Forgive me for beginning with an insight that isn't recent and fresh. But the rewards of a perspective well bred resemble the tasting of wine that's seasoned and time-tested much like the opinions that I'm going to put forth today.
Amish Tripathi, in his literary series called The Shiva Trilogy talks of a unique concept. The concept of good turning to evil. “The key question isn't 'What is Evil?' The key question is 'When does the Good become Evil?” And to answer that he says: “It's our greed to extract more and more from good that turns it into evil.”
In every generation that humanity courses through, there is Good and then there is Evil. And many a times, one observes that the Good of the previous generation has transformed into the Evil of another.
It's not exactly a linear progression in time, it is overlapped with judgments varying decisively across ages, age-groups, geographies, cultures and nations. The concept of bane and boon tied to one another isn't explained justifiably enough by the metaphor of the coin; each having two sides. Because it fails to help us decide which side to call heads when it's tossed up in the air for bets and decisions. And that is better understood by an example : the energy crisis.
Not long ago in the history of humanity, the world was plummeting to the discourse of an economy driven by hunger, floods and famines. Agriculture wasn't enough to sustain us. But then came the Enlightenment, the Scientific Revolution, and the Industrial Revolution; and now every-one knew what drove the machinery of this new economy: coal and petroleum. But in less than three centuries, this boon has run its course and turned into a bane by probably inflicting the most excruciating wound on the atmosphere that protects us. We are still adjusting, reacting and responding to this truth. We are ages behind in our combat or defense, whichever you might choose to call it.
This goes on to show how man is in-genuinely capable of discovering "Good" by the tools of his curiosity, intellect and drive. But these very tools are half as good when it is time to fight the good that has turned "Evil".
Maybe because we lack the perspective to see it that way, or are reluctant to let go of the idea of something so cherished being so vile, or maybe as Amish rightly suggested, it's our greed : our inability to consume the elixir, the good in moderation.
In the very same light, I would like to introduce the catastrophe that's outlining the horizon of our well-being and mental health, one which we all consume in an insane amount every waking minute of the day of our inter-connected lives. The evil that's bequeathed to us by our adrenaline stimulating, lightning fast, globally connected technology : social media.
And before I begin, I would like to admit to the hypocrisy of bringing to you this insight by using the same good or evil that's taken hold of us. It only strengthens my premise to finally advise the use of a hammer to nail the wall and not your own feet. In simpler terms, to be decisive and in control of what social media does to you. Hop onto the next blog-post and find out the how(s), the why(s) and the when(s) of this good turning evil.
Comments