Covid-19 Has Taught Us the Benefits of Silence and Solitude Among Other Lessons
By
Karan Singh
Jul 07,
2020
The
Covid-19 pandemic has taught India several painful lessons.
Silence
and solitude allow the soul to hear from God through the spiritual ear.
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The first
is that we can no longer continue with the ruthless exploitation of nature. The
climate crisis, erratic weather phenomena, pollution of air, land and ocean
have pushed the country, and the world, to a dangerous brink. Unless this is
reversed immediately, we are in for serious trouble by the end of the century.
It is extraordinary that the lockdown period has led to nature regenerating. We
saw blue skies again after many decades, pollution levels dropped, and several
species of animals, birds and insects staged a comeback. We must try and ensure
that these positive developments are sustained so that we do not revert to the
old normal, but adopt a new normal vis-à-vis nature.
Despite
WHO coming in for criticism, India must continue cooperating with it and
take advantage of its expertise (SatyabrataTripathy/HT Photo)
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The second
lesson is that India needs a drastic restructuring of its developmental plans
which involves allocating at least 3% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) each
to health and education. If the country does not strengthen these sectors, all
plans of becoming a world-class power are doomed to fail. It has been a
national failure that we have not done so since Independence. It is also clear
that in a vast federal country such as India, a crisis like this demands close
cooperation between the Centre and the states, regardless of which political
party is in power. Health is a state subject, and in the final analysis, it is
the states and the Union territories that have to deal with the crisis on the
ground. This is an area where cooperative federalism rather than
confrontational federalism is required.
Third,
despite efforts of leaders such as the United States (US) President Donald
Trump to trash the concept of globalisation, the fact remains that
international collaboration in crises like this is essential. This applies to
the quest for a vaccine as well as the availability of medicines and personal
protective equipment. As our ancient concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the
world is one family) tells us, in the final analysis, no nation, howsoever
great, can be an island unto itself. The human race will ultimately sink or
swim together. We have some of the best scientists and researchers in the
world, and several of India’s laboratories are working overtime to find a
vaccine against the coronavirus. Here again, cooperation with the laboratories
in other countries will be of great value.
I led the
Indian delegation to the World Health Organization (WHO) general conference on
several occasions as health minister. In its building in Geneva, there is a
beautiful Nataraja image that I presented to the then director-general Dr H
Mahler when he visited Delhi to celebrate the eradication of smallpox
worldwide. Despite WHO coming in for criticism recently, I feel we must
continue to cooperate with it fully and take advantage of its organisational
expertise.
The fourth
lesson is that the intolerable sufferings of millions of migrant workers due to
the sudden lockdown, and the lack of preparedness for their welfare, will
remain a matter of deep shame to the nation. This teaches us that there has to
be a safety net for the most vulnerable sections of society — the one-quarter
of India’s population that still lives below the poverty line. Apart from other
measures, an assured minimum income credited directly into their accounts is
the only way to achieve this. This is the least that India can do as a nation.
This can be achieved with the restructuring of India’s financial planning and
reorienting its monetary policy.
Fifth, the
virus has forced us to revisit family relationships and to extend support and
affection, particularly to the elderly. Reports of increased domestic violence
during the lockdown are disturbing. This is the opposite of what is needed.
Existing laws need to be strictly enforced because any improper behaviour towards
women, children or the elderly is unacceptable and against the tenets of Indian
culture. The Covid-19 crisis has also impelled us to change personal lifestyles
in a manner that unnecessary expenditure on luxury items has been minimised.
That some of us can afford to spend on these is no justification for avoidable
expenditure. The vulgar and grossly over-the-top engagement and wedding
ceremonies, along with hugely wasteful banquets and receptions, should be
restricted by law by designating a limited guest list, say, 50 people. With
millions not getting one square meal a day, it is nothing short of criminal to
waste so much money on so few.
In a
world that constantly bombards us with stimulation, the disciplines of solitude
and silence have never been more important.
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Finally,
the virus has taught us the benefits of silence and solitude so that we can
look into ourselves and explore the deeper recesses of our consciousness. We
are so involved in superficial activities that we seldom get time to look
within. In the ultimate analysis, it is our inner consciousness that will
express itself in our actions and relationships. If we can find deep within
ourselves the divine light that is the core of our beings, this will uplift not
only each individual but society at large.
Karan
Singh is a senior Congress leader, a former Union minister, and a former
parliamentarian
Original
Headline: What the pandemic has taught us
Source: The Hindustan Times
URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/covid-19-taught-benefits-silence/d/122307
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