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Mahavira's Contribution
e.
progress only to the extent to which its individual components improve. What they taught by 'Aparigraha' was not a mere religion; it was sociology in its truest sense. To create class conflict and then to fight the said class conflict was, to them an absurd process. They divised a method which would prevent the generation of any conflict in the society.
Today the world economy is in shamble. So called communist economy, as practiced in Soviet Russia and other East-European countries, has proved to be a disaster. Economy of developing countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America is on the brink of disaster. North America which feels proud of its Capitalist System is under a great strain and its people are not capable of tolerating even the slightest jolt to their comforts. Citizens there begin their careers as house-holders by incurring debts which in many cases do not end till life time, and this is because they find it impossible to live without modern gadgets and cannot control their increasing desires. One catastrophy like a world war is sufficient to shatter their proud citadel of capitalist concomitance.
The root cause of all this, as pointed out by Indian seers, is uncontrolled appetite to possess and to enjoy more and more material objects of life. Want of inherent restraint from within, want of realization of life's realities, want of the knowledge that real enjoyment of life is not in material pursuits, are responsible for our present unrest and sense of insecurity. The problem can never be solved by mere economic reforms. All economic theories have to be worked out amongst the human beings, who are in need of psychological, emotional and sentimental treatment. Economists and political theorists are great ignoramuses in such treatment.
The solution of 'Aparigraha' was perhaps not known to Marx and even if it was known to him he would have, in all probability laughed and scoffed at it. One should, however, not be surprised if Marx would change his ideas and agree with the Indian seers if he is given a chance to get up from his grave today—much before the day of Kayamata and see the results of his pure dialectical materialism.
Among the modern political leaders of the world, Mahatma
