With the constant and significant growth of the industrial sector in modern civilisation, multiple things have changed. Let it be the emotions and values of humans or the standard of living. One such significant change is people’s perception of life. In ancient times, difficult life was not considered something to escape from, but people at that time used to enjoy the process of life and liked to earn small happiness and comfort throughout their lives. Comfort was never their expectation or goal, but the instinct of survival and moving forward in life was the ultimate path that our ancestors used to follow. Unlike today, earlier every ease that people used to experience was something that they had earned out of endurance. Shelter to protect themselves from storms, fire to protect themselves from winter and wild animals, and plenty of food to fight hunger. Comfort was considered a reward for their hard survival and not a right in their life. However, in present times, comfort is the new default and not survival. Comfort is seen as a commodity; efforts are replaced by machines. It was once used to be an inspiration for life, but now it has become an aspiration of life that is leading towards people becoming emotionally numb, and their survival instincts are slowly vanishing. Comfort is not limited to a luxury lifestyle, but it has its roots in our psychological behaviour as well. What is the point of having an easy and dull life when we used to live a life full of inspiration? Why are we sacrificing our actual instincts and moral values over this new aesthetic — “Comfort”
Why are we so obsessed with an easy or comfortable life?
If someone asks you a question, “Why do you seek comfort in your life?” You’ll most probably begin your answer with another question: “Why will I seek it?” We wonder what the point of living a hard life is when we can get an easy one, as if living a hard life is something so wrong! Why are we having such a perspective? Our society has deeply confused comfort with being independent, free, stable, and peaceful. Whereas, on the contrary, a hard life is something that we associate with failures, dependency, instability, and lack of peace. But who said that a person living a hard life can’t have peace and stability? Why do we believe that a life having hardships will be unstable and dependent? A person facing hardships can have a peaceful life on their own with stability as well. That person is just giving extra effort in his life to earn his comfort, and it’s not a bad thing or it is not something to be ashamed of. Life, in the end, is a long journey, and that person is on his way to betterment. But we, as a society, will listen to a person having a hard time, and we’ll sum up that he might have been a failure. But why? What is the reason behind such a false narrative being embedded in our society?
Our society knows how to celebrate the results and success, but efforts and struggles often go unnoticed and end up being never valued. Our society is based on outcomes, and it justifies the value of a person by the outcome of their life and not by the journey or process. A person facing financial difficulties is seen as someone being irresponsible or a failure. We live in a world that promotes positive values only, and it has never learnt to process the dark emotions. We were never taught to fight in life; instead, we were taught to escape from it. We think that a way full of hardships is uncertain, and with the fear of failing, we never even make the effort. Moreover, to ease the guilt of never trying enough, we tend to generate a perspective of this being a good thing. Moreover, the comparison culture of our society has made us believe that if someone is living a better life, then they must be successful. And for the sake of feeling better or higher, we eventually started to discourage those who struggle to live a comfortable and easy life. In this fast lifestyle full of machines, trends, and so-called aesthetics, our emotions have become so shallow that we don’t even realise that every day we are losing the basic essence of our humanity.
Are we sacrificing our spirit over comfort?
Comfort, as in general, is a reward to be earned, and it seems harmless and even desirable, but only until it becomes a trap for us. Our human soul needs to be nourished and expanded over time, but when we choose comfort, we let it consume us by sedating us, or it eventually binds our soul in its trap and doesn't let it expand. A warm bed, good food, nice entertainment, and a life to enjoy might seem so desirable, but are they good enough to trade your true identity, strength, and potential being a human? Our soul is not made for living a calm life, but we were born to struggle. We were born to express ourselves, we were born to take risks, we were born to lose multiple things along our way, we were born to create in our lives, we were born to celebrate our lives, and not to escape them just because we can fail. Failures are part of life, and they don’t define our identity. Each failure teaches us a new lesson and makes us stronger and better than before. We’ve confused comfort with peace, and peace is something that can’t be inherited or acquired; it needs to be earned. If life is predictable, our minds will eventually stop wandering. If pleasure will always be available, then what’s the meaning and point of having it? Comfort is not growth. Actual growth begins with discomfort. Our curiosity wanders in unlikely paths and not in familiar ways. When comfort is chased without any struggle, it leaves us with an emptiness. That’s why even after having a comfortable life, we keep seeking more and more, as comfort still feels hollow and unsatisfying because it was never earned as it was meant to be. Comfort is a trophy to be earned and not a commodity to have. Let’s not forget what we are and not feel trapped in the trap of comfort that is eventually sucking our spirit out of us.
"Comfort is a gentle thief — it steals your potential without making a sound."