LET’S REALLY GROW UP!

Shailesh Khatri
Sep 9, 2018 · 2 min read

LET’S REALLY GROW UP!

It is said that as we age our mind gets narrower and our waist becomes broader!

From birth, we are conditioned into thinking in terms of a certain rigid set of rules. We are taught the ‘correct’ way of eating, sleeping, studying, etc .

This results in cementing of certain behavioral patterns which we follow for life without thinking about their veracity. Some people only eat at certain parts of the day and some people fast for several days even if they are unwell.

There is nothing, per se, wrong in fasting or curbing our appetites. However, it is when we become rigid or fanatical about our beliefs that the trouble begins. We consider our beliefs as the ‘correct’ and any deviation from such beliefs by anybody is frowned upon. This is the cause of strife today.

As we age our belief systems conform to societal approbation and we enter into a certain ‘comfort zone’. Societal approval gives our beliefs a certain fillip and we are on the way to becoming parochial. Our egos are appeased as we are ‘appreciated’ for our thinking and we start behaving in a way which is very different from what we really are.

A sort of schizophrenic existence follows which is reaffirmed with continual practice. We never really grow up!

What is needed is maturity which comes with becoming open minded with experience. Our experience should teach and not mislead. Our mental horizons need to expand and not contract. It is only when we look at all systems of belief with equanimity that we really mature into full human beings!

Shailesh Khatri

Written by

Author and iconoclast long listed for the Crossword Book Awards 2013.

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