What is imagination?

                 (from our friend Adithya Chandrasekar)

Imagination – a spontaneous uncontrollable flow of electrical impulses that are interpreted by the brain to give vital solutions to complex problems, to help ignite an already creative mind, to help in understanding complex concepts. So what is this imagination? All of us have it, even a new born begins to imagine things when it just comes out of the mother’s womb. It is said that a man imagines more than the number of breathes he takes in a lifetime. A study conducted on the average life of man proves that the average lifetime of man is somewhere around 3000-3500 weeks.

There is no a specific frame of reference within which we could fit all that an individual imagine. Our imaginations are so random that sometimes we even forget what we had just imagined. We sometimes imagine the weirdest of things. Have we ever wondered, giving respect to the most curious specie of the animal kingdom from where these thoughts or ideas that occur in imagination originate? Most of these thoughts seem to have no basis or proof. They could be thoughts about aliens or a flower growing upside down with their roots above and shoots below. Most of what we imagine are not cohesive with any logical interpretation.

Imagination has no rules or set frames within which the thoughts originate, as I stated previously they are just random. The more and more I keep questioning the more it would become unclear. Therefore, one possible reason why these random, illogical, mysterious thoughts occur is because we have an indirect link with what we imagine. Our imaginations could be something that we have seem or experienced when we were in a different time zone or in one of our past lives. Humans are said to think and imagine in a specific unique pattern. Those weird thoughts that we imagine sometimes could be due to our experience with something similar in a different world in some past life that we have lived there. Sometimes these thoughts give ideas to the most complex of problems. If we do a deep logical research, then we may find that most of these thoughts have followed a similar pattern in becoming solutions.

I consider imagination as a great gift that encompasses time and civilization. Man is free to imagine whatever he wants. Imagination is the only means by which one can transgress stereotyping, laws, rules and so on. It is said that in ancient times if people really were disciplined and principled then whatever they had imagined became true. God has given us this great gift as a means of consolation whenever we feel helpless. It is up to us to use this gift and realise whatever we imagine.

Ancient Indian scriptures indicate various instances where yogis used to surpass time and travel to different places just with the help of their imagination. This is a proof of what imagination is capable of. If imagination has to be put to good use then it depends on the free will of the person. Imagination helps us to find solutions to complex problems only because it takes the victim of a problem outside the problem and makes him/her to view the problem from a third person’s point of view. I prefer to interpret this imagination as the all-pervading consciousness. The more one imagines and observes the more one’s free will has matured. Imagination composes of both good and bad and it is left to the discretion of the imaginer to use his free will and decide which to use.

Imagination is also used in solving criminal cases where the investigating individual after visiting the crime scene imagines himself to be the criminal and tries to enact the entire crime scene which in many cases has helped solve the case. So what is this imagination? I hope I have partially answered your question.

Imagination is a unique experience that is to be understood and those who understand their imaginations become great men. All that I have stated above may be factually correct or could have been my imaginations about imagination. Thank you for reading hope to have kindled your imagination and creativity.