Assertion of Indian Values and Ethos Essay

â€Å"Certainly we should take care not to make intellect our God. Intellect has, of course, powerful muscles but no personality. It cannot lead. It can only serve. It is not fastidious about its choice of leaders (Mind or Soul). The intellect has a sharp eye for tools and methods but is blind to Ends and Values†. – Albert Einstein This paper endeavors to present systematically the essential components of human values andEthos and their evolution. The first part of the paper examines the principal values that represent the Indian ethical system. Tyaga (renunciation), Dana (liberal giving), nishtha (Dedication), satya (truth), ahimsa (non-violence) and upeksha (forbearance) are examined as the keynotes of the Indian values system. The second part looks briefly at the historical context of the evolution of this values system. Enumerating the broad gamut of ideas which emanated In the Upanishad age and underlining the contributions made to the sustenance of human Values in India by the various reform movements in the five thousand years of Indian history, the paper unearths the richness and resilience of Indian ethos. India’s socio-cultural heritage includes the principles and values of plurality, respect for Diversity, tolerance and compromise, which are highly relevant to the global community as a Whole while being largely shared by other Asian peoples . The paper concludes that for the perpetuation of the Indian values system, the Indian concept of dharma has acted as a Sustaining principle through the ages. Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines Ethos as â€Å"the set of beliefs, ideas, etc about social behaviors and relationship of a person or group † while Oxford AdvancedLearner’s Dictionary defines it as â€Å"the moral ideas and attitudes that belong to a Particular group or society†. Indian Ethos is al l about what can be termed as â€Å"National Ethos†. A man without morals is worse than a monkey. Darwin attributed to the monkey the claim â€Å"Without me you man would not exist. † Whatever may be the truth (about the evolution of man from the ape), the monkey does utter a challenge to man in these terms: â€Å"I am present in the human mind and form. I involve you in the affairs of the world. I make you forget the divine. That is why man’s mind is described as a monkey mind. I am indeed greater than you. I rendered service to Sri Rama. You are serving Kama (the demon of desire). Because I became a servant of Rama, Kama became my servant. Rama is God. Kama is a demon. † It is only when man cultivates moral values and manifests, the divinity within him that his true personality as a human being will be revealed. This means that man should strive constantly to cherish good thoughts and act righteously. One is called a Purusha (Person). Only a man with a personality can be called a person. This paurushyam (personality) is a term applicable only to a person who leads a model and truthful life, filled with good deeds. The Latin word â€Å"Persona† means one who is a spark of the Divine. Only by recognizing the inherent divinity in him can man become truly human Avoid imitating practices of other countries There is no meaning in one country simply imitating or copying the management practices of another. Such imitation often leads to waste of resources and many undesirable results. This is what is happening in many countries, including India. What is good or suitable for one Country need not necessarily be good for another. We should have regard to the circumstances, The individual attainments and the specific requirements of our country. Our culture and values are different from those of others. These different situations cannot be treated alike. The attempt to combine different sets of values may result in the loss of values of the less developed country . There is a story which illustrates how by listening to the views of all and sundry one makes himself a laughing stock and a loser in bargain. A fruit vendor put up a board over his stall to the effect: â€Å"Fruits are sold here. † A passerby told the shopkeeper the word â€Å"here† in the sign board was superfluous. The vendor arranged to get the word erased. Another man came along to say that there was no need to announce that fruits were being â€Å"sold† as that was obvious to anyone. And so, the word â€Å"sold† was erased. A third man said that there was no need to mention that â€Å"fruits† were being sold , as it was patent to any one what was being sold in the shop. Ultimately, all that remained was a blank board, while the sign painter presented his bill for painting the board and then erasing the words. The fruit vendor realized the folly of acting on the opinions of every passerby without relying on his own judgment. In the sphere of business management, a similar situation has developed in India. By following the advice of one country or other India has made a hash of its economy and finances. In ancient times, India served as an example to other countries. There is much talk these days of â€Å"the family† and the importance of teaching values and morals to our children. It is not a thing they can learn at school or from a textbook, but rather they must see it in action. Children are always watching. They aren’t going to pick up on â€Å"the golden rule† if they see mom and dad treating the neighbors in a way that is totally against the golden rule. They watch, and they take it all in. A good way to be able to discuss these things with children is to set aside a certain night for â€Å"family time. † Play games, watch a movie, bake cookies, but do it together. That is the secret. Complaining about not having family time isn’t going to work. Find some family time. It doesn’t need to be three or four hours. A much shorter time could do wonders. Use the time to talk about values. Let the children SEE what family values are about. Allow them to choose some of the activities for your special night. One activity might be to have the children take a few minutes to tell what they like most about the siblings. It will be a great self-esteem boost to the others to hear good about themselves, but also a reminder to each as they’re voicing good in their siblings, that brother or sister really isn’t so bad after all. Parents can certainly get in on the action, too, by naming things they’re extremely proud of for each child. Although values and morals seem to intertwine often, it is often more difficult to let children â€Å"see† morals at work. It is more of an inner thing, so what you wish to pass onto the children about morals will need to be discussed, perhaps more in depth than letting them see you practice these things. Oh, they’ll still watch, but they’ll also have a firm knowledge of what you feel is right and wrong. You can’t teach, for instance, the evils of smoking, while puffing on a cigarette. The term â€Å"family values† to many is practiced by the loving and caring of those we call â€Å"family. † We love them, we protect them, and we that they would do the same for us. That is what children need to see and at that point, a value system is born. reathe easy in the comfort of knowing As moral standards in society have come under attack, there has been a predictable two-pronged reaction. First, those who believe that morality has no fixed basis of validity rejoice as barriers and social taboos are broken down. Second, those who believe that society without clear moral underpinnings will disintegrate are alarmed by discernable trends in this direction. One group sees â€Å"progress† while the other sees society in a downhill slide. Voice, a union for education professionals in the United Kingdom, is decrying the absence of parental training in the children they are called upon to teach. They say that children are no longer learning moral values at home, and that the lack of discipline is making the classroom an unruly place where teaching anything is becoming more difficult. I’m making no judgment on this, but the focus on the primacy of the individual, rather than community; the changing pattern of family structures; the shortening of the length of many relationships; the creation of many more step families; the emphasis on parents going out to work and the consequent perception of the reduced value and worth of the full-time parent have all changed the way we behave. Are we now in a time when those children who have been reared in the moral relativity of the educational system are now producing offspring who are taking moral relativity to new levels? Are we seeing cause and effect? It cannot be denied that moral values are not being taught in many homes as they used to be, but is this not the result of previous conditioning? Maybe it is time to rethink who has the primary responsibility to teach moral values.