Maitri Divas — Relationships matter!
This month post samvatsari , jain tradition of Micchami Dukaddam was observed by all followers. It carries the spirit of forgiveness and apology. It clears all that has at all happened in relationship knowingly or inadvertently. Apologising does not mean that you are wrong and the other person is right. It simply means that you value the relationship much more than your ego.
My guru His holiness Acharya Mahapragya, in ‘ finding your spiritual centre, says “ Our fellowmen are our source as well as the test of our strength”.
In an age where technology has created a device for every concern, comfort and convenience we seem to be sinking into a strange morass. One that is characterised by three things — a lack of harmony in relationships, an emergence of human evil and the spectre of death. I tend to believe that all these three might be the result of a loss in amity.
Human beings either live alone or in groups (family or communities). Today we see all around us, examples of our inability to have learned how to thrive in either circumstance. In countries where there has been an explosion of communication technology — like in the US and the developed world — we find the largest number of people who are lonely and depressed. Where people live together in large populations, we find a lack of harmony. Shekhar Seshadri, Senior Professor at National Institute of Mental Health and NeuroSciences (NIMHANS) mulls, “We have lost the art of conversation, we have lost the art of communication even in an era where there is an explosion in communication technology.” What a paradox!
We are neither happy alone, nor in a group. It appears that gadgets have merely provided us with escape routes and created barriers between us. What do we do? Preksha meditation suggests and iterates that there are five prerequisites for meditation to happen. The first is Maitri
Maitri does not mean only loving others. It also implies loving your own self. If you cannot love yourself, it will lead to various dysfunctions. Maitri or amity finds importance in all religions and is referred by different names. In Buddhism, the word metti in Pali, means unconditional and unattached love. In Vedic traditions it is expressed through a sloka in Sanskrit, which is a blessing that expresses “Let every human be happy and free from suffering”. In Christianity, one of the Ten Commandments state, “Love thy neighbour as thyself.” In Sufi traditions, the fundamental premise of seeking God is through love and amity. Jainism promotes the same thought through the concept of non-violence.
Yet, in reality what we see all around is violence, conflict, lack of harmony and misunderstanding. This culture of conflict and misunderstanding idealises weapons of war. We are busy building them. But what about weapons of peace? Are we even thinking in that direction? In Greek mythology, Psyche or the soul, was represented by the butterfly. She becomes the wife of Eros, the God of Love. What does that symbolise?
Amity begins with self. If you can romance with yourself, you will never be lonely. If compassion does not heal your own self, it is incomplete. There is a difference between friendship and amity. Friendship is conditional, reciprocal…there is a give and take involved. Friendship is a state of mind. Amity, on the other hand, is a state of consciousness. Pure consciousness. Unconditional, unattached love. Amity is the intention to remove suffering in others. And bring joy to all beings. This world was created with only one energy… Love… Maitri or amity, fosters it.
Conflict is always between Two — persons, organisations, nations, corporate. What it has thrown up is the inevitability of Two — life or self-destruction. We have the option of endangering our existence or to forge amity, Single-mindedly. As Dr. Martin Luther King urges, “We must live together as brothers or else we will perish together as fools.”
Albert Einstein said “I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” So sure was he that any war, in this era of technology, would annihilate all mankind; and civilisation would reverse. No one will emerge victors ; all will become paupers.
The last 500 years of human history has seen repeated…wars — destruction and preparation through ‘cold wars’ Fighting, or preparing for the next fight. This is the result of a stressed mind, lacking quietness and
calmness. These are not accidents. Human history has somewhere taken a wrong turn.
We have become increasingly connected electronically and less and less connected emotionally.
In January 1981, American president, Jimmy Carter, in his farewell address, gave a serious warning. He said, to the effect, that if an atomic war breaks out, its destructive capability per second would equal to the total effect of WW II.
It all begins with our restless mind. Mother Theresa kept cautioning us, “If you cannot love someone you can see; how can you love God whom you cannot see?” Hatred cannot remove hatred. Just as darkness cannot remove darkness. We have seen the pinnacles of cruelty. Dictators like Stalin have gone on record claiming that while the death of a single man may be a tragedy, the loss of thousands of lives in war is a mere statistic. This is unspeakable insensitivity.
The time has come to unpack the priceless human ‘weapons of Peace’ — compassion and love. It begins when we think of our self, our friends, our family. Let us understand this once and for all: There is only one religion. That is the religion of Love. Recognise only one race — the Human race. Any relationship should be firmly based on respect for Life. Until we enlarge our circle of compassion to include all creatures we will never achieve peace. Only sympathy for all living things will save us from potential disaster. Leonardo Da Vinci said, “The time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as they now look on the murder of men.”
When we use each other, we prevent union and happiness. Love is not a spiritual utility, it is a social one. On this Maitri Divas let us pledge for amity.
