Violence in Kolkatta, Mumbai and through the ages?

 In the context of the gruesome murder of the young doctor in R G Kar Hospital in Kolkata I will make my observations and say a few things. There is no doubt in my mind that nothing can justify or explain such crimes which men seem to commit on a regular basis. Human beings are considered to be on earth the most evolved living creatures based on an evolutionary cycle of millions of years. So we have what other creatures below us in evolutionary cycle do not have. That is the entity known as intellect. Now again Intellect is the power of the human being to reason out and know the difference between right and wrong. Today the majority of us are living in a noisy world full of distractions, attractions and disturbances at physical, emotional and intellectual levels. In this battle for attention we let our mind become our enemy and allow it to overpower our ability to discriminate and choose right from the wrong. The problem is that every action which leads us to choose the wrong over the right takes us deeper and deeper into the abyss of depravity and sin. 

With respect to the bestiality of man over women, it reaches the extreme levels of violence. This is to a large extent a cumulative sum of all the small acts of violence we condone and are encouraged to do so over the years of existence. As soon as we are born we are given a human existence with a body, mind and intellect which we inherit based on our past. Science talks of this as a genetic inheritance and religion calls this inherent tendencies. These create the qualities or gunas which drive us into action. Now are these qualities inherited? If Yes than is man a helpless victim of these inherited qualities and has no choice but to act based on these qualities. The answer to this question depends on logical reasoning of the rationalist or the belief system of the one who has faith in God/Lord/Self whatever it may be. So many of my learned friends are likely to bunk this theory based on a belief system that that there is nothing like Self Will and everything that happens in this world can be explained by the laws of science and what seem to have not been explained will eventually be explained. While I would like to endorse this view am unable to do so at present. Based on animal experiments and the study of animal behaviour, I will say that this is like the physiology experiment of simple muscle curve. Physical stimulus on the skin takes the neural path via sensory nerve to the spinal cord, which goes to the part representing the body part which sends a signal to act. Even an amoebae will react in this manner to touch. So give an animal food or the smell of food he will gobble it up in no time completely oblivious to the surrounding and will not consider sharing the same. If two dogs are given the same the rule of the Jungle Might is Right applies. so animals act according to their nature, The lamb or the deer cannot be like lion or the tiger. So the nature of the animal remains same although for the sake of argument nurture can modify the behaviour of a creature. Therefore we say that man differentiates from others based on the presence of an intellect. On the other hand animals live according to their natural instincts and therefore we rarely come across animals who are overweight, unfit or lack natural mobility. But the crucial difference about the presence of a well developed intellect at least has made animals on this earth position themselves at pinnacle of the evolutionary ladder of existence. 

So why does so much violence occur and that too against women with unimaginable levels of brutality and bestiality. According to the Gita it is ladder of attachment which makes man identify with his body mind intellect complex. The constant craving for objects which satisfy the senses create an attachment for the object. When the craving is easily satisfied it never ends and man’s greed makes him want more. A fulfilled desire gives a brief temporary moment of happiness but in the same moment there is worry about keeping that possession and increasing it. So inevitably there will be unfulfilled desires and when the crazy lust of wanting is thwarted it is replaced by an anger and disturbances of the mind. This anger will lead to clouding of one's judgement and our ability to use our past experience and the power to choose the right from the wrong is seriously undermined. Thus your life becomes an utter waste. This is the state of most of the human beings and is it any wonder that violence thrives, prospers and is celebrated in society. The extent of crime especially against women thanks to the victorian lack of freedom to mingle with the opposite sex in childhood leads to a perverse power dominance by males in India. Marital rape has not been made punishable and this leads to a master slave relationship and the objectification and commodification of women in advertisements, movies and media portrayals is a universal reality. 

So the question is would we be better off without an ability to choose? Why is it that we are easily drawn to choose what gives short term pleasure and gratification which is from external sources and temporary as against choose what is not pleasant in the short term and seek that which gives long term and permanent bliss or happiness. So it seems just right that the environment and the times we live in, make it more likely that the voice of passing pleasure drowns the voice within which is seeking the Self Realisation which should be the ultimate purpose of existence. 

So what is the solution? It lies in bringing into your consciousness gradually through the different methods onto the path of Self Realisation. Two elegant concepts are there to help us reach this goal. The concept of gunas and based on that the use of methods of Jnana, Karma, Bhakti and Hatha Yoga.  

This may sound a bit confusing and difficult to comprehend. However we do understand in the language of science and experience that what appears to the naked eye as matter is enlivened by energy. So Tamas is inactive dull mind, Rajas hyperactive disturbance ridden mind and Satva is a balanced mind. We are a mixture of these three gunas and this get reflected in everything we do in life. So even the rationalist, atheist or the spiritual being experiences that we can be Tamasic inactive lazy and inactive due to fear of failure. We can be hyperactive and constantly live to fulfill our desires living in the fast lane till we realise that the happiness and peace we seek is within us. So also the paths of Yoga or union with the Self as in the permanent reality can occur through study of the scriptures, Jnana, detached selfless actions as in Karma Yoga, subsuming our actions as an offering to God Bhakti Yoga, stilling the mind and clearing the consciousness with discipline in all your actions through Hatha Yoga. 

So we come back to violence and I feel that while we must react and stand in protest against violence perpetrated by the person responsible for this crime. This will be a reaction but we all need to introspect and look at the violence we inflict on ourselves and others when we choose wrong against right. 

We should take the following 8 steps to make a permanent impact on our lives. 

• Meditate Daily once or twice a day. I recommend Passage Meditation collated from Scriptures from any religion faith which resonates in your consciousness and takes on the path of Self Realization. 
• Use a Mathram of you choice to use when a fight flight kind of situation occurs. It can be any thing. My mathram is Om Shanti Om I am a peaceful soul. 
• Slow down and reduce your tendency to rush as though it is a rat race and you constant are in fear of missing out.
• Do one thing at a time with concentration, consistency and cooperation without becoming anxious of outcome.
• Restrain your senses and instead of running after instant gratification choose what gives you permanent joy. 
• Put others around you before yourself and live for their happiness. Between selfish, unselfish and selfless actions choose the selfless actions. 
• Read scriptures daily of your choice so that they seep into your consciousness and prevent wrong actions. 
• Seek the company of persons who are seekers of Self and who are willing to share their experiences on this journey. 

Most of the above seems simple but is a lifetime of struggle. Progress on this path will lead to human progress and reduction of violence in thought word and deed. I confess that this seems an elegant way to live and is possible for most I am struggling but most mornings and nights I introspect and set my accounts with the world right. My readers I seek your fellowship on this journey and will pursue wealth, pleasures under the shadow of Dharma to reach a state of permanent bliss. 

Vispi Jokhi