Children, knowingly or unknowingly, many of us harbour prejudices about others. Our preconceptions do not allow us to understand them properly. A man wearing yellow-tinted glasses will see everything as yellow. We must be ready to remove the spectacles of preconceived notions before looking at the world.
Even if we go to the same tailor regularly, he will take our measurements anew whenever we visit.
A good tailor will never stitch new clothes using old measurements because he knows that our size might have changed since the last measurement. But we do not realise that our views about others might have also become obsolete. We must adopt the tailor’s perspective in our daily life.
Main problems arise when our interactions with others are prejudiced. There is no reason why a thief cannot turn over a new leaf. Pingala, a prostitute, became an ardent devotee. Ratnakaran, the notorious dacoit, was transformed into the venerable Sage Valmiki.
If we can interact with others without preconceptions, we can discover newness in the same individuals. A case was being heard in court. The lawyers for both the plaintiff and defendant were arguing heatedly, but the judge was sitting with his eyes closed, not paying particular attention to either of them. After some time, he fell asleep. Seeing this, the clerk said, “Your Honour, you’re falling asleep. You’re not listening to either lawyer.”
The judge retorted, “Don’t worry. I’ve already decided the verdict!” He then went back to sleep.
If we behave like the judge in this story, i.e. with preconceived notions, justice and truth will be forfeited. A few individuals will receive undeserved concessions while a few others will face unjustifiable distress.
As a result of our own prejudices, we stand to lose those who could be our friends and helpers. Sometimes, these prejudices might even betray us.
Sometimes, we become the victims of our own prejudices. We might strongly believe that we cannot do certain things. However, we might actually be able to do it if we persevered. Such preconceptions reflect a lack of self-confidence, which is as dangerous as an inflated sense of our abilities.
Prejudices enslave us only because we give undue importance to the past. We must learn to live in the present moment always and strive to keep our heart and head free and efficient.
The writer is a world-renowned spiritual leader and humanitarian