Stress

May 18th, 2005. A twenty-one year old girl pursuing her B.Tech in one of the best Engineering colleges of Andhra Pradesh committs suicide by jumping from the 15th floor of Gagan Vihar Apartments in Hyderabad.
May 21st, 2005. An ISB graduate who enjoys a highly respectable position in an MNC gives up his life by jumping over Taj Krishna, Hyderabad.
These two cases may seem very different, very far from each other to have any miniscule connection, but there is one major similarity in them. The reason for both their deaths have been Stress, stress in personal lives. What can ail a talented girl from a well-to-do family that can compel her to committ suicide? What can coerce a suicide on a top professional who pockets salaries in 7figures?
Man always craves for luxury and material pleasures. In an effort to pocket the most of them, he tends to forget some basic things like life, love, happiness and satisfaction. All he is left with is Stress. Excessive work and pressure is one of the main reasons for this and lack of love and personal satisfaction is teh fuel to the fire. The girl I just wrote of has lost her father a couple of years back. Her father loved her a lot and naturally she missed him a lot after his death and didn't find anyone to fill the void. Naturally, though she had that all that could promise a great future, she gave it all up.
The man, a hot shot professional gave up his life for reasons unknown and called his parents and brother in US just before he had taken that extreme step. There were no reasons cited, but it was damn clear that he loved his family. Then why did he take his life? Probably, life has been too taxing.
These were a couple of cases that had taken place within a couple of days in Hyderabad alone and there are many more cities like Hyderabad all over India and there can be many more such cases there. Its paining to learn that two promising lives have met their end due to certain reasons that sure had a remedy. They had everything it takes to make a name for themselves in professional lives, all they lacked was in personal paradigm. They lacked love and compassion. Why have we become so materialistic that we don't care anymore about compassion and care?
Any person is judged by the degrees he holds, the salary he earns and the monetary assets he holds. We never look into how many people love him, how many respect him and how many want him. Is the paradigm shift towards materialistic and monetary scales taking its toll? I personally would not want a life full of money and work, but no one to fall back on. What significance do those lives hold which have to importance in others lives? Probably thats the thought that led to the suicides I spoke of.
In our mad rush to earn and earn, we are more into yearning than earning! Yearning for love and compassion. Started to achieve great heights in professional lives, the stress there unnegotiable has drawn the curtains for several lives. Probably first we must try to be individuals and then intellectuals!