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27.05.2012 Feature Article

Palm Tree Lessons for Politics

Palm Tree Lessons for Politics
27.05.2012 LISTEN

Perverted behavior in life may lead students of Political Science to think that whatever can be done to win elections is fine. Convoluted complexities in society may delude Law students to think that the Law and Morality are different things. It is all a matter of personal choice; selfishness or selflessness and their permutations and combinations.

Perspectives of people are different and cannot be reasonably expected to be the same. Society progresses and moves forward as an entity or it retrogresses into backwardness together. Individuals need to take care of themselves within the context of social settings and nobody can be an island or a law unto himself/herself. We must all look over our shoulders; either to properly take care of our personal safety/security or see if the other person is in line or needs help. When issues become too complex for appropriate understanding, one needs to take a step back, reflect and break/simplify them down into their basic components.

The leaves of Palm trees give us brooms for maintaining cleanliness in our environment. The fruits give us oil from both the outside and inside as food, and when age/time reduces the productivity of the trees or introduces inconveniences, we produce wine from them. Among other benefits we also enjoy the shade they provide.

Traditional wisdom teaches that one cannot break a broom while the individual ribs forming the broom snap easily; giving local voice to the saying that unity is strength. The wisdom of the flight geese says that geese fly in a V formation in layers to take advantage of the principles of aerodynamics. When the strong one in front, taking the brunt of the air resistance and friction gets tired, it moves back for another to take the lead position. Should one fall sick and fall from the flock, a few go down with it to try and nurse it back into the next flight or nurse it till death. These lessons from Ecology teach us a few things about Politics and Law. Independent candidates and individuals or groups that splint off from main political parties for one reason or the other have these natural examples to examine for their chances of survival, endurance and success.

There is a common thread in all of nature. It is the duty of everybody to do what is most appropriate for him or her to identify this common thread for personal growth and wisdom that benefits all. There are different colours in the rainbow, but they come from one ray of the sun. Water particles only serve to scatter them to look different. The red colour is different from the blue colour from one perspective but it can be said that since they come from the same source they are not different. Political arguments, political parties and political colours are all about the welfare of individuals, groups or societies and are like the colours of the rainbow. Those interested in the welfare of the whole society look for selflessness and others for selfish interests. This common thread has to do with caring for oneself and others appropriately in dignified love.

Morality and selflessness are absolute necessities for survival and evolution of societies. Selfishness and moral depravity promote individuality, cheating, thievery and all the other symptoms of bloated ego to the detriment of the individual and society. Pursuit of selfish interests may produce some short term gains to be replaced by vexations later. It is like the sweet wine of the palm tree. It tastes sweet for now and one may imbibe it freely and soak himself in it, only to wake up in the mud of the water poured over him to revive him or fallen into a gutter.

Any school that teaches that in Political Science you do whatever you can to win elections or that Law and Morality are different is doing a serious disservice to those students. Those students are being set up for rough rides in their evolution. They may grow up to become political leaders in the Parliament or Presidency or be judges in the Superior courts. All these institutions or arms of government are expected to be honourable or noble institutions of noble, honourable and respectable men and women. When a noble man or woman of a noble institution is seen or caught arrogating public property to him or herself, that person is a moral liability. In simple terms, that person has fallen from nobility and become a common thief. The book of Proverbs says it is wrong to flog noble men. It is no fun to wonder if judges are not intellectuals or that they suffer from legal myopia. It is no pleasure to attribute intelligent thefts and moral turpitude to political gurus. Society should be spared this diversion of a vexation.

A mystic poet, Sant Darshan Singh Ji Maharaj, has written …. “When the flowers of the church, temple, and mosque gather together, Spring will blossom forth in your garden, O Lord”. The sages also teach that the property of power is to protect. The objective here is to do what is necessary to promote the beauty of harmony in society. Society needs to go back to Nature and learn lessons from Ecology for social progress, and stop the beautiful parcels of selfishness packaged in deceptive cartons of political speeches and legal jargons. Honourable Politicians and Learned Judges need continuous education to avoid the pitfalls of the power that corrupts. Society needs everybody on board to evolve from the earth earthy to the heaven heavenly. Like the shade of the palm tree, society needs the shelter of top politicians and judges. They should set themselves up to always respect and protect the interests of the ordinary person, as human equals, whose sole limitation is to use only their thumbs in politics. Q.E.D.

Victor Awayevoo

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