One life, many lives!

 

One life, many lives!

A few months ago, there was a Book Quiz competition organized in Tuticorin. Mr. Valen, the event organizer, mentioned during his theme address, "We can live multiple lives in a lifetime when we develop the habit of reading books." This powerful statement resonated with me, particularly about fiction books that transport us to imaginative worlds where we can visualize the lives of the protagonists, as we journey through the pages.

 Isn't it true that reading books unlocks a unique kind of magic? Historical books transport us to periods predating our existence, while fantasy books transport us to worlds we may never witness. For instance, when I read a book titled “The Mountains Sing,” which is a story about how things were in Vietnam during wartime, I could feel the pain and agony of the people who lived there.

We are all different in some way or another, be it nationality, religion, caste, economic class, or profession. So, inevitably, our life experiences are far different from each other too. So, how can we maximize the different experiences of life within a given lifetime?  

I do not believe in reincarnation. YOLO is my life philosophy. I believe we all have just one lifetime to live, yet the number of experiences this world has to offer is unlimited. We are trapped in a limited lifetime, with unlimited dreams. We all have infinite potential but are limited by a single physical body.

 

Well, while our physical body can experience, only one life at a time, our mind has no boundaries. Of all the many gifts God has blessed us with, it is the power of imagination that makes human life so special. We can imagine ourselves in a variety of situations without even being there. That is what reading books do to us.

 As a businessman, I know how it feels to be a businessman, but I don’t know how it feels to be a doctor, a lawyer, an artist, a musician, a farmer, a military officer, or a truck driver. There are so many professions in this world and everyone’s life is different. However, we can get a glimpse of other’s lives by spending a reasonable amount of time with them. Empathetic listening or deep listening is a way we can understand the lives of people. By having deep conversations with people, which involves asking questions and truly trying to understand their life, without any presumptions. Sometimes, when I do personal counselling sessions, I am able to see how different their lives are, compared to mine. Connecting deeply with others, enables us to capture a sense of everything.

 

Being born in India, I know a bit of how it feels to be Indian, but I don’t know how it feels to be British, French, or Japanese. We cannot be born everywhere, but we can travel and live for some time, wherever we wish. We can gain a slice of the experience of people living elsewhere, by traveling to other countries. Though what we gain may not be similar to being a native of that country, it is still an interesting way to experience life.

 If we stay longer in a country, we can also absorb their culture and lifestyle. I had the opportunity to live in the UK for one year, which changed my perspective on the Brits in a large way. Similarly, I had the opportunity to spend a month with the Finns with their family when I went to Finland. I lived their lifestyle for a month, enjoying the wilderness of nature, drinking a lot of coffee, and going to the sauna baths every evening, which helped me to appreciate their uniqueness. While such experiences are rare and limited, creating more of them enhances the sense of fulfilment, in our lives.

These lines in my mobile ringtone encapsulate my spirit: “I want to be all I can be." While it may sound like a wild aspiration, it represents the desire to live life fully, by having many enriching experiences.

 The answer to the question, "How can we maximize our lifetime experience on this planet?" is simple— read extensively, travel widely, and listen attentively to different people, and most importantly experience it deeply, by being intensely present. By doing so, we can live many lives in this one lifetime.

   D. Senthil Kannan,

   CEO, PALMS Training & Consulting (P) Ltd., Tuticorin.

   Author of "Transformational Thoughts" - A Journey of learning 

   Email: senthilkannand@gmail.com