There is no doubt that material nature has bestowed quite a bit of physical beauty to the Western world. Perhaps most of the beautiful places have been granted by destiny to them, either by being born there or they snatched it as in South Africa, America and Australia. It is also true that they have generally taken good care of material things, are quite organised and having turned their intelligence outwardly they have extracted the most from physical nature and her powers to ensure a comfortable life, outwardly so to say. This is not to say that India does not have her beautiful spots. There is no mountain like the Himalayas, majesty wise and in richness of flora and fauna. The wild virgin North-east and the desert and plateau of the West, the oceans merging in the South and the forests in the middle regions are amazing. And running through it all the garland of rivers as one finds nowhere. One has to be just a little conscious to perceive that these rivers are alive, the mountains speak, the forests whisper and even the animals are more conscious.
But we have not taken enough care of these places and the unbridled multiplication of human beings has torn the forests, wounded the mountains, polluted the rivers, scarred the virgin lands. The Western world has also plundered material nature but they have done it deliberately whereas we, in India have done it recklessly and unconsciously. Specially our cities have become disorganised to the point of becoming unliveable.
But the comparison stops here. One also wonders if this is all that is needed for happiness and enhance the quality of life. Man cannot live forever in the senses. He is primarily a mental being and what differentiates him from animal is the capacity to think and feel and aspire. The best minds in the West are realising this great hiatus between the outer material beauty and the impoverished inner life. Abundance of material comforts, luxury, push button information has pushed the world in a blind race for money since these things cost heavy. And once addicted to this Burgeois life, the only way is to earn more and more until your thought and feelings and the very soul are buried and stifled under the weight of the glitter and glamour, and true knowledge is lost in the garbage of information. The race for money has left no room, even if there is time, to stand and stare and think and reflect. Dealing with machines all the time, man’s life has almost taken on the aspect of a machine. Not only our life has become mechanical but our dealings with the world has also become largely clinical and mechanical. To escape from this predicament the youth are running to party and drink and drugs to buy some artificial manufactured happiness. Such is the state towards which I see much of the Western world hurtling today, a crisis of values, a bankruptcy of thought and aspiration, an inner poverty amidst outer plenty. Many Indians were almost following the same road until recently when they have started becoming conscious of their own wealth.
Yes, India is rich in thought and culture, rich in her spiritual seeking, rich in her literature, art, dance, music and poetry. And it is waking up. I feel the mad rush for outer luxury, material comforts and race for money is slowing down. She is turning within and exploring her soul. And once someone begins to explore the inner psychological spaces and searches for the meaning of life which is so crucial to living itself then he naturally finds no other place as India. She unveils her true self and lavishes her unparalleled riches to the genuine seeker who wants to know the why and whitherall of life. And once India awakens to her soul then the lost material prosperity and the imbalances of material nature created by her unruly children will be quickly restored. The jewel crown of the earth and the secret heart and soul of the world would once again teach to humanity the right balance between the outer and the inner, between the spiritual and the material, the divine and the human resetting the old or initiating the new world order, not based on selfish interests anymore but on the basis of Truth and Love and Light, for the good of the earth and the human race.
Affectionately,
Alok Da
