Similarly, diseases of society express themselves in the various problems of the people.
It is said that the sage Ashtavakar's body had 8 bends. Yet, from the burden of work, our bodies have 80 bends.
At each step, at every moment, our soul gets so many beatings that for our own protection, we often become crooked.
Today each soul experiences the pain of a body that has thousands of bends and breaks.
We are victims of lying, cheating, and manipulation. We are prey to muscle-power, money-power, intellectual power. Competition is like having a knife slowly cutting through us. One upmanship inflicts multiple cuts and wounds.
Working under someone, being ordered around bloodies us...
We Become What Subordinates Us
By joining together with supporters, we oppose all this in various ways. But...many times, it becomes a part of our daily existence to lie, cheat, manipulate a neighbor, a near one.
-At the workplace, we try to put reins on co-workers who increase production. In place of competition, we attempt coordination. Yet at home, we inculcate competition in our children. To be ahead of other children.
-In the workplace, we aspire to trim the boss's feathers. Whereas, we go to extremes to make our children into bosses.
Our anger against subordination in the workplace is correct. But, by the time we reach home, we ourselves become police officers-subordinators.
Our contradictory ideas and practices should be thought over. Every one has the capacity to lift a pebble with one finger. The present social relation is of a Himalayan load. Lifting pebbles through coordinations can change the present social relation. We bring down two stones from the weight lorded over us. But then we pick up one stone and place it back on ourselves!
Keeping in mind one's own and others' limitations and compulsions, it is appropriate to choose those paths that take us toward straight, truthful behavior. The cure for crookedness is straightforwardness. Our souls will blossom. Our 'enemies' soul will also yearn for straightforwardness.
"Butter cannot be drawn by a straight finger"- this is the saying of those who draw butter. Those who exploit. In entrenched warfare, where immediate results are desired, and there are either/or situations, to lie, cheat, manipulate becomes inevitable. To question, stop, or overcome crookedness by crookedness is to put ointment on a symptom that only increases the disease.
With the weaving patterns formed by intertwining straight fingers, souls will expand. Bodies will also become healthy. The yardstick to evaluate methods of opposition is whether they increase the space for straight, truthful behavior...
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