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MODERN THOUGHT
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in as much as they are then supposed to constitute the highest good. In the case of fame, the mind is still more absorbed, for fame is conceived as always good for its own sake, and as the ultimate end to which all actions and directed. Further the attainment of riches and fame is not followed as in the case of sensual pleasures by repentance, but the more we acquire, the greater is our delight; on the other hand, if our hopes happen to be frustrated, we are plunged into the deepest sadness. Fame has the further drawback that it compels its votaries to order their lives according to the opinions of their fellowmen, shunning what they usually shun and seeking what they usually seek.2 All these facts establish that our happiness or unhappiness depends upon the quality of the objects we live for, objects which are perishable.
Every religion lays down that all human beings are born equal but yet, equality in social status and equality of rights have been denied to different sections of the population in different countries. Though Jafferson has stated in his Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal and that they are endowed by their creator with certain unlienable rights like Life, Libetry and the pursuit of Happiness, yet the Negroes are denied these rights. The capitalist system of society still maintains slavery, serfdom and racial discrimination. In our own country, Article 17 of the Constitution of India has abolished untouchability and declared that the enforcement of any disability arising out of untouchability shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law. But the social evil still persists and the social disabilities imposed on that class of persons by reason of their birth still continue to be practised. There is no religious or moral sanction in one making another a slave or treating him as a negro or an untouchable.
These and similar other matters worry the modern mind. All the objects pursued by the multitude not only bring no remedy that tends to preserve and inspire our being but act as hindrances to higher thoughts. Besides, the present generation is fast losing confidence in itself.
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