“Suicide- Courageous or Cowardly Deed?”

“I haven’t failed, I have just found a thousand way that doesn’t work”  – Edison

One day, when I was trying to deduce the meaning of one of my text in course, my friend put me in a great confusion by asking one question. The question was – “What is your opinion brother, A person who commits suicide, Is he a cowardice or courageous person?

This question put me in a great dilemma. The reason is If I go with the former option, I have no concrete reason to exclude the later one and vice-versa. This question becomes really important when seen in the broader perspective because when you’ll be knowing the reason behind people committing suicide, more likely you can also stop it. Unable to answer that question instantly, I choose to reckon on it for a while. The answer which I came with is amusing in its own way.

‘If a person is a cowardice, they won’t even think of suicide. They will be frightened with the word ‘suicide’ itself whereas if a person is courageous, They are also very unlikely to take such step since they will have enough guts and determination to cross every hurdle placed in their way. I know that there can be various criticism to this statement on various grounds but let’s overlook those and concentrate on main cause.

Starting from our origin itself, William Wordsworth in ‘My heart leaps up’ that

“The child is the father of Man”

Though the above phrase appears paradoxical, a possible explanation can be given that human beings have to go through a long process of human socialization. Do you think a child can seldom learn to walk without making sustained and sincere effort in the process in the process of tumbling and falling down a number of times? Does his failure deter him from starting again? The only one answer is ‘Never’. Then why we? A child who has just stepped on the earth never refrain from trying and we people who are grown and sensible man become pessimists and dare not even to fight the race. This is what the ‘Edision’ also pointed out in the quote on the top. Even if you fail, you don’t really fail rather you discover the ways which won’t worth going. What’s better than getting the opportunity to explore more ways? Failure only tells you about your weakness, shortcomings, lack of preparations, lack of analyzing the things. It gives you the chance to work on it which will surely contribute to everlasting success, making your glory eternal.

Every successful man has failed, not once but several times but it is due to their dedication, devotion, positive thinking and analyzing the things from a real perspective with more zeal and vigor which paved the path of success to them. Take the case of Abraham Lincon who failed many a time in his life but his good endeavor was never broken down and hence became the president of the USA. You’ll find several similar examples in which persistence of a person made than what they have thought once to be and what they were not.

Even in ‘Bhagwat Geeta’ Lord Krishna has stated the importance of right deeds or following the path of ‘Karma’. While preaching Arjuna, he quotes

 “Follow the path of righteousness, the path of dedication without thinking about the result. Do not let the fruits be the purpose of your actions and therefore you won’t be attached to not doing your duty“

The major problem of today’s generation is that we expect the result before doing the work and hence when we won’t get the desired results, we used to go in depression, disappointment and develop negative thinking. In that process, our confidence level decreases and even the tiny works seem like the impossible thing to do. We ought not to forget that path of success runs through many labyrinths of failures. Also, on contrary, there is a way out of every labyrinth, there is the answer to every enigma. The only requirements are the confidence, hard work and determination and it won’t take any time to come out of any labyrinth and seek the answer to every enigma. Martin Luther well stated the fact that

“You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step”

Most of the time we direct ourselves focussing on problems instead of solutions. Due to this, we can see the risk and hurdle associated with the questions and not the way to solve that one. This makes us reluctant to take even the first step or to be more precise say ‘begin’. We don’t realize the value of that one step:

“One seed at a time and the forest grows”

“One stone at a time and the palace rises”

“One breath at a time and the first place in a race”

“One drop of rain and the river flows”

“One word at a time and the great quote comes out”

The only thing is to start with firm determination and ‘unfettered’ will and the way is yours.

The other thing is that the people don’t realize their worth and start underestimating themselves. The feeling of inferiority corrodes them from inside and hence they start thinking that their life is useless. Before I begin with my own logic, I would prefer to state something by Tom Hopkins :

“You are your greatest asset. Put your time, effort and money into training, grooming and encouraging your greatest asset”

Even after this statement if you don’t realize your worth, consider the situation of any physically disabled people serving the nation at various posts large or small. If they don’t have realized their worth, they haven’t been making any difference in the progress of the nation but the scenario is different today. They believed- their biggest asset is their enthusiasm which enriches their positive thinking and hence they are major contributors to the progress of the nation.

Still, it’s a matter of great concern that in a developing country like India, It accounts for 17% of the world total suicide, a nation with 17.5% of the world’s population. The people include students, married women, farmers, teenagers, youth etc. This really paints a bleak picture of our country where the time when your family or if we see on a broader level, your country needs you, you are denying your responsibility by ending your own life due to one or the other reason which is totally absurd.

The other reason which propels a person for a suicide is the ‘expectations’ and this is the ground reason for most of the students. While preparing for any exams, most of the students feel suppressed under the expectation of parents, family members, and societies and when they can’t meet their expectations, they feel that there is no escape. The fear of ‘What people will say’ sometimes really turns out to be catastrophic. But here your real life starts i.e when people won’t be expecting anything from you and then you’ll give them a pleasant surprise by presenting them the testament of your endeavor. Be an optimistic person. Try to look for possibilities everywhere, Keep your moral high, Remember the quote- ‘All is for the best’.

There is a hidden evil in every letter of the word ‘SUICIDE’ namely Suppressed, Underestimated, Ignominious, Crestfallen, Insane, Despised and Efface and we need to outwit each of these through self-belief/confidence, courage, dedication, determination, patience, positive thinking and hard work. Only then, we can eradicate this evil from the minds of people and society. At last but not the least, remember this quote by ‘Denis Waitley’

“Failure shall be our teacher, not undertaker

Failure is the delay but not the defeat

It is a tempting detour, not a dead-end

Failure is something we can avoid only by saying nothing, being nothing but doing everything”

Remember, if an egg is broken from inside force, it gives rise to a new life but when it is broken from outside, life comes to an end. Hence, Always Believe that great things are always going to begin from inside, in you!

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Shashank Shekhar