One of the beauties of this world is that we get to meet people of different types. A person's true character is revealed in moments of crisis, so crises are quite valuable. The sole quality required to see this "world of wonders" is to hold on to the safety gadget of "awareness" and one gets to enjoy the roller coaster ride.
The first wonder I experienced is that people tell lies so easily. The moment we are caught on the wrong foot, almost everybody tells lies at the drop of a hat. Our fears and insecurities of losing a particular position or relation are so high that we can't imagine a situation where we are deprived of these. Strangely we have gotten so used to lies that we have turned into habitual liars. We tell lies about the price of the dress we are wearing, the time we are about to reach for a meeting, our pay packages, our relationships, what we feel about others, and our life goals. In fact, due to these repeated lies, our entire life becomes just a pretension and yet we keep telling lies. Since the entire society is busy telling these lies, lies appear to be truth and truth appears to be a lie. "Money makes us happy" appears to be true while "spiritual path makes us happy" appears to be false. Lies are being served all around in a very attractive package. The advertisements for processed foods, branded clothes, fancy furniture, news of social media following, and power corridors attract our attention and we fail to see the cries of souls behind the curtains.
The second wonder I experienced is that people become very insensitive to others in moments of crisis. Probably we can only give what we have, If we have fear inside, we end up spreading fear. If we have love inside, we end up spreading love and compassion. Since our awareness is quite shallow, and we are not aware of our true nature, we try to cling to one or the other security. We become too clingy. That's why in moments of crisis when we feel like losing that, we become desperate. In that desperation, there is no scope for sensitivity. Once there is a crisis in a relationship, we become very insensitive to the partner. We could have sacrificed our life for the same person and now we can take his life without a second thought. What has happened in the process? Probably, the ego never recognizes the existence of "others". Earlier that person was "my" property and therefore "I" was so possessive about that person and now "I" just want to take revenge because "he" has left me. The sensitivity that "I" and "he" can coexist like companions, even with a lot of differences, requires "I" to mature spiritually and seek anchoring inside rather than in the outer world.
Another wonder I see in moments of crisis is that we become quite "fearfully aggressive". Just like a snake biting others due to fear, we start harming others. In the process, our fear keeps increasing because the poison we carry is also limited. Out of fear, we start producing more and more poison and our entire life becomes full of poison. We start playing a game where others' loss is our gain and effectively make our lives a living hell.
There are so many more wonders in the "world of wonders" of human nature. I feel that fear and insecurity are quite contagious. More so because we are being exposed to a very fearful and insecure human society at a very early age. The vulnerable minds of our kids are bound to react by developing the defense mechanisms of insensitivity, fearful aggression, and telling lies. In the short term, all these may seem to pay off. But in the long term, they are bound to inflict suffering. The seeds we sow in the childhood of our kids are bound to bring fruits sooner or later in their lives. That is the reason why at least one out of eight people in this world is facing some mental disorder. Otherwise, there is no reason why despite so much affluence and a comfortable life we should be suffering from mental disorders. I feel that the first thing parents need to tell their kids is to be aware. To be aware of their own emotions. What is going inside them rather than what is going outside? General knowledge of their own emotions and body and mind, rather than the outside world. If we can do that, as parents, probably that will be our most significant contribution to their lives.
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