Creation,
Cultivation And Development Of Thought
By PromodPuri
Mahatma
Gandhi says: thoughts become words, words become behavior, behavior becomes
habits, habits become values, and values lead to destiny.
In the
creation of words, behavior, habits, values, and destiny, the conception begins
with thought. It all dawns from this perception.
Since
destiny is the consequence of thought, the latter itself is consequence of our
feelings, attitudes, knowledge, and
experiences. All these factors instigate our cogitative faculties in creating
thinking.
Thinking is a mental activity of
brain. And thought is a product of thinking. Creation of one’s own thought,
import of thought, and its acceptance or its rejection are all considered as
thought. In other words, the act involved in these considerations is a thought
by itself.
Residency Of Thought
According to the biology of thought, its processing and transmission happen and develop in the nerve cells of brain. These cells are called neurons. With a population of close to 100 billion, neurons while communicating with each other, receive, and deliver information. Neurons function along with trillions of synapses. The latter are connectors transmitting signals among neurons.
Thought in its physical formation resides in the chemistry of neuron cells. Neurons are “electrically excitable”, meaning their activity is driven by some energy.
While we can accept the purpose and operation of neurons and synapses, the biology of thought, however, does not relate itself to two basic questions: what triggers the birth of a thought, and how it acquires its nature or character.
Seeking answer(s) to these two fundamental issues is consequential because, as we know thru Gandhi’s acknowledged quote that it is thought which impacts the destiny of an individual, family, community, nation, our world and perhaps the universe.
As far as genesis of thought is concerned there are three hypotheses:
1.
Thinking is a subconscious brain activity,
2.
Some unexplained biological process creates thinking,
3.
It is the conversion of energy particles into an object called
thinking which shapes itself into thought.
Neurons and synapses, being just the tools and carriers, collect thought for its retention, processing, and transmission to stimulate activity. Commands in the form of words are established, and rest of the operation follows.
How Does Thought Acquire Its Distinctive Trait?
Thought generates action. Good thought generates good action, bad thought generates bad action. This elementary and simple statement leads us to explore how thought acquires its distinctive trait.
A supplementary question also arises. Can we regulate or manage thought? We need good and positive thoughts for our happiness and peace, which can ultimately promise peace and happiness in the world.
In this pursuit, we accept the fact that several environmental factors quite significantly influence the nature or behavior of thought. The established and consented values in a civic society, its rituals, customs, and traditions are some of the environments which cause for the sentiment of thought.
Genetic factor also play in drafting its blueprint. Moreover, thought generates and induces more thoughts.
Thoughts guide and maneuver our
karmas. In return, karmas influence our
thoughts, and the cycle continues.
Besides, environmental, genetic and
karma factors which influence its creation and nature, our own inherent and
acquired disciplines can influence the cultivation and development of thought.
These disciplines, including those
driven by our individual moods and temperaments, are influenced by fundamental
values of morality, nobility, and divinity.
We are told, to be honest, humble, and sincere, be
considerate, and helpful to others, be merciful, forget and forgive, love
fellow beings and care for the environments, including animals, plants, and the
nature. And everything else which is pious, pure, and morally firm.
We accept
the truism and goodness of these universal principles. But do they provide
adept stimulant to our cogitative biology in creating and shaping our thoughts?
In theoretical and idealized state
these righteous directives can steer our thoughts towards achieving the desired
temperament we want for ourselves which impact the society as well. But the
environment we live in, including the economic and health factors, render the
divinity of the noble messages as nonviable religious or scriptural preaching.
The devotee and the divinity are
separated by pragmatics we face and accept in the real world. And the casualty
is thought. It is molded and normalized
to the adjustment of our circumstantial priorities.
A Resolution Worth A Thought
In our civilized and progressive world, the call of humanity seeks re-evaluating each of our religions,
rituals, customs, traditions, social and political institutions, including Left
and Right isms, which impart values and behaviors impacting our environments.
This resolution is part of the evolution and
management of civil society we live in. Evolution of civilization is natural as
well as essential for rational and intelligent creation of environments which
influence our thoughts
In this age of enlightenment, backed by technology and nurtured by
explosion of intelligent knowledge,
we can independently seek the purity of thought and its management. In this
quest, ripples generated are likely to create the waves which will impact the
environment we live in.
In creating those environments, the
infusion of ethics in thought is an earnest endeavor before we step on to the
Gandhi’s destiny ladder.
And in that destiny, while revisiting
and upgrading our religious, social, and political environments, lies peace and
prosperity for the humanity.
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