I hope you will be curious about this thread !!
I am often loquacious and never tired of talking. Conversations with my friends have given me opportunities to think a lot. My friend and I were exchanging views on feminism. Suddenly, another friend who was accompanying us got overwhelmed and wanted us to stop discussing it.
I was not particularly upset because I often go overboard in the name of discussing. But I was intrigued by his lack of curiosity. This example is one such instance where people erect knowledge barriers upon themselves. There may be plenty of reasons for it - It feels bored to have too much stuff in the brain, laziness to exert the brain muscles, insecurity of being out of the camp, etc. But could this lack of curiosity have ramifications on how we live our lives?
Curiosity is not only about "quest/ thirst for knowledge". It is also an expression of a desire to pay attention to something. When people say they are entering into "rabbit holes", they mean travelling through conduits that can shuttle people from one universe to another. Curiosity often opens the doors or valves of these conduits.
What are those universes? They are the mental constructs and perceptions of individuals. In other words, my universe is my understanding of what am I in this world and how I see others. When a person is more curious, he broadens his horizon and becomes more tolerant and empathetic by travelling to other universes.
When we are more curious, we enter into more rabbit holes and thereby more universes. The consequence is that our universe will also expand when we travel more through these rabbit holes. If we visualize this in an intuitive sense, it means our universe is expanding from us.
How would a privileged person understand the concerns of less privileged people? They would have to be curious to know what it is like to be less privileged. It opens the door for the "well-off" to enter the universe of "not so well-off". Hence, it is not outrageous to connect curiosity with empathy.
Reservation of seats in educational institutions/ jobs in Government is a highly contested and polarized issue. There is no doubt that certain peoples have benefitted enormously because of the socio-economic system that prevailed earlier. Why is it that some privileged peoples refuse to see reservations as a tool for achieving social justice?
I will now not focus on the argument that they are ineffective. Instead, let me focus on people who say reservations kills the spirit of fairness. If they had been a bit curious about knowing how reservations help underprivileged people attaining social mobility, would they be less acrimonious?
Journalist Josy Joseph says India is an amoral society. It is an interesting observation because we are insensitive to unjust happening around us. Consider caste discrimination, for instance. Why do we condone it? Because we do not exert enough energy or curiosity to understand how it makes us inhuman and stands against fairness. Are we selectively moral then? Do we think about morality only when we are victims of unjustness?
I define Self Centeredness as having everything based on self. When a person is self-centred, they seek reward and opportunity in everything they do. If a person shuns discussing politics because he thinks there is no potential benefit, it means he is prioritizing short term gains over curiosity. Political discourses set the agenda of the nation. If we do not want to discuss politics, how are we going to have better leaders? How are we going to shape our nation-building process towards a better future?
Why do we often look upon our governments to solve all our social problems? India does not win enough gold medals in Olympics - Blame the state for it. Who can correct the years of social injustice? State can. Who should keep the city clean? Municipalities and other local governments. Why should we? I agree that our governments have a significant stake in building our nation. I also concur that most of our disappointments with our governments' inaction are justified. But that does not mean that we should move on with our private lives while leaving all complex problems for our governments to solve. It implies that we lack the curiosity to go deeper and view those problems through the first-principles approach.
We often crib about not having a passion. Passion comes with paying attention to something and getting involved in it without expecting any tangible benefits. Therefore, Passion and career are mutually exclusive areas. But often, we think of how to make money out of it. Some might be passionate about music and also be rich and famous music directors. The reason is they are curious about music and do not have a self-centred view of how it will serve them.
Curiosity not only drifts us away from self-centeredness but also makes us happier. Most of us often lament that we live a mundane life. Do we realize that the fundamental flaw in our educational system is its assault on our questioning ability? How many of us appreciate the hidden genius in small things? We cannot pursue happiness. But it might ensue by being curious about little things around us.
Curious people have always entered uncharted territory and have taken humanity along with them. When a mind lacks the urge to explore, it becomes lazy and cares only about immediate gratification. Let us stay hungry to know more. Let us stay foolish so that we are irrational and not seek utility in everything.
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