Reflective Writing as an Indispensable Outlet: From the Personal Crisis to the Poly Crisis
My last blog post is now more than 6 years old, I wrote it when I was 25. As I rummage through my last-known interaction with creative writing, I can clearly deduce one thing. Only a crisis makes me write, and it was a personal one when I began writing more than 10 years ago. The then 20-year old in me was struck with the overwhelming truth that ‘me’ as an entity is inconsequential. The fact that the universe is fundamentally indifferent and the idea of god was only a very recent one in the geological timescale (and the human timescale) of the world snatched away a key toolbox that society enables each of us with. In simple words, through exposure to literature, cinema, and thoughtful everyday life, I was able to develop a lens of criticality to look inwards as well as outwards. This shape-shifting lens of criticality baffled me then and continues to awaken and liberate me to this day. One of my early resultant deductions employing this tool was (obviously) related to the human condition. That there is no inherent meaning to human life, despite it being a true magic in its essence — considering the improbability of such life to even originate and survive the harsh realities of Earth and the larger Universe. This perspective when tested with the overarching ideas of god, love, loss, hope, joy, power, reason, and inspiration imploded inside me and pushed me to write. The culmination of such reminiscence and reflection is what remains today as my writings of that phase — fueled by the personal rather than the collective.
Even though it has just been over a decade since I first ventured into reflective writing, it feels like an eon has passed in this midst. I believe this shared experience of rapid passage of time stems from changes both at personal as well as societal levels. The planet-wrecking pace at which humanity is changing pushes me to pick up the proverbial pen and ponder again on the possibilities and impossibilities of the human condition in the world — which we inherited and will be ending up passing on a lesser variant of it onto the next generations. From this day on, as frequently as I can, within my personal intellectual limits and biases, I am going to analyze and contemplate various crises unfolding across the world. I am of the opinion that the polycrisis that we’re facing in both the personal as well as societal fronts are almost canonical in structure. And that there are very few ways in which the disempowered voices can be actually heard — uncensored internet being the primary settlement for such alternative discourse. This will be a timely column for myself and people who subscribe to some of the things that I deeply believe in.
The scope of conversation is as wide as it could be, reflecting on the multitude of crises we as a humanity face on multiple fronts. I will be writing about the climate emergency, migration, modernity, philosophy, global polity, universalism, economic organization, anthropocene, global empires, political theology, visual world (through photo and video essays), films, music, technology, mental health, religion, race, caste, international law, constitutional law, democracy, journalism, labor practices, financialization of economy, globalization, human and civil rights, academia, neoliberalism, history, war, disease, capitalism, conservatism, left liberalism, social activism, liberation, ideology, and the most timely aspects of empathy and love for the other. This column and the blog posts that follow from now on will be a testament to my efforts to steer the conversation towards what I consider to be the right direction. This act is deeply rooted in my belief that I have an undeniable responsibility to leave a better world for the people who inherit it from me. I feel the future generations that will replace us will undoubtedly take offense at the way in which we’re mortgaging their future without any reflection on the dire consequences that follow. I also hope to do some collaborative writing with anyone interested in some of these issues. At the very least, I expect to get constructive feedback from different interested parties, since I truly believe that we are all working towards building a better world for everyone. If not for nothing, this will at least remain as an internet relic of people who cared.
And on a personal level, this phase of reflective writing in my life will remain as a marker to be found by my nephew (6 year-old) and the future generations. The least I could do is record my thoughts as is and be truthful since most of the problems we’re facing are systemic. And a flailing human can only achieve so much in a world that is in constant flux and probably has changed immensely by now compared to when you began reading this memoir. If only we could leave a better world for everyone. See you next time around fellow beings!