Jumping the Gun...

A young person today is much more aware than someone a few decades ago. This could be due to Darwin’s Theory of Evolution and the technological revolution. However, time is required for information to become knowledge. A greater time lag is needed for it to transform into wisdom. Once a direction becomes clear through knowledge, a lot of hard work is required to acquire wisdom. The process also needs patience, a certain degree of faith and an open mind, all of which are at a premium today. Consequently, a bright and hard¬working young person is likely to fall into the trap of ‘I know it all’. This forecloses the possibility of progress.Ustad Nasir Aminuddin Dagar would say, “Hum bacche ko chaalis saal takstage par nahin aane dete the, ¬kahin wo bhul na jaye wo kis liye gaa rahahai” (“We did not allow the disciple to go onstage till he was 40 years old, lest he forgot why he was singing”). The way to progress is not by rediscovering the wheel, but by improving upon the best wheel available with your ingenuity. To get that, one must have humility, patience and a desire to learn. No one says that questions should not be raised, but it is important to know how, when and where to raise them. A teacher carries a treasure that cannot be parted with so easily. The only who has the qualities mentioned above can access it. Once the depth of what he possesses is fathomed, the teacher will tell a deserving pupil to move on and search for deeper truths but till that time one must try not to jump the gun.