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Paradigm
shift, in simple words, is a change from one way of thinking to another. For
example, we can think of religion as compassion instead of a set of rituals and
prayers. A paradigm shift can bring about miraculous changes in our life. A
prisoner, for instance, will make his life miserable if he despairs of his
condition or can make his term a happy period if he chooses to do something
creative under the given conditions. Aren’t we all prisoners in this world?
Awareness
is a necessary prerequisite to all meaningful changes. One plain truth is that
we love to live in our comfort zone. Only when we become aware of facts like
our comfort zone is not the best of zones available and that there are many
other better possibilities and options open to us, will we be able to change.
In
the beginning of his novel, Illusions,
Richard Bach tells a story about some water creatures. These creatures spend
their entire lifetime clinging to the rocks and twigs at the bottom of the
crystal clear river. One day they see another creature like themselves floating
on the water above them. They think that creature is going to be their messiah
since he is performing what they perceive as a miracle. They beg the messiah to
save them. The floating creature tells them that he is no messiah and that if
they want to save themselves they should let go their clinging. The creatures
cannot imagine letting go. All their life they have been clinging. Clinging was
the way of life for their ancestors, it is theirs as will be their future
generations’.
They
refused to let go and continued to cling. Maybe they made up imaginative
stories about a messiah who made an apparition to them once upon a time. Maybe
they made a religion in the name of that messiah, created rituals, composed
prayers. And continued to cling.
Letting
go is the paradigm shift. Can we let go some of our silly prejudices? Can we
let go some of our attitudes to success, wealth, and whatever else we think is
very important? Can we open our minds, our consciousness, to new truths which
are waiting to reveal themselves to us?
Are
you ready for the paradigm shift?
PS.
For #BlogchatterA2Z
I have read the book. It's great.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. Unless we leave clinging, we cannot go up or fly or float!