My personal feeling is that understanding evolution led me to atheism.
- Richard Dawkins
I often stay awake looking at the night sky trying to find those stars I used to watch while lying beside my father on the rooftop during those memorable summer nights. My father used to point towards specific stars and tell me their names. I would never forgive myself for forgetting the names of those legends which will remain in the same place in the sky even after me. In the kaleidoscope of memories, I have those black and white blurred pictures, waiting to be refreshed. Somewhere, I have a constant feeling of burden, Is it an assignment? Is it something I forgot to do? Do I have to wake up early? And if that be the case why am I not doing that assignment? Why am I not executing my plans? Why am I not trying to sleep early? Am I so occupied with life that I have forgotten to live?
Human beings had a very humble beginning. Sometimes, I try to think of the times when our species had originated and what our ancestors used to do. Correct me if I am wrong, Homo-Sapiens appeared on earth 200 thousand years ago. In the course of evolution, our ancestors learned to follow those legends in the sky, who guided us towards a better life. It was during those hard times they traveled and explored worlds unknown, they learned to control fire, they made the tools - ‘those imperfect wheels’, they left their stories on the walls of their caves, they tamed plants and animals, they invented complex ways to communicate. Furthermore, they claimed the world. I wonder, what were they trying to do in their ancient, not so happening world?
The more substantial question is what are we essentially doing in the so called modern and a very happening world? Aren’t we still travelling and exploring worlds unknown, still controlling the same fire in those high tech rocket engines? Aren’t we building amazing tools even now? Aren’t we writing stories to be read by generations to come? Are we not taming the genome of plants and animals? Is it not that we continue to find new ways of communicating through satellites and glass screen wireless gadgets and haven’t we claimed many species of the world forever? After these many years of evolution, how many things can you count that we do and those great spirits didn’t.
The great learned community of the world claims that we are innovative. Am I blinded by lack of sleep that I can’t see even one basic difference in what those holy spirits used to do and what we are doing? We are so unwise that we can’t even break free the chains of those superstitious stories they framed us in, to teach us about wisdom. Somehow, we got jealous of those heroes who paved our way to a world which we contoured with barbed wires. So jealous that we destroyed the forests, the wild spirits, the rivers they sung and enchanted songs about.
The only thing they were trying to do was survive.
They will. We will. If out of curiosity, you want to search for answer to the question “what is the difference between them and us?” Ask me and I would say go ahead and search how big you want your world to be?
--------
About the Author:
Abhishek Chandra
Abhishek is a students of the pioneer batch at IIM Nagpur. He is a visionary with good leadership skills. He is focused to build a career in Operations or consulting.