"Black Or White": The Need For Moderation

Juhi Wani
Jun 29, 2019 • 53 views

Everything that exceeds the bounds of moderation has an unstable foundation.

The dictionary defines 'moderation' as the avoidance of excess or extremes, especially in one's behavior or political opinion.

Remember that newly released song that you found so amazing? After listening to it 10 times daily for a week, it seemed to have lost its sheen and you ended up deleting that boring song. It is not that the song was not melodious enough to be listened to further. Perhaps, if you would have played it just twice a day, it would have stayed longer in the playlist.

We humans, like all living beings, react to stimuli. Once a stimulus generates appeasement, pleasure or excitement, you want more of it. More of the ice cream that soothed you, more of the alcohol that de-stressed you, more work that made you rich, more money that bought you the house, a larger house with 20 bathrooms; and the list never ends.

Our brain gets accustomed to a stimulus quickly. The things that interested you earlier seem monotonous now and you look out for alternatives. The humans have traversed from just wanting to survive the weather and beasts in the early civilizations, to desire to colonize an entirely separate planet!

Extremism and fanaticism will either lead to an insatiable desire for more or cause self-destruction. A prominent example is of the Nazis who surpassed all limits of barbarity to satisfy the whims of their leader, who ended up committing suicide.

Moderation, on the other hand, lets you seek the everlasting pleasures of life. This applies to each of its facets.

Work and Stress:

It is agreed that a certain amount of stress stimulates better functioning of the brain, but overstressing is only a silent killer and undervaluation leads to downfall. Similarly, overworking is exhausting and not working is incompetence.

You might have noticed that one scores better in an exam for which he studied a bit than for which he stayed up late and read through the same notes unceasingly.

Food- For Thought and Body:

Terrorism, riots, violence; all are results of chauvinism for one's country, religion, caste, and political views. Either Hindu or Muslim; no room for considering the good in both. Oh! Such peace would prevail if secularism and contemplation truly existed.

When it comes to health, we see two types of people- one who carelessly eat whatever they want and the others who dare not taste their own birthday cake for the sake of diet. You see, it is easier not to look at sugar at all than take 'just a little'!

Moderation is all about finding content and stopping once you have. It is opting for 'SOME' rather going for 'ALL OR NONE'. Enjoy every morsel of food you eat instead of gulping it down. The biryani that you would have a couple of times a month would taste nothing superior to the plain rice if you start having it daily.

Moderation is a habit that brings balance and completeness.

Allow yourself to discover the grey areas between the extremes of black and white!