Sunday, December 14, 2008
It has been a good experience
It has been two and half months since I made the move to come over to Manchester, UK with family for a longer stint. It has been a good experience so far. There are some difficulties in the day to day life which actually helped me gain a good perspective and helped me learn relax myself naturally. For example, in here I have no car to commute to office or to take my family around. It made me commute to office through public transport system. I walk to the tram station for about 10 minutes each way and that too in the increasing cold conditions from autumn to winter. That in itself can't be regarded as a comfort and yet it I find myself relaxed better executing this daily process. Sounds a little funny when I mull over it. I read somewhere that when a man stays close to the life style that make use of his body parts for the purpose they are made for, he will be much happier. It doesn't necessarily mean that I would want to walk to Manchester from Bangalore rather than taking a flight. My intention is just to bring up a point that naturally occurred to me. A good exercise to your body in manner that is not too deliberately decided by the mind, will actually help relax your mind better and as a consequence it helps you make better decisions and this resultant cycle indeed lets you flush out some of the temperamental idiosyncrasies from your personality as well. Well, that is one side of the story. On the other side, there are issues when you want to go and bring weekly groceries or want to take kids to a park, shopping or a restaurant. It requires a good plan and more work ahead for any of these things to happen without much struggle. So, this time around it is the deliberate design and guidance from the mind that actually helps me relax. Sounds contradicting !! but then it is true that it naturally occurred to me that I am actually relaxing by planning better in this case. May be I am actually having a right mixture of exercise for the body and the mind in the day to day life. Possible! it is just a thought for now. I might have to think deeper to understand how I am able relax better in two contrasting situations. I had better comforts and better time for several things in the past but was never able to relax as much as I am able to do now. Is it because of the change of circumstances? or is it because of the compulsion to adapt to new circumstances? does that mean when you are learning or adapting you are more relaxed? Is there something called steady state or we only have milestones in the journey? Much to ponder over until the time I write again. See you soon !!
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2 comments:
Hi Rakesh,
Good one and well written indeed. I think the state that you are describing , as i have read in some book (and couldnt find again googling), is called a state of functional tension. It is a change, that could cause some anxiety which one enjoys thereby making a person excel & relax. Do write more.
Man is a social animal. Every response of the human has its roots and inspirations which are more social. Relaxation is directly proportional to the social, economic and official set up of the person. All three contribute to it. Any disturbance in this “set-up” alone causes “up-set”.
For those who go abroad – and live there for some time, this fact is glaringly perceptible. Normally such migrations are preceded and punctuated by grand functions at home, like a marriage, visits to and from In-laws, visit to/from parents who enjoy their value time with their grand children etc. After sharing all the joyous moments - and then to land in UK or USA could stir-up the mind and this thought pattern.
Devoid of all these things, a person abroad with all advantages of a systematic life-style, is relatively free or relaxed because he has nothing else to do after the office except his routine. Barring office and home, most of the human endeavor, here, is directed to nurturing and nourishing personal relationships. It is done consciously, through-out life, either by a personal visit, or a greeting card, or a phone call/sms - Wishing Happy New year/B-day etc. All are meant to ensure unbroken maintenance of such relation ships, some of those, helplessly i.e. just for courtesy-sake. Though it gives happiness, it also causes strain on the most precious resource, the time. It could lead to subsequent work-tension. Or it may lead to neglect of some domestic commitments. The absence of need for maintaining the relation-ships leads to better time-management and consequent sense of leisure/relaxation.
This “relaxation” now being analysed, is only a temporary phenomenon influenced by external factors. If one wants a proof, let him imagine that he is all alone and his dear ones are in India. Will he feel the same sense of relaxation when he under-takes the same walk, visits the same play park or takes a coffee in the same restaurant? No!! If the answer is “Yes” then the person is extra-ordinary. He is endowed with a “Satvik” [tranquil] mind. He being an exception is not the subject matter. A dynamic or “Rajasik” mind feels a temporary superficial sense of respite or relaxation only, due to temporary absence of pressing needs [especially interpersonal] and activities based on such needs. It is a question of time that the mind gradually slips to rename what it called “relaxation” as “boredom” and tries to develop newer relations and circles at the new place. It works subtly to get back into its need for people – their affection and sharing. The moment the minds feels intensely that there is no room for such environment, it starts glorifying the value of our culture, religion, value systems, tradition, children and their education – then changes the gear for home-coming brushing aside even the lucrative earnings.
Thanks Rakeshji for a thought-provoking topic and I hope this made sense.
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