Whenever we face a problem, we generally try to remove the symptoms, not the actual cause. For this reason our miseries only multiply.
If a child is crying out of hunger, you may be able to make it happy by giving it a toy. But when the hunger increases, it will cry again, 10 times as hard. It will stop crying only when its hunger is gone.
We need to try to solve problems by understanding their causes. Often, our so-called ‘solutions’ are only future problems in the making.
A printing-press worker had three-fourths of his hand cut off by a paper-cutting machine. The doctor who stitched up the hand consoled him, “You’re lucky it was your left hand that got cut. Had it been the right hand, it would have been disastrous.”
The worker replied, “That’s due to my brilliance, doctor. When I saw the blade was about to come down on my right hand, I immediately yanked it away and inserted my left hand in its place!”
This is what often happens in our lives. In solving one problem, we create another. It doesn’t have to be like this. We need to find the root cause and address it directly.
We are not isolated islands. We are all links in a chain. We cannot wait for others to change. We should be prepared to change first. In this way, we can transform society. Once there was a village in the middle of a forest. There were no street lights. Because of this, the number of murders and robberies increased. The villagers went to the police and asked them to install street lights, but nothing was done. The crime rate continued to grow. Then, one day, one of the villagers got an idea: Why not light a lamp and hang it out on the veranda. At least this would illumine that small area.
So, he did it. His neighbours followed suit. Eventually, the entire village was illumined. Murder and theft soon ended. The good deed of one individual set into motion the transformation of the entire village.
The root cause of the war and terrorism we see everywhere today is the conflict within individual minds. Therefore, we have to bring about a change in the minds of the individuals.
When the individual minds are transformed, society will transform. A community is comprised of individuals. It is the conflict in our minds that manifests externally as war.
When a transformation takes place in the human mind, society changes automatically. We should try to cultivate love and peace in our hearts. We spend millions on the military and defence. Why don’t we put just a fraction of that money and effort towards creating world peace?
Security is essential. But the greatest security comes through implementing spiritual values in our lives. We are surrounded by millions of people who are poor and hungry. In fact, hunger is our greatest enemy. Hunger is what transforms people into terrorists, thieves and murderers. It is hunger that turns women into prostitutes.
Poverty weakens our bodies and minds. It is into such minds that the poison of terrorism is injected. Amma believes that if we can eradicate hunger, 80 percent of our problems will be solved. We must wholeheartedly serve the poor. In order to do this, we must cultivate love and compassion for them within. It is the compassionate mind that transforms society. Amma is praying for the welfare of everyone in the world.
Mata Amritanandamayi
The writer is a world-renowned spiritual leader and humanitarian