Richard Schwartz suggests that perhaps none of us is a single unified self but instead a compilation of many various selves. He calls these rival selves our “parts” and claims that they often work at cross-purposes. Schwartz reassures us that containing all these different parts doesn’t make us crazy; it merely makes us human. He also suggests that if we can identify and name the distinct parts of ourselves, we might have an easier time managing our lives.
I wasn’t sure if humans can optimally adapt to a yin-yang modus operandi till he showed me. I am still not sure how, in a fast-paced world, he manages to be a journalist with business acumen, an entrepreneur passionate for socialistic values, a literary critic advocating true scholarship, a political enthusiast who gorges on history books, an anguished poet with a lively blog, a philomath with childlike curiosity and a connoisseur at life. I would joke and attribute it to his astrological fire sign: “Leos don’t just have an appetite for life; they are the greediest.” And he would correct me “Has it ever occurred to you that I am eclectic? I have diverse interests and I hold all theories in harmony. I regard all life philosophies; I talk about religion, Islam, and Sufism as much as I engage in Marxist discourses.”
I met Mir Hadi Abbas as a writer pitching articles to his editorial desk and now, years later, his conversations have made a reader and a critical thinker out of me. I am now able to see how life means coexisting gracefully and consistently in a stream of events and not stagnating the consciousness in the name of focus. I was too absorbed in the basic curriculum until Mir emphasized the truths of life that only the most profound literary works and soul-stirring literature can provide.
He introduced me to authors of great stature, like Dr Radhakrishnan, Robert Plomin, Richard Lewontin, Carl Sagan, Dr Ali Shariati, Jalal Al-e-Ahmad, Nietzsche and many other philosophers. Mir’s favored discussions include insights on Tazkiyah and Tasawwuf, on existentialism, on poetry, on political economy, on history, on genes, on you are what you eat, on positive thinking and manifestation and on the money mindset. His constant advocacy for literary readership reignited a spark and persuaded me to reconnect with a long-abandoned book-reading habit of mine.
I started skimming through literary books again after years and I didn’t realize how deprived I had kept myself of the bewilderment that fuels the human purpose. I realized there’s so much to life and so many facets of my existence that I can enrich with scientific literature, philosophical literature, and the jargon of creative arts. I realized I had kept myself starved of food for thought. From discovering books to discovering self, what I am most grateful for is the learning that I too can be eclectic.
