“Socrates was
considered the wisest of all men of Greece, for he alone among all men of
Greece knew nothing”[1]
This is true, or
at least so I believe. Only if you knew about the existence of something could
you know how much ignorant you are. If you live a life where you are not in a
quest to find new information, you live a life of Ignorance.
A poet once
quipped that “Light is sadness, son, ignorance is bliss.” The more we learn of
this world, the more we know how insignificant we are in the course of things.
Most of us will never be remembered or thought of on this small rock in a
regular solar system on the edge of a normal sized galaxy, part of even bigger
super cluster. You could be blown away by this information, and treat as if our
actions have no real consequences, (because in the end, it doesn’t even
matter!) Or you could marvel at our existence, and treat ourselves better. The
onus is on you.
Someone once
said that “Knowledge is power”[2]
But mere knowledge is not enough. It is the application of knowledge that
really matters. One needs to have both sides of knowledge; (cut to Hannah
Montana Song, “Best of Both Worlds”) Practical and bookish knowledge. Practical
knowledge to survive, and bookish knowledge to be an informed person.
Al Gore,
described the internet as the “Information Superhighway”, and he was right.
There are Terabytes of information waiting at our fingertips now. Not only can
we access information, we can communicate with our friends, relatives and
acquaintances. This has been used rather incessantly by pranksters who warn
that “NASA” has declared that no one should use Electronic Devices between 1 am
to 9 am .( hey, I think it’s true. Both Shahswath and Anuj sent me the same
text to not use them). In such a situation, one may believe the message that
was sent to them. But one does not endeavor to check the source of
information. One needs to be a tad skeptical regarding “Alert messages” like
these. Another form of misinformation
spreading is that a random object we use in our daily life, or encounter in our
daily life, is carcinogenic. This leads
to unnecessary panic and paranoia. Check out stories before you believe them.
(Cut to “Jago grahak jago”)
As citizens, it
is our duty to be well informed, and make sure our opinions are heard by those
who run the system. Because all of us have a stake in this country, in its
development, in its future, in all our combined future.
Most of all, do
not lose heart. As John F. Kennedy said, “Ask not what the country can do for
you, but what you can do for your country”. Merely being a critic of everything
is not enough, one needs to contribute to society in any small way a person
can.
“Be the change
you want to see in this world.”[3]
[1] An Abridged version of Socrates’s
statement: “I know one thing: that I know nothing”
[2]
The saying seems to have originated from the Latin phrase: “scientia potentia
est” an aphorism (a statement expressing general truth) widely attributed to
Sir Francis Bacon.
[3]Attributed
to Mahatma Gandhi, disputed. (Also, “An eye for an eye makes the whole world
blind”, has never been proven to be Mahatma’s words)
