As the world watched, the historical landmark of erstwhile Bombay go up in flames, just like millions of Indians, a deep sense of anguish besieged me. Watching all this on the television within the “secured walls” of my home, a sense of guilt and responsibilty has been playing havoc in me. The people who lost their lives due to the deviated psyche of some individuals, as well the people who died fighting them, were no where related to me, but still I wept inconsolably. Where is the world heading, I ask? What good does war bring in to anyone? After the battle of Kalinga was over, the remorseful King Ashok realized the futility of war seeing the battle field flooded with the hundreds and thousands killed and a greater number fatally injured. He said in a most self-depreciating manner that war leaves none the winner. His realization was true… With the exponential rise in these acts of terror, I just wonder how many lives are going to blow up in flames to fight it? It’s on the agenda of every political party these days. If I may use a jargon that’s commonly used in the world of business , it’s like a “delight parameter” that these parties have been offering to lure the votebank. Politics is something is hard for me to understand and get into. If something really bothers you, it’s your responsibility to get into it and set it right else turn a blind eye. It’s the latter that I have been doing all these years.
Everything that exists has life and anything that lives, is destined to die. So were these people who died in this mindless carnage. Even the people who planned and executed this gruesome death game, were living beings. I can’t call them human. They did breathe but they didn’t have a soul… They too had families, they too have fear of death… How was the transition for them – psychologiocal and moral? What could have driven to perform such inhumane acts? How were they convinced that such acts could give birth to something good? It’s always said that continual oppression at times flares the flames of terrorism. I have grown up in a place which has been inflicted with this disease since the past three decades. The root cause might have been oppression that the people faced but now with the changing times, the cause has come a long way or rather it has literally gone for a toss. All the enemies of the state or the world at large have joined hands to create a bigger and a well-equipped network of terror. Are all these people fighting for a cause which can be defined as justfiable by the other section of the population? What demarcates the two sections of the societly – the one who creates terror and the other which fights it? What drives men to cross over to the other section of the population that creates havoc?
My heart goes out to the families who have lost their loved ones. Ever since this ghastly incident started three days back, I have been continually following it. But is that all I ought to do is what I ask myself? How am I contributing to the world when there is so much to be taken care of? Good academics, a secured and satisfying career, a life of content with the loved ones – is all I have been living for. This isn’t the first time when an incident has inflicted some worries, some unanswered questions upon me. But now I feel I have had enough. I need to act. I can’t simply wake up with a cup hot coffee and follow up on the television when the world outside is bleeding.
Everything that exists has life and anything that lives, is destined to die. So were these people who died in this mindless carnage. Even the people who planned and executed this gruesome death game, were living beings. I can’t call them human. They did breathe but they didn’t have a soul… They too had families, they too have fear of death… How was the transition for them – psychologiocal and moral? What could have driven to perform such inhumane acts? How were they convinced that such acts could give birth to something good? It’s always said that continual oppression at times flares the flames of terrorism. I have grown up in a place which has been inflicted with this disease since the past three decades. The root cause might have been oppression that the people faced but now with the changing times, the cause has come a long way or rather it has literally gone for a toss. All the enemies of the state or the world at large have joined hands to create a bigger and a well-equipped network of terror. Are all these people fighting for a cause which can be defined as justfiable by the other section of the population? What demarcates the two sections of the societly – the one who creates terror and the other which fights it? What drives men to cross over to the other section of the population that creates havoc?
My heart goes out to the families who have lost their loved ones. Ever since this ghastly incident started three days back, I have been continually following it. But is that all I ought to do is what I ask myself? How am I contributing to the world when there is so much to be taken care of? Good academics, a secured and satisfying career, a life of content with the loved ones – is all I have been living for. This isn’t the first time when an incident has inflicted some worries, some unanswered questions upon me. But now I feel I have had enough. I need to act. I can’t simply wake up with a cup hot coffee and follow up on the television when the world outside is bleeding.
