Training in Nonviolence

Author(s): Mahapragna Acharya
Publisher: Anuvrat Global Organization

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Impulsive State of Human Mind and Violence
Not only man but also every living being wants to live in peace and happiness, but the truth is that no one is content and happy today. There are two great obstacles in his desire:
1. Adverse circumstances 2. Violence
Circumstances do not affect man directly but they create a frenzied situation by impacting on his internal system.
Avesh (a frenzied state of mind) is the main cause of violence. There are many forms of avesh.
1. Hunger 2. Lack of the fulfilment of the basic needs of life 3. Excessive indulgence in unrestrained consumption 4. Racial frenzy 5. Sectarian fanaticism
Of these forms of avesh, the strongest one, which causes excruciating pain, is hunger. It is the prime cause of violence. There is no difficulty in admitting the truth that if the problem of hunger is solved, violence will be reduced by 50% at a global level. Mahamatya Chanakaya's statement that 'there is no greater enemy than hunger' (nasti kshudhesam shatru) needs our attention. The problem of hunger has become the backdrop of terrorism and extremism. The list of the woes that beset us today includes old age, disease - physical illness, mental illness and death. Though hunger has been excluded from this list, it is the greatest state of human suffering.
A man can bear to suffer the pangs of old age for twenty to thirty years. He can also endure the pangs of a disease for a prolonged period but the pain of hunger caused by the fire of stomach is most difficult to bear. It is difficult for a person to put up with it even for some days.
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