The Lord must be in our midst today. The times are pregnant with such a possibility. There is erosion of values everywhere and the threat of global extinction from a nuclear holocaust or environmental disaster looms larger than ever before now. Religious and ideological intolerance is at its height and capitalistic exploitation is reducing man to a beast everywhere. The bare means of subsistence is being systematically taken away from billions across the world to suit the pleasures of a privileged few and decadent culture is robbing the moral fibre of the masses, denuding them both in body and mind. Armed in technology and modern weaponry, the nations of the world are lining up to start a cataclysmic third world war that shall see the end of civilization. And worst of all, there is a terrible clash of civilizations going on, between the Islamic conservative world-view and the liberal democratic way of living of the West. Islamic terrorism is on the rise and is a global phenomenon for some time now. The totalitarian ideology of Islamic terror groups with their radical programmes of 'elimination of the enemy' at any cost has brought the world face to face with this new menace of global jihad (holy war). Western domination of the weaker nations of the world and their ruinous exploitation of these has sharpened the geo-political divide causing newer alignments with their nefarious future military implications. And there is the alarming rise of China as a super-power, both economically as well as militarily. Lastly, the rogue State of Pakistan, the hub of international terrorism, a nuclear nuisance of a nation, the leader of all the theocratic Islamic States, master-mind of all mischief perpetrated against India and aided foolishly for regional 'balance of power' by the United States of America. Such then is the scenario in the world today with the West trumpeting the cause of democracy to hide their evil designs of neo-colonialism, intolerant and exclusive Islam engaged in a war of attrition with its counterpart Christianity for domination of the conversion market and the currency note holding humanity by the scruff of the neck such that the very soul of man shrinks to make space for the almighty dollar. And to top it all is the rise of atheism that is driving away God and spirituality to the back seat, making material science the driving force of life with its concomitant evils of sensate living to a fault. India is under threat. Hinduism, the crowning glory of man's spiritual achievements, is under attack from Islam and Christianity and more so, from the disunity among Hindus themselves. Shall India survive? This was a pertinent question raised by Vivekananda over a century ago. The exigencies of the times raises the question again. Shall India survive? Will Hinduism be able to hold her own once more and be a beacon unto the world amidst the turbulence of the times? Well, only the unfolding future will tell. For the present, the scenario is dark and only a divine descent may save the world.
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