In the modern era, communication often resembles two strangers passing each other in a crowd; words might be exchanged between them, but neither person stops long enough to make sense of what has been conveyed. The essence of communication lies in nuance, and nuance takes time to be understood and unraveled. A profound, soul-baring conversation is one of the closest things to magic that we can experience within the confines of material reality. But this kind of magic requires bravery, and modern communication is dominated by fear. Fears of: will they like me? Will I get the upper-hand? Will I win?

As logically sound as they might be, social-hacking theories such as Robert Greene’s ’48 Laws of Power’ can serve as a hidden test of an individual’s willpower and courage. When presented with tempting, foolproof shortcuts to getting our desired ends, will we still have the courage to opt for the long, hard road of sincerity and earnestness? In the face of intellectual armor that can shield us from all vulnerability, will we have the wisdom to dispense of that armor and leave ourselves open to the possibility of pain, without which true growth and connection cannot occur?

Communication shouldn’t be laden with calculation, self-aggrandizement, or the hidden lure of personal agendas; it should be heartfelt, authentic, and honest. Meaningful communication exudes playfulness, resonance, and depth, not manipulation and artifice. This mode of communication may not always “win”, but its fruits are never rotten. It’s strange to be alive in a time when words are used as mechanisms of concealment and misdirection as often as they’re used for the genuine expression of one’s thoughts, but we’re living in strange times, period.

In the immortal words of Imam Ali (as),

When words come from the heart of anyone, they find a place in the heart of another. But when they come merely from the tongue, they don’t go further than the ears.

x r