Dealing with Negativity in the Media

Sadhguru: In reality, the world is less violent than ever before. Sitting in Los Angeles a thousand years ago, if a thousand people had died in Chennai, you would be looking at the sunset, looking at the ocean and the bay and thinking that the world is absolutely, wonderfully peaceful. Now, if something is happening in Egypt the fires of Cairo are burning in your own house through your television and internet. They are burning in your sitting room, they are burning in your bedroom; I don’t know if you have a television in your bathroom. They are burning on your phone, burning in your head. So, it is our ability to communicate which makes it look like all the blood and gore is flowing into our homes. A thousand years ago, if a thousand people died in Chennai we would sit here thinking the world is going perfectly well because the sun is setting, we’re looking at the ocean and everything is wonderful.

Do not worry unnecessarily about violence. Definitely we have to strive to see how this doesn’t happen. But do not magnify it in your mind because whatever you pay the most attention to, will manifest in your life and in the world around you. Everything in the world has been going on wonderfully today, except maybe a few incidents in a few places. The Sun came up on time, the Earth is spinning properly, flowers are blossoming, any number of people are doing wonderful things to each other. A few people do nasty things to each other. Yes, those things have to be handled. But do not pay magnified attention to these because they will fill your consciousness and you will in turn create the same situations in the world. It is very important that we curtail negative situations on the planet. At the same time, it is very important that we fan and nurture positive situations on the planet. If you pay too much attention to the negative, our children will believe that this is all that is happening in the world. They will believe that this is the way to live.

The world is not all violent and corrupt. There are many wonderful, peaceful, joyful, loving human beings on the planet, doing wonderful, incredible things to themselves and to each other, every day. A few nasty things are happening, or a lot of nasty things are happening, let’s say. Yes, we need to fix them, but you are not going to fix them when your mind and your consciousness are full of the violence you saw on the television today. Unfortunately, only negative things are considered newsworthy. Somehow, we have set up a mode in society that all the wonderful things human beings do are not newsworthy. It is time that we develop a calibre of journalism which highlights the positive on the planet. This does not mean glossing over the negative. We must face the negative. There is no question about it. We must fix the negative, there is no question about it. But it is very important that the positive is nurtured.

Editor's Note: What are your experiences with positive and negative media? Ever felt like the morning news has influenced the rest of your day? Do let us know your views in the comments below.