They say empty mind is devil's workshop. Well they are wrong. Ever lied down in a beach side shack, watching the small bright sun set against the vast blue foamy backdrop of the ocean? Ever gazed upon the horizon, while sitting on a hilltop? Ever had nothing to do except surf through the TV channels and not stopping anywhere in particular to watch something? What I am trying to say is if you have ever gone through such an experience, you can appreciate the worth of an empty mind. As for me,I would like to call it, for the lack of a better word, Soulful.
I have always felt that we are a little hard on ourselves. We keep measuring people's life by the virtue of their success. We shower accolades proportional to the painstaking efforts one has taken to push himself. But what I don't understand is why is it a virtue to go against the convenient. Why is it always essential to keep running to get somewhere? In life isn't it equally important to stay still, to take a step back to appreciate the scenery you just passed by, to not get up for work on time and stay cushioned in your warm bed for a few extra minutes. One of my friends always says that his aim in life is having a cottage some where up in the Himalayas where he can stay peacefully and farm marijuana to sustain himself. As outrageous as it seems, it does sound undeniably fascinating. Because what he essentially means is, in life he wants to be at peace and be happy. He wants each and every day of his life to be Soulful.
Howard Roark's epic speech..
Ayn Rand in The Fountainhead captures this in the spirit of Howard Roark. In his epic closing speech, Howard talks of how society,the majority, has created norms to undermine genius. How the majority could not get some of the best things in life and in turn very conveniently branded them as taboo. They could not get success in life and associated success with pain, back breaking efforts as excuses to their failure, simultaneously tagging success with restless effort. Whether it is true or not, I agree, is debatable.But seriously, if someone dares to swim against the flow what makes him so laudable as opposed to some one who floats peacefully downstream? I think while the former established his swimming abilities he missed out on the beauty of the stream, the flora lining its bank. He was busy in conquering nature, conquering the natural flow of things to establish the supremacy of his brawn. The latter however,in his submission to nature and the natural flow of events got to appreciate the ethereal beauty and could obtain some peace of mind. He again had a moment of his life which was, at the least, Soulful.
Ayn Rand in The Fountainhead captures this in the spirit of Howard Roark. In his epic closing speech, Howard talks of how society,the majority, has created norms to undermine genius. How the majority could not get some of the best things in life and in turn very conveniently branded them as taboo. They could not get success in life and associated success with pain, back breaking efforts as excuses to their failure, simultaneously tagging success with restless effort. Whether it is true or not, I agree, is debatable.But seriously, if someone dares to swim against the flow what makes him so laudable as opposed to some one who floats peacefully downstream? I think while the former established his swimming abilities he missed out on the beauty of the stream, the flora lining its bank. He was busy in conquering nature, conquering the natural flow of things to establish the supremacy of his brawn. The latter however,in his submission to nature and the natural flow of events got to appreciate the ethereal beauty and could obtain some peace of mind. He again had a moment of his life which was, at the least, Soulful.
I don't know whether I was able to convince you of my thinking. But then again, I prefer not walking the extra mile for that particular reason. I have received my peace of mind with this blog and I would rather sit down now and enjoy being Soulful.
Adios!
