Excessive Self-Importance
By
Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
25 December
2023
“One of the symptoms of an approaching nervous
breakdown is the belief that one’s work is terribly important.”
― Bertrand Russell, The Conquest of
Happiness
I write and forget and do not care
My words are works on water
Judging my own work is not fair
When there're writers far better
Omar Khyyam, translated from Persian by the writer
Kal Aur Aayenge Naghmon Ki Khilti Kaliyaan
Chun-Ne Wale
Mujh Se Behtar Kahne Wale, Tum Se Behtar Sun-Ne
Wale
-Sahir Ludhianvi
(Poets and
connoisseurs to come will cherry-pick those who will write better than what I
write and appreciate far better than what you appreciate now)
Extreme care
and concern for one's own qualities and capabilities can render a person too
conscious and artificial. While it's good to take oneself seriously, too much
concern about one's work is also not desirable. A light-hearted, if not
frivolous, approach to one's genius is good for the mental health.
Like Sahir,
one should always be open to accepting the fact that no creation can ever be
the ultimate yardstick of excellence and that betterment is always possible by
others. Great Mirza Ghalib had a nervous breakdown when he thought that his
Persian Ghazals were the finest until his friend and student Altaaf Hussain
Hali Panipati brought Ghalib out of that delusional morass and wrote, "Har
Sher Shahkaar Ho Ye Zaroori Nahin. Main Jo Bhi Likhoon Behatareen Hi Ho Yah Zid
Zehni Tavazun Mein Khalal Paida Kar Sakti Hai" (It's not necessary
that every couplet has to be the very best. The insistence that whatever I've
written is supreme, may disturb one's mental balance. Khaqani's coeval, Qafeen
(a Zoroastrian who embraced Islam), was writing great mystical poems but had a
delusion that his creations should be the finest.
He hankered
after excellence so badly that he burnt all poems and committed suicide at the
age of 31! Only one half-burnt Nazm survived, amply suggesting that he
was an absolute genius, but too concerned about his own excellence and genius.
This
unnecessary self-importance can be seen in other spheres of life as well.
Youngsters put all their eggs in one basket and try to clear UPSC exams to
become an IAS officer. Kota's coaching factories make kids believe that life is
meaningless if they cannot become a doctor, engineer or an IT professional.
This causes severe depression and kids commit suicide. Becoming a bureaucrat or
an IIT engineer is not the alpha and omega of one's life. Clearing all these
exams is not terribly important. Life has other avenues as well. Tread upon
those unchartered paths and stop taking life so damn seriously.
-----
A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in
comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed
articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including
Persian.
URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/excessive-self-importance/d/131378
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