Most of us would agree that we are living life at a dizzying speed. There is a mad rush everywhere from dawn to dusk, in public places, at homes, in lives. We all know that people around us are in a hurry to grab seats in public vehicles, to jostle their way through a crowd, to break queues to take away their due first. This whole ‘me first’ approach, born out of complete absence of patience, is the reason behind the rising number of stampede deaths in the country.
The youth today wishes to taste everything too soon, chase success at any cost. So they do not mind doing overtime at work or waking up at night to make ends meet. It does not bother them if they are putting their health at stake, for they would do anything to make hay while the sun of youth shines over them. They are no longer looking for stability but bigger, quicker jumps.
This fast-paced life, in fact, gives them a kick. So, loud music, spicy food, fast cars and extroverted people are a hit with them. Similarly, the powerful virtual world around the showbiz, media & cosmetic industry, all are centered around this prime time of life. Today’s children behave like wanna be youths and the old are struggling to look younger. At the end of the day, nobody really has time for the slow, old or tired as a result of which such people are the forgotten lot. There is a perception in society that you can’t get noticed unless you’re running. Since walking is out of fashion, walkers are at a risk of being discarded as ‘outdated or unenthusiastic’.
Today, most of the people around us are manipulating their lifestyle to suit this universal time-deficit. The working class who are neck deep into their job’s, have little time to cook as well as spend time with their family. As a result of this they prefer eating out or rely on ready-to-eats. Sometimes when there is no time to eat, they prefer gulping their meals, making it fast food anyways. This whole ‘hurry up’ nature has seeped so much into us that it has become difficult to be consistent in keeping our word. Politicians are unable to stand by ideologies and defections are common across parties. Employees don’t mind frequently changing loyalties.
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The young are in a hurry to enter into and exit out of relationships. The rising number of divorce cases, broken families and the increasing old age homes are all the result of this use-and-throw culture. The greatest irony is that when people take breaks to escape this mad rush, even their interludes are full of noise. Either they end up watching the idiot box or indulge in loud entertainment and socializing. So in the absence of any touch of silence in our lifestyle today, the mind and the body hardly gets time to de-stress, to get healed. As a result of this driving in the fast lane, there are frequent emotional accidents, physical and mental damages in the form of lifestyle diseases and finally the soul and body both cry for rest.
One must understand that the biggest tragedy of living in the fast lane is that it deprives us of our birthright to go inwards and make peace with ourselves, something that builds the foundation of our life. Our fast pace hijacks our vision. There is no time to pause, recollect and evaluate things. People are clueless about the direction they are heading into, for their only aim is to squeeze in the maximum now. They are in the fray because others too are doing so, they are running because others too are. Gulping instant coffee all the time we have completely lost touch with the pleasure of savouring a home brew sip by sip. Hence, it’s high time that we change for our own sake if not for anyone else.
Remember! spiritual growth happens when we slow our activity down, not when we increase it. So, if we really want to stay safe on the road of life, then we have to hit the brakes, pull over to a rest area and stop, or else we might meet with a fatal accident. The ugly truth, however, is that many of us do not know how to rest! Actually, most of us simply refuse to choose rest, because we don’t want to come out of this mad race of living in the fast lane. But we need to understand practically that rest is choosing to do nothing when we have too much to do, slowing down when we feel pressure to go faster, stopping instead of starting. It is like listening to our weariness and responding to our tiredness, not to what is making us tired. Rest is what happens when we say one simple word: ‘No!’.
In order to rest we must admit that we are not indispensable, that the world can get along without us. Once we understand how small we are, only then might we find the right reasons to say yes. Only then might we find the right reasons to decide to be with our inner self. So what are you waiting for, let’s begin the process of change NOW!
Rajyogi Brahma Kumar Nikunj Ji is a writer and spiritual educator who has written for publications in India,Nepal & UK.