Absolute freedom

If we are woken up in the middle of the night and asked to say a few words to say about freedom, I am sure 99% of us will say,” India won its freedom on 15th August 1947from more than 200 years of British rule, after a long struggle led by Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and many others, by the means of Ahimsa and Satyagraha.” The words could vary a little but by and large, the summary would be the same. We all agree that we won our freedom back with great sacrifices made by many people and is very dear to us. This is territorial and geographical freedom that we are talking about.

But what is freedom and is absolute freedom desirable or possible?

Let us talk about freedom of speech, movement, and thought, the three that immediately come to my mind. In theory, we have freedom of speech but in reality, if we speak up our mind even at home, to our own family we will be considered insensitive, rude, crude, and whatnot. To add to this, other family members also choose to use their freedom of speech, then the situation can be unimaginable and chaotic. Therefore, it makes sense to exercise self-scrutiny and censor our speech, which comes automatically to us, which is the normal way. If we speak without censoring and editing we will be considered mentally deranged.

You might as well imagine the situation if we walk into any place and every place at any time and are reciprocated by same, You may encounter unpleasant sights and will be thrown out or will run away!

Freedom of thought is the last on my list. To a large extent, it is possible to think freely, without any outsider’s control, but you will be a victim of your own thoughts. As long as the thoughts are disciplined and positive it is welcome but the moment our mind departs from this the situation can be miserable. Free and uncontrolled thoughts without a channel to implement, can play havoc.

Therefore it goes without saying that absolute freedom is not possible.

The birds which appear to be free to fly anywhere are at risk if they leave their territory. Even the mighty and powerful lion and tiger could be killed if they leave their domain in the forest.

Freedom is a fundamental right of every living being, a premium commodity that comes with a price, which we have to pay if we are not judicious.