Mickey Mehta - The Shoonyam Quotient

The very fact that you are holding this book is proof that you consider yourself to be a human being. Yet, this book is not here to reinforce that belief. In fact, this book will challenge all those beliefs. I must warn you that it can get painful if you are not prepared to confront some extreme beliefs we all hold.

If you refuse to look at yourself, rediscover yourself and finally be your true, wonderful, complete self, then this is not the book for you.

Human being. Being human. What is it really to be human?

Not so very long ago, the planet was inhabited by a species called Homo sapiens. In a number of ways, it was a weak species. It did not have the raw physical strength to overpower other species for food, nor did it have sharp claws or teeth to compensate for its lack of muscular strength. It didnt have any poisonous glands to make its prey unconscious.

So how did the species survive? It had something that more than made up for all of these handicaps. It had a jelly-like floating mass in its skull called the brain. This brain had intelligence that was far superior to all other species. Homo sapiens made good use of this intelligence to stay warm in the winters, sheltered during the long rains and safe against ferocious animals.

It all began with the instinct to survive. But then emerged the instinct for art and the wonder for nature. Homo sapiens began to paint on the walls of their caves.

They found a way to grow food and rear livestock, eliminating the need to hunt for food. They stayed in groups and evolved communication techniques, which turned into languages. And their thirst for knowledge only grew. Culture, science, entertainment, spirituality and other aspects of the human quest took shape. The evolution of the Homo sapiens to human was nearing completion and the stage was set for the next level. But...

Intelligence developed and thought processes grew from simple to complex, complex to complicated and from complicated to downright chaotic. Fear wouldnt let any of these experiences be lived completely, and greed would not let any of these be let go of, for there was so much more to be experienced. Almost as an eddy in the great scheme of evolution, as if against the natural order of things, another species evolved. I call it the Paranoid Humanoid.

The extent of changes that took place over thousands of years was surpassed by the changes in the last few centuries; and the changes in the last few centuries were exceeded by what ensued in the last few decades. Till just a few years ago, we were still working on what to do with our timeinventing and perfecting arts, crafts, knowledge and rituals in the process. And now, everyone only seems to complain of not ever having time.

Compare the years of Homo sapiens on earth to the years of civilized existence. Given the way the next wave of no time and infinite information and things have become all pervasive, it almost feels as if that in-between phase of evolution never existed.

Look at the life of a Paranoid Humanoid (PH). Her day begins with an alarm going off. What a way to begin your daybeing ALARMED. Sleep hasnt gently given way to movement. She gets up because she has to, with a start. And among the 2000-odd reasons why she didnt sleep as much as she really wanted, these are just a fewshe had to attend that social do, she had to complete that report, she had to watch that movie and she had to help her daughter complete her science project.

He gets up with a bad hangover and picks up his newspaper, a daily source of negativitywith its front page full of the latest on deaths, devastations, corruption and scandals. He lights his cigarette to ensure bowel movement. There is scarcely time for a quick shower and the gobbling down of breakfast.

Could the PH be seeking to obviate the negativity by filling his dissatisfied being with more and more?

There is nothing wrong with having moremore varieties of food, more clothes of the latest fashion, more choices in books, films, television programmes and travel destinations. Yet, the dissipation of energy through greed brings about a life of consumption. Before you have savoured your appetizer completely, you fill your mouth with your drink. Before your senses enjoy the feel of a new dress on your body, you throw it away, lest someone finds you wearing the same outfit twice. Before the message has seeped in, you have already turned the page, tossed the book aside, or changed the channel. The funny thing is that after experiencing all this you are astonished as to why you are not feeling fulfilled. The astonishing thing is that you are astonished by this!