A CANVAS OR A PRISON ?

Sometimes life gives you weeks where the days just pass. It is not like you are passing your TIME. It just seems that TIME is passing you by. Cause most of things you do and the thoughts you have, seem uninspired. They actually may be quite insightful and perceptive, but since you've had them before, they're old news for you. Every second seems to drag, not because you're getting bored. What you're doing excites you and its fun, but it just seems bland compared to what you've done, what you've achieved. Your mind picks up on these things and you contemplate - a change of setting, a change of lifestyle, a peek into a friend's life. Your mind gives you these thoughts and avenues for change. It lives a life of its own- uncluttered, imaginative and rebellious. Yet in its form, it is melancholy, half and fake excitement. Cause you know you're supposed to do something today. A plan, an agenda, a purpose is there. And you know your mind has to fulfill these responsibilities and purposefully do its duty, thus resulting in no excitement that the 21st century wandering and waving mind is capable of experiencing.

Isn't that what we all crave? Perpetual excitement? Actually being able to LIVE every second the same way. Energized, driven and with no fear. But what happens is that sometimes the mind tends to move into a zone of loneliness and disconnect. Not for the lack of company, even compelling company at that, but for the lack of a fresher perspective, a reason to do and a change from the sustained level of excitement currently.

What really intrigues me is when the mind starts to accept this current zone of loneliness and disconnect. At what point do you, as an adventurous, potent and agile person start to accept, that, ya, THIS is MY LIFE. This is what im going to do. This is all I can achieve in my years. I can't conquer everything. I cant be the Master of All. Cause we've been taught to never give in, never underestimate ourselves and never stop being ambitious. Cause we're taught never to be content, to strive to be better and greater, to learn from others. For the honest, uncomplicated and simple mind, this is an impossible task. The honest mind views itself for what it is, that is, it is not the best. No matter how far you go, there always is that final hurdle, final mountain to be climbed, some person to beat, some desire to accomplish. This brings me to my next question.

Are human beings really bottomless pits of need? Is that our curse for being different from the animals? Is our ego the bane and boon of our existence? Cause we cant keep it simple. There are just too many on this planet for us to keep it simple. May be the cavemen could keep it simple. Just eat, hunt, make love to their woman, fight and sleep. Maybe that was a simpler TIME, a TIME where everything didn't have to be understood, it was obvious. But then, what screwed it up, what cataclysm made it into the multi-layer, intricately framed world of today? As i keep thinking about this, an answer comes to my mind. Maybe evolution is the culprit. Human beings used their intelligence to evolve. And in the process we lost most of our simplicity. We trained to be practical, use reasoning and deduce things. But do our minds really move just like our bodies do? Can we always be reasonable and use our intelligence to benefit us? In fact, is thinking really action? Aren't these two inter-linked? Cause you can think while acting and you can act while thinking. Could i even write an article about something as innate as this if i wasnt using my brain? What would i write if i allowed myself to switch my conscious brain off??

Isnt it ironic that im talking about not using my brain while im using it? Furthermore, would i realize that i should not be using my brain if i wasnt using it in the first place? How and when would i have come to this realization? And doesnt not using my brain prevent me from such other realizations?

Hahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. Hahahahahaaa

Just while writing the above 2 paragraphs, i realize that this is why writers go mad, kill themselves and are such maniacs :) Cause they want answers, and they want them ASAP. Their mind is their canvas and their prison. They carry too much baggage, mentally, and are always looking to justify disposing it. But they like the baggage, they can tangibly associate it with the materialistic world. As a layman would call it, that's what makes them think differently. They are so stuck in their minds, that they exist in many lifetimes and dimensions. That their mind takes them places where they cant go. And ironically, it is because of this preoccupation with the mind, that they rarely go to places.

Recognizing why and how a person thinks is a key to world domination. I'll repeat. Recognizing why and how a person thinks is a key to world domination.

Its just that very few writers actually use this key for their own benefit. That is what they are against. Its breaks an invisible line in their head.

Lol. Now, im sleepy. Too much psychobabble for today. Gnite.

MENTAL INERTIA

Inertia - it is the force that drives us. Most people, once they reach a certain age, tend to follow a distinct path. It is distinct cause it is characterized by features of their personality. An achiever will always achieve things in his life, no matter what obstacles might come in his way. A loser may always be a loser, no matter how hard he tries. Or a daydreamer/idealist will always be one, no matter how hard life tries shapes him. Cause events that have happened in childhood and adolescence stay with us for the long haul. They are the singular most instrumental moments that shape our personalities. Our reactions to these little things might define us for the rest of our lives. Cause the human mind is like the retina of the eye. We recognise things happening around us and can produce a visual representation of it. But if we're exposed to too much light and if our minds are toyed with beyond a certain extent, we're damaged.

These life-defining moments are way too hard to recognize when u experience them. I mean, Joe Satriani decided to become a guitarist once he heard that Jimi Hendrix had died. Satriani was only 13 years old then. If someone would have told him back then that he would be one of the most famous and critically-acclaimed guitarists today, he would've laughed and scoffed. But its funny how things turned out exactly like that. Cause Satriani's mental inertia made him reach where he is today. That innate desire, nay, need to be a reknowned guitarist propelled him forwards. And thats exactly how it works in most of us. Except that most of us have a need for doing the oddest possible things.

Some of us, no matter how much we want it, can never settle to anything. We're what they call the wanderers or "responsibility-shirkers". We'll try one career after another, and just live in that infinite loop all our lives.

Some of us, just have that desire to be rich. To have so much money, and to be so busy making it, that we got no time to utilize it. That's what gives us a high. Cause we know we've XYZ lakh in the bank. And we dont wanna spend it, cause just like Gollum in the movie, "It's our precious".

Some of us, just want to be creators. We want to make something worthwhile. It might be a book, a movie, a painting or a song. It just has to be fully ours. We spend our days and nights doing this to make a mark.

Some of us, just desire to find our soul mate. We desire to find that perfect individual who acts as a counterpoint all our properties and makes us feel like "The One". We go through life, moving from one relationship to the other, to find that one person.

Some of us live on faith. We believe that we'll ride the wave of life and manage things cause we know the creator up there is watching and He's gonna make things ok, no matter what. We can survive the deadliest conditions and worst situations via this faith.

Some of us are so lacking in self-belief that even in the happiest situations, we'll look for negativity. Cause that's what's been embedded into our minds since an early age, we are people who self-destruct.

Its mental inertia which causes such things. We are so used to things happening in a certain manner, that even if they happen in some other ways, its too hard for us to deal with them. That is why there are short-lived successes and one-hit wonders. Cause the people cant really deal with such drastic changes in their life, even if the changes are for the better. I guess a lotta people dont live out their fantasies. Cause most of them want them so much, that they think about them too much. They just live them out vicariously or in their heads. That is the truth. Cause the mind can only be diverted after a certain point. It cannot be forced to return on the path it has just traversed. Thus the concept of regret and thus the concept of getting over it being highly, highly important.

Wrestling - An ART FORM

"If you smellllalalalaooooh, what The Rock is cooking". "Gimme a HELL YEAH". "You can't see me". "Rest in Peaaccceeee". "You've got....No chance in hell!!!". "Hulkamania is runnin wild, brother".

The above sentences are vintage dialogues of different World Wrestling Entertainment (ya, i believe its a better name than WWF) superstars. The wrestling industry has a been a massive part of the teenage years of most of today's generation. It encompassed all that we believed in. It stood for the brash, no-nonsense, arrogant little snots that a lot of us always aspired to be. It was, and still is a kid's dream. Thus the common notion that wrestling is a thing of the past. An activity that is acceptable and tolerated when you're a little kid, cause frankly, life isn't like that. You cant break rules, whack people and raise hell all the time you want. You have to be a civilized member of the society that we have to live in. Thus the perception that once you're old enough, watching such stuff doesnt make sense. This may be seen as a perfectly viable argument. But it pays to analyze both sides of the coin.

Wrestling is an art form. Its a form of entertainment which tells a story. It is not "men fighting in tights" as people have so grossly and unjustly termed it. It is similar to other art forms like music, cinema or writing. It takes the viewer through an emotional journey. Dont tell me that even the staunchest anti-wrestling fan will not be amused by the promos given by The Rock? These promos alone sold millions of pay-per-view buys. Don't tell me even the most non-violent person alive cannot admire the athleticism and dedication of a star performer like Shawn Michaels? His series of matches over the years have set the bar for all sorts of sports entertainment. And dont tell me that when Stone Cold Steve Austin yelled "Gimme a HELL YEAH", not everyone did? That was what defined the power of wrestling. Cause it took viewers to alternate worlds, alternate states of consciousness, which is what any great art form should do. A common mistake is that the cornerstone of wrestling entertainment is physical confrontation. It is actually a compelling storyline which leads to a physical confrontation. Only if there is a reason to emotionally invest in the product will watching wrestling be popular. Wrestling connects to people in lots of ways. The average man imagines his boss as the wrestler getting his butt kicked. The little teenager imagines himself as the next daredevil like Jeff hardy to do acrobatics. The old man, battered and bruised by the mental stress and strain caused to him by LIFE, just imagines all the people who have done him wrong as people who's butt he's always wanted to kick. Wrestling gives him that satisfaction. Arent empathy and living vicariously the main reasons why music, films and novels came to into existence. Its all ENTERTAINMENT. Which is what people turn to after a stressful day.

Romantic songs, comedy films, action flicks and inspirational writing. All art forms. Another similarity among them - All fiction. Fake. Hocum. Full of Crap. Nonsense to make money. But why do we associate ourselves with and appreciate them. Cause they take us to "altered states of consicousness". Cause they make us feel things. Cause they make us realize what we CAN FEEL if we are in a certain state, not what we DO FEEL. My biggest frustration is that people say wrestling is "fake" and thus criticize it. So what? Even movies and stories are fake. Do we argue with George Lucas when he mentions "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away..."? No we accept that it all is fake. But are we enjoying the story? Damn yes. Hell, most times artists dont even mention that their creations are set in some other world. Then why this bigotry towards wrestling?? Why the unnecessary questioning of its reality? Why the devaluing of its companies and performers?? These double standards are glaringly evident to me.

The wrestling business is a highly profitable one. Cause wrestling promotions, wrestlers and the media work very hard to develop a product that is appealing to the target audience. The storylines have lots of sensibilities and references to current developments. Of course, a lot of them are bad, predictable stories. But yeah, even the movie biz has a majority of flops (at least bollywood :p) and most writers are copycats too. So this makes it similar, not as people view, opposite, to other art forms. The principle of using violence to solve conflict is a highly debatable one, but i think even movies and novels have highly controversial themes. Its just that some minds are open enough to accept that its entertainment, not reality and others actually try to apply the Four Noble Truths designed by Buddha to a wrestling feud. These are the actual "stupid kids". As far as the issue of wrestlers dying due to steroid and drug abuse, thats a topic for a separate post itself. But i will say this. Every profession has its pros and cons. Even a fireman can die. He too willingly puts himself in danger. Its completely his choice. Does that mean no one becomes a fireman??

I am a self-confessed massive wrestling fan. I believe it is a great way to tell a story and it should be acknowledged as one, no matter if it is appreciated or criticized. In fact wrestling does not mean WWE, there are a hundred other wrestling promotions and companies. It is highly, highly popular and is a multi-billion dollar industry. And its popularity is spread throughout the world. Right from the USA to Germany and from Australia to Japan. Speaking of Japan, i have a theory that the Japanese are the authority on the most compelling art forms. Be it games, sports, music or movies, the Japanese can tell a emotionally moving art form from a highly bland one. And guess what, wrestling is most popular not in the USA, but in Japan. I have added some links here of some wrestling fan sites, hoping some of you will check them out and see for yourself what wrestling really is.

www.prowrestling.net

www.pwtorch.com

Now in the undying wrestling words - "Thats the bottom line cause Stone Cold says so".