तोच चंद्रमा नभात

28th August 2023

Redevelopment and Sherlock Holmes

Mumbai is changing. Old buildings and chawls are rapidly making way for glossy high rises. All localities and suburbs of our city are witnessing this change.

Today morning while entering Narali Baug I saw the ruins of Oceana. This edifice was a prominent landmark of Shivaji Park as it housed the cream of society. Now the structure has been torn down and a shining tower will be constructed in its place.

A thought occured while I was passing by.

Our bodies and minds are similar to such old buildings and chawls. They need regular tuneups and maintenance to prolong good health. Minds need constant stimulation (of the right kind) so that we remain alert and ‘young’ in thought and conduct.

Structures start showing signs of deterioration after 25-30 years. Humans start falling prey to illnesses around the age of 30-35. Our glory days (youth) are long behind us by then. We enter the vicious cycle of self-doubt, medication, and misery.

Any building is as good its foundation and the material used while constructing it. Some human beings have the benefit of good genes (foundation) which ensures good health and a propensity for exercise and having a balanced diet. The food that we eat and the learnings we get are the ‘material’ used in ‘constructing’ us as humans.

We have to be very choosy about the material we consume. 

Buildings have flats which are occupied by tenants. The comfort and happiness of these tenants is directly proportional to the quality of the building. Various body parts like heart, lungs, joints, GI tract etc. could be imagined to be ‘tenants’ of the structure known as our body. The health and happiness of our tenants depends on regular exercise and diet. Having regular moderate exercise and shunning alcohol, cigarettes and other substances is easier said than done. But we don’t have a choice really.

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Now coming to the mind. Arthur Conan Doyle has the following to say in ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’. Sherlock Holmes is having a discussion with Dr. Watson and he says…

"I consider that a man's brain originally is like a little empty attic, and you have to stock it with such furniture as you choose. A fool takes in all the lumber of every sort that he comes across, so that the knowledge which might be useful to him gets crowded out, or at best is jumbled up with a lot of other things, so that he has a difficulty in laying his hands upon it. Now the skillful workman is very careful indeed as to what he takes into his brain-attic. He will have nothing but the tools which may help him in doing his work, but of these he has a large assortment, and all in the most perfect order. It is a mistake to think that that little room has elastic walls and can distend to any extent. Depend upon it, there comes a time when for every addition of knowledge you forget something that you knew before. It is of the highest importance, therefore, not to have useless facts elbowing out the useful ones."

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Not all forms of exercise will be suitable for an individual. Engage in any physical activity which appeals to you. This will ensure consistency. One has to be smart about it.

Many foods do more harm than good. Choose wisely. 

Be selective when it comes to making friends. People confuse between acquaintances and friends.

Keep reading good stuff. It is not necessary to force yourself to complete any book. Stay with the book only if it is able to engage you in any meaningful way.

Listen to good music, but be choosy.

Try to develop some hobby. Keep a journal. Vent out. Express yourself.

Stay away from television news. Keep newspapers at arms length. Shun social media as it is a disease. These forms of media are homogenising thought. Independent thought is dying and all of us are becoming confirmists.

As social animals who live in herds, we tend to follow societal consensus. This can be dangerous. Herd mentality doesn’t help in the long run. 

Be very choosy of what occupies space in your mind.