World of Philosophy

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

Page 956

World Peace, War and Yoga
- Prof. Dr. Yajneshwar S. Shastri The attainment of peace has been the objective of the all civilizations of the past and also the present. "May peace prevail on Earth' (Prithivi shantih] is the slogan of Vedic civilization. But it seems world peace is an illusive thing, nearer we try to reach it, farther it goes. Let us examine the present global scenario in the context of the world peace and harmony. Daily, we are confronted with the same sad news of violence, conflicts , wars, terrorist attack and disasters. When we think of world peace, first thing comes to our mind is the terrible violence and aggression of war. After reading daily news paper and watching T.V. news, we feel that, these days one's precious life is not safe. There is no single day without report of something terrible happening somewhere in the world. No previous generation has had to experience so much terrible news as we face today. This constant awareness of tension and fear should make any sensitive and compassionate person question seriously the progress of our modern civilization.
During the past two to three decades, scientific and technological developments have taken place at a staggering rate. The information technology, space research, the large scale industrialization and all round growth have no doubt helped in the well-being of the people and raising standards of living, but in their wake have created numerous problems. Science and technology have certainly contributed immensely to the over all experience of human kind, to our material comfort and well-being and to our greater understanding of the world we live in. No one can deny the unprecedented material benefit of science and technology, but our basic human problems remain. Unfortunately, their contribution on the peace front is totally lacking. We are still faced with the same , if not more, tension, fear and suffering. In spite of enormous scientific and technological development, there is much fear, hatred, distrust, disharmony and discrimination among individuals, communities and nations. This has led to the build up of destructive weapons and the grave possibility of war.
Again, the world is witnessing changing economic equations coupled with globalization, which are creating various problems including economic imbalances. Obviously, this has resulted in impoverishment and dissatisfaction amongst a large section of people the world over. With the large scale growth in population as well as in the industrialization and standard of living, there is a growing demand on the various natural resources like water, oil etc. These natural resources in the global context are very limited. Unfortunately, some of the conflicts are arising out of demand for more shares in the use of these resources. Another fall out of the present developments is the environmental hazards, which the entire world will have to face. We are aware that the global warming, green house effects, etc. are creating problems of unimaginable magnitude.
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