co-ordinator.