Acharya Mahaprajna
Man has a tendency to feel proud. Hence he wants to be a great person or the greatest of all. This ambition has built the foundation of materialistic thinking. Man has erected a palace of materialism. He who touches the height of the palace of materialism doesn’t want to see the people standing below. Today man’s power is directed towards satisfying his ego and materialistic needs of comfort. Then how can we think of world peace and nonviolence and how can we implement it? Peace and nonviolence is not a mere philosophy, it is our conduct, a behavioural pattern. Example or practice is more difficult than precept.
Entire social behaviour is motivated by ambition and urge for materialistic pleasures. The result is that it becomes extremely difficult for us to break the cycle of violence. Is it so easy to give up ambition that mere discussion and thinking about it will inspire a person to do so? Is it so easy to renounce materialistic comforts that men will be diverted from these comforts merely by reading books on ahimsa? If man doesn’t divert his attention from ambition and comforts the cycle of violence, unrest, war and disarmament will also not be broken. If both USA and Russia think of limiting their arms then another nation will think of multiplying nuclear weapons. It will create a question of the balance of power. In order to preserve this balance of power once again there will be a race for manufacturing arms among the developed nations. In this way the terror of unrest and world war will continue to haunt mankind.
Disarmament is one solution of the problem of war but this solution will remain incomplete without considering the background of war which lies in an individual or nation’s expansionist tendencies, endeavour to widen one’s political system and lifestyle and fanatic zeal to initiate the whole world into one’s religion. If we want to prevent war and establish world peace we will have to think of solving the problems that lie in the background.
It is the personality of an individual, which is responsible for violence. It, therefore, becomes imperative for us to develop a balanced individual for nonviolence. If we are able to bring about a balance between intellectual and emotional development in our system of education it will help us greatly in solving the problem of violence. Along with the left hemisphere of the human brain, the right hemisphere should also be activated. If it is done it will create a fertile ground for the growth of nonviolence, in which the seed of ahimsa can easily be sown. It can also be expected to sprout soon.
Why does one particular individual indulge in violence more rapidly than a nonviolent person is an important question? In order to get an answer to this question we will have to go to the subtle level of man’s unconscious mind. It is an unrestrained desire or in the language of psychology a latent desire, which is operating here that has become a motivating source of violence. It can be controlled only by developing the power of resolution. Ego remains concealed in man’s unconscious mind. Hence he takes interest in considering himself superior to others and looks upon others as inferior. The problem of racial discrimination and caste prejudices is connected with this feeling of ego. Dogmatic attitude is also associated with ego. This alone is the root cause of the problem of communalism.
There is a vow laid down in the Anuvrat Code of Conduct - I will believe in human unity - I will not consider any one high or low on the basis of caste, color, etc. I will not consider any one untouchable.
Our viewpoint for the development of ahimsa is that we should not only remain vigilant about the current incidents of violence, but we should also be aware of the basic human tendencies, which cause violence. In order to address the present problems it is essential for us to work for disarmament and prevention of war. But it is not enough. It is exactly the same as happens when a fire breaks out and we Nonviolence - An Eternal Religion extinguish it. Again a fire breaks out and again it is extinguished. Both extinguishing the fire and finding out the causes why it broke out are the two essential factors for the totality of an action. To solve the present problem of violence and to purify its basic source are both essential. Those who are working in the field of nonviolence are not paying as much attention to the purification of the basic source as to the solutions of the present problems. In our view it is a great obstacle in the development of ahimsa.
Armament, war, disarmament, prevention of war, education and economy are the subjects that come under the control of the government. People are not concerned with them. It is very rare that the people who occupy high positions in government listen to the talk of ahimsa attentively. We have to carry the message of ahimsa to the people. We have to take it to those who cannot make a decision as regards armament or disarmament, but can decide the fate of those who make decisions in this area. For it we need profound faith, ardent perseverance and relentless dedication. We are confident these traits will develop in nonviolence workers.
The world has shrunk today and distances have been reduced. We should first think of the individual and then of society. The thought of the world should come after that only. But these days we ignore the individual and society, but think of the world directly. This gradual development - from individual to society and from society to the world - is very important. We must not be oblivious of the fact that it is the individual who is also a center of consciousness. The dream of world peace will never come true until human consciousness is purified. If a political system follows a policy of peace the individual may become secondary. The weak or powerful aspect of a political system is the mechanism of control. Without it no system can work. In an environment of restrictions the sapling of peace can’t grow. Whether we do it in the beginning or at the end, awakening a feeling of togetherness in an individual is the basic mechanism leading to world peace. The old name of this collective consciousness is the consciousness of equanimity.
As the concept and doctrine of control developed, rulers and despots continued to prosper. We could thus reach the monarchical system. This journey to victory is no less important. The next journey should be a journey to peace. It is not at all important that those who are elected to rule in a democracy also have faith in ahimsa. Though democracy and nonviolence are intimately connected even a democratic government is pushed to the brink of dictatorship. The system of peace mechanism will not be different from democracy but he who rules should have faith in ahimsa.
All the Arhats (Venerable Ones) of the past, present and future discourse, counsel, proclaim, propound and prescribe thus in unison: Do not injure, abuse, oppress, enslave, insult, torment, torture or kill any creature or living being.
– Lord Mahavira
