Violence has come to be accepted at most places ... And at some places expected too !!!
It is disturbing to note that this nearly frenzied deterioration of human values does not seem to disturb the masses.
My generation does seem astonished at the "decaying" morals among the youth but it has mostly to do about what they wear and how they socialize ...
There is hardly any realization, leave alone surprise or remorse, as to how hurtfully violence has rotted our lives over the years
Let us be honest.
Is the present volatile situation really so sudden an irruption ?
I recently read this ...
"Mark Twain
described his mother as a genuinely good person, whose soft heart pitied
even Satan, but who had no doubt about the legitimacy of slavery,
because in years of living in antebellum Missouri she had never heard
any sermon opposing slavery, but only countless sermons preaching that
slavery was God's will. "
Surely the present cannot be viewed in isolation.
Is it any wonder then, that all of today's violence is being justified as a reaction to some incidents that happened in history hundred and so many more years back.
Our upbringing is such that we grow up making violence some sort of a divine virtue
In every culture and religion across the globe violence has been described as an embodiment of bravery and valour.
Everyone is in awe of it. There is an unprecedented adulation (and even thirst) for weapons
We have made
killing an accepted part of societal existence by meekly surrendering to a pathetic and very often corrupt social system that encourages anarchy under various pretexts
And this is not all
There is another more distressing fact.
Violence is actually endorsed and glorified because of the "virtues" that one has been inadvertently taught to associate with it !!!
Some time back a little boy was hit by an elder school mate in the school premises so badly that the the younger lad ended up with fractures and bruises
The parents of the younger boy were obviously upset.
The least they wanted is an honest apology from the erring boy
But
nothing worthwhile happened. The older boy comes from an
influential "well connected" family
And the school authorities dare not ruffle them
Today's children are tomorrow's adults.
From their
earliest memories some will have a sense of insecurity while some others are pampered into believing that they
can get away with murder.
Poverty is not always about money
This kind of implied unequal and unjust practices also add up to making the divide between the "haves" and
"have-nots" that much wider
Remember those innocent stories of kings and queens that Granny told or those of the super heroes that we read in comics ?
Think again ... They were after all not so innocent because they have unwittingly , yet very impressively reiterated and established the myth that violence is sacred !!!
In recent times there are films and television serials that are generously feeding the masses of all ages enormous amounts of violence and provoking the youth to resort to violent measures as a solution to fighting injustice and corruption
So then why are we so shocked to see explosions of extreme intolerance all around us?
"Might is right" was never more
pronounced and never had the masses accepted it so conveniently as it has been in the present times ...
It is high time that one condemns violence in ALL its manifestations because War and Violence have already become a "noble" expression of "patriotism and religiosity".
Normal people everywhere on this Planet can be brainwashed and "converted" into (becoming) monstrous psychopaths with "promises" of great honour and rewards in this world and in the hereafter
They are then unleashed upon fellow human beings to kill and rape "the other" in the name of religion and country
Therefore the question is :
" Can killing and violence be justified as being sacred and patriotic , may be "under a specific condition "? "
Before one can answer that , there arise a couple of counter questions :
"Have all the religions of the world not preached harmony and peaceful existence?
And has Violence ever solved anything ?
Has Violence ever brought about Peace anywhere ... ANYWHERE at all ?"
So here is a huge paradox
Every religion most ironically permits a certain regulated dose of violence , of course under "special circumstances"
This permission has been manipulated by vested interests innumerable times
Therefore,
"Fear leaders and those prepared to die for ( their ) "truth" and "faith ", for as a rule they
make others die with them, often before them, and at times even instead
of them."
It also makes sense to remember American theoretical physicist Steven Weinberg's famous quote :
"
With or without religion, good people can behave well and bad people can
do evil; but for good people to do evil — that takes religion. "
Our own Sahir Ludhianvi has said :
"Jung To Khud Hi Ek Mas'ala Hai Jung Kya Mas'alon Ka Hal Degi
Aag Aur Khoon Aaj Bakhshe gi Bhookh Aur Eh'tiyaj Kal De gi
Is Liye Ae Sharif Insaanoen Jung Talti Rahe To Behtar Hai....."
So if violence, perpetuated by vested interests, has NEVER solved a problem, and even the smallest act of violence often builds up a chain of violent irruptions in the future, then what is it good for ?
Can it ever end ???
Since "Every problem has a solution." there must be a way out of this turmoil too
The most important first step is to say an emphatic "NO" to violence of EVERY kind.
It is also essential to accept (and publicly propagate) that violence under any pretext is wrong, wrong ... and nothing but WRONG.
This
should be followed by strongly inculcating non-violent behaviour in the
children from their earliest years.
To bring a change in the mindset of the ordinary masses , we will need , like The Dalai Lama has suggested :
"more peace makers , healers , restorers , story tellers and lovers of all kinds "
In a civilized world, there will certainly be neither any
place for pre-historic sword-wielding barbarism nor the ultra sophisticated warfare promoted by scientific discoveries and inventions
So we have a long way to go ...
