Yugen – Creativity and the feeling

Well, this is a topic most people won’t like it and might come as a devil to most of the teachers. We know all our universities and schools are trying to teach creativity through workshops and creative programs and it’s a big thing these days.

However, the trouble is, if we found out a method to teach creativity and everybody could just know the formula for creating a beautiful object, it would no longer be of interest. What always is an essential element of creativity is the ‘Mysterious’.

It’s when Yugen comes into play, Yugen – a Japanese word comprising of two kanji characters meaning ‘mysterious’ and ‘deep’ roughly translates into – ‘an awareness of the universe that triggers emotional responses too deep and mysterious for the words’.

There’s a Japanese Haiku poem that says:

“When the bird calls, the mountain becomes more mysterious”

With this kind of poem you see, you get a feeling, which might mean nothing, but that nothing is everything. Creativity is that experience when the thought wanders into that nothingness (void) and this is Yugen.    

Yugen is the sensation of life that keeps you going, without the thought of a specific destination. It’s when the space is used to keep your imagination flowing into it without being specific. Creativity is an experienced and cannot be learnt.

To further elaborate, lets talk about humour, a joke as we know is funny as it hints at something, but you never explain to yourself why you laughed, because that will spoil the joke. In the same way, there is this mystery, which is never defined, and which you understand and see the beauty, just as the humour of the joke. Thus, there is no philosophy of humour nor any for creativity and discussing more about it is futile.

Seek a meaningful life not a happy one

We all want to be happy, but most of us have no idea what to do. 

Should we make more money? 

Should we focus on pursuing our passions?

Should we give up all our material possessions and become a monk in the mountains?

Well, we all have a different take on it and there are times when nothing seems to work. 

Having said that, let me introduce you to the concept of ‘ikigai’, few identify it with the Japanese formula of happiness, but I say, it helps you lead a more meaningful life. Well, let’s be honest, happiness has no exclusive rights of the path to heaven.

Ikigai roughly translates into ‘a reason for being’, you need to have a purpose of living. Though it sounds easier than done, when you know nothing is under your control. However, there are four components you need to check to achieve ‘ikigai’. 

1) Find something you love:  

Find things that make you feel good, that makes us stop thinking for a short period of time, few call it the ‘Flow State’.  This could be drawing, singing, reading, etc. – that takes you to the state of bliss where you feel focused. The same happens when you fall in love with someone because being with that person allows us to forget all the other problems at least momentarily.

2) Find something that the world needs:

We humans are hardwired to feel good when we know we are needed. Back in the day when we were hunters, it was easy, as everybody played an important part—the hunter was as important as the cleaner, and one could easily gauge the effect of one on the other. However, nowadays, most people work in corporations – being given small roles in massive companies, where even if we work our butts off, it’s hard to see the positive outcome, it doesn’t look we’ve accomplished anything and even if we quit, no one will really care. You need to find something that creates a positive impact around you and that’s the second component of ikigai.

3) Find something that you get paid well for:

Let’s be real– ‘You need money’ – money to put a roof over your head, food in your mouth and clothes in your body. Without enough of it, you’ll spend most of your life worrying and stressed. It is crucial to earn not just some money, but a good enough to live a comfortable life. You need to live without stress and achieve financial independence, which is the third component of ikigai.

4) Find something that you’re good at:

This doesn’t mean you’ve got to be born with talent – it means you’ll have put in time and effort in order to get better at the skill. We often face difficulty in the beginning when we take the first step; however, practice is the key, which lets you overcome the hurdle, and this makes it the fourth component of ikigai.

The Venn diagram below gives a better picture of what ikigai is and how to strike a balance between Passion, Mission, Profession and Vocation.

Kodaikanal – The Queen of Hills

It was a starry night, I packed my bagpack, and set off on a journey down south from Hyderabad. Though travelling across Southern states is not as convenient as North, nevertheless I never lost hope. I had always preferred budget travel, so I booked a train ticket without breaking my bank. I heard a lot about Kodaikanal and wanted to explore it by myself.

Though there aren’t any direct buses or trains to Kodaikanal from Hyderabad, one can reach either via Madurai or Coimbatore. I choose Madurai. I boarded the train at around 6ish in the morning and fortunately, the train departed on time. The journey was comfortable, moreover the trains in the south have a reputation of being clean, which I absolutely agree. It was a journey of 24 hours and thankfully there weren’t any annoying aunty, snoring uncle or kids shouting out loud.

Though I had to sacrifice my preferred seat for a pregnant lady, nonetheless being considerate feels good. I don’t eat much while travelling, but I make sure to carry nuts and fruits, as staying constipated is a bad idea.

I reached early morning and damn, I was lost, people don’t speak Hindi, and English is spoken by a chosen few. And again, budget travel was in my mind so never opted for OLA or UBER. Fortunately, I found a man who spoke a little English and he helped me board the local bus to the state bus transport station where I could get the buses for Kodaikanal. The buses were easily available with high frequency.

One can book local buses (Govt. owned) to Kodaikanal at Rs 250, which takes around 4-5 hours to reach. People with motion sickness must avoid buses. If you are willing to pay more, there are many taxi services or Zoomcar is a great option. Travellers should carry extra sweaters as the weather gets chilly at night.

To be honest, it is best to travel in your own vehicle while exploring Kodaikanal, as the town has a very poor commuting facility and the ones available are either too expensive or less frequent. I, on a budget travel, had to walk most distances or hitchhike my way through the town and yes, people were very cooperative.

Most of the best hotels are located near the lake area, which seems to be the centre. However, if you are looking for seclusion, I suggest finding hotels near the Observatory or Vattakanal (2 km from Kodaikanal). I personally booked a hotel on Goibibo near the Observatory with a breathtaking view (though the staff spoke only Tamil, my sign language came handy) The only barrier I faced was language, which is a common scenario for non-Dravidian in most parts of Southern India.

There is no nightlife as such, unless organised by the hotel you’re staying in. For Shopaholics, Kodaikanal is famous for chocolates, medicinal herbs and essential oil. You can get some for yourself, they are good.

These are few of the places you can go while visiting Kodai:

1) Kodaikanal Lake

2) Coaker’s walk

3) Silvercade falls

4) Byrant Park

Once done, do visit Vattakanal, to experience the nature’s glory. Check out few of the pics from Vattakanal.

How to be okay with being alone

Top rules for being alone and being happy about it

1) Understand 'You' are all that you need

In the world of extroverts, ones friends' network and their skills to handle themselves in a crowd are appreciated much, nevertheless, it's not the only goal we strive for at the end of the day. Being an extrovert and not enjoying the company of self won't bring in much happiness. One must always enjoy the 'me time', however with social media hijacking our life introspection or knowing oneself has made an exit. Thence when you are alone, remind yourself that you choose to be alone.

 2) Value others but 'You' come first.

Value what others say, but most importantly value yourself. Know what you need, and seek your own advice. When we trust our problem-solving skills we become much stronger and more confident. You can take challenges which you felt incapable of doing before.

3) Be a good listener

Listening works wonder, it helps know the person you are interacting with, creates a better bond and also acts as a magic potion to deal with your anxiety if you are battling the same. A good listener can always be a good friend one can look up to.

4) Appreciate the silence in darkness

Life is busy, there are times we need to step back and relax. Close your eyes and enjoy the silence the darkness beholds. It gives the true purpose of your life and helps you make better judgments as nothing exist at that point to distract you. Meditation helps too.

5) Talk to 'You'

Remember, You are your own bff, don't forget to talk to 'you'. Holding a conversation with self is not a sign of insanity but it is always the best way to hear your inner voice. It is easy to silence the voice with the noise around, it is required to invoke the inner voice as helps you be kind to yourself.

6) Rearrange your upholstery

We often fall prey to patterns, however, if the patterns are regular, it is boring.  It's a common human psychology to resist meaningful change.
Keeping this in mind let's start with meaningless change, e.g. Changing the direction of your furniture or anything for that matter. It gives us a new perspective and a pauses the mundane.

7) Create, recreate, Create

As a child we all had hobbies, never get rid of it. Recreate your childhood, create what you love, do it all by yourself. If you want to be happy never stick your happiness with people around you, stick it with what you love doing, make use of your lone time it helps.

😎 Travel alone

Be your own travel buddy, for once try looking the world through your eyes. It's always a better place to live in. Go watch a movie alone, or probably go for shopping. Do the wildest thing you thought of, alone, life is too short to regret about things not done. Never let anybody's words direct you.

9) Volunteer for a good cause

It is always nice to contribute something good to the world. Being alone and happy does not mean you subtract yourself from the rest. It means you surround yourself with people but your happiness does not depend on them. It's your time, make good use of it.

Painter's Paradox

The Painter's Paradox

You know it isn't  true,
The lies you held against him all through.
In the heap of lies his heart rests,
Thank you, for the beautiful mess.

A blank canvas was he, fascinated with colours
Unfamiliar with how messy colours can be.
You painted his life with the chaos of conflict,
Flabbergasted on the misery you can inflict.

But his love for colours never faded;
Peel it off or paint it red, he pleaded.
Life is beautiful with Red, green and blue
Believe in happiness, coz it is true.

Strangers In The Night

We were strangers all together
It was desires that crippled the moment;
Little annoyed and sceptical in the beginning,
Nevertheless, she was gentle in her pursuit
As if she was in an ordeal to complete a task assigned
Or was in a search for something she lost long back.

I avoided comprehending her activity, as I was pursuing my wildest dream.
November morning it was,
Her big bright eyes impaled me with excitement.
She showered her umpteen love and I reciprocated
Whatever our intentions were, the meeting was conspired long back
The day passed by,
Holding  each other, loving each other, loosing each other
Upon each other.

It was the moment when time came to a halt;
It was when nothing else in the world was worth knowing;
It was euphoric enough to make me dance in her tune forever.
She felt like a dream, a dream I dreamt long back had come true.
Everything seemed  jinxed and worked for both of us.

Wow!!

However, nothing lasts for ever, the spell broke one day
The stars fell apart, the dreams were shattered.
Every bright day brings a dark night, we exchanged glances no longer.
The time plays a different ball game every moment and
It doesn't matter who was wrong and who was right
Because at the end we are again strangers in the night.

Does It Matter?

It fuels with the dream -- the dream of being happy, the dream of being successful, the dream of finding the best mate who would be with you forever. Everyone has their own means of finding it in the humdrum of the urban life.

Then there follows the Utopians, with their fixed set of conduct that tries to rule the dream of the dreamers, cajoling their minds with the threats of the unseen saying ‘It’s dark out there’, invigorating fear of what they might lose once they leave and not be able to see their loved ones again.

Oftentimes, my mind convenes at a point where I try to comprehend the sole intent of what the conduct is. I agree at some point, it is required to maintain the entropy of the system or chaos is inevitable; nonetheless isn’t the system already chaotic behind the curtains under the veils of conduct?

The monotonous plays are performed each day, even the external stimulus backs out, saying ‘I can work no more’ making us crave more of it thinking someday the play would be more interesting, and the search of true feeling or passion is lost somewhere in the search outside.

Evidently, even science believe everything is backed by laws,  Newton's law of relativity, laws of thermodynamics etc etc. governs the universe. However, there are times, out of nowhere from the dark matter, comes the law breakers.  For instance, ‘Maxwell demon’  is a very good example of how it violates the law 2nd law of thermodynamics, and in fact if we delve deep into the subject matter we will find how important ‘Maxwell demon’ is in the entire process of thermodynamic reaction.

It’s ironic how convenient are we in tagging the ‘different’ as ‘demon’. We must know that  there is ‘Maxwell Demon’ in each of us and it is wise and crucial at this hour if we see what we need inside rather than hunting for it outside.

It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles against other.