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How Interaction with my dog made me think about human behavior
1. The dog originally hunted in packs and lived in packs to be a part of the group and considered the alpha dog as his leader. The dog hunted in wild. The pack instinct is the strongest in dogs and dogs are essentially pack animals. The dog in primordial times gave up the dog pack and took to allegiance to the man and made the man his pack leader or the alpha male, looking towards the human for his food, for his walks, for his hunt and for his territory. The dog is driven essentially by his instincts and drives. An instinct might therefore be defined as the driving force which makes the dog, without any previous training or experience, want to do something. The key point here is that the following of an instinct essentially creates a feeling of pleasure. For this reason, if the opportunity to use it arises, the instinct becomes progressively stronger. The various instincts, briefly outlined, are as follows: Hunting instinct and pack instinct, guarding instinct and fighting, submissive instinct (stems from the pack theory to be part of the group and follow the alpha), sex, cleanliness and homing instinct. Dogs being “the man’s best friend” have definitely a lot of wisdom to impart to us humans by their being just innocently what they are, that is, dogs!!! Humans essentially being emotional beings themselves feel that the dog’s eyes speak to us. They testify to, they utter the hidden and the inexpressible – melancholy, fidelity, love and understanding. Is this the truth or just the human heart’s speaking and perceiving as the innermost human desires? I feel that humans perceive what they want to see in dogs. That is, a faithful creature and loyal. But being an ardent student of science I feel that the bond which binds the dog and the man is a natural link, is an obligation not an act of will. The dog follows its master as the moon follows the earth on its trajectory. It’s the primordial instinct or the impulses which have brought the man and the dog together. My own interaction with my dog has made me introspect about human behavior in general and realize that even humans, like dogs, are driven by certain instincts. These impulses or instincts are like primitive forces of nature. Just like a new born puppy without being told, crawls towards the teats of his mother, looking for milk, so do the forces of nature bind the man and dog.
2. Both the dog and the man have selfish needs which they need to satisfy. The underlying relationship between man and the dog is that, the dog looks at man for all his needs. In turn man uses the dog for different purposes, as a display for his own valour, for sports, for hunting, for own recreation. The underlying truth is that the dog is not being intentionally selfish. It is just true to its primitive instincts and obeying the primordial laws of Nature. It is just being the being it is inherently. In return it gives rise to the same primordial impulses in man. The dog has an attachment to man that is not born of consciousness and does not become conscious. It is an unreasonable, mysterious impulse, strong and imperative, like all the primitive forces of nature. However in case of human beings, a conscious animal himself, there is another side of human personality, which is, being altruistic. The conscious man thinks he can do well for the society at large by being altruistic. However, my interaction with dogs in general and observing their behavior closely, taught me when to be appropriately selfish and when to be altruistic. For example, the other day, I helped one of my colleagues to get a puppy from an animal welfare organization. My intention was very pure and just to help another human being in getting a pet. The owner of the charitable organization called me up on the phone and abused me and said that I pay donation “COMPULSORILY” since I had taken money from the person to whom I had got the puppy. I was abused by the lady owner of the so called “charitable “organization. I realized that if I had made the person whom I had tried to help pay for the puppy from the breeder and I should never have got into the picture but just acted as a bridge. My problem started when I was not able to control my inner feelings and strike a balance. Being able to judge when to control my emotions and going the extra mile and trying to be too generous and good. Although that dog which I never saw whom I helped by getting adopted taught me a lesson that I should have looked at my self interest first before trying to act like a saint. This, however, definitely did not leave an impression on me that I should stop helping other people in the society in which I live.
3. The modern day dog no more lives in the pack of dogs. Neither does it hunt for its own kill. It lives in the family pack with the human as his alpha pack leader, and, it looks towards its master for his food needs. The dog lives like a member, a servant and a partner in the society of man today. It plays the myriad roles which man his leader has defined for him. I now look to my family, my children and my wife for moral and even materialistic support. Brought up in a very conventional upbringing I felt that the head of the family could ONLY be the bread winner. But now since I have gained bad health, I realize that it’s ok that my wife works and shares in the needs of our family. I look towards my children for emotional support and realize that it’s ok to ask someone for favors if I need help. Earlier I used to feel that it’s like begging to ask for help even if I was in distress.
4. As we know from the instinct theory, and my observation of dog behavior, dog is an animal of drives and instinct and it follows these instinct because these give pleasure to him. Prior to my observation of dog behavior keenly and reflecting that behavior on human behavior and self, I always looked at altruism as the way of life. I believed that I could do well to others by being altruistic and by excessive giving and donations of materialistic gains. However, I realized that a balance needs to be there and sometimes our intention to do good for others may not be good for that being. Now I feel that I should look for the betterment of myself and ask for material benefits from the world for the betterment of my children and my family. I guess earlier in my life I did not love myself enough. I would like to use my skill of understanding human nature and being able to write and pen down my thoughts to be able to write books and articles in magazines. I feel that it’s Ok to look for that much of materialistic benefits in life which are necessary for a comfortable happy and peaceful living for my family.
5. Men domesticated dogs primarily to use them for work. In modern times people use dogs for shows and conformation reasons as a show piece and for sheer display purposes. However, the basic and the fundamental reason for man to domesticate dog was for it working ability. Many people who keep dogs have no realization of what really makes a dog happy. It has been found that dogs bond better with the person who trains the dog and takes him for exercise rather than the person who feeds him. Many of the dog training techniques may appear inhuman and cruel to the normal person. But from a “dog’s sense” point of view the worst treatment that can be meted out to a dog is trying to be kind. A dog which does not get its daily dose of mental stimulation is the unhappy dog and in the process it takes the harshest treatment from his master. Thus just like the dog looks for mental stimulation towards its master so must humans look for the end goal of life and work hard to earn their living and peace of mind. I have learnt from dog behavior that even when you are down and hit under the belly by the world, one must keep going on and keep fighting for his or her karmic dharma.
6. As the famous German writer Franz Kafka famously wrote “All knowledge, the totality of all questions and all answers is contained in the dog”. The instinct theory is the basic theory on which canine evolution is based upon. The dog is an instinctual animal and driven by his instinct. The drives in the dog also play an important role. These drives and instinct are the foundation of any dog training. The dog is today a human family member and no more lives or hunts in the wild. Through his inherent sense the dog gives rise to equally primordial impulses in man and thus dogs have a lot of wisdom to offer and can affect our outlook towards life. Dogs are primarily domesticated by man for their working ability. This is the most fundamental reason that man has domesticated dog to put him for his own use. Thus, by his working nature dog has taught man to follow his karmic dharma. The dog’s innocent behaviors can teach us a lot. Although man does not need to stop essentially being a Human Being, however his best friend the dog, has through his primordial impulses appealed to the senses of humans for ages. |
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