Scene 1:
“Vaibhav Bhaiyya, sujal wants a mobile like mine but in lower price range. Will you search on internet and we will order for him.” Supervisor of housekeeping team told while entering into school computer lab. I nodded with a smile to them, gave them chairs and turned screen towards all of us to being our search. Whole pandora's box was out there, variety of choices and options to select from. I asked few basic questions related to specification and he gave me details about what kind of mobile he is looking to buy.
After 30 minutes of tireless surfing on different web-portals, we were confused which model to buy. Each one with little bit of difference in their specifications and prices. Tired of our efforts sujal told me, bhaiyya you select one best for me. I blindly selected one and placed the order for him. He was initially happy when he received his consignment, but soon that faded away as he came to know about some fault in mobile which we had not paid attention while selecting and ordering.
Scene 2:
“Hey brother, Do you know name of that Indian off-spinner from southern India, who does commentary now a days?” Someone asked me in a party. As i answered in negative, face of that person turned up like he is telling me ‘disgusting man, you don’t know even that!’ He turned to someone else, and after round of same question, everyone was puzzled. To solve this mystery one from the group took out his mobile and google it to know.
As this episode got over, soon another began. ‘who is Aakash Ambani, out of this two?’ Ohh, i forgot to tell you IPL 8 final is going on!
Isn’t this a regular trend in our homes, offices, parties, gatherings, schools and colleges. How much time our attention goes in such mindless searches or overburden of information, like our whole life depends upon them. In knowing who is Mayweather and Pacquiao, price of iPhone to i20, son of ambani and girlfriend of timberlake, latest movie of Salman Khan and where our prime minister Narendra Modi is? From knowing rate of currency to flights, new deals on amazon and flipkart, following twitter and cricbuzz.
Even this much informations are not enough, on top we have subjective informations in forms of news & views in information age. Hey wait! what is this subjective information? Ohh, see whenever we attach motives, our feelings, our mental state or interest with information it becomes subjective. For example, whether Salman Khan is good Human being or not? Modi’s recent comment during trip is national shame or not? and so on, instead of plain information it always contains colors. Thus, they are the most dangerous among all. As they have more deeper penetration, our attention goes to it most easily and it hampers our intellect, decision making skill and unknowingly our thoughts are moulded by them. Information provider can use deceptive ways to pass on views through information that appeals you most. We are consuming on an average 20-100 information approximately on weekly basis, that to not with consent and being aware of them. Mostly all those information are so appealing [in novelty, colors, contrast, size, change, intensity and clarity] and bombarded repetitively that it never fails to bring our attention to them. With visual effects, catchy tunes & words and voice modulation they appeal so much to ignite feelings in us. Falling in this trap, we stop thinking independently and keep on judging people, things and circumstances through those lenses.
Objective information, like those of scene 1 only puts us into dilemma of selection. If by fault, we missed something in rush of time and flush of information, leads to lesser satisfaction of service. we condemn ourselves and others for it. Good part is that we at least have a will of paying attention to those information or not. Even though exercising our will sounds difficult in era of advertising and marketing. At the end choice is ours, will is ours. We can train our mind and find a simple solutions for filtering objective information. While we can’t say as above in regards to subjective information, they are subtle and superior. Let’s see how?
In this flood of informations, we come across all sorts of thoughts and ideas through subjective once too. Tainted by glasses through which writer or speaker has put before us. Sometime just for sake of opposing something or wanting to appear cool, they produce baseless and useless statements and arguments. And we blindly follow them. Not only just listening to their thoughts and ideas but also making their ideas ours too. Why we do that? because thinking is difficult task. Second, It is flood of information, we forget things too easily and those news changes so rapidly that mind is not able to give time to digest them. To Put those thoughts and ideas to Highest tribunal of our Intellect for knowing good or bad for self. Also those thoughts which had disappeared in flood of informations, are actually stored somewhere in subconscious mind. Making us vulnerable to amplified strikes to mind when similar kind of information comes to mind. Third, we have not train our mind to really think. Fourth, Those thoughts and ideas has come from a people whom we believe are successful and at top position in their field. Hence, their views appears more appealing because we too want success and happiness. Here we forget that they might be best and at top position in their field but it doesn’t mean that they are happy and successful in all aspects of life. Slowly without realising we start taking hints from views and ideas shared by them. Living life as they have told, wanting and doing things under spell of those thoughts. This is the general pattern, from very young age we listen to them. What a danger! instead of listening to our own voices, we slowly start listening to them.
Now question to ask ourselves are, whether we or rather I would like to continue looking through that lenses or not? What information are good for me and what not? Whether to pay any heed to those information or not? Do I have a choice? and Strong enough will power with discrimination for selecting what is right for me? and all those questions which are going to follow as a consequence.
Everyone has to take his/her decision here.
“Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.”
This were the words of The Lord Buddha. Whether to Follow on this line of thought or not is also up to us.
Incase we want to follow it, we need to find a way and time to put forth our reason and common sense before believing to those information. How to do that is a big question? Our attention goes to them so easily and lucratively that it becomes difficult to select. Following are few points for beginners [they had helped me and I pray & wish same for others too.]
1 - To observe our own thinking and thoughts, if possible record them.
2 -To ask simple question, why i endorse so and so things. Is it because someone famous has said, it is written in those books/newspaper/magazine/scriptures or i truly feel it and think it. If you can put your mind on work and calmly note down thoughts in favor as well as thoughts in against. Similarly feelings in favours and in against and actions with their consequences. This will help to clarify whether we are independent in our thinking or we just follow what others are saying and doing.
3 - Becoming silent and trying to listen to inner voice. Believing in self and working from that confidence.
4 - Those who like to go for mediation, they can meditate upon single thought and try to remain on them without getting attached. As mind becomes still and clear, we can see from where those thought had came and where it went.
Remember still & calm mind, with awareness of present is most helpful than those which contains chunks of information and gets easily distracted & disturbed. Specially for my student friends, follow any methods and curtail down your attention seeking information. This will help you not only save your time but mental energy too. That will help you to do your study with more focus. As key of success is not in knowing more amount of information but in span of attention or concentration.
Before I close, here are few quotations for you.
“What information consumes is rather obvious: it consumes the attention of its recipients. Hence a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention, and a need to allocate that attention efficiently among the overabundance of information sources that might consume it.”1 - Herbert Simon
“The Information Age refers to the idea that access to and the control of information is the defining characteristic of this current era in human civilization.”2
"The printing press, the computer, and television are not therefore simply machines which convey information. They are metaphors through which we conceptualize reality in one way or another. They will classify the world for us, sequence it, frame it, enlarge it, reduce it, and argue a case for what it is like. Through these media metaphors, we do not see the world as it is. We see it as our coding systems are. Such is the power of the form of information."3
“The youth of India should learn to think on all subjects, to think independently, fruitfully, going to the heart of the things, not stopped by their surface, free of prejudgement,.." -Sri Aurobindo, On the importance of Original Thinking, Essays Divine and Human, p-43.
2http://searchcio.techtarget.com/definition/Information-Age
3 Postman, Teaching as a Conserving Activity (1979), p. 39
[written on 22-06-2015]
