Living in Cities - Hell or Heaven

Living in a city is something that many young people may dream about. Modern big cities like Mumbai, Bangalore and Delhi provide all the modern amenities ranging from a big lavish apartment to shopping malls, multi-cuisine restaurants to an air-conditioned school. People living in these big cities not only enjoy the easy availability of the latest car but also have an advantage of using facilities like fax and courier.

However, in the midst of all these ultra-modern big cities, aren’t we forgetting something? Aren’t we leaving behind the values, the sense of brotherhood and co-operation behind?

The big modern cities look fascinating but we pay heavily for it. If we go back in the olden times or rather if we compare a small city with bigger ones then we will realize that there are hardly one or two people living in our vicinity whom we know. Life in an advanced society is not as clean as one expects. It has numerous drawbacks. 

These cities look like a human zoo where people are far from nature; they live in similar houses, in little flats which look like cages. One of the biggest problems is which these cities face is the indifferent attitude of its inhabitants. The city doesn’t seem to be friendly and hospitable as people in smaller cities. Since the majority of people always struggle to deal with personal and professional problems, it is out of question that they get to know their neighbour’s. It’s a place where people are always ready to pull you down. 

The rhythm of life is so quick and life is so busy at rush hours. The streets get packed with traffic and it comes to a standstill. The disrupted ecological balance, noise pollution is again one of the main problems of cities.

Now, I would like to impose a question, what are we living for? Satisfaction and eternal peace. Now those of you, who would say, that cities are heaven, I would advise them to go over the dictionary once and see the literal meaning of heaven; it refers to a place where gods are said to reside and a place where there is perfect happiness. Although I am a neutral believer in god, but it does me no good my friends to reveal the fact that if god exists, then cities would be the last place he would decide to live. This fact is undeniable. Then aren’t we being too selfish in calling cities a heaven? Just because cities cater to a variety of demands and make our work slightly convenient, doesn’t approve of its position of being a heaven.

Don’t we all agree that that nearly 80% of the people living in cities suffer from hypertension, sleep apnea and other disorders? This is all a result of the stressful life that the people are compelled to live. Those of you, who still believe that cities are heaven, would certainly feel shy of admitting the fact that all the vices and human follies form the core of cities. Jealousy, unhealthy cut-throat competition, greed, anger and pride find exclusive residence in the hearts of the people living in cities. Not offending anyone, I would like to give a brief flashback of what has happened in the past one year in cities - The Nirbhaya gang rape, the recent acid throwing case, relatives conspiring against each other. Cities have become a centre for carrying out all sorts of illegal activities. Forget being a heaven, cities have become a place where useless people, taking the name of god, indulge into heinous offences that one can’t think. Is this what we term as heaven? With all my due respect, I would ask everyone to rise beyond the trivial pursuits of pleasure. It is largely due to the need for a pleasurable life that the cities are being termed as heaven.