Book Club

Everyone has heard of the famous novel, 'To Kill a Mockingbird.' If you like courtroom antics and kids, you will definitely enjoy it. Especially when we meet moral dilemmas like systemic racism - as grownups, it definitely overwhelms us. But the story draws you in - due to the 'good family' element clearly present in the Finches. It doesn't hurt that every few chapters, the author introduces a new character who doesn't quite 'fit' with the family's morals to keep the story 'fresh'. I will leave it to the other experts on the book to indulge - but as I am reading it again for the fourth time - timeless classic. Scout is so cool and Jem is underrated. God knows best.

Instead of making sensible adult life choices, I went ahead and wrote an entire satirical book and somehow, it’s actually published! Inside, you’ll discover a wildly unhinged dystopia where having a brain gets you blacklisted for "dangerous overqualification," national policy is run on pure unadulterated Bail-Buddhi, a secret rebellion smuggles revolutionary blueprints inside roadside tiffin dabbas, and a critical palace security breach happens simply because an inspector prioritized a bag of oily samosas over his literal job. It’s dramatic, completely chaotic, and buying a copy costs less than that iced coffee you’re going to regret in twenty minutes plus, it legally prevents me from showing up at your house to read the chapters out loud.

👉 Grab your copy here: https://notionpress.com/in/read/parellelia-the-dawn-of-intellectual-eclipse

Anyone read the odyssey?

I love books and knowledge! But unfortunately, I’m a collector 😭😭😭 anyone relate?

When someone says “I love you” but Dostoevsky said:

“I dreamed of you before I ever met you, and when I finally did, it was as if I had known you all my life”

Life Stages: What Should We Do at Each Age?

Everyone is different — someone once said that age isn't a clock everyone has to follow. But there is a guideline, one seen through the lens of philosophers.

Back in middle/high school, there was an article I once cut out from a newspaper — about change occurring every 7 years of life, a theory by Osho, the Indian thinker and spiritual teacher. It's not a theory about the body's biological growth.

It's more like a framework for what each stage of life should involve, since it's roughly mapped out. If we deviate from it, that's not necessarily wrong — it's just a compass, not a rulebook.

Of course, people grow up under different conditions. Some take on family responsibilities as teenagers; some don't find their career path until midlife; some marry in their twenties; some begin an important relationship after fifty. But "every seven years" serves as a marker — a way to check in on our thinking and ask ourselves where we're headed.

Here we go:

0–7 years: The heart learns before reason does
In life's earliest stage, a child's brain has no logic or knowledge base yet — only the raw sensory drive to survive in an uncertain, dangerous environment. The brain runs in receiving mode, taking in sound, sight, and touch to learn what feels safe and trustworthy. When it trusts and feels safe, the eyes widen and soft coos invite affection and protection. When it senses danger, it cries loud enough to be heard far away.

7–14 years: The world gains the word "I"
Self-awareness begins here, but filtered through others' eyes. Entering school age, acceptance by the group becomes important. Children this age face the tension between feeling capable and feeling inferior. If given room to try, fail, and be appropriately accepted, they gradually build confidence that their efforts matter. But if reinforced poorly, this becomes a subconscious wound of self-criticism later in life.

14–21 years: Separation in search of identity
The teenage drive for independence supports survival and the development of a distinct identity, since human diversity strengthens the survival of the world. Teenagers are often seen as rebellious, but behind the questioning, confusion, and craving for freedom lies an attempt to answer one of life's most important questions: Who am I?

Teens begin experimenting with roles, beliefs, relationships, and different paths — this is identity formation. This stage's challenge is "identity versus role confusion." Growing up doesn't mean having all the answers, but gradually learning to tell which voice is truly your own and which is just others' expectations. This is why testing boundaries through resistance always happens.

21–28 years: When dreams meet reality
Entering adulthood, many must decide on career, money, love, housing, and the future. Self-awareness has been building for a while, but what's demanded now becomes success in society's eyes. Who should we be, what should we have, and when should we succeed — these are the voices shouting in our heads. Some start careers full of hope; some find that graduating didn't make life any clearer; some have stable jobs yet feel life lacks meaning. This is sometimes called the "quarter-life crisis," a period when young adults may face instability in identity, career, and relationships during the transition to adulthood — especially when real life doesn't match what was once expected.

28–35 years: The question success can't answer
As life takes clearer shape, our questions tend to shift — from "How much further can I go?" to "Is this path still mine?" Some change careers, some end relationships, some start families, while others choose a life entirely different from the standard model. This isn't necessarily a period of collapse, but a time when many begin to examine the gap between "a life that looks good" and "a life that feels real." External success may bring stability, but it can't fully answer questions of meaning. It's an age when curiosity about exploring life begins to stir.

35–42 years: When experience quiets the ego
Having passed through both success and disappointment, many people start viewing life with more nuance. We may begin to understand that winning doesn't require someone else to lose, that admitting mistakes doesn't diminish our worth, and that changing our minds isn't failure. This stage doesn't demand complete answers — it brings a broader worldview and a gentler perspective toward the world and those around us. Many at this stage juggle caring for children, parents, work, and their own health all at once. Life demands not just achievement, but balance, flexibility, and acceptance of limits.

42–49 years: Does midlife crisis really exist?
Popular culture often portrays "midlife crisis" as a time of major upheaval — quitting jobs, buying new cars, or abruptly changing one's life. Some do experience intense change, but many actually report feeling more stable and finding more meaning in midlife. It's not an "age-triggered crisis" — it's the convergence of life events, personality, health, finances, relationships, and social context.

Beyond midlife: from building a life to passing it on
Erikson described the key task of middle adulthood as "generativity" — creating and passing things forward. People begin to ask whether what they've done benefits the next generation — have they cared for, built, taught, or passed on something of value? This passing-on isn't only through having children — that's just physical DNA. Passing on ideas, knowledge, and experience is far broader — it can come through teaching, building work, caring for community, sharing experience, or doing anything that leaves the world better than we found it.

In old age, people look back and evaluate their lives. If we can view the past accepting both successes and failures, we may feel a sense of wholeness. But if it's filled with regret and a feeling that there's no time left to fix things, we may face despair. The challenge of life's later years is being able to find meaning even in things that didn't turn out as hoped.

This is why understanding life's development matters. We don't study human development to predict exactly what will happen at a given age — but understanding that change is simply part of being human is worthwhile in itself. Knowledge of development helps parents not expect children to think like adults, helps adults not blame teenagers just because they're still searching for identity, and helps us view confusion in adulthood with more compassion. Studying this helps us act in ways suited to life — even though everyone's timeline differs.

Credit: Asst. Prof. Dr. Surat Tanprawet

Hamartia and the Greek Tragedies

Hamartia the fatal flaw of the protagonist that leads to his/her downfall.
It was coined by Artistotle, and means "to miss the mark" in Greek.
Hamartia normally appears in a tragedy (a story where the character faces ruin/death or deep suffering - often to their hamartia or luck.

Examples of hamartia in literature:

Ambiton for Macbeth and Dr Frankenstein

Jealousy for Othello

Arrogance for Dr Jekyll

Infinite knowledge for Doctor Faustus

Vanity for Dorian Gray

Obsession with the past for Jay Gatsby

A modern day example of hamartia is in the movie "Obsession" where Bear's hamartia is his obsession with Nikki.
Also in Star Wars, Darth Vader's hamartia is the fear of losing the people he loves.
Finally, in the anime Death Note, Light Yagami's hamartia is his God-complex.

Do you know any examples I have missed? pop them in the comments!

GAAAAASSSPPP 😲😲

https://youtube.com/shorts/9lhJ2WzZVGs?si=CPubLx_LUGAeUdJU

📚 Reading from paper📖 is far superior over 📱digital reading 💻..