Acharya Tulsi
Life is transient. It is transitory. This is a universal principle. One may or may not believe in previous birth; one may or may not accept rebirth; it is still an indisputable fact that the life which is being lived today will not be there forever. One is not even sure how long it will be there. Still man becomes negligent. He behaves unrighteous and continues indulging in the activities without bothering about their consequences.
One may or may not believe in the soul or the Supreme Being, but he always strongly aspires to live in peace and happiness. He may or may not believe in the sanctity of life; he cannot bear to see others behaving wrongly. He may or may not use his energy in quest of Truth; he always claims to understand Truth. He may or may not have contributed anything towards society and the country, but he does not wish to be branded as a betrayer of society or the nation. In this situation man should decide the direction of his life so that he is protected against tensions, frustrations, horrors and the tragedy of instability in life.
Man knows that he gets the fruit only of the seeds he sows. He also knows what action is proper for him and what is improper. Still, forgetting what is proper; he takes interest in improper things. He is feared of death; still he goes on swallowing poison. He does not wish disturbances; still he does the things because of which disturbances cannot be stopped. He is afraid of going to jail; still he does not desist from indulging in evil acts like committing murder, robbery, etc. Why? What is the provocation which compels man to follow the path of evil?
"Man is such a sensible creature that he knows very well what is right and what is wrong. However, even after knowing and realising, he follows the wrong direction. What is so very intelligent about him that although he carries a lamp in his hand, he still falls into the well? He can be forgiven if he is unwittingly negligent. But what can be done against his deliberate negligence?”[*]
There are a number of problems in the world today raising their heads. If the solution to these problems is sought on the world scale, then probably there is no problem which would still persist. But who would look for the solution? Who would take the initiative in that direction? A deep silence prevails about this like a thick shroud. Who would remove that covering? Who would go deep into those problems? And who would make men of this world conscious of his dignity?
"How would the people who have never suffered from any want realise the pain of the people who are harassed by want?”* So long as man's basic needs food, clothing, housing, education, medical care, etc. are not met, crimes would increase, no matter which country it is. Why should the responsibility of the United Nations Organisation be limited to prevent the situation of direct war? Is it not necessary to go into the causes of war and try to put an end to them?
The fundamental problem today is the lack of faith in human values. No one has a cure for sickness of lack of faith. Before this disease becomes incurable, it needs to be correctly diagnosed. Let there be concerted efforts in this direction at spiritual, social, literal and political levels. It can be expected that some new direction would be found as a result of such an attempt.
