Nobody and nothing plays fair. Why should I?” — excerpt from an angry letter of a 16-year-old.
Yup. Nobody and nothing plays fair. Welcome to the real world. In time, you will probably realise that life itself is pretty unfair — along with society, fate, girlfriends, our political leaders, lottery tickets, not to mention dreams,
desires, your status in society, obesity, diseases and finally — an abrupt and unexpected exit from this planet. From the moment you were born, a tightly-wound clock rapidly unwinds as it ticks away the remaining breaths of your life — each tick marking an irreversible change in your status — most of which are certainly unfair.
The answer to unfairness isn’t a return act of unfairness, or a rash bout of anger (in most cases, you can’t retaliate at all). It’s, in fact, the intelligent application of mind. It’s harnessing your energies and fighting back in a coordinated manner.
The very first thing to do is accept the unalterable fact that people and things are unfair. This is how it is going to be — for now and forever. Unfair is natural and right. Unfair is the law of the jungle. Unfair is tectonic plates colliding near Japan or a devastating typhoon in China. Unfair is a bunch of rotten politicians mouthing platitudes, as they rip off billions of dollars worth public money and create private business empires.
Unfair is also how you and me behave. People will always think and act in their own self-interest, and as long as you appear to be a part of their self-interest they will be “fair” towards you. But the moment their self-interest diverges from yours, they will start acting “unfairly” towards you. What’s so surprising about that? If you look at your own actions carefully, you will realise that you too are following the same behaviour pattern.
Second, accept the fact that you are seventy per cent water — which means that physically, you are fragile and vulnerable. You are propped up by an invisible and unfathomable intelligence, which has gathered whatever molecules it could, and created the entity called “you”. The intelligence is bodiless and can only hang on to these molecules for so long (eighty years?), and one day these tightly held molecules will fall apart and the intelligence will soar free to god knows where — wherever it came from in the first place. Seventy per cent of those molecules are water. So basically, we are a squishy jelly bag that thinks, screws up and talks. A squishy jelly bag that tends to wear out after a while. So disease, fatigue, wrinkles
are all unfair, yet intensely natural. The more you fight
them, the more they appear. Flow with them and your spirit will soar and literally prove to
yourself and the world that “Buddha hoga tera baap”.
Three, wherever you can, fight unfairness with a calm purposeful mind. Never rage at nature, man or society. Never get mad. Instead, get even. If you have become overweight, plan on how to get back the energy of a child, while restraining rash impulses to gorge on food. Weight will restore itself in a short time. If your best friend has stolen your girl, apply strategy on how to get her back. Plan well, time your actions correctly and execute them with confidence and finesse. At least you will have a fighting chance to win her back — or the satisfaction of knowing you tried damned hard before failing.
Lastly, remember that there
is something all the unfairness in the Universe can never take away from you — your cheerfulness, your zest for life and your faith in yourself.
So take heart, my young friend. Take a long look at yourself and slowly smile. Despite everything, life’s good. You’re good, and
so are these times that
you live through.
The writer is a film director