Ambiguous

One needs to reaffirm / remember certain values repeatedly till they ‘sink’ in and form a natural part of our character.

One such value is about being ambiguous. There seems to be a certain fascination or a compulsion to ‘complete the picture’. All decked up, prepared, dressed properly, having correct opinions, correct  questions and seem to be correctly ‘occupied’ by the deepest questions. Sometimes I wonder if this correctness is imposed or is just a façade or is authentic? Only ‘you’ know the truth! I don’t wish to seek any explanation for what people say or do – it is upto them. However, the fascination of being or appearing complete may be a reflection of being insecure from inside. The fascination of being correct, is a compulsion to be in control and if one digs deeper, one will realize just how futile this attempt seems to be. Since the object of control is our thoughts – which are never going to be in our control in absolute sense. This is the fear – not being able to understand who we are and what we are and what influences us to the greatest extent. Some even don’t acknowledge this fear at all! Some try desperately to think or do things that will somehow counter this deep experience of ‘fear’, and yet the fear doesn’t diminish. There can be a different article on why this inevitable state of mind occurs, and what kind of discipline may help to curtail and perhaps decode fear itself.

Accepting fear - or the unknown dimension of things that lie beyond our grasp – can help us accept ambiguity in thoughts/ feelings, actions and manifestations. Here, ambiguity needs to be seen as a ‘process towards becoming more complete’ and to discover the hidden dimension of inspiration. Ambiguity should be seen as a phenomenon that includes all apparent contradictions yet the system seems to work. It is a good mixture of control/ thought and belief in action/ unknown and the will to accept whatever comes our way and subsequently to proceed ahead with optimism. In architecture, ambiguousness means multiuse, multifunctional, inclusive, participatory, bare essential, extremely simple and accommodative, and almost non buildable – almost omnipresent. Ambiguousness, therefore does not confirm to any fixed position yet may seem to appear in all contexts. Ambiguousness means growth or a potential to collaborate/ participate and develop it further. Ambiguousness means  belonging to all and belonging to nobody specific. Thus, although inclusive of all, no one can stake a claim over it. The best quality of architecture represents this experience of space.

Can our attitudes ever accommodate this dimension of existence? Is this what we seem to lose from traditional wisdom? Are we being too specific, too perfect, too rigid, too accurate – that it just stifles ‘life’ altogether?