A civilization is not only borders adorned with iron bars, it lives in its arts, its culture, its thought and its books

The people who steer the destiny of a nation are generally the rich people, who move the wheels of power, but certainly, they are not the best people around. The best people are the educated elite, who work with a hundred compunctions, and won’t do things which the rich and the powerful won’t mind doing. In fact there are two distinct pillars of the civilizations. One is the ruling mafia, for whom goodness, morality, honesty have no meaning, and the other is the educated elite, for whom all these things matter a lot. But it is unfortunate that their writ does not run, because it is money which finally decides who is more important and whose voice is saner.  The rich people, who are mostly uneducated, or half-educated, often carry the misplaced notion that they are the true arbiters of the civilization. In fact, civilization moves forward as much by wealth, as by the moral and philosophical content of the people, which is more important, and this spiritual and philosophical content comes from artists, poets and philosophers, who are less blessed so far as physical wealth is concerned.

Wealth settles down safely in homes where people do not build castles in the air, nor are they absorbed in existential discussions. Wealth is the hand maiden of men who use their wits, not for the wellbeing of the earth or its people, but for themselves. Those who think of others like our men of letters lead their lives hand to mouth, while the rich, who have no such preoccupations, just enjoy their wealth. Wealth stays with people who respect her, and who are ready to lose their scruples for it. A man who is after wealth, will not listen to the qualms of his conscience, nor stop short of even vile transactions.

The essential question is: who moves the civilization forward?

The essential question is: who moves the civilization forward?  Can a Merchant of Venice score higher on the ladder of character than a King Lear? The wealthy people no doubt have money, and money is an essential virtue for any tangible work to be undertaken. From recent history, a very grand example comes to my mind. Maharana Partap, while fighting the Moghuls, was in dire need of money. Bhama Shah provided him the necessary money so that he could maintain his army and give a fight to the aggressors. One more example comes to mind. When the two sons of Guru Gobind Singh were martyred by the Suba of Sirhand, a man of money, Todar Mal came forward to buy the most precious land by laying gold coins for final rites of the infant sons of the Guru. There are great moments in history where we see wealth being used for great missions. The Carnegie Foundation is engaged in such grand task. But, ordinarily, the people who possess wealth are men who are common place. They have no higher calling. They believe in eat drink and be merry. Their tribe on the earth is growing, because more and more people are joining their ranks.

If we look at history, it no doubt is a record of conquests by great warriors. Yet, Russia is remembered not so much for Karl Marx as for Leo Tolstoy and Maxim Gorky. Grecia is remembered more for Socrates, Plato and Aristotle that its heroes from Troy. The great kings of India have fallen, but the Vedas and Upanishads written by sages and seers have outlived every emperor who wielded great power.

Destroyed Civilizations – Image courtesy: IllustAC

We are where we are because of wars which were won or lost by people who held on to money and power.  And we owe our moral constitution to the philosophers who lived or died for their convictions.

A civilization is not only borders adorned with iron bars, it lives in its arts, its culture, its thought and its books. And all these charms come from the people who never had wealth, the artists, the poets, the philosophers, and finally, the prophets who died at the altar for their strong convictions. The educated elite has suffered the pangs of penury, but it always has had an upper hand in determining the philosophical content of an era.

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Published under International Cooperation with "Sindh Courier"