Something is seriously wrong
Recently I came across an article on facebook which read:
"The West, not even three centuries after the industrial revolution, is now running out of breath. It has no direction, no healthy foundations, no value left except selfishness and greed, nothing to fill one's heart with. India alone has preserved something of the deeper values that can make a man human and the world will surely be turning to them in search of a remedy to it's advanced malady."
- Michel Danino.
I've been thinking on similar line for a while now. Yes, I came to America seeing the glitter created by the silicon valley boom. I was 16. But the more I understand the nuances of life in the west, of course by west, I can only talk about life in America, I see how hollow and how thoughtless this society really is in general.
Our over dependence on all things modern has gotten us where? We sit on the most comfortable furniture in the history of mankind, yet the chiropractor business is booming. We eat the healthiest food available in the history of mankind, yet the medical industry and the pharmaceutical industry are potentially the strongest, largest group in the USA after, Oil and Defense industries.
Yes, people are living longer, but the point is, not about the quantity, but the quality. If one is not health, I cannot see how they can have any sort of happiness. Most people are on some drug or the other due to some health condition that only worsens with time no matter the medication. Cancer is exploding in spite of Billions of dollars being poured in to its research. Millions of Americans are in clinical depression. Dementia start setting in to millions pretty early in life. We have the most advanced toothpastes, yet being a dentist in America will make you richer than many actors and sportsman. (as far back as I can remember, I knew people back in India even while growing up who used to be able to peel and eat a sugarcane with their teeth. I bet most people in America will not take up the challenge).
We have the highest # of prisoners any where in the world. Some of the highest rates of Rapes any where in the world. Some of the highest rates of divorce any where in the world. Highest rates of people killed in gun violence anywhere in the world.
We at the same time are responsible for consuming 25% of the world's resources while only being a tiny fraction of the world population. We are the largest polluters of the world. We spend more than the next 26 countries combined on defense, yet feel insecure all the time.
Statistically an avg. American as as happy as the lowest of slum dwellers in Kolkotta.
And now of course based on the debt statistics, we are broke.
All in all, neither are we healthy, nor happy, nor secure and at the same time, we are broke (At least according to many).
WHAT THE HELL have we achieved beyond being responsible for global warming, destruction of forests, depletion of resources, and setting planet earth and eventually the people on it, on a path it cannot possible recover from.
ALL THIS in a span of a 150 yrs at most. 300 if you account for the "advances" made by the British.
In India, the Indian civilization, in the Indian way of life, we used to be the worlds greatest country (put together), we used to be the worlds richest country and we were for more than 4 thousand years at least. And we didnt as much as dent the planet and endanger everyone living on it, while living long enough and healthy lives.
No account of a foreigner coming to India before a 50-100 yrs of the British rule of India suggests that it was by any means an unhappy nation. If anything, my information on most traveler's notes on India have been one of astonishment and reverence to the Indian way of life.
Think America. What are you doing wrong?
My 2 cents: EVERYTHING should not be about increasing shareholder value.
A Note to present day India: You are treading dangerously on the path of America. And you don't even have the resources or the luxury of a new land. Beware before its too late. Your politicians are more corrupt that American politicians.
When I say, a note to a nation, its a note to the people of the nation. This is a note for people to change the way they live. The practices they adopt. The life style changes that mimic the American way of life. The contemporary American way of life is detrimental for the whole world. The old Christian values have been lost in this country. I am Hindu, but strongly am on the side of the values major religions bring to the table. If thoroughly followed definitely lead to positive results. This country in my view became so great, only because of one and only one reason: Protestant work ethic. And the more you understand about that, the more you realize that it is the Karma Yoga that is propounded in the Bhagvad Gita. The law of nature is the same, no matter the religion. And the people of both the countries seem to have lost this very value and are on a path of self destruction.
Remember in the Indian thought, life is a double edged sword, ( అసిధారావ్రతము ), be every careful and watch how you live,( తస్మాద్ జాగ్రత జాగ్రత).
ఆలోచించి చెయ్యి ఆలోచించి చెయ్యి: think twice before you do anything, Think clearly about life. Clarity in thought is of utmost importance.
THINK.
"The West, not even three centuries after the industrial revolution, is now running out of breath. It has no direction, no healthy foundations, no value left except selfishness and greed, nothing to fill one's heart with. India alone has preserved something of the deeper values that can make a man human and the world will surely be turning to them in search of a remedy to it's advanced malady."
- Michel Danino.
I've been thinking on similar line for a while now. Yes, I came to America seeing the glitter created by the silicon valley boom. I was 16. But the more I understand the nuances of life in the west, of course by west, I can only talk about life in America, I see how hollow and how thoughtless this society really is in general.
Our over dependence on all things modern has gotten us where? We sit on the most comfortable furniture in the history of mankind, yet the chiropractor business is booming. We eat the healthiest food available in the history of mankind, yet the medical industry and the pharmaceutical industry are potentially the strongest, largest group in the USA after, Oil and Defense industries.
Yes, people are living longer, but the point is, not about the quantity, but the quality. If one is not health, I cannot see how they can have any sort of happiness. Most people are on some drug or the other due to some health condition that only worsens with time no matter the medication. Cancer is exploding in spite of Billions of dollars being poured in to its research. Millions of Americans are in clinical depression. Dementia start setting in to millions pretty early in life. We have the most advanced toothpastes, yet being a dentist in America will make you richer than many actors and sportsman. (as far back as I can remember, I knew people back in India even while growing up who used to be able to peel and eat a sugarcane with their teeth. I bet most people in America will not take up the challenge).
We have the highest # of prisoners any where in the world. Some of the highest rates of Rapes any where in the world. Some of the highest rates of divorce any where in the world. Highest rates of people killed in gun violence anywhere in the world.
We at the same time are responsible for consuming 25% of the world's resources while only being a tiny fraction of the world population. We are the largest polluters of the world. We spend more than the next 26 countries combined on defense, yet feel insecure all the time.
Statistically an avg. American as as happy as the lowest of slum dwellers in Kolkotta.
And now of course based on the debt statistics, we are broke.
All in all, neither are we healthy, nor happy, nor secure and at the same time, we are broke (At least according to many).
WHAT THE HELL have we achieved beyond being responsible for global warming, destruction of forests, depletion of resources, and setting planet earth and eventually the people on it, on a path it cannot possible recover from.
ALL THIS in a span of a 150 yrs at most. 300 if you account for the "advances" made by the British.
In India, the Indian civilization, in the Indian way of life, we used to be the worlds greatest country (put together), we used to be the worlds richest country and we were for more than 4 thousand years at least. And we didnt as much as dent the planet and endanger everyone living on it, while living long enough and healthy lives.
No account of a foreigner coming to India before a 50-100 yrs of the British rule of India suggests that it was by any means an unhappy nation. If anything, my information on most traveler's notes on India have been one of astonishment and reverence to the Indian way of life.
Think America. What are you doing wrong?
My 2 cents: EVERYTHING should not be about increasing shareholder value.
A Note to present day India: You are treading dangerously on the path of America. And you don't even have the resources or the luxury of a new land. Beware before its too late. Your politicians are more corrupt that American politicians.
When I say, a note to a nation, its a note to the people of the nation. This is a note for people to change the way they live. The practices they adopt. The life style changes that mimic the American way of life. The contemporary American way of life is detrimental for the whole world. The old Christian values have been lost in this country. I am Hindu, but strongly am on the side of the values major religions bring to the table. If thoroughly followed definitely lead to positive results. This country in my view became so great, only because of one and only one reason: Protestant work ethic. And the more you understand about that, the more you realize that it is the Karma Yoga that is propounded in the Bhagvad Gita. The law of nature is the same, no matter the religion. And the people of both the countries seem to have lost this very value and are on a path of self destruction.
Remember in the Indian thought, life is a double edged sword, ( అసిధారావ్రతము ), be every careful and watch how you live,( తస్మాద్ జాగ్రత జాగ్రత).
ఆలోచించి చెయ్యి ఆలోచించి చెయ్యి: think twice before you do anything, Think clearly about life. Clarity in thought is of utmost importance.
THINK.
Comments
We are at a stage where we depend on these external devices to provide happiness for us, rather than looking within ourselves. Electronics give companionship for us, more than our parents, grandparents, teachers, neighbors, etc.
I think it is important for all of us to strive seek a higher goal in life than just satisfying our own pleasures. And this will reflect on the government, media, and businesses in our society, as the make of these are individuals just like us.