Ukraine has become the host of a debilitating war and we know from history that truth is the first victim of war. States and politicians have learnt how narratives are very powerful at spinning the facts and use them to their maximum in times of war. For those experiencing the reality of war, there is danger, fear, nightmares and stress – even after victory, if ever there is one.
India has given the world the sustainable science of Ahimsa – universal peace, which begins with the mind and shapes our whole ecosystem to live in harmony with one another. Man has the highest responsibility and accountability to nature. It is time this philosophy is revived and active attempts at peace encouraged rather than dismissed.
Scholars say that the huge military-industrial profit driven complex of the West requires wars to continue its private gains and inequality and distract the public about the real truth. Poverty and political unrest have grown as a result of the Ukraine crisis.
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Russia knows it cannot win but it does not want to lose either. America wants to win at any cost. India will not be controlled by either party and shape its own foreign policy independently but definitely wants to bring peace as soon as possible. It understands Ahimsa and self-defence at the same time and is concerned about how quickly this war can spin out of control. Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote to Putin last September urging him to stop the war and tried to persuade him about the science of Ahimsa. This letter is packed with wisdom and foresight.
We ought to be fearful of this war and its fake narratives. We may not be able to cushion its fallout. Our weapons of mass destruction are now easily available. Technology has completely changed the landscape of war in the last two hundred years. We are not only destroying the planet through our carbon footprint – we can destroy it also by war. We have become experts at speeding up destruction as we have not learnt how to tame our anger. There is an urgent need to bring peace into all our lives and connect the mind and body instead of separating them.
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I meditate on the mantras Veerum and Sohum to remind me of the courage and resilience of our divine souls. Be wary of the narratives spun by the Western media. America loves to fight on foreign playgrounds. And leaves a mess for others to pick up. Just look at how they left Vietnam and Afghanistan. This time we must resist.
Professor Atul K. Shah [@atulkshah] teaches and writes about Indian wisdom on business, culture and community at various UK universities and is a renowned international author, speaker and broadcaster.