Monday, February 1, 2010

Exterminating Extreme Exclusivists

I am frightened of relating to persons who are overly possessive, persons who wish to possess me exclusively. I see a danger in relating to this kind of people, because they would expect me to sell my personal freedom and liberty to them, and wish me to be tied down to them, and do their bidding. Such persons invariably would wish me to do whatever they want me to do, and as soon as refuse to do, or ignore their pleas, or do what I would very much wish to do, then their entire world crumbles, and they may find it hard to accept that the other party has "ditched" them.

History has shown that all the people who were overly attached to their partners, very soon ended up separate; that is the law of life. The Latin proverb sums it all : corruption optima pessima (any good in excess is bad). Attachment is good, and it is a sign of commitment and endurance, but when it goes beyond all limits, it becomes sour. We can take examples for this from nature. What happens when sugar water is kept for long; it becomes sour, and so are relationships. What may be of great help is to keep safe distance (on the road we are reminded by every other vehicle to keep the distance).

Overly possessive persons are preoccupied with guarding their partners, lest they should seek greener pastures; and if ever the partner were to find a better company and partner, and give signs of terminating the relationship, then the possessive partner would go all extent to exterminate the enemy, and reclaim his partner for him/herself. But that is not going to take place in a peaceful atmosphere; there may be bloodshed, if it is required, and any amount of crime and justification may be called in, to show that they were made for each other, and they cannot be separated for whatever reason!

One of my friends, who was so attached to me, and loved me so much that she could not think of getting married to another person. Whenever I started the topic that she should be settled in life, so that her mother would be able to concentrate on brining up her younger sister and brother; but she would not listen to me. But how can I ever think of another person in my life? This used to be her regular answer! To make the long story short, today she is happily married with two children (and she had managed to be absolutely cut off contacting me for the past 13 years)! When the extreme exclusivist shell breaks, the persons begin to see reality as it is, and not as they imagined it to be. It may occur through a shocking experience, or a sudden jerk in life, or even an accident.

In any growing relationship (and I believe all relationship are bound to either come to a standstill or continue to grow), it is absolutely necessary for the partners to pause at every stage and look at where they are heading. Any vehicle that goes at full speed is heading for trouble; sometimes it is necessary to put the brake and make sure that they are alright, so that when there is a need, you don’t realize that the brakes have worn out. This occasional brakes (either through exercising small doses of ‘self-control’ or through abstinence) may make the relationship enduring, instead of leading it to crash after an excited drive. Ultimately this enduring relationship may benefit both the partners, helping them to find greater joy and peace in being ‘related’!

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