I am a parent to a 6-year-old son, going on 15, because he has an opinion about everything and ideas to change and improve constantly. So, one day we were having a conversation about countries, languages, customs, cultures, fat and thin people, dark and fair people, tall and short people, educated and uneducated people, poverty, and well, the list goes on. Any parent to a 6-year-old would understand what I mean when I say I get exhausted every time I talk something serious to him.
My son: What is a gowamint?
Me: What? Mint?
My son: No, they said on TV.
Me: Oh, that... That is a government. They are a group of people who see to it that a country is taken care of properly.
My son: Like kings and queens?
Me: Yes.
My son: Like God?
Me: No.
My son: OK. How many countries are there?
Me: More than a 100. (*And then I run to my smart phone to log on to Google to check how many countries are there, but my son has moved on... *)
My son: People speak different languages in different countries.
Me: Yes. (*I run to my smart phone again to find out how many official languages are there in this world, but the guy has moved on again...*)
My son: Why are there so many countries and languages?
Now Google does not know the answer. It just is there because we created them. Right from construction of the Tower of Babel, we have had different languages. And human beings, like all animals, are territorial and we like to have our own countries, our own homes and our own everything too.
I respect our differences, I truly do. I know today's world citizen lives amid various customs, cultures, races, countries and languages. These are what make us what we are today. It makes us individualistic. But we are all still one, one as human beings, one in this world, finding our path, our own goals in our own ways. And amongst all this, if we can find those commonalities which unite us, which bond us, then we are really worthy of being those respectful humans. But there are fights in the name of these differences, to preserve these differences. We fight in the name of country borders, in the name of religion, in the name of weapons and war in the name of almost all differences which we ourselves created.
My son: We do not need all of that, mamma.
Me: (*lost in my thoughts watching the news ... *) What?
My son: ...so many languages and countries. Because they only make things difficult, I have to learn so many more languages if I have to speak and make friends with all of them.
Maybe as he grows up we can talk more about these things.
How many more differences would crop up, for them to fight with? Or would they try to dim the borders and try to forge a society, a community, which respect the differences, and try to find peace among all of this, and in spite of all this? I wish for the latter. I desperately hope for the latter. Even if all these differences exist, can prejudice and hatred be removed? That is vital, not really elimination or dimming of the differences and various governments or languages.
And like a bolt, I came across this speech given by Shri. Parthasarathi Rajagopalachari, president and spiritual head of Shri Ram Chandra Mission. A short snippet that caught my attention goes like this:
So you see, divisiveness can be carried on infinitely. Integration in one stroke. Human beings are human beings. Overnight, we can become citizens of this world without any barriers of nationality, geography, politics. Language is beautiful, linguistic variation is wonderful provided we don't use it to separate ourselves. Differences in music, whether it is classical or otherwise, various systems starting from Japan to China to India to the Muslim world, to the European world, and to your own blues, or whatever you call them here, jazz -- they are all beautiful. If they are expressed in individual beauty to form a cluster like a flower bunch, it's wonderful. But if you want to use it as a separating device to be isolated, it is wrong.
The entire address, given in Chicago on Aug. 1, 2003, can be read here on the corporate website. The title of the speech is "Warmth of love integrates humanity."
I do not have any more words after reading that priceless address. I mean, think of the entire humanity uniting under one roof, under the roof of spirituality. When it happens all over the world, truly peace, love and no barriers will exist. And that is the day our children's generation should be living in. Every parent wants the best for their child and no parent can deny that, can he/she? Every parent wants peace, joy and happiness for the child. Can a parent deny that?
To know more about this organization, click here. I am part of Sahaj Marg, which means natural path. There are people from various religions, races, countries, languages all under one umbrella of spirituality. It is truly a wonderful place to be in, in today's world of war, strife and rape.
I want to share with the readers that it is an amazing opportunity to be able to feel that inner connection and in the language of the geeks, that networking between hearts so different from each other in their own ways, but still nevertheless the same heart capable of loving each other in that same infinitesimal way. My spiritual guide said:
"It is not enough that each one of us develop spiritually by himself, for himself, with the guide's help, but we have a responsibility to humanity. I won't call it a social responsibility or a responsibility to your people, whoever they may be. It is a responsibility to life itself, that as we go on we spread cleanliness, we spread happiness, and we spread spirituality." (Click here to read more of this speech.)
So, I am here, trying to introduce you to Sahaj Marg. Please visit your nearest center if you are interested. You can get information and address locations here in this link.
Like children ask in their entire innocence why do we need so many languages, cultures, customs and countries and stick out their fingers to count the number of countries. If at all, it was so easy. But what about the strife, the violence caused wilfully? But I have faith. It might not be easy to change all that, but it definitely is simple. With a will to spread love, and a heart to receive it, we can move mountains with our faith and strong belief and with the knowledge, that it is bound to happen anyway, at a time in future.
So this New Year, along with all those New Year resolutions that are meant to be taken, some to be fulfilled, the others not so, let us make it our inherent nature to spread love, peace, joy and unity among our brethren, the world citizens.