Sea – A Raw Force of Nature

26^th December 2025, marks the completion of 21 years of the most horrific and traumatic tsunami in 2004. The old footage showing glimpses of its wrath is more than enough to give one chills down the spine. This catastrophe was not only a reminder of the raw force of nature, but also a violent assertion of its authority in this world, where we humans believe that we are inevitable.

While natural disasters like tsunami might put humans on their knees, nature does not need a tsunami all the time to declare its superiority. In fact, it always warns us of its power every time we try to toy with it.

Once, on my tour to the eastern shores of India, I witnessed its furious warnings right up close. I always had an adventurous spirit that whenever I saw a natural scenic landscape, the adventurism in me spiked up. I carried on the same enthusiastic spirit to the shores of the Manapad Sea in Tamil Nadu. Manapad is a beautiful coastal scenery painted with a magnificent, old, Portuguese era church; a tall, sturdy lighthouse; and some seductive sand cliffs. Behind those, lies a calm, pleasant, and quiet-looking sea, waiting to play with its tourists. Generally, you can enjoy its warmth by taking a dip. But, if you intend to challenge its authority, it no longer remains calm.

After visiting the church and the lighthouse, I reached the shores. And by that time, the dusk started to engulf the light in the sky. I reached the breakwater where large boulders of rocks were lined up along the seashore to prevent coastal erosion. They said, besides that, the breakwater also acts as a seawall, preventing the seawater from flooding the fishermen’s village.

Instantly, my adventurous spirit tingled me to begin my journey to the tip of the breakwater. The path was obviously wet and at times, slippery. The sea wall narrowed as we went forward. But beyond the middle of it, people dared to walk further, given the night had almost begun to hide the dusk. Still, I wanted to test my grit. I wanted to stand at the tip of the breakwater and yell, “I am the best!” So, despite all their warnings, I marched forward like a seasoned warrior alone into the battlefield.

I was now away from the shore by about hundred meters. Suddenly, I stopped as I felt something different. The wind that hit me, felt like it was blowing in a hurry, as if it was terrified of something, something that was chasing it to the shores. It seemed like the wind rushed to take refuge behind the church. What followed was not any ordinary hunter, but the Mother Ocean herself.

Her mild love tap triggered a violent wave that hit those boulders like a meteor and splashed the water across the sky. That roaring sound was like a bomb blast which sent tremors across my heart. Slowly, the loud voices of warnings by the people from the shores faded. A very deep, dense, and dreadful voice, from the other side of the seawall, hit my ears. It was that of the Mother Ocean. She assertively whispered in my ears, “STAY BACK!” I stood, stunned like a deer in the headlights. Eventually, I retreated to the shores.

That was the moment I realized the true, raw, unglamorous form of nature which is generally not captured by primitive photography. To this day, whenever I hear some disasters on the news, I used to recall her terrible voice that reminds me that I am no greater than nature.

However brave we are, whatever preparations we make, whatsoever fancy technologies we may invent, when nature wants us down, it will humble us in no time. I truly pray for all those who suffered in that terrible 2004 tsunami. While the dead rested in peace, we–the ones who survived–are destined to live humbly, carrying the painful memory etched in our hearts.

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but to test the character, give him power

Disney's Aladdin (2019) showed that while facing adversity brings out one’s resilience, it is the power that ultimately uncovers one’s true nature. With great adversity, when both Jafar and Aladdin got the magic lamp, the former fueled by revenge, sought all-more power, while the latter, filled in love, wished to free a friend in Genie. Similarly, in life too, the power has the ability to expose one's character and bring out the depth in its features. And the depth in its features, in turn, determines the degree to which one can withstand the perks of power.

Power – Indicator of Character

“World is a stage, we are all its puppets who are stringed and controlled by puppets above us in the hierarchy.” –Anonymous

In such a puppet show, the power is perceived to be capable of liberating one by cutting such strings. This cassette of freedom plays the tunes of empowerment for some, eternity for a few, and becomes addictive for others. One becomes like an over-compressed spring. Upon cutting of strings, the spring explodes out of control unless and otherwise contained.

Mohammed bin Tughlaq was one such notable exploded spring. When he became the all-powerful sultan of India in 1325, the fragrance of his unquestionable freedom evoked his deepest desires of experimenting different ways to send a person, presumably those who opposed him, not to paradise but to death. His creative brutality might have even terrify the goddess of death herself, recalls many historians.

However, in a history shaped by many complex characters, not all of them had such dreadful desires. Sher Shah Suri was a great visionary who raised from the ranks of simple revenue officer to become an all-powerful sultan in 1540. And his desire, forged by sufferings of his people, made him administer justice impartially.

The fragrance of freedom, besides evoking desire, tests one’s value system. It simply makes one express what one values the most. In the modern age, the popularity has become a simple yet powerful weapon. In that line, actors became the uncrowned powerhouses who can either influence their fans positively, or seduce them into a misery. Those actors who valued morality campaign for initiatives that can bring a responsible behavior change in the followers, as seen in Swachh Bharat Abhiyan campaign. Whereas, those who valued money through any means seduced their fans by endorsing in online real money games advertisements, brutalizing their followers’ lives.

How-much-ever noble the values are, without tolerance, it would not sustain its nobility. Freedom, thus, tests one's tolerance to critics because inherently, any ideology per se will be challenged by some people, that being the spirit of diversity. Emperor Ashoka was one of the powerful examples of tolerance. Despite being an all-powerful Buddhist king, he was very accommodative towards all religions. He organized and encouraged intellectual debates, pacifying the sound of opposition with his voice of justice – dharmagosha, rooted in tolerance.

Unfortunately, this is not the case everywhere. Rospierre was one of the heroes of French Revolution who was popularly called as ‘the incorruptible.’ But this popular title couldn’t stand the test of power, which exposed his insecurities with the help of critics. Thus, once a liberator, drove France into ‘the reign of terror’ (1793-94), replacing tolerance with guillotine justice.

Finally, the elixir of power invokes one’s ego, blinding even great scholars. In Ramayana, Ravana was a well-versed philosopher. Yet his unworldly power never let him repent for his evil deeds. He let it suppress his divine knowledge by evoking his ego and thus, pushing him into the path of self-destruction.

However, signs of hope too shines in the sky when we see some powerful people exhibit humility. For instance, PM Justin Trudeau was humble enough to apologize to India in 2016, on behalf of the Canadian government for the Komagata Maru incident (1914), when his country unwelcomed Indian immigrants.

While such incidents are momentarily pleasing, giving in a sense of confidence and hope, peace and justice will not endure in this world unless everyone realizes the true nature of power and attempts control its influence.

De-Veiling Power

As contradictory as it may sound, the true nature of power is not independence, but responsibility. As the saying goes, “With great power comes great responsibility.” Power necessarily creates in oneself, an obligation towards others. This obligation, in turn, constrains one’s freedom through moral boundaries. Therefore, the widely prevailing theory of ‘power giving freedom,’ is nothing but a myth.

Furthermore, the trusteeship doctrine says that powerful people are endowed power in the form of wealth, skills and resources in order to aid those who are devoid of it. Therefore, all the power centers in this society – politicians, rulers, celebrity and, even fictional superheroes, exist to fulfil such noble responsibility of service to people.

And to prevent such noble responsibility from turning into violent autocracy, an ethical and just foundation must be laid. For such a foundation, while humility, altruism and compassion form its roots, weeds such as greed, pride and envy must be chopped out. Such kind of moral rooting was shown by Emperor Marcus Aurelius who lived like a saint, devoted to his people, unshaken in the storm of luxuries of his powerful kingdom.

Besides such moral base, a safety valve must be installed to preventing wild turns at times. This means external checks and balance must be ensured, especially in a sovereign state, to prevent misuse of power by the powerful. This is usually done by dividing and de-concentrating power, and establishing various accountability mechanisms. Even in ancient times, Kautilya advocated to hold the king accountable by protesting against him, if he became unjust. And modern world has diversified the means of protesting via elections, media, judiciary, social audits and so on.

Although power poses itself as an ultimate liberator from shackles of control, it actually entrusts one with a noble duty of service towards others, enchaining one with responsibility. The one who realizes this truth becomes the true altruistic hero, while those who fall for its fantasy become the new evil genie who must eventually be contained in such an itty-bitty tiny space in lamp. Therefore, in the test of power, one withstands its whims and fights its fancies, with what we call “Nishkama Karma” – Selfless duty!

Do you agree on my take that power is the true measure of character? Share your thoughts below.

My Pity Parotta Story

Every time I see a parotta on my plate, its yummy-gummy smell invokes a wet, unfortunate, yet enlightening incident in my life that introduced me to this practical world. It happened on a fine afternoon when I was enthusiastically returning home from my college. I boarded the bus and reached the first stop from which I had to walk to the next stop to board another bus to my home. This is where the story begins….

 After getting smashed by an unreasonably hasty crowd on an unsurprisingly overcrowded city bus, I somehow managed to get out, battling my way through the onslaught of the on-boarders, who vigorously compete for the bus seat as it is strictly occupied on a first-come-first-basis – corruption not tolerated!

As I started to walk through the fruit market to the next bus stand, a droopy old man approached me. He was in terrible clothes, had a shabby old yellow bag in between his armpit, and stared with half-closed blackish eyes – almost looked as if he had forgotten to sleep for some hundred years. The moment I saw him, it invoked the utmost pity in me. Then he pleaded to me in a feeble old voice, “Child, I have not eaten for days. I came here from a nearby city in search of a job and ended up with none. I don't want your money. Buy me some food, child. You will be blessed. Please, please….”

Definitely, he touched my heart. That moment, Mother Teresa, Gandhi, and many national leaders flew across my mind, tingling my skin. So, I decided to help him and took him to a nearby hotel. I asked him to sit while I was standing near the counter to pay.

As I turned, I watched him approaching the food table. To my surprise, the once shaky legs and drooping body vanished. He strutted like a peacock towards the table. As he sat on the chair, his sleepless eyes got brightened. His shaky hands became steady. He just stylishly swung his wrist with a swagger of a superstar, making a trishul mudra showing three fingers. And with a firm voice, he ordered, “Three parottas.” For a moment, I wondered, “Was this the same feeble, saggy old man I met a few moments ago?” Little dazzled and confused, I paid for him and left for my home.

Then, I slowly narrated this whole incident to my father. I pointed out how that old man's sudden change in body language inside that hotel shocked me. I wasn't sure if I was deceived for showing mercy. Hearing all this, my father calmly replied, “My child, I'm glad you weren't kind enough to donate your clothes to him.” With a grin, he continued, “Welcome to the real world. You have a long way to go!”

Social media is triggering ‘fear of missing out’ among the youth, precipitating depression and loneliness

In this tech-driven world, one need not be an astrologer nor calculate the position of stars to predict the fact that very soon, the World Health Organization (WHO) will consider declaring FOMO, a pandemic. And seeing the state of our ever-stressful, sleepless, screen-scrolling youth population, it feels like we are already having a silent outbreak of FOMO that is secretly snatching every country's demographic dividend, of its surging youthful energy.

This essay will shed light on this ongoing outbreak of FOMO, how it is silently slaughtering the youths, and what vaccine will be effective against it.

FOMO

To begin with, we must understand what FOMO is. It is an abbreviation of the fear of missing out. It simply means the feeling of being unseen, unheard, unrecognized, and underappreciated. When our youths feel FOMO, they feel like a cockroach in a bungalow, which is uninteresting, unwanted, and not welcome. Just like how this cockroach fears being poisoned and killed, the fear of getting unrecognized makes youths go into a permanent mode of insecurity. Thus, the silent erosion of their youthful contributions to the world is a manifestation of their hidden insecurities driven by the FOMO.

FOMO is more of a modern terminology for age-old human behavior. Even in the old times, people desired to be seen and heard. And such desire is a basic social need for humans. But back then, a small chit-chat with one's family, a cute-tiny gesture to neighbors, and brief tea time with friends were more than enough to satisfy that social need and prevent FOMO.

But with the world’s networks expanding more and more with urbanization and globalization, and AI adding to this mix, such simple mechanisms to satisfy social needs started rusting. The amount of effort required to prevent the influence of demons in FOMO goes proportional to the speed of globalization. And such efforts have taken a steep upright slope with the increasing imprints of social media.

Social media has successfully trapped our all-powerful, genie-like youths into lamp-like, itty-bitty, tiny living spaces on screens. Although it looks like in such tiny spaces, one is getting more connected with someone else miles away, the reality is that such people are already beginning to disconnect from their surrounding society. A mother's love-filled call for dinner feels like an abrupt interruption when chatting with a fake Facebook friend. WhatsApp emoji have already replaced one's real-life, meaningful & nuanced gestures as a means of communication. The TikTok world feels more real for our youths than the real world, which now feels more like a bad dream. And when such a virtual world fails to recognize them, their hopes fall, aspirations shatter, and confidence crumbles.

Virtual Expectations drive FOMO

The virtual world has raised the expectations of our youths to a different height so that anyone falling below is made to feel like a loser, seriously denting their self-esteem. While social media must be credited for increasing awareness among the public, it has also pushed carefully curated contents that can cash the cows in our youths. Its algorithms feed the viewers with not what they need, but what they like. In the case of youths, their desperate desires to be recognized is being weaponized by these codes.

One such desperate desire that gets weaponized is the “success mantra”. The social media has effectively rebranded success in terms of popularity, and further the achievement in terms of wealth and happiness in terms of appreciation. These rebranded values, despite becoming the new means for motivating youths, have also stripped the hard work of its foundational features like consistency, persistence, and patience and redecorated it with instantaneousness.

Truly, this instantaneousness is a disease. It shifts the focus from performing the duty to expecting results. Because of this, youths in every step towards their goal, crave for rewards to the extent that even a fraction of failure becomes extremely painful and creates a perception of as if the world has turned its back on them. This FOMO in turn transforms itself into anxiety and depression, drowning our youths in gloomy loneliness.

Further, expectations also dislike repetition. For example, a similar kind of content posted in SnapChat again will not guarantee as many likes or views as before. This means the validity of any virtual recipe is limited, and sustainability requires reinvention and renovation. When one fails to reinvent, the views fall, the likes disappear, and the re-share button becomes invisible. This crumbles the confidence in our youths, shaking their mental fortitude.

While some droop in depression, others take a wild turn to stay in the limelight. Many content creators turn toxic to stay relevant and capture a wider audience. Their contents start pivoting towards creating sensation through deep fakes and false news, and thus turning even an aspiring patriot into a petty propagandist.

Moreover, social media not only deprives young people of their time to build their relationships, the false narratives sold by these platforms through the dating apps, pornography, and fantasy videos create unrealistic expectations in real-life relationships. When such expectations are unmet, those real-life social relations fall apart, forcing the youths with FOMO syndrome to hide from life.

So, any vaccine against FOMO should address these false expectations to pivot our demographic dividend towards prosperity.

The Vaccine for FOMO

Youths must understand that false expectations induced harm is not an alien attack, but a self-inflicted injury. Thus, any prevention must begin with the self itself. One's self-esteem must not be measured by the yardstick seen in social media posts, but rather be realized through self-realization.

And in such a pursuit of self-discovery, the FOMO must be replaced by the JOMO – joy of missing out. As opposed to feeling alienated, one must see it as a chance to be with one’s self. Such solitary pursuit gives way to introspecting one’s thoughts, hidden feelings and talents. This also trains them to derive happiness and satisfaction from self rather than from other people’s reactions.

Another crucial step is to redefine success. It must be defined in terms of morality, service to others, and persistence. People must condemn dishonest money-making through these social media platforms and withdraw support from it. In contrast, selfless acts of service with persistence must be glorified and celebrated.

Finally, youths must learn to earn relationships through trust and further build it by investing time with their loved ones in real, not in reel. And family and friends help them in this process as this is the first place where one learns social behavior.

To summarize, the FOMO is just an old wine in a new bottle whose sales saw a new peak through social media networks. Its sales are attributed to virtually induced expectations, which have intoxicated our aspiring youths to the extent of pushing them into the realm of lonely depression, breaking their selves. Besides all the warnings, the only way out of this FOMO drink addiction is – self-recovery through self-discovery. 

Do you agree with my take? Do share your comments below!