Recently there have been reports on four princesses held hostage in the palace of Saudi Arabia. Their mother was divorced without her knowledge. Somehow she escaped and now is in Great Britain. May be because they invited the displeasure of the king that they are held hostages for life. The reports say that they haven’t enough food and cloths. Still, they are called princesses. I remember to have read the comment of a prisoner on the worst things in prison. 10th was the foul smell, 9th was racial discrimination, 8th was getting fat without exercise, solitary confinement with no books, no blankets, no lights… came 7th; 6th was drugs that were secretly available inside, then came changing economy and prices going through the roof. The fourth was losing everyone loved; third was loneliness; the second was deaths inside the prison. The first was getting out.
Is this world a great prison? According to Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, “In the prison house, if you think a first-class prison is very nice, but after all, it is prison house. Your independence is cut down. So similarly, here in this material world it is simply varieties. We call, This is first class. This is second class. This is third class. Actually, it is all third class…” Another view point is that since our bodies need necessities like food, clothing and shelter, nobody could be free because these are not entities that freely flow into. To get all these things we offer our time and effort. The rich who have all these at call also have worries. They neither are immune against illnesses nor free from worries on losses, where they also put their effort and earnings. Gautam Buddha talked extensively on the bondages that tie each human being here.
Most important for any prisoner is getting out. In common life, getting out from where, is a question many do not try to answer. We do not know that we have imprisoned our dear and near on the basis of ideologies and attitudes. Even if we run out, there could be theologies and philosophies to chase us. Sensible humans conclude that freedom is the privilege of only the spirits.
Joseph Mattappally
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