Discipline or Chaos?

Discipline has been the fabric of nature since its inception. The natural beings show bilateral symmetry, the spiral shells defined carefully by Fibonacci series, gravity being consistent and governed by laws that a hold their ground all across the (macro) universe.

On the other hand the modern human society places heavy emphasis on being free. The ability to 'think out of the box' has been iterated so often that, this phrase has become an 'in the box' cliche by itself. There have been heralded instances in the human history where heroes have challenged the norms and mores of the contemporary society.

We are brought up in a disciplined environment, expected to live a life that is in order, getting up on time, rushing to school, do our homework, fare well in exams, keep our room clean. And yet every individual wishes to be an Einstein, a Mark Zuckerberg, a Steve Jobs or a Mahatma Gandhi.
The one to change the world as it exists.

The two seem to be very conflicting paradigms. On one hand we have discipline: Something that gives an order to otherwise haywire lives, giving it a purpose, a streamlining of the energies that  we have in our youth. It defines the 'norms' of the society. A structure that defines what is to be perceived as a right or wrong.
On the other hand we have chaos: The free will, The midnight ride, the kiss in the rain, the adventure, that feeling of challenging the existing way of doing things, and as my blog title itself says- to wear "Tuxedos on the beach".

And young people are often split when the two create an inner turmoil within the self.
Discipline is what their mind tells them to do- to be stable, dedicated to their studies and self development, refrain from pander, revelry and over indulgence. More often than not, it leads to a very comfortable, if not exciting life. Its about grit, determination and to stay there when everybody else around you quits.
The chaos is at direct loggerheads with discipline- to bunk classes and sit in the canteen, talk with your girl friend even though you have a presentation at 8 in the morning, to smoke weed despite knowing what it can do to your nervous system, to build another social network when the world already has Orkut and Myspace. Its not quite the devil as people might think. Its the ability to take a leap, knowing that the fall is very steep.

So how does one go about it?
Should we play safe and live a life that is safe but not necessarily exciting?
Or should we throw caution to the winds and live a reckless life.
The answer is NO to both.
Ok, I am being a bit diplomatic here, but you must understand that there is no easy answer to this.
How can you expect to break your shackles, the notion of your right or wrong if you don't know the norms in the first place. Only when you've been through them, grown steadily to reach a vantage point from where you can launch yourself, and then spread your wings and fly, on the unventured horizon.
For you can not build a building without structure, even the human body can't exist without a structure. And once its built, fill the colors in it, unleash the child in you and go dazzle the world :)

Life is much like playing Music. First you must learn to play by the rules, then you must forget the rules and play from your heart.