Family and Nation

Author(s): Mahapragna Acharya, A P J Abdulkalam
Publisher: Harper Publications India

Page 89

THE IDEA OF UNITY
scene facing a blank map of our universe. We spend our lives travelling in as many parts of that universe as possible, conducting our explorations rationally and even, when possible, scientifically, to make sure we illuminate them as accurately as possible. Thus we do away with the darkness wherever we go; the islands and seas and continents are revealed, one by one. The longer we live and explore, the greater the revealed area. Meanwhile, the areas that are still dark recede. But they never go away entirely; we can never see the totality. We have to assume certain things about those dark areas that persist outside the range of our experience. We draw on what we have learned, so that we can make these assumptions as plausible and credible as we can, aiming to maximize the likelihood that they will prove accurate. The more we learn, the better we become at this kind of probability assessment. But we can seldom be totally certain of anything. Faith in humanity is not a bad place to drop your anchor in this day and age. It is the starting point for the unity of mind.
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DIVERSITY IS NATURAL
We are social animals. Our genes are predisposed to absorb the language patterns of people around us during our initial years. While we learn what is to become our native language, we also absorb the values of our peers. This process is natural, biological and inherited; it is part of our nature, the common inheritance of humans everywhere. The equality of all persons, male and female, rich and poor, of any race, class, or caste, is proclaimed in the scriptures of all faiths. This is true despite the conventions of many cultures that discriminate between people on the basis of caste, class, race or sex. Regrettably, such discrimination is also on occasion supported by certain conventional interpretations of passages from sacred texts. Yet with the development of a more refined religious consciousness, all forms of discrimination are being overcome,