Have you ever heard of Andare’s story where he relates this magnificent method of preparing jaggery to the king? If not, here is the version my grandmother narrated to me when I was little:
One day, the king was enjoying his meal and he commented on the jaggery being very sweet, musing out loud that it must indeed be well made with the utmost care. Hearing this, Andare, the witty court jester, thought of a plan and told the king that he knows how it is made, since he has been to the place before. What he witnessed was that the workers wore the best garments while working, used golden and silver ladles to mix the ingredients in gold and silver jars and it was a magnificent sight to behold. Hearing this, the king was very intrigued and wanted to see the place for himself so he could praise the workers. He called for his chariot and together with Andare, set off to visit this wonderful workplace.
What did the king expect? Golden jars, golden ladles, and happy people. Well, as you might have guessed, he was in for a surprise. Lo and behold! What he witnessed were grimy jars, ladles (that did not look anything like ladles) and permanently scowling workers wearing the grimiest clothes imaginable, their sweat dripping into the jaggery mixtures. Naturally, the king was very angry and asked Andare what prank he pulled here. Andare told the king, “A speaker can say whatever he wants to, but it is the duty of the listener to be mindful of what he is listening to.”
What comes to mind when I think of this story is the phrase: “Everything that glitters is not gold”. Listening with a critical and open mind is even more resourceful nowadays than during Andare’s time, since we are subjected to information overload as soon as we switch on the TV, radio, internet or even go out into the streets. It’s input everywhere in the form of commercials, NEWS, Instagram feeds, Facebook timelines, Twitter feeds, etc etc.
So how can we use this information wisely? This is where critical thinking comes into play. As we observe, read, or hear, we should remember that the source behind the information has its own agenda to fulfil. By being mindful and paying attention, we can avoid a lot of traps. I personally believe critical thinking not only benefits a person individually, but would benefit the country as well as the world, creating new ideas and innovations, especially contributing to developing sectors like science and technology.
After reading this article, I would like you to take a minute and decide for yourself whether you agree or not with what I have to say. Think about it, when a person becomes critical he/she will become the master of his/her own self. When people stop believing everything they hear and stop following the crowd, what a lovely, unique and thoughtful place the world would be!
-Written by Rtr. Niromi Dabarera-
Image Credits: https://images.app.goo.gl/mF3n6z6GkjxGTaWLA
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