Friday, April 29, 2016

"Excerpt 1.1"


Most people say love is the most beautiful thing in this world. Although I'm not a love guru but maybe in hindsight I appreciate the greatness of love which compelled me to blog about it. The truth  is that I write for those who do not speak, for those who do not have a voice because they are so terrified, for those who are afraid to fall in love because we are taught to respect fear more than ourselves.

We've been taught that silence would save us, but it won't. Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with ACTIONS and in truth. I John 3:18

Anyway let’s come back to the topic. In my last blog, I posted an excerpt from the book “Journey to enlightened citizenship”. Today as well, it is another thoughtful excerpt from the book. Afterall I plan to post all the excerpts from the book here on my blog periodically. I hope you will like it.

Citizenship is every individual’s responsibility. Excerpts from prologue by Swami Budhananda.

When we light a small earthern lamp, without a question and with least hesitation it sheds its humble light. It does not look around to watch if any other lamp is shielding its lustre. It is not dismayed also if no other light is burning in the vicinity.

It is content to be given to shed it's own little light. It is not worried how much more darkness needs to be removed from the world. Is it a small privilege to be given to remove even a jot of darkness?

The small is beautiful. Have you not seen a tiny grass flower? Nature needed to exercise all its talents to create that tiny flower, complete in its own size of glory. If little things had no meaning they would not be there. Scientists have by now told us how much power, mystery and glory are there in the tiny atom.

Let us not be nervous about our smallness. For, without grains of sand even the loftiest monuments could not be built. In fact, the ultimate brick of the greatest monuments is the sand particle.

There are people who think too highly of themselves. They have what is called a superiority complex. That abominable thing is too bad for themselves, and not good for others.

There are, again, those who think too lowly of themselves. They have an inferiority complex. This is worse than the superiority complex. They think that they are good for nothing. By continuously thinking that way they really become so.

Such people can never become good citizens. When we discuss momentous issues concerning mankind, and the responsibility of doing our mite, they throw up their hands and dogmatically declare that small persons like them can do nothing about these great problems.

So they shy away even from discussing these problems. Taking shelter behind their so-called or supposed smallness, they take an inverse pride in declaring that they have nothing to do with the ambitious scheme of solving world problems.

We should clearly understand that even a small lamp has the capacity and the privilege to give light. Enlightened citizenship is every individual’s responsibility. That is the spirit of the times.

Up next, Excerpt 1.2.

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

"Excerpt 1.0"


Precisely a week ago, while I was smoking a cigarette in the storeroom, I found this old book ‘Journey to enlightened citizenship’ laying on the floor, perhaps misplaced. The rats had their own some share of the book cover but the main pages stays intake.

The book has exceprts from the speeches given by some of these thoughtful individuals. I believed the book aims at helping the reader gain yet one more perspective of the multi-faceted ideal of citizenship. In fact, it is an interesting book and it yearns me to blog about it.

And here, I feel I'm obliged to share one of the excerpts ‘Paraspara Bhava’ or mutual concern by Swami Budhananda from the book.

The very concept of citizenship presupposes that we are aware of the fact that we live in a society. In this society others also live, besides oneself. And everyone is intrinsically important. These are the basic facts.

Remember, man, by and large, has not yet proved by his conduct that considers everyone as intrinsically important as himself. In India at least we have not proved it!

It is in this context that some Vedic concepts would appear to be simply amazing. Take, for example, the Vedic idea of Paraspara Bhava or mutually of concern. This idea has its root in a highly developed social consciousness, which is not so much in evidence in our times, as it should have been good for us to have.

Cultivation of purposive mutuality of concern is entirely possible and most urgently needed in a modern  state and society. Only when honestly and wholeheartedly we respect the fundamental rights of one and all, can we be enlightened citizens. 

But psychologically, the best guarantee of everyone's fundamental rights is in the discharge of everyone's fundamental duties to others, taking into account the fact that we all live in a world of rising aspirations and dimishing natural resources.

Therefore, control of appetites is one of the individual important disciplines for the enlightened citizen. You take from the world what you barely need and give to the world as much as you can.

If you feel disquiet when you find so many high-power lights burning in the open railway yard, and go to the person concerned to request to put the lights off, you are an enlightened citizen.

If you stop to close a wayside municipal tap from which water has been flowing to no purpose, you are an enlightened citizen.

This is being great in little things, without being watched. The enlightened citizen is a concerned citizen. Wastage anywhere hurts his sense of economy. A saving anywhere improves the credit balance of all.

FYI: Excerpt 1.1, coming soon.