LESSONS FROM A PANDEMIC AND IMAGINING MY UNENCUMBERED SELF
Pandemic proves that, time is an epoch and the whole world was absolutely wrong about how to perceive and live life. It’s been complete six months to pandemic and during this mind-boggling period of time, there were many things the pandemic had taken from us, it took the lives of so many people around the world, and altered the concepts of morality, cultural setups, love, gatherings and emotions and now the individualism is the top priority for all.
But we should be very thankful to COVID, because it taught us to visualise life from a different prism and to understand our selves. Before, pandemic it was quite normal to have gatherings, doing daily routine work but in doing so, people forgot to give time to their true selves and appreciate solitude. It’s true that invisibility is the great Superpower. There was a time, when people considered isolation, self-centeredness ,selfishness as wrong but it’s the invisibility that made all these concepts the requirement of hour for a long run.
Pandemic and Postmodernism
I believe, pandemic is a post modern condition. It was during my University days, I took postmodernism lightly, but I was very much interested in some of the postmodernist philosophers particularly including Francis Lyotard, Jacques Derrida and Michel Focault. The beauty of postmodernism is this, it stresses on incredulity of metanarratives, and focuses on the deconstruction. It even discourages the truth that is undetermined on historical and social context rather than being absolute and universal, it is always partial. There should be no place for truth, beauty and morality because they reflect the thinking of power holders and it’s a big wonder there will be no one in the world who will consider or accept the truth of the poor and this is what postmodernism stresses upon.
I found a remarkable connection between the pandemic and postmodernism that is both demands the rejection of meta- narratives of Francis Lyotard, and the beauty of deconstruction of Derrida and the concept of biopower of Michel Focault. Postmodernism in totality rejects grand narratives, faith, love, morality, power and even the archaeology of knowledge and all these concepts before pandemic were so important that it was quite unimaginable to think about life in isolation in the absence of all these concepts but the invisibility proved that life without all these mediums can also be lived.
In spite of everything, I have a strong belief that everything will be good in the end.
Unencumbered Self
Sometimes, I think, that the most difficult thing is to understand your, “self”, even , understanding itself is difficult to understand because it requires the meeting point of two horizons, that is knowing the exact inner intent of the people, that is where understanding happens.
Can I think of my, “self” without encumbrances or can I separate, who I am, from my attributes, cravings and desires, or am I good enough to become stoical? If it happens, literally, then I can have a , ‘self’that will be unencumbered.
There is a difference between the values I have and the person I am and I am always struggling with my mind in knowing what lies there in between the two. I have a huge guilt for not understanding ,my ownself and the requirement of my soul.
My search for ,“I” and“ me ” relationship and the difference between the two will never end because metaphysical concepts take whole life to understand. It’s well said, “In order to find yourself, think for yourself and at the end I believe in the philosopheme of, I know one thing that is nothing ”.
Qurat.
