Mans aspiration towards perfection
Man. That is how we identify ourselves as. Most of the senses to understand and interact with the environment and mostly life itself, is where our most vulnerable part is; the face. That why face is important be it physical (beauty) or social (reputation), more so in our Asian Heritage. Beside our intellect what is there to be proud of? Allocating that part, the face as a measurement of beauty and perfection and after that the body structure, it is a hindsight which we have difficulty to undo. We believe physical optimization equals to the intellectual and financial success even though it is not so. Only few and far between care what lies in the mindset, when one compares to the perfection man so aspires towards.
As we are inclined towards our inherent nature of consuming or in other words destroying to survive and more importantly developing and utilizing tools to mitigate the weakness inherent in us, we aspire towards the perfection. We destroy the world to remake it in our image. We believe that conformity is just. By only dominating can we make it acceptable the ideas we believe to be perfect. Even the soft approach is backed by a hard background. Carrot and stick is always prevalent from the personal to professional to the large part of life. We are expected the perfect score in exams, the perfect decorum in social setting, perfect caring spouse in the ideal relationship, but in life it never is true. The perception of perfect by outsider is not so for the one who is going through it, you know we compare ourselves with others despite trying not to. In a social setting, how can one not compare? Perhaps it is the amount of information in hand, we know more weakness and strong points of the person with whom we have relationship with than those of outer circle, we have more knowledge of the situation we are in rather than those of others who are going through similar experience. Reaction and adaption maybe different but the thing is we judge favorably or vice versa due to the fact we believe in. Generally those who are on the periphery seem more perfect than those we have most knowledge of. Human nature thereby is imperfect, and its why we aspire to be perfect despite knowing we will not be so, and one day come into peace with ourselves that perfection is not to be for this life.
Happiness is also a facet of perfection. Part of it we can control but most part it is just outside our grasp. Economically weak people may work hard to be rich, never to be hungry again, never to spent a night on the cold, some may be just content to survive, but there is always the social perception people are more happy when they have more money, have more perfect body, but is it true. Often times it is the fit person who goes through depression, he works truly hard to make the chiseled body and it becomes tiring to keep on maintaining it to optimum. He will be happy for a time but there is more chance that he will not for he continues to compare with those who look better. To a certain level money matters for happiness, then the needs are fulfilled, then people start to look after doing something novel go abroad, start new hobby, but the time is limited, you need to earn more money, get a new car or real state as you compare with those peer with the same league of financial and social standing.
Are you happy or are you going through a phase of Samsara, circle of suffering from endless desire after desire according to Buddhist doctrine. People donate so they can go to heaven or get a better life next time. Is not heaven the perfect bliss. People feel good when they help someone willingly. It gives the feeling of perfect harmony. similarly is the time when people rob, they may not feel the long term positive vibe as in honest donation, but feel the power, the power of might, a short term high, a shadow of perfect happiness, so like drug they go on robbing people despite having enough money to live rest of their life. They rob just to feel they are in control. Power as such is that's why a part of corruption, the opposite of harmony of peace.
Man searches for meaning and has the aspiration for perfection. Evident in the symphony of music, the depth of art, interpretation of love, philosophy of life, universal and valid truth in the science, the language of god; mathematics, there man has aspired for perfection. Perfection is truth he believes. He makes god, composes legends and myths to support it. He creates a particular thing to serve a particular purpose, be it formula for the solution of mathematics, or a pick up line to date a girl, or just to make life more comfortable to live, his system to bring civilization to the chaos despite failing time and again, he never gives up, to find, create, grasp and harmonize perfection in every facet of life. There is always risk when one lives towards perfection as a goal. One generation fails but another tries and is doing so despite the fact there is nothing perfect, people fighting for justice that is perfection, knowing not his name a while ago but still supporting his cause, Black Life Matters, it is not a fight of one black man against another white man it is a struggle a valiant peaceful movement to bring harmony in the world, it represents people's aspiration where one can live without fear, where one can breathe, free from oppression, discrimination and as an equal, as a human. Color of skin is not a tool to judge for someone being inherently good or bad, a measurement of beauty, a measurement of perfection. Perfection is impartial, an aspiration worthy of man.
Likewise, nepotism exists in every facet of life, there is the Susant case in Bollywood, an artist had to take his own life, it could not have been so, if there is a system wherein talent and reward was equal. Perfection of a system may be not be possible, but imperfection in such magnitude lead to tragedy none wanted. Mans aspiration gives meaning to his life, it defines his actions and consequences lead by those actions. People die but if he is given the choice to die where, when and how, that is road to perfection. One who is forced to do something and one who is given the choice, one can imagine the most meaningful result from the two options themselves. Reaching this much point of a unity and achievement is possible only through aspiration of perfection, be it the establishment of a system or hierarchy, or any kind of human ingenuity, if we let go of such aspiration there is nothing but chaos and eventual downfall of humanity. Or maybe we will lead a life wherein the perception of perfection will be different with the shifting of priority we have away from the perfection aligned to physical, intellectual or financial success.
In the pedestal of eternal time, witnessed by truth, mans aspiration of perfection will be a sight to behold, will it be achieved, the perfect man will he be there to greet us, we a speck of forgotten memories in the timeline of history?
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