we are free people..... really???

so they say,
that man is free

n if he s not, he must strive for it
freedom is his birthright

n indeed we r free
we can choose wht to say
wht to wear
wht to eat
where to go
whom to meet
wht to see
whom to elect
wher to put our money
whom to marry (well, in more cases than not!)
how many babies to have
wher to live n whom to live with
where to work

we r proud citizens of the largest democracy of the world
or for the Westerners, they r the citizens of the most affluent societies the world has ever seen
n also the 'free-est'

in short, the world, the humankind, is free... free to make choices

really?

lets dig dipper

whenever we make choices, our choices are governed by our perceptions
perceptions are made by, wht we r brought up seeing, hearing, thinking, writing and experiencing...
just think how much different we could have been had all these 6-6.5 bn people were living in the seventeenth century, or seventh, or in the times of Buddha or Christ or Krishna?

or think, how differently we wud live, act and think if the communication channels we have were available with us 100 yrs before?
how tht wud have shaped our world? n how tht wud have shaped our selves?

if we were living in a world where spiritual thoughts were more 'popular', where service to others was more attractive profession n where the biggest achievement wud have been to do good of as many poor as possible....
wud our choices be the same????

wud we still run after jobs in MNCs n corporates?
wud we still regard money as the only criteria for success?
wud we still garner wealth at all cost?
wud we still compete more than co-operate?
wud we still feel jealous for our neighbor?

i think our choices r not 'free'
they r guided by our perceptions
n by wht everyone else thinks - the popular opinion

the test is
whenever making a choice
ask urself - wud i do the same if i were living with Christ?

I dont mean to 'market' Christ, Buddha or Krishna
well, actually i do.
not because they r those whom i believe in
but because they represent the principles, the rules, the guidelines - which if applied faithfully - wud result in the welfare of our race, undoubtedly.

the most imp truths of the universe r also the simplest

its by giving tht we find peace n not by longing
the best moment in my life is not when someone/something made me happy, but when i made someone happy
the best mode of taking revenge, is by forgiving

back to the point

freedom n truth pass the test of time
if something wasn't true 2000 years back
n now it is, then examine it more carefully, it wud turn out to be something else (may b its just wht everyone s thinking, but it wont 'the truth').

if something was relevant centuries back
n its difficult today, tht doesnt mean its not relevant

it just means tht we as a race have deteriorated our moral standards whereby good and relevant things have become more difficult to practice by the day

the best example is: Mahatma Gandhi n his thoughts
in India, on every 2nd Oct and whenever a film containing some reference to his life or thoughts releases, ther s (compulsorily) used to be a 'debate': are Mahatma Gandhi's thoughts equally relevant today?

(well i think ther cant be anything more childish, rubbish, insane or ridiculous than this question, but here i m assessing an issue as objectively as possible, so no personal comments!!!)

well, Mahatma Gandhi didnt 'invent' new thoughts
actually whtever we regard as his thoughts, werent completely his own
indeed he formulated new strategies and techniques to practice them
but the thoughts like Truth, Non-violence, Aparigraha, Non to steal anything (n many more) were always there - many great men before the Mahatma had preached as well as practiced them.
the only thing is they were the ideals which the Mahatma had courage to follow

n which we do not

COURAGE
thts the word

see, i do not follow any of the principles of the Mahatma
but i dont give reasons for tht
i accept tht i dont have the moral courage to follow them n so i do compromise

but tht doesnt mean tht those truths r NOT relevant
it just means that, as i said earlier, we have deteriorated our moral standards so tht those truths are more difficult to practice...

thus, to be truly free, we must have the courage to do the right
CONSCIOUSLY
we must KNOW wht we r doing, why we r doing it and THAT IT IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO

or at least, accept tht our choices are not free!!!

(n.b. - the views may prompt u to think- antariksh preaches but does he practice? well, i dont preach, i just share... i m just an imperfect (or, potentially perfect) soul striving to make some positive development in myself (whrein i fail miserably manyatimes!!!) ... i m just sharing wht i thought or felt to my fellow travelers in this journey to eternity...)