Creativity Begins With a Question Mark
Questioner: Since childhood, I have been a little creative as well as studious, because that's the way of life, that's what parents tell you to do. So I used to dance, sketch, paint, everything. But then, as the years went by, I had to leave them behind. Once I came back to college, I started pursuing clubs, and I got back into being creative. But at the end of the day, when I did all these things and went back to my room and saw other people, like my peers, doing the technical stuff; I used to see them pursuing courses.
But then the thing is, I thought, "Why am I not doing the same things as they are?" I felt a little lost. But in your book (Truth Without Apology), There's this quote in a chapter which talks about: “When one is not caught in mundane rubbish, creativity just happens. You don't develop it. You only remove what blocks it. You can't cause creativity, but you can invite it. It comes on its own when it finds a clean space to enter.”
Now, this code broke the perception that I had: "Oh, I am creative, and I'm not doing tech stuff." So from you, I would like to know: what exactly is creativity? Can you elaborate on this? Because now that my perception has been shattered, I'd like you to elaborate on it.
Acharya Prashant: See, we'll start from the other side. How do we usually operate? We usually operate driven by our past and by others, the situations at hand. That's how most people, most of the time, function. Now, in this, there can be no originality because your past is deciding what is good, what is bad for you.
I'll give you an example. You visit a really, really good Chinese restaurant. But let's say all that you have been exposed to so far in your past is the humble noodles and the Manchurian balls. That's the maximum exposure you have to Chinese cuisine. Now, the menu runs over 12 pages, it’s a good restaurant with an extensive range. Still, what is it that you'd offer? And mind you, you love the noodles.
For 10 years, you have been a noodle fan. So there is pleasure in the past. There is in the past an instance of a pleasurable experience; not one instance, but many instances of a pleasurable experience with something called noodles. And the menu runs over 12 pages. And yet, what is it that you would order? Noodles. That's how most of us operate, right?
Or if you have gone there with a group and there is someone with you who claims to be a connoisseur in these things, this fellow says, "No, I know China in and out; we'll order special momos. I know everything." So maybe you'll yield and say, "Okay, fine, momos along with noodles." That's the maximum width of diversity your plate, your table, can take. Are you getting me? It's coming either from the past or from the surroundings, that's the natural mode of operation.
Now, that begs the question: what is it that you have deprived yourself of? What is it? The menu we said ran over 12 full pages, and each page had some 20 dishes. What is it that you have deprived yourself of? Within you your exposure runs to two of your own and two of your friends, 2 + 2 = 4. And what life is offering you is 240, and you have no idea what kind of joy might be there in the other roads open to you. But you stick to the past, and you stick to the influences. This is called being uncreative. This is called being uncreative.
Now, tell me: what is creativity?
Creativity is, first of all, to realize that we are uncreative people. We are puppets with strings in the past or in the hands of others.
The moment you realize that, you don't want to be too quick with placing the order. You'll maybe call the waiter, even the chef, and inquire. Even if they feel a little irritated, you will keep inquiring. "No, there is this dish with this very queer name. First of all, how to pronounce it?" Okay, now tell me, what is it about?
I'm not giving you a blueprint for creativity. I'm just telling you what all is possible, but forsaken, to not stick to your groove, to not remain safely confined by your pre-existing experiences. That's creativity.
So creativity carries that question mark because what is from the past or the surroundings is known, well known, right? You know noodles, your mother knows noodles, even your grandmother may know noodles. So noodles are very well known. But all the other things will require a question mark; otherwise, you cannot know.
So creativity begins with that question mark. Creativity begins with stepping outside your known zone. This is something I already know, but I don't want to limit myself to this. What else is possible? What is in the domain of the unknown? Can I be bold enough to test that? That is creativity.
Creativity does not come from pre-cooked material. Creativity is to dare life as it is; not to say, "I’m very safe in this little prison cell of mine, I don't want to step out of it." That's not creativity.
Classically, it is said creativity is when something arises from nothing. But that's a little too abstract a definition for you. Creativity is when something arises out of nothing. What does that nothing mean? It means I'm not confined by my past. I'm not leaning upon my current support, and yet I'm able to act. So something is arising from nothing. That is creativity.
