The Baba continued: ‘Body, mind and spirit are equally important dimensions of the human personality. Their harmonious development should be the aim of any authentic system of education. India is counted among the poorest and most corrupt countries in the world today because of the neglect of value-based integral education in our schools and colleges…..
‘Even though religion is the longest enduring aspect of human life, it is the most neglected and misinterpreted factor in India today. Religions play the most important role in promoting moral and ethical values in the society. But it is a tragedy of history that in India, which is a deeply religious country, religion is neglected and negated in our education system because of a western concept termed ‘secularism’ which had an anti-Church origin in Europe. ‘Secularism’ as it was developed in Europe has no relevance in India……
‘We in India waste a lot of our energies and resources interpreting and explaining this irrelevant concept of ‘secularism’. For some, secularism is keeping away from religions. For others it is keeping equidistance from all religions. Yet for some others, it is equal respect for all religions…
‘India is a land of religions. All major religions of the world have their living presence in India. Four world religions are born in India. As we have already seen, art and architecture, music and dance… all have religion as its basis in India. Hence, what we need is not ‘secularism’ of various kinds, but a society where everyone respects the dignity and equality of everyone else, and where the Constitution of India is respected and upheld at all times by all religious communities. There cannot be any special privileges for any religion. The law of the land should be equally applicable to all citizens of the country; whether Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, Jews… whatever….
‘The kind of technology used is also very important for peace and sustainable development in the world. Eco-friendly industries and environment-friendly technologies as well as natural agricultural methods using natural manure and pesticides are essential for sustainable economic growth and development…
‘India needs a new approach to development based on eco-friendly technologies and renewable energy sources. Indian economy is basically agrarian. Hence, it should have a greater deal of ‘village and cottage industries’ providing it a strong base. The ‘economy of permanence’ propounded by the Gandhian economist Dr. J C. Kumarappa, and E F Schumacher’s concept of ‘small is beautiful’ can provide a strong economic basis for the sustainable development of India. You will find these books also in our library….
‘Food and employment are the most important needs of the hungry millions of India today. To create employment opportunities for the unemployed millions, we need to promote ‘production by masses’, not ‘mass production’. This is one of the core concepts of Gandhian economics. All developmental initiatives should have justice and righteousness as their basis, and peace and prosperity of the whole nation as their goal. Real India is rural India. Villages will have to be brought back into the centre stage of planning and development in India….
‘Agriculture and animal husbandry constitute rural India’s main occupations and economic sources. Any sustainable developmental initiative based on justice and righteousness will have to give agriculture and animal husbandry great importance. Only then can India win her ‘economic freedom’…
‘With her religious and spiritual heritage and ecological worldview, India should aim at developing an eco-spiritual foundation for sustainable development. The world today desperately needs an economic system based on such an eco-spiritual foundation that can uphold the sanctity of the human person and of the human labour as well as the sacredness of Mother Earth, and the unity of all life’ the Baba concluded his discourse for the day.
‘Are these things clear to you, my son?’ the Baba asked his disciple.
‘Yes, maharaj. They are very valuable for me. ”
With folded hands Atma Prakash bowed his head and remained so for few minutes.
Excerpts from Integral Revolution
No comments:
Post a Comment