ROAD MAP FOR PEACE
Do we have a road map for peace?
Yes, we have one --- inherited from the ancients Zarathushtra, Mahaveera,
Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed and other eastern sages passed it on to us long ago. All of them could recognise divine destiny because they could recognise themselves . And they could recognise this road map that had been laid out by Nature, with divine blessings, as creation progressed. The seers or Rishis had only to see it for themselves and then make it known to all.
These seers had the key to unlock hidden doors. They alone could see Sathya
and Dharma at the end of the tunnel. They were siddhas. More than that, they were arhats having the divine proficiency in bringing down peace and happiness from heaven to the common man.
The same trail has since been revived, in our times, by Meher Baba, in his teachings
and focussed as a New Vision, for all to see, in all its astuteness and brilliance.
Siddhi of the individual is the basic building block for society to build its light house
which lights the way to collective happiness, peace and progress. This light house must be built brick by brick -- of individual siddhas. Raw bricks, provided by mother Nature, must be burnt for use and a divine bricklayer must come along to build it. The structure must be built on rock, as Jesus built on Peter, --- not on desert sand. Humanity can becomes truly conscious of the good and the right only when the brilliance of this light house destroys the surrounding darkness.
Whether we walk towards right thoughts following Mahaveera, towards good
thoughts following Zarathushtra or keeping our eyes on God alone following Mohhammed , the road remains the same, the map remains the same, the directon to be taken and the effort to be made remain the same, variation being only in verbal appreciation of the current situation.
The modern pilgrim, who desires to progress towards harmony and peace taking
his brethren along with him, must have attained the pinnacle of human goodness before he can embark on his social mission with a guarantee of some success. For, only then can he have the good nature, the right approach, the impartial attitude, a better understanding of the instinctive points of view of others and a will to do the right, the good under all circumstances.
Man must recognise himself correctly before he attempts to reform society. It is only
when he comes to know who he is that he can recognise others for what they are. Only then, can he understand social problems and their solutions.
The usual pitfalls, ego, selfishness, vested interest, etc.,must lose their hold on the
individual for society to bloom : the thousand flowers that bloomed somewhere in a hurry faded off after a time with violence in its wake. But that is not the way for man to progress. There is a greater way -- Nature's own way which the Siddhas recognise and the Arhats maintain.
Both God and Nature need man --- God, to know himself and Nature, to be adored and loved.
Man can understand Nature as a scientist, staying apart from her, as an observer
but he cannot love Her.
Man can never know God as an object apart from himself. He must dissolve his ego,
his individuality, commit a psychic "hara kiri", to get to God. The ultimate " fana ", as the sufis call it, will get him transformed into the Consciousnes of God, an ultimate divine state which individual egos can never achieve in their life times.
To know nature one needs objective science: to realise God one needs
subjective introspection.
Individual achievement (siddhi) is not the end of the road. The end of the
road for the individual is the beginning -- for humanity. The siddha must be transforrmed into an arhat to do good -- not just be good. But, it is only when this stage of siddhi is reached and crossed to attain the status of the arhat, that the divinely gifted individual can do what is good and what is right for society.
Only then can he expose, for all to see, the road map for peace -- a herculean effort that can
be successful only by God's Grace.
Without divine intervention, the pilgrim's social progress can always be stalled ere it is begun.