Culture is on the decline. The transition from the feudal age to the industrial age has brought in its wake the spread of a diluted version of education in an increasing world population with its consequent lowering of culture. Although the masses are more informed today than their predecessors were in the diverse fields of human endeavour, excellence in these disciplines is on the decline. Quality is being replaced by quantity as the demand to meet the requirements of an ever-increasing population is fuelling the greed of capitalists and fast bringing about this degeneration of culture. The all-absorbing motive of profit-maximization has reduced trade to an exercise of scientific extortion of money from the pocket of the people, careless of consequence, be it of impoverishment of the despoiled or proliferation of a crass commercial culture that takes no heed of humanity but serves solely the soul of a soulless world. Fantasies abound of the coming of the millennium but the daily exploitation of the masses by a handful of Shylocks keeps the date receding indefinitely for the people ever to see the sunshine of life. Religion, politics and business have all combined to contrive the downfall of human culture and the human soul is the sacrifice as Vivekananda had so aptly put it. Holiness is more a vocation now than a reality realized with the 'virtuous' turning vicious at a moment's notice should the unsuspecting devotee ever so displease 'His Holiness'. Truthfulness is a bygone virtue and character equally a thing of the past. Worst of all, monasticism is on the decline with organization playing truant with its high ideals.
The scenario is indeed dark and calls for a radical spiritual solution but who will give the lead? Where is the messiah who can liberate humankind from the shackles of matter and re-establish the essential divinity of the human soul? And if such a one does appear, for the time is ripe for the advent of the Avatar (Incarnation of God), will the present spiritual orders recognize him and his movement? After all, the emergence of the Avatar will be a direct testimony to the glaring fact which we all understand that something is deeply wrong with the way things are going on in our world including the spiritual orders we so would love to look up to but cannot unfortunately for diverse reasons. The pious protestations of devotees notwithstanding, for followers are followers and are extensions of the Order they adhere to, it remains a fact that at the fountain-head of today's world-order decadence has set in. MONEY IS MUD, MUD MONEY--- this glorious aphorism of the peerless Paramahamsa of Dakshineshwar which was such an intrinsic feature of his life and living is today an archaic truth fit for a heritage museum perhaps but certainly not suited to the life-style of the modern man, nay, even the monastic in general. And what a shame that it is so! We all pay homage to the grand old man who spent his days at the temple-garden of Dakshinehwar in sublime renunciation, praising in principle but never put into practice an iota of the principle. We have failed the Avatar. He has prophesied that he will reappear among us a hundred years from his last appearance and he will surely fulfil his word. And this is our last life-line.
So, degradation there is today all around including the spiritual world but there is hope as well that the Divine will once more be with us soon. As per his prophecy he must be already on Earth and it is but a matter of time before he surfaces within our cognition zone. So, all is not lost and we must rejoice that although we fail him, he never fails us. Let Orders keep their counsel while we welcome the Lord. Let those who will deny the Divine do so but O mind, fail not to recognize him who has come thus far for thy sake. And with his advent let us usher in a new age and uphold our age-old spiritual culture. We shall welcome him who comes to deliver us and in his mould cast our lives afresh. And thus shall culture rise once more as the Wheel of Dharma will roll up crushing decadent traces of the past and sublimating the rising consciousness of man.
May all iniquities be humanized!
May humanity pervade human relations!
May the light of knowledge and love lead us all unto the realm of peace and immortality!
Om! Shanti! Shanti! Shanti! (Om! Peace! Peace! Peace!)
