What Is Imagination?

...

us, imagination allows us to escape into a completely different space-time which is the creation of our own minds. A world which has no physical boundaries but an infinite space which allows the human minds the freedom to be original and to create something which is beyond the ordinary.

Imagination develops in a different space time altogether, yet it seems to have a three dimensional component too. While, JK Rowling imagined the entire Harry Potter series, the story had a real component to it. The characters had the qualities of human beings and felt the emotions we feel. Their actions and feelings were similar to ours but just imagined in a different time and space. It is probably this connect with reality and emotions that the characters in her stories have influenced its audience so much. Every work of fiction that is encountered has a way to connect with its audience. This is possible when there is something in it that we can relate to. These works are a creation of the author’s imagination, yet inspired by instances in their own lives or experiences.

Imagination can be sourced from an experience, a desire, a thought, a belief or any other mental state. Sometimes it might be sourced from a combination of different mental states. Imagination acts as a window to experience feelings that we otherwise wouldn’t have a chance to experience. It helps us see beyond the obvious. It’s like a third eye that takes inputs from the two eyes and uses it to create something that the two eyes would never see. It’s a powerful tool to experience an entirely different world where the concept of time as we know does not exist. There is no catching up with the sunset or the sunrise. A creation of the mind, it gives the freedom to explore the unconventional and mysterious. Imagination adds possibilities to life.

Imagination allows us to look at the world through the eyes of a child. Children have very little conventional knowledge of the world around them. They live in a world which is nothing but a creation of their own mind. As we grow into adults and gather more and more knowledge of the world around us, our innate ability to imagine seems to be taking a back seat. If imagination were to source from knowledge and experience, then more knowledge would create more input for imagination. But, it is observed that more and more knowledge is suppressing our imagination. The internet age has made so much information available to us that we have almost forgotten to use our mind to explore and imagine. The originality of our thoughts gets diluted through the opinions of people all over the World Wide Web.

In order to experience the power and joy of our own creations, we need to exercise the part of our brain that facilitates imagination. Like every other skill, we seem to lose the ability to imagine if we don’t exercise our brains enough to allow them to escape into a space of their own creation. Imagination makes us realize that although the brain is bound by physical constraints, the mind really does not have any boundaries.