News has spread that the district administration has issued a general advisory for vigilance against landslides due to forecasts of an exceptionally heavy monsoon.
Banta is thoughtfully clearing the culvert near his house.
Santa, however, is enthusiastically supervising a mason who is adding a small new room to his shop near the edge of a terraced slope.
“Santa,” Banta calls out, “are you sure it’s wise to undertake new construction right now, especially so close to the slope, with such strong warnings about the coming rains?”
“Perhaps reinforcing what you have or ensuring good drainage around your shop would be more prudent.”
Santa waves a dismissive hand, beaming.
“Arre, Banta!”
“Don’t be such a worrywart!”
“These warnings come every year.”
“And this particular Mohalla of ours, it’s blessed!”
“My grandfather used to say, our ancestors chose this spot carefully.”
“No major landslide has ever troubled our place.”
“Those things happen in those other unlucky villages up the valley, not here.”
“Besides,” he adds, puffing his chest slightly, “this new room will double my storage!”
“Think of the extra earnings during the tourist season!”
Banta listens patiently, then speaks calmly.
“Santa, it’s true that our Mohalla has been fortunate so far.”
“But the earth and the weather are not always bound by past behaviour.”
“What hasn’t happened before can still happen, especially as more houses are built, more trees are cut on the upper slopes, and rainfall patterns sometimes become more intense than our grandfathers ever saw.”
“Nah, Banta! We are special.”
“We are safe,” Santa insists, turning back to instruct the mason.
“This feeling that ‘it won’t happen to us, or here’ is very common, Santa,” Banta continues gently.
“Psychologists even have a name for it – they call it Positivity Bias or Optimism Bias.”
“It’s a natural human tendency to believe that we are less likely to experience negative events than others.”
“It helps us be optimistic and take risks for progress, like you expanding your shop, which is good.”
“But when it comes to known threats like landslides or earthquakes in our hills, this same thinking can make us blind to real dangers.”
Santa pauses, a flicker of doubt in his eyes.
“Positivity bias? A bias that makes me think good things will happen to me and bad things to others?”
“In a way, yes,” Banta affirms.
“It makes us feel personally invulnerable, even when we hear general warnings.”
“We think the warnings are for them, not us.”
“So, we might ignore advice to take precautions or delay investing in safety measures, because our mind assures us, I’ll be fine; my shop will be fine.”
“We are more focused on the positive gain, like your extra earnings, than on preventing a potential loss which feels remote and unlikely for us.”
He adds, “But disasters don’t check our address or our past luck before striking, Santa.”
“They test our preparedness.”
“Being aware of this Positivity Bias in our own thinking is the first step to overcoming it.”
“It allows us to look at warnings more objectively and take small, sensible steps to protect our dreams and our lives, not just hope for the best because bad things happen to other people.”
Santa looks at his half-built extension, then at the slope, then back at Banta.
“So, this good feeling that I’ll be safe could actually be a bit of a trap if I don’t also listen to the warnings properly?”
“My dream of a bigger shop could be buried if I only think positive and don’t prepare for the negative possibilities that these warnings are pointing to.”
Banta nods. “A wise thought, Santa.”
“True positivity includes the wisdom to prepare, so our optimism is well-founded, not just a hopeful wish.”
संता – बंता की इस जुगलबन्दी से आज हमने क्या सीखा:-
- हो सकता हैं आपको ऐसा लगता हो कि आपका स्थान अब तक आपदाओं से प्रभावित नहीं हुवा हैं, परन्तु यह भी तो मुमकिन हैं कि आपकी यह जानकारी ठीक न हो। यह भी हो सकता हैं आपकी जानकारी ठीक हो, परन्तु विगत में आपदाओं से प्रभावित न होना भविष्य में आपदाओं से सुरक्षित रहने की कोई गारंटी तो हैं नहीं।
- अपनी नैसर्गिक सकारात्मकता के कारण हम प्रायः स्वयं पर आच्छादित जोखिम को कमतर करके आंकते हैं, और यही कारण हैं कि हम प्रायः आपदा सुरक्षा सम्बन्धित पक्षों के साथ ही चेतावनियों पर भी अपेक्षित ध्यान नहीं देते हैं – हमारी यह सकारात्मकता हमें सुरक्षा के प्रति लापरवाह बनाती हैं और हम प्रायः आपदाओं से प्रभावित होते हैं।
- फिर तात्कालिक लाभ पर ध्यान केन्द्रित कर के, ज्ञात जोखिम की अनदेखी करने से भी हम अपनी घातकता को बढ़ा सकते हैं।
- नैसर्गिक सकारात्मकता के कारण उत्पन्न होने वाले संशय की स्वीकारोक्ति सुरक्षा के लिये सोच-समझ कर फैसला करने की पहली सीढ़ी हैं।
- सच कहें तो वास्तविक सकारात्मकता को हमेशा ही समुचित व पक्की तैयारी की जुगलबन्दी पर आधारित होना चाहिये।
संता – बंता की यह जुगलबन्दी आपको कैसी लगी, कृपया हमें जरुर बताये
व
इस जुगलबन्दी को बेहतर बनाने के लिये अपने सुझाव अवश्य दें।
हमें हमेशा की तरह आपके सुझावों, प्रतिक्रियाओं व कटाक्षो का बेसब्री से इंतजार रहता हैं और सच मानिये इसी के आधार पर हम अपने आप में, अपनी सोच व रचनात्मकता में सुधार करने को प्रेरित होते हैं।
सो अच्छा – बुरा जैसा आपको महसूस हुवा हो, कमेंट जरुर करते रहें।
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