HOW UNIQUE IS BEING UNIQUE
HOW UNIQUE IS
BEING UNIQUE
Introduction
We live in an epoch
of instantaneous copycat culture, severe competition and polarised ethnic
identity politics. The idea of copyright, patent, DOI, etc., are all geared
towards maintaining the uniqueness of something, an idea, an art, a music note,
a literary piece, etc. Over the centuries, humans construct their patterns of
categorization (Brosius et al, 1986), culture, language, worldview, vastly
influenced by their past experiences and geographical locations. For example,
people who settled near the oceans have myths connected with the sea; so also,
people who have lived in the mountains carry myths related to trees, animals,
mountains, streams and rivers. All these people (naively) think that their
habits are (so) unique. At best, people who can trace their origin as distant
as possible will be sensible as they possess some sort of scientific temper
leading to social learning (Social learning theory suggests that new behaviours
can be attained by seeing and emulating others). Open-mindedness is a linchpin
for societal harmony (behaviour). But if you converse with people who do not
regard (or have no idea) the million years of the evolutionary process from
Ameoba to Homo Sapiens but begin their origin from their (about 100 years old)
villages, it will be hard to come to a sensible discussion.
What
is so unique
Uniqueness arises from a common
mental exercise of “comparison” while mingling with others. If you are not
associating with others, there is no chance to find out that you are unique
from others. C. R. Snyder and H. L. Fromkin (1980) posit that the
perception of extreme similarity (SM) of self to others leads an individual to
seek a behavioural strategy that gives him/her a greater sense of uniqueness. Therefore,
others become a reference for your uniqueness. True, there are some things
unique and irreplicable on this planet. On the other hand, there are many
things commonly found in many places but unscientifically claimed by a few.
Food items and preparations may be unique but when broken down into scientific
analysis – they are either protein, carbohydrate, fats, fibre, vitamins,
minerals, etc. Some people claim spears, knives, spades, chicken, ducks,
sugarcanes, onions, beans, rice, chillies, yam, etc with some prefixes (of
their tribe or culture). If you ask them details such as – who invented it, who
discovered it, who first brought it in, who planted and harvested it, the
chemical composition, etc, they would be flabbergasted. Perhaps, they had to
give those local names for the sake of identifying them from other things. That
process is tolerable for the sake of communication. But, fervidly claiming these
unscientific and village-level names are just a sign that they have not seen
the same animal or crop growing in others parts of the world. So, if the
so-called unique things are found in other places, then they are not so unique.
The only explanation could be “ignorance or lack of exposure”. You may think
that your idea is so unique until you find out that someone already had that
idea before you. It is similar to “re-inventing the wheel”.
Is
uniqueness shareable
Yes, it is shareable. The uniqueness of a particular species, tribe,
community, music, dance, embroidery, a story is itself shared by people of the
same or similar type. Either this is pointed out as unique by an external force
or the people within the community feel and find that their peculiarity in
something is unique. Considering oneself (one’s community) as unique but not
considering others as unique is a wrong syllogism. This thought pattern itself
can be considered unique and one can apply for “patent”. Ha…ha…ha… If uniqueness
exists in you, others must be different from you. That difference itself is
unique. If you cannot consider the other as unique, you cannot be unique either
because the principle of “uniqueness” is a borrowed English word. What does not
exist on this earth cannot possibly exist in you alone. You may not share
similar patterns of life with others but at least you can share the concept of
uniqueness with others. At times, unscientific and cocooned ethnic frames of
mind blind people from seeing larger truths. It is like asking, “Is there
anymore village beyond my village?” If different groups of people share the
same thing, it is not so unique anymore; rather it is common to many. Then the
idea of uniqueness vanishes.
What
I find unique
I find it unique – how people magnify micro differences for geopolitical
gain and consciously numb their senses in acknowledging macro similarities; how
people accumulate countless things on this earth but cannot carry anything
after death; how people fight for the uniqueness of their history, culture,
land, tribe and community without having a civil sense that others also feel
the same (or similar) level of uniqueness; how people try to annihilate others
while at the same time claiming to be worshipping God (their God would be
amused); how people use convenient pieces of written or oral histories to
stitch their myopic ethnic pictures while forgetting that others also can read
them through and through. These human behavioural patterns are truly unique.
Conclusion
The farther you can trace your human origin along with migrations,
settlements, destructions, developments and refinements, the more likely you
will have a wide-ranging outlook in life. Histories (oral & written) are
man-made but humanity is divine, and being “humane” is an innate quality we all
have. Very few enlightened people (like Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, etc) can
cultivate, nurture and practice it. A multi-cultural mindset is what we require
to survive in the twenty-first century. Despite the hype on uniqueness, at the
end of life, humans return to earth as manure for plants. We eat plants for
survival and after our death, plants use us as manure for their growth. After
all, what was so unique humans claimed in their life when they all die and
perish? It is unique that humans claim to be so unique but all end up as dust.
This mindset is so unique to the human kingdom (if not to animal and plant
kingdoms). If you consciously feed your brain with lies over and over again, your
subconscious mind will assume as truth. Get closer to truth, far from
fabrication. Genuinely ask “what is so unique about being unique?”
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