A fall
India is the birthplace of the most profound, liberating, and subtle concepts of spirituality, the nature of consciousness, and enlightenment. In contrast to that, the present day’s society is so entangled in religious fanaticism (and many other such evils, patriarchy, for example), as if it has become so blind to that homebrewed wisdom.
The focus of a large section of the population on identities of religion, caste, and language clearly reflects in our politics. In the political sphere, merit and honesty sometimes seem to matters much less than caste and religion. Politics is the most obvious reflection of the collective state of mind of a country.
All of this from that to this seems to be such a dramatic fall.
Capitalism is fear
Capitalism is deeply flawed as an economic system; after all, it’s almost entirely driven by greed, which is partly a manifestation of fear.
It’s the reason we have ‘developed’, but a singular focus on profits is also making the planet uninhabitable.
Also, if only, it was profitable to prevent diseases than cure them, the world would’ve been a far better place. Unfortunately, it turns out that a system built on greed can only take us so far.
The most unfair outcome of capitalism is the concentration of decision making power in the hands of a few. One of the few responsibilities of a government is to regulate the capitalists. But when those few who have the most wealth start acting like the invisible hand (haha, the irony) in policy design, it results in degradation of the society and the environment.
Happiness
I’ve never seen material opulence, but my hypothesis is that it does not make us happier. Yet, I desire to earn substantial wealth. I largely want it to feel safe and buy myself time and freedom to do things that I want to do and satisfy my curiosity. Explore the world, pursue spirituality, and travel. These pursuits make me feel peace, not necessarily happiness.
I also believe that in most cases, true enlightenment can only happen when you’re wealthy. You have to possess things in order to become detached from them.
