Swami Vivekananda and Sudra Jagaran or the Awakening of the masses - His visions for a future world order - Part 8

Do we see today that such a stage has set in? We see some indications in the social and economic circumstances of the present world. The financial crisis caused by housing bubble is taking a pretty long time to heal. None of the world economies are in a sound state. There is a risk of collapse of currencies and the so called financial stability to blow apart. At the micro level there are insecurities associated with job and life more than ever before. We also see some grave indications in the social system. We see that today political leadership in many states in India is driven by people from the so called humble backgrounds. The elites who have often jeered others with humble backgrounds are fast getting eclipsed. One such sneer was at aimed at one leader who possibly sold tea at some stage of his career. The politics based on entitlements and endolements are not clicking because people are fed up with the elitist attitudes. They are not happy with the feudal mindset. Instead they are settling for local leaders with humble backgrounds who belong to them, with whom they can associate with. The elitist media is also realizing the same. We see a lot of social upheavals, suddenly there is a spurt in crime against women and in many cases such crimes are committed by so called people from humble backgrounds. This is possibly one of the ways in which they have begun to assert themselves, by picking up easy victims. In some cases the victims belong to the upwardly mobile classes and in this way some sort of a rebellious attitude or another form of class war is seen. Sister Christine, who was a disciple of Swami Vivekananda, was travelling in a tram in Calcutta when she had returned to India the second time, in 1924. Her feet were deliberately trampled upon by an Indian student. Of course the chap did not know that he was doing this to a daughter of Swami Vivekananda. Instead of being angry Sister Christine was happy. She said that now Indians have begun to assert themselves. Even a few years back they would not have enough courage to cause injury to a white woman. The fact that they are doing it now means that they can no longer be oppressed. Despite her own pain, she was happy that Swamiji’s, her father’s and guru’s visions were finally getting fulfilled, Indians were becoming more assertive and bold. They could not be held in captivity for long.

The upheaval that we are witnessing today may well be the symbol of a twilight period, the period of transition of an era, from one age to another. From the age of giant corporations we are probably moving to an age where common masses are growing increasingly assertive and demanding. They have sensed freedom. They have grown desperate with the exploitation of the elites and the large corporations. They are tired of being ruled by few gentlemen who govern them with carrots and sticks. They are looking for their own icons, whom they can trust. In some parts tendency to cause anarchy has grown as they do not have the icons, the leaders, and mob power unchecked and uncontrolled can be dangerous. In several states we have seen political establishments who are hated by elitists, who, according to them have unleashed chaos in those states. But what can very well be happening is that the transition from one order to another is seldom orderly. Instead they are often chaotic and in some extreme cases bloody. We have seen a trend worldwide where common people are increasingly taking to streets or are at warfare with their own Governments. Even the so called developed countries are not exactly immune to this trend. The long spell of economic depression can cause major social upheaval in even the so called privileged few who have gained the most under the Vaishya rule. Another significant aspect of this age is the availability of information. Even the poorest of the poor has a mobile phone with which he can access the latest information. There is a general drive to get more and more people educated and with information at their fingertips, people are finding any exploitation and malpractices unpardonable. They are aware of their rights, are finding their voices and are not willing to let go easily. This trend had started in the last century itself. People had become aware of their rights and had demanded better conditions. The right was expressed in the form of political rights. However that did not translated into tangible actions as the political system which supported the cause of the downtrodden and poor, the so called communists, soon themselves became a tool in the hands of the elitists and were backed by large corporations. So there was frustration and anger and we have witnessed many violent incidents in consequence of that anger. People were killed by angry labourers on flimsy grounds. These violent incidents at a glance may seem like isolated incidents but there is a set pattern behind them. These are caused by people who feel that they are cheated and oppressed and they no longer rely on destiny. They have seen the lure of material wealth and the prosperity in others and they are not happy to remain tagged as deprived and underprivileged and carry on their lives being subservient to the whims of the elites.