“As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler; solitude will not be solitude, poverty will not be poverty, nor weakness weakness.”
~Henry David Thoreau
Before seeing simplicity as a art let us first reach to a consensus what simplicity is?What make something simple ? When I asked Google's view on this he explained it as a burden which things put on someone trying to explain or understand it.so honest answer, innocent isn't it? He doesn't know we are trying to figure out simplicity in different context. Google is so simple and that is the quality which attract most of us.
Simplicity of Life
So what is simplicity of life? What I believe is there is no particular definition of simplicity. Nobody can define it. My vision of simple life can be utterly different from yours.
I have read about someone living in a small hut in Metro like Delhi, with no electricity or running water or television or Internet.They chop wood from the forest outside to burn for heat and cooking. They use water from a nearby stream for drinking and bathing. They walk or bike to town to go to the library or to use the Internet. That’s a pretty simple life by most definitions.
I’ve also seen photos of pretty expensive houses, decorated in a very minimalist fashion, ancient in their simplicity, but also decorated with expensive furniture. These houses are gorgeous, and their minimalist interiors are extremely attractive … but it takes a lot of money to get to that point. This could be one kind of simplicity, but it’s not for everyone.
I’ve also seen people who live extremely frugally, rarely buying new items, making things last as long as possible, growing food in a garden, buying things second-hand in thrift shops when necessary. This kind of frugality is one kind of simplicity.. But it’s not the kind of simplicity for everyone.
My idea of a simple life
Again, this isn’t what you need to go for, and it’s not even what you need to agree with. We can each have our own vision. My idea is that I make room in my life for the essentials — the things I love to do and the people I love to be with. I remove the non-essentials as much as possible, and leave a life that isn’t overwhelmed with tasks and projects and errands, but has space … space for what I want to do, and space between things. So that I can live a peaceful life, move slowly, work happily, and spend time with the people I care most about.
This might mean that I live frugally (so that I can work less, or save for what’s important), or it might mean that I sometimes splurge, because life is too short not to enjoy things while you can. I find ways to enjoy myself without spending money.
Why simplicity?
Simplicity is a goal. Not necessarily with an intent to keep things in life simple, but simple as a way of achieving clarity and enlightenment in our life experience.
Life ,after all, is complex and full of details. One have to do list personal planner to be organized. but at the same time simplicity in life is one thing we strive for once this complexities in life are IRONED OUT.
I believe it’s important to keep a sense of simplicity in life, even to an extant to approach a lot of situations with a simple, almost child-like manner. And many times, keeping life simple and clear is closest to the truth as one can get.
When one ponders over this, life is too short to deal with too many details and complexities. Leading a more simplified lifestyle makes our lives more manageable and less stressful.
As Leonardo Da' Vinchi quoted it
"simplicity is the ultimate sophistication"
How to achieve it ?
As one of my very simple professor use to say " I must admit this is a tricky question ". We have a tendency to make simple things in our day to day life complex. As I said there is no particular way to achieve it. But it is artistic, To convert Complex things simple, awesomely simple, is creativity.
Have you ever seen someone whom you like because he has not exhibited any extraordinary quality, because he is looking down to earth , because he has no particular intention of winning world but he work hard just because he enjoy his work. Or any thing which you categorize as simple and has attracted you. Though you cannot objectively find any salient points about him but you can sense there is something different about him. It is very creative to be simple , It is very creative to frame your definition of simplicity, It is very creative to be flexible enough to change your perception about simplicity frequently and that is why I said that "Simplicity is a Art".
