Nowadays we all have become globetrotters, or at least
that’s the word we use when we upload umpteen pictures of our trip on social
media. Some trip pictures inspire us to go on the same trip ourselves to
discover that place and experience the same magic as shown in the pictures. The
world has come closer today and a variety of flight options, attractive deals
and cashbacks have made travel a cakewalk. Our ideas to visit a particular
place is based on our extensive internet research, reviews and pictures. However,
Google, the one stop where we find all our answers, may not have answers about
the unspoken, undiscovered and unheard part of the world. That brings us to the
question whether man has really discovered the entire world. Does the world
have more than what catches the eye? What more secrets are yet to be unearthed
on this Earth of ours?
It seems I came across one such interesting page of
the mysterious world when I read about Sentinelese tribes in Andaman Islands,
believed to be one of the world’s last tribes uncontacted by civilization. They
came in the news for killing a young American missionary. The article also
spoke about other uncontacted and isolated tribes in various parts of the
world. Reading about these tribes and what they did for a living, fascinated
me. In a world where we strive to make our presence known, here are sets of
people who choose to live a life of solitude, away from the modern
civilization. I think that they are real guardians of our planet as they
protect the natural environment and live a humble life by reaping the gifts of
Nature, quite contrary to the ‘civilized’ humans who are wiping the precious
elements of Nature off the Earth.
The fact that they are ‘isolated’ and ‘uncontacted’
made me read about them. The internet, in so many forms, connects people from
all parts of the world. Yet there exist people like these who are complacent to
not be in touch with the modern world. Sometimes I wonder if we can ever live a
life like these tribes; isolated and cut off from the world. Is it difficult in
today’s world, unless you are nestled in a forest or a mountain with no network
in cellphones? In today’s corporate world, it is believed to be rewarding to be
always reachable and accessible. There are many people who would still prefer
working or checking official mails after going home. There are workaholics who
reply to mails even when they are on vacation, making them look like
indispensable to the organization. Even mails late at night would mean that you
are really dedicated to your work. Such people should learn a thing or two from
these uncontacted tribes who do not bother to make their presence known or feel
the need to prove anything to people around them.
Man by nature is social and hence we have societies.
We have many people around us, but still we may feel lonely, lost and isolated
in the crowd that we are in. Therefore, some ‘me-time’ is something that we
really need to gift ourselves every day to know ourselves better, to take off
the masquerade that we wear and be good listener to our own mind and heart. It
should be a break from all the hustle and bustle around us. We go on vacations
to get away from all the monotony, to have peaceful time at an exotic place. Yet
the mind wanders to the likes and comments on our pictures that we post on
social media. Recently I read an article wherein some travelers, in order to
get the feel of the place and to truly live the experience, did not carry
cameras with them. They just wanted to spend time with that place without
letting the world know about their experience. While there are some rational
travelers like these, one of my acquaintances had a hard time in a scenic place
like Ladakh because he could not find mobile network there to upload live
updates and pictures of his trip. With the bustling world of Instagram and
Facebook, the world is at our feet and fingertips. Hence it can be challenging
to resist the temptation of not being visible on them for a few days. I have
seen three categories of people; first, who are totally detached from the nexus
of social media, the second who are moderate users of social media and the
third, for whom social media is the fourth basic necessity. This last category has
regular posts about routine activities of life; be it traffic, crowded railway
platforms, weekend plans or something as trivial as posting a ‘Good Night’
selfie. Such people, I feel need a change in the privacy settings of life.
‘Me-time’ for me is spending an hour or two reading, a
window which lets me look into the real and fictional world. It is a break from
the drama by some real characters around me. We are surrounded by distinct
humans who make our lives better or worse; we are surrounded by the modernity
which I think could be difficult to part with, though we can certainly modify
the way of life. We are part of a civilization which is prospered by the
behavior of humans, whether it be in form of committing some deeds or
expressions through social media to make their existence known. Sometimes this need for isolation or detachment can have an ugly face as well when we see family
members or friends sitting in the same room without interacting with each
other, glued to the phone going through the posts of friends with apparently
better lives or hypnotically enjoying a gripping show with headphones on, thus
literally shutting ears and mind. People are walking and changing with
technology and each one of us is just a fine particle in this huge mass of
humans, always competing and comparing, without having the need to look for
what is best for us. It might not be practically possible to live a nomad life
like the tribes or of abstinence from technology, given that it plays a pivotal
role nowadays. But surely we can take frequent breaks from this widespread web.
Taking a break from modernity or people does not necessarily mean heading out
alone somewhere. It could also mean spending time with the people who mean to
you, albeit off camera or check-ins. The memories created in that much time
could be the best moments of isolation from rest of the world. Meaningful
conversations and laughter with someone without having to put a mask on,
spending time doing something what you really love, could possibly be the paths
to live a life as serene and oblivious like the uncontacted tribes of the
world. This ‘me-time’ should be like the space that is only known to you, it
should a fictional and ideal land in your mind, where no one is allowed to
intrude with vagaries of life. It could be the best gift for you, from you.
