World of Philosophy

Author(s): Christopher Key Chapple, Intaj Malek, Dilip Charan, Sunanda Shastri, Prashant Dave
Publisher: Shanti Prakashan

Page 779

ally denounced the manufacture and use of Atom bombs (The national Ganghi museum has collected 28 statements of M.Gandhi against Atom bomb.).
Apart form the use of Atom bombs as a weapon of annihilation, the economics of Atom bomb and other tarditional weapons is staggering when at least half of the human population are hungry, illiterate and without medicine. In fact, the entrie economy of world development is unbalanced because of ruthless and tremendous expenditure on manufactare of war technology which is absolutely unproductive and also destructive. Therefore, Gandhi is against the manufacture of even all destructive weapons, not to speak about all wars. A world without war is certainly a Gandhian world. To Quote Him, I would not like to live in a world which is not a world of peace."
After the war, the next enemy of mankind is the concept of modern development model based on the use of most sophisticated technology based on mechanisation,automation and cybernation. Gandhi was not against machinery but against the craze for machinery. He was not an enemy of technology but he wanted a rational use of technology. In fact, technology and ideology go together. A technology without a human face is likely to generate more problems than it can solve. The report of the club of Rome and The Limits to Growth' has shown the limits of blind exploitation of nature. It has resulted in acid rain, the heating of the sea and the earth and the dangerous holes in the ozone layers. This has created a poisoned atmosphere and a slow but certain death of the entire human beings. Hence, the question of peace is closely releted with the modern economics based on unlimited wants and unlimted exploitation of nature.At present, the USA has only 6% of the world population, but it consumes about 46% of the material resources. Such a national power necessarily requires a political control over natural resources of the world which means it must strengthen its military power the maximum.Hence, a world economy which is based on ruthless exploitation of natural resources and blind use of mechanisation and automation are most responsible for creating atmosphere for waging wars. Hence, today, war is not only a militery problim or simply a political problem but also as economic and ecological problem. We have to create economy of peace along with politics of peace for creating a peace for creating a peaceful world.
But the problem is how can we fight the problem of war.It can not be done only through prayers and meditations, it requires to build a new psychology, a new asceticism and a new civilisation.We must start with the limitation of our wants and create economy of permanence and peace. An economics which depends upon exploitation of man creates
730