Lockdown Thoughts Feat. Bharat Ranka Bharat Ranka

Maybe.. Maybe not.

Let’s be honest. Is it really a man’s world? Is it an equal world? To be continued.

Some days are made up of magic! Magic of the simplest, sweetest and purest kinds. Aur jab yeh magic humpe hota hai, tab mazza aa jaata hai! Magic is always around the corner. Just one second, one action, one person away. Dhundho. Milega zaroor.

For too long, too many humans are stuck in jobs/business/roles they cannot relate to, they don’t love, they don’t enjoy, yet they keep on doing it for years & years. Till they become joyless mechanical robots programmed to perform day in & day out. Soulless & devoid of any passion, zest or free will. But, there are few who find their true calling & pursue it with all the energy, effort & thoughts they have. Blessed are those! Truly loving what they do! Work becomes worship. The doer and the deed becomes one. And that’s when wonders happen. Discoveries are made, innovations are achieved, transformation begins and true never ending joy is attained. The purpose of our lives is to find that calling.

Different is the good and different is the pleasant,
they both, having different aims,
He, who chooses for himself the good, comes to wellbeing,
he, who chooses the pleasant, loses the goal.

The good and the pleasant approach the human,
The wise man, pondering over both, distinguishes them;
The wise one chooses the good over the pleasant,
The fool, acquisitive and craving, chooses the pleasant .

— Yama, Katha Upanishad. Wisdom for the ages, wisdom from the sages. Wisdom deciphered straight from the upanishads. The Katha Upanishad has done an exemplary service to humanity by decoding the nature of the choices that are presented to us humans, the choices we tend to make more often than not & their implications on our life, fortunes and destiny. Needless to say, the good choice asks for sacrifice, will power, pain and patience, but it promises to bestow upon the practitioner peace of mind, material prosperity & the privilege of a good life in the long run. But the common man is blinded by the seduction of all things pleasant. Hence choosing momentary satisfaction and instant gratification, a human chases one pleasant choice after another. And that is where the vicious loop begins. The humans of the 21st century, have a not so straight forward task on their hands. To choose between Good & Pleasant, choose between drugs & penance, choose between lust & love, choose between hard work & laziness, choose between herd mentality & individuality. The choice is ours to make and the consequences are ours to live with.

According to a WHO report, 1 in every 3 Indians are suffering from mild to severe mental health issues. Shocking, isn’t it? Despite all the advancements & development India has made in the last few decades, mental health remains a highly ignored & ill researched topic. Hence all the misconceptions and misunderstanding about the concept & it’s possible treatments. All this & a weak support system for mental health victims, make Mental Health a huge TABOO topic in India. Through a series of 3 talks on the topic, What’s Driving India Mad will expose the taboo of mental health, the role of a patient and their family & friends in recovery, the stigma attached to the condition, possible therapies & sustaining mental health for the long term. As we move into bigger homes & drive in plush cars, why are we loosing our peace of mind & sanity? In a country of a 1.3 billion people with immense potential and power, we need to find out, What’s Driving India Mad?