Did Newton discover gravity or curiosity?
From our creative partner in Gurugram, Haryana just outside of Delhi in India
Written by Shruti Shankar Gaur, Ph.D. (She/ Her) for Sankarsingh-Gonsalves Productions
Research proves that it's good to be bored and I tend to agree. However, this can be seen as a privilege and an alien concept for today’s Homo sapiens. Three factors play a significant role:
1) We all are conditioned to believe that a busy life is a good life. We are trained to absorb, not observe.
2) As we grow out of childhood we step onto the hamster’s wheel of life – school, college, job, etc. We are always on the go; we are always onto something.
3) In the age of information, we are constantly bombarded by the gigabytes. Thus, we have forgotten to enjoy sunsets and sunrises, we have forgotten to pause and smell the new roses that bloomed. We have forgotten to live, in the moment.
The human mind is built such that it cannot remain idle for long. It implies, if you are bored, you will eventually find ways to become busy. But ‘what’ actually happens when one is bored? ‘What’ will we find to remain busy? The significance of ‘WHAT’ is profound. There may be hundreds of things happening around us, yet they might be invisible to our senses. Few of those things inevitably even catch our attention except those that are especially connected to us. According to Ayurveda, these few will be the ones in sync with our ‘prakriti’ or inherent nature; So only we might become inquisitive about them. These are the things we inexorably gravitate toward fueled by our curiosity. Thus, the first step of learning is always curiosity.
Let me tell you a story; one that perfectly encapsulates the phenomenon of learning. Oh no, it’s not a new tale but an eerily familiar one. Use your reading glasses if you like. Well, here it goes.
One fine day, Newton sat under an apple tree in a somber mood. Maybe his girlfriend ditched him, or his father scolded him for being too lazy which he must be, or else who just sits under an apple tree? But we can’t assert that because history and writers didn’t record it as such. Nevertheless, what we know is that he was deep in contemplation when suddenly his concentration was disturbed by an apple that fell from the tree. Think of it, was it a novel occurrence? Apples had been falling to the ground long before Newton’s great grandfather was even born. Yet, entire generations were oblivious of that plain simple fact. No one became curious. It was Newton who picked up the apple and looked at the tree. He must have been so angry at the apple tree for bothering him. Maybe he threw it upwards as if ordering the tree to take it back. But to his astonishment, the apple kept returning. It just refused to go up and stay up! And the rest is history oops…physics that created the Newtonian era we all devour upon even today.
I referenced this story to establish the fact that curiosity is the base of any learning. Period. Things that we become curious about, attract our attention. This very attention prioritizes our focus, learning happens automatically, and our learning journey begins.
I take your leave, as now I am beginning to feel bored. Who knows, maybe I will be able to evoke Newton and kick off what will be the beginning of a new Shrutian era. Until then, stay bored and stay curious.
About the Author: Dr. Shruti Shankar Gaur describes herself as a nonplussed mother, a Luna to her Alpha, a passionate entrepreneur, a novice thinker, a hard-core dreamer, a scruffy poet, a true seeker, and an unusual sinner. She bares her soul in her blog: Pain & Bliss - Contact the author: https://linktr.ee/dr.shrutishankargaur
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