Over the last 75 years of independent India, the country has crossed many milestones, of which one of the most significant achievements has been of attaining self-sufficiency in food production through a green revolution that got the country rid of dependence on imports to feed its population. Similarly, a vast, publicly funded scientific establishment, set up to meet the needs of the industry as well as the military, has given the country a large pool of scientific talent and enabled India to become a leader in the fields of space science and information technology. However, in spite of these achievements, the dream of our freedom fighters who gave away their lives for this precious gift of independence is yet to be realised and is apparently becoming more distant by the day. Today we see that there are 2 distinct India’s that seem to have been created in the post-independence era, of which the first is an India of millions living in poverty, for whom 68 years of independence has made little difference.
These less fortunate Indians do not have access to even basic amenities like drinking water and adequate food, or to healthcare and education as a result of which they migrate to cities where they often fall victim to economic exploitation and live in sub-human conditions. Even the state of those who are engaged in farming is quite pathetic because poor returns from agriculture and rising input costs are driving farmers into a debt trap, leading them to commit suicide. On the other side, there is an India that belongs to the crème de la crème section, which has cornered all the gains of progress and leads a life cocooned from the worries of the rest of the population. The amenities they enjoy and their habits are a little different from those of their tribe in other parts of the world.
Founding fathers of independent India had envisioned truth, non-violence, sacrifice and service to be the salient principles of life for building a strong and prosperous nation. However all through these years, we devoted all our attention and energies to achieve material progress without paying serious attention to develop our characters, particularly of the younger generation. We forgot that material gains can be undermined by the lack of a robust moral foundation, as is happening in every sphere of national life today.
The rampant corruption bedevilling our developments projects is the direct result of our failure to ensure the development of an honest, dedicated and upright citizenry. If after spending billions of rupees on poverty alleviation and rural development projects, the miseries of our poor compatriots remain unmitigated we only have our imbalanced priorities to blame. Right? But, sadly, this fact does not seem to bother most of the better-off section of the population, which is too busy in the pursuit of wealth and pleasure to care about the have-nots. We should not forget that Gandhi Ji’s dream of establishing a true Ram Rajya in India will remain a far cry unless we give top priority to the spiritual empowerment of our countrymen. For, only those who are spiritually enlightened can ensure the lasting growth and well-being of a nation. Once the human soul realises its own identity and the nature of its role in the drama of this world, it easily gets rid of many illusions and negativities that come by identifying oneself with one’s body. With this realisation, when the soul begins to commune with the Supreme, it gets filled with HIS powers and virtues.
This practice, over time, empowers the soul so that it is able to play its role in this world untouched by any negativity and even enables it to transform the negativity of others into something positive. True freedom means a balance between the soul that we are and the body that we have acquired to play our role. Till we realise for what role we came to this earth & execute same, people continue to feel the suffocation like a prison. When the soul knows itself and the difference between itself and the body, it gets the benefit of true identity. Likewise when we are aware of the laws of karma & the benefits of virtuous actions, then we save ourselves from the negative consequences of our own karma, thereby making our relationships sweet & without any kind of bondage and dependency. This quality of freedom can be achieved through spirituality.
With self-introspection, self-realisation and application of divine laws of karma, we can build for ourselves a beautiful world rather than a cage, thereby encouraging others to live in sovereignty..So c’mon are you all ready?
