|
Lost In A Sea Of Identities.
By Acharya Mahapragna [Times of India
- 15 August 2009]
In order to understand society, we must first understand the
individual. “He who knows one, knows all; and he who knows all, alone knows
one,” Mahavir would say.
Complete knowledge of an atom is not possible without understanding
it in the context of other things. That is why, when analyzing an atom, one
comes to know the countless laws of the universe.
The individual faces three types of problems: Physical, social and
spiritual. To cater to one’s physical needs, economic power is required. To
regulate these matters – of commerce, trade, money and distribution – the state
is required. Administrative machinery run by the state becomes necessary when
the needs of the people have to be taken care of. Hence multiple identities
evolve out of various functions and responsibilities. However, the power centres
created for solving individual problems have often themselves turned into
problems.
There is a story in the puranas (scriptures) of a mouse that
performed penance to earn the blessings of Lord Shiva and the mouse turned into
a cat. As a cat, the mouse no longer feared other cats. But still the fear of
dogs continued. Through successive courses of penance he kept changing from cat
to dog to leopard to tiger and finally to man. One day Shiva asked him, ‘‘Are
you now free from all fears?’’ He replied, ‘‘Even by becoming man my problems
are not over, for I am suffering from fear of death. I may, therefore, be
favoured and turned into a mouse again.’’ Lord Shiva once again blessed him and
he returned to the original form of a mouse.
Money was invented to enable us to share goods and services in an
equitable manner. Today, however, it poses major problems. There is the
rich-poor divide. From being created as a means to fulfill needs, money has come
to be flaunted as a status symbol. Money, because of its purchasing power, is a
much sought-after commodity. Its scarcity among some gives rise to theft and
corruption. Enforcing law and order is also therefore a duty of the state.
True religion stands for the experience of unity and harmony. There
are some who say that religion has failed to solve human problems. But that is
because religion is being used to accumulate wealth, cure disease and win legal
suits. More importance is being given to name and form. Religion is not meant
for these things; it is meant to elevate your consciousness on the spiritual
plane.
So-called religious wars were caused not by religion but by its
form and name. The soul of religion is unity. No war can be fought without
destroying the spirit of religion. Vedanta propounds the principle that all
sentient beings originate from the same source. Jain philosophy also asserts
that all sentient beings are alike. Could human beings have fought each other,
if people had practiced the above feeling of unity and harmony? Could one
individual have exploited another individual? Could one man have hated another?
Feeling unity and harmony with everyone is the spirit of religion.
The greater the identity one feels with others, the more the religiosity one
imbibes. Thinking along these lines convinces me that we have merely touched the
veneer of religion but have never felt its inner core. What we have seen are the
outer garments.
| 
