The Dichotomy of Celebration

So the night before yesterday, I was on a call with two of my friends. We were talking about nihilism, absurdness, and existential crises. As in, the origins of big bang, higher dimensions, and the meaningless celebrations.

A topic popped up all of a sudden about the absurdness of birthday celebrations. One of my friends asserted that it's meaningless and infact saddening that one reaches a year closer to death, but still celebrates it. To be honest, even I used to think of it in this way until something very peculiar striked my mind.

 

I thought, birthday celebration is indeed a good thing. Not because we've grown a year older. But, because we're closer to achieve non-existence. We'll lose the consciousness and merge into the void again. I ask - why do people fear death? Before-life and after-death are the same thing. All of this is temporary, and has no inherent meaning or value.

So, if you celebrate birthday or don't believe in it - it's totally fine. We are free to define our own truths. We are free to think of our personal morals. (Well actually, birthdays are nothing but a figment of imagination). Just like nation/religion/inter-personal relationships - birthdays and festivals don't exist. They only exist in our minds.

Similarly, I used to be arrogant because I could differentiate between the right-wrong, fuckboys-nice guys, black-white, celebrating-not celebrating etc. But, after thinking about it, I realized that duality isn't universal. 

There's no objective truth. What's righteous for you, might be wrong for me! But we follow a predefined set of morals and don't question them. This is where conflicts arise. Be it tiffs between girlfriend-boyfriends or diplomatic wars. For example - Euthanasia. 

Euthanasia can be justified in many cases, but is looked down in a lot of countries/cultures. Why? Just because someone else wrote it some hundred years ago. Instead of challenging and questioning, people assume that particular truth to be binary. But actually, it is a spectrum. It's good for some people, bad for others. Getting my point?

You see, our society is based on very empty truths (khokhle sach). If all of us, or even half of us for that sake, start questioning - the system will collapse. There's no point in pursuing 9-5 jobs, which you don't like. If you love your job - its well and good. But in other case, if one starts thinking in this way, he'll realize the job actually is pointless. And hence, he'll rebel. And if a million people (out of a billion - which is a very small fraction) rebel - society is bound to collapse! 

And this is why I think governments want to control media. This is where censorship steps in. Which is again - good as well as bad. You can't form a binary opinion.

Too heavy, isn't it? Well, now again think of birthday celebrations. If you celebrate it or not - ask yourself that does it matter? No and yes. In the long run it's meaningless. But while you're existing - its upto you. Again, there's no correct answer. It's a subjective truth. And you've to decide your own. 

I have decided my own truth. Personally, I align with philosophy of Camus. But - I also believe in love. Love is something that gives purpose to me. Love for my crush and love for my parents. And you should scrutinize what gives you purpose. It might be money, cars, fame, love, dog, cat, beauty... it could be anything. Find your purpose. Find your truth. 

Till the next time.