It goes without saying that morality essentially implies adherence to certain values and life style that is consistent with good of all human beings. Various religions proclaim themselves as champion of ethics and morality. How true is their claim?
Religion teaches the disciples to abstain from material objects, be unselfish and pray to God. Spirituality as against materialism is professed. It is funny how people are motivated. They are lured with seat in paradise that is rich with all pleasures of life- milk, honey, damsels, wine etc. Is it not a paradox that people are asked to abstain in this life from material pleasures that they are promised in afterlife. Secondly, people are threatened with torture in hell if they do not conform to religious sermons. Thus greed and fear are the basis of religious sermons. Anything based on greed and fear cannot be everlasting.
It is not surprising that modern generation is turning against religious discipline based on greed and fear. Is it not a paradox that religion sermons against greed and fear ? The concept of God has been created with a view to frighten people. God gas been devised as an instrument of fear as well as a divine judicial authority who will reward the believers and punish the non believers. Religion being based on untruth, greed and fear cannot bring in moral values and discipline in human life.
We need to free ourselves from bondage of religion and independently work out the norms of behavior and ethics based on common good of the entire humanity. Man is social. Human activities are collective. The entire human race is one team functioning for common goal of happiness, prosperity and peace. It is just understanding this fact that will form basis for morality based on truth, pragmatism and love for entire human race. As we act as a team consisting of the entire human race, individualism is disastrous. Individualism is responsible for corruption, fraud, decay in moral standards. We need to redefine individual freedom and social responsibility. No doubt, every individual has some liberty of his own but this is not unrestrained. He is bound by family, social, national and global ties. It is necessary to strike a balance between individual liberties and social liabilities. Here lies the basis for morality. This is morality based on love for entire mankind and mother Earth. This is morality based on truth, and love for entire mankind. This is true and real morality as against religious one based on untruth, fear and greed.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
The whole truth
Human civilization is marked by sharp ideological differences reflected in various ideologies seemingly contradicting each other. There is capitalism versus communism, nationalism versus internationalism, theism versus atheism and so on.
Are these ideologies false or some of these are true. It appears that none is wholly true and none wholly false. In this connection, there is a short story of blind men and elephant. One who touched tail told that elephant is like a rope. another said elephant is like a tree trunk. All were correct according to their perception. But none was wholly true because the whole body of elephant could not be experienced. Same is true of different ideologues.
The nationalists emphasize ancient traditions and cultural values and ignore physical needs of people. the communists and Marxists overstress physical needs and class conflicts ignoring other human needs and unity of purpose between different classes. There is not only class war but also class cooperation, which is ignored by the Marxists. The spiritualists and religious saints overemphasize the after death world, which is hypothetical and preach to ignore the worldly realities. The individualists stress individual liberty and ignore social responsibility of individual.
Thus all are right and all are wrong. We are all like blind men who see only part of the truth. We need to see the world as a whole and blend the different ideologies so that all aspects of life and all human needs are satisfied. This is a continuous process. Corrective action is needed whenever one aspect is overemphasized. Buddhism and Jainism emerged for correction of the ancient violent religious traditions like animal sacrifice. The excesses of Buddhism and Jainism resulted in cowardice and lethargy. Swami Vivekananda emerged for correction. The excesses of one ideology bring another for correction and so on. The correction goes on. The human race has to constantly move on and not cling to any system. The sole aim of all endeavors is to bring about a system catering to welfare of all, dignity to all and ensure individual liberty consistent with social responsibility
Are these ideologies false or some of these are true. It appears that none is wholly true and none wholly false. In this connection, there is a short story of blind men and elephant. One who touched tail told that elephant is like a rope. another said elephant is like a tree trunk. All were correct according to their perception. But none was wholly true because the whole body of elephant could not be experienced. Same is true of different ideologues.
The nationalists emphasize ancient traditions and cultural values and ignore physical needs of people. the communists and Marxists overstress physical needs and class conflicts ignoring other human needs and unity of purpose between different classes. There is not only class war but also class cooperation, which is ignored by the Marxists. The spiritualists and religious saints overemphasize the after death world, which is hypothetical and preach to ignore the worldly realities. The individualists stress individual liberty and ignore social responsibility of individual.
Thus all are right and all are wrong. We are all like blind men who see only part of the truth. We need to see the world as a whole and blend the different ideologies so that all aspects of life and all human needs are satisfied. This is a continuous process. Corrective action is needed whenever one aspect is overemphasized. Buddhism and Jainism emerged for correction of the ancient violent religious traditions like animal sacrifice. The excesses of Buddhism and Jainism resulted in cowardice and lethargy. Swami Vivekananda emerged for correction. The excesses of one ideology bring another for correction and so on. The correction goes on. The human race has to constantly move on and not cling to any system. The sole aim of all endeavors is to bring about a system catering to welfare of all, dignity to all and ensure individual liberty consistent with social responsibility
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