"Why should only I do this work? Why shouldn’t you do it?" – such quarrel is common among people who work in government offices. The head of the office often suffers from tension and headache when the employees engage in such arguments. As a result, a general office manual is formulated which is supposed to lay down general guidelines.

There are, however, circumstances when some people question the sanctity of such manuals and take the matter to court of law. The judge studies in detail the office manual and passes a judgement.

What is important for the head of the office is smooth running and achievement of the objectives of his department. Even the office manuals are formulated keeping these aspects in mind. However, a judge is not only concerned about a particular department, but has overall concern for the entire society for which various departments are like branches of a tree. Therefore, every department will invariably accept the decision of the judge.

Although the decision of the judge may, in certain cases, be against the interests of a particular department, his judgement should be honored and implemented because it is conducive to the overall welfare of the entire society.

For instance, if a financial institution declares that it will give interest at 40 % on deposits, the law will not approve it. It will object even if the institution demands 40% interest on loans. Why should the court interfere when the person is willing to pay such a rate of interest?

The person who is taking the loan might have taken the loan because of his acute financial distress; he may even be prepared to pay the high rate of interest. But such high interest rates will cause serious imbalances in the society in the long- run. Therefore, law does not permit it.

The summary of the above discussion is –the activities of any department acquire legal sanctity only when they do not hinder the overall progress of the country. In other words, the activities of one department should not obliterate the interests of another department.

Those who are in charcoal business will thrive by destroying forests. This causes immense damage to the entire country. Eventually, it will harm even the charcoal businessman.

Buildings or files do not constitute a department. By department is meant people who work there. If their actions cause any damage to the society, that damage will eventually affect them also because they too are living in the same society. Only it may take longer for them to realise that their action has caused damage to them too.
Why does it take longer for them to realise it? It is because they are madly obsessed with their department and its goals. In their obsessive frenzy they lose their power of discrimination and are therefore become incapable of realizing the long-term implications of their actions.

During teething period, children experience itch in the gums. Because of this itch, they try to bite any thing that they can lay their hands on. Sometimes they bite their own fingers and cry. Similar is the fate of the departmental workers.
Because we know that such weaknesses exist in the society, we have created a system of justice in the form of courts of law.

Let us try to analyze the above in Vedantic parlance. Every one of us has immense attachment for the physical body. It is not wrong to look after the physical body properly so that diseases do not affect it. However, when the attachment becomes too much, it will subject the person to infatuation. As a result, the person always hankers after pleasures and makes him perpetually dissatisfied. He loses peace of mind. Mental unrest comes in the way of physical pleasures. In other words, the efforts of the person who is in pursuit of pleasure are eventually producing the opposite result!

To overcome such an undesirable situation, our ancestors devised a system called education that would make people more scientific in their attitude. They had thought that education would enhance the power of discrimination and that man would become intelligent enough to resist infatuation. The field of education branched out in the form of specializations and the learned men of different fields started becoming proud of their achievements in their respective fields. They started asserting as ‘I am a poet’, ‘I am a singer’, ‘I am a scientist’.. and so on. They developed another kind of ego and were trapped themselves in the vicious circle of fame-pursuit. Naturally, the outcome was mental unrest.

Some of our brethren who are averse towards education prefer either to send their children to work from a very tender age, thereby promoting child labour. They feel that having more children is financially more rewarding. ‘ After all, what have the so called educated people achieved?’ – is their argument.
As the number of such defenders of child labour increases, the country will gradually become full of working children and will hamper development. This in turn will increase poverty.

As the defenders of child labour increase in number, a group of ‘thinkers’ come together and assume the responsibility of reforming the society. They vociferate that child labour is like a noose from which there can be no respite. This phenomenon is commonly seen in developing countries.

These reformers are not always altruistic; nor they are spiritually inclined. All that they want is that children should go to school to learn physical sciences.
But as science begins to undergo development, it will soon break the shackle of ‘physical’ realm. It will automatically step into the spiritual domain. This is an inevitable sequel. This is evident from the fact that all those branches of science, which have undergone tremendous development, seek to investigate the basis of Creation.

It is a paradox that what we consume as medicine will have the seed for some other disease. The group that shouts that child labor is a heinous crime against humanity does not stop there. It will shout many more slogans, which are in fact useful to the society. Such shouting deserves encouragement.

But, ironically, they lose control over their shouting as well as its content. They tend to become frenetic about their demands. With this creeps in the desire for leadership. They begin to believe that they can do anything to become champions of a cause. Therefore, they tend to do literally anything to become leaders. They take it for granted that they may use anyone to achieve their goals. If anybody resists them by saying that it would be wrong to use anyone to achieve their goals, they invariably snub aside such oppositions. Even if the court of law says that they are wrong, they feel like challenging the decision. This tendency can be seen in every nation.

The process by which socially useful slogans assume the form of leadership shouts is called modern politics. Rajakeeya is the term for politics in Sanskrit language. ‘Leader’ is one of the meanings of the word ‘Raja’. The means one employs to become a leader is therefore aptly termed ‘Rajakeeya’. The means are invariably intense and extreme. It does not mean that politics is extremism. Here extreme means ‘to ignore social and moral norms just to achieve one’s aim’; ‘to lose track of what is noble and what is ignoble’.

In order to gain support, they start looking for people who can be influenced by their ideologies and slogans. Experience tells them that children are the easiest to incite. Why is it that children can be easily influenced?
There are various reasons. Children usually get carried away by stimulating speeches. If a person can demonstrate that he is special, it is children who blindly follow that person. They are not much concerned about their future. For many children outsiders become more dear than their own parents. If a boy of this nature also has desire for leadership, all that the elderly leader has to do to capture him is to make him a youth leader; he will become supremely enthusiastic and will encourage his friends to follow the elderly leader. When initiated in to a particular ideology, children usually do not examine it to find out if the ideology contradicts another ideology. Even if they find out, it can be very easily by brushed aside by the elderly leaders. Last, but not the least, children do not expect big rewards for their service. Petty rewards like, say, invitation for a dinner party is enough for them.
Because of the above and many more such reasons, industrialists are tempted to induce children into their business. Children who do not have proper guidance tend to discontinue education and accept petty jobs offered by the industrialists.
Their competitors start shouting slogans against child labour even before the court of law takes cognizance of this. If the court upholds the objections of this activist group, the other party, namely the industrialists blame the judiciary as being biased.
When the court itself is subjected to criticism, where to seek justice? Does it mean that we have reached a dead end? No! We can always fall back on the great proclamations made by the sages of yore. Observe this Sookti:

Arhanti vidyaarthi dashaasu baalaa
Na rajakeeyeshu niyogamugram
Shalaatu beejasya pratatissamuptaa
Kshetrasya bhootyai kimu vaa shalatoh

It is a heinous act to encourage children who are still students to take part in politics. It should be shunned. If one sows unripe seed in a field, of what use will it be to the fields? Of what use will it be to the seeds?
Those who are competent in agriculture select good quality seeds for future sowing. The seeds are carefully processed, dried and stored in an appropriate manner. By taking such care, they can expect good harvest when those seed are sown. The seeds will have served their purpose. The fields too prosper because of the good harvest.

On the other hand, sowing poorly processed or immature seeds will lead to improper sprouting and a poor harvest. Even the fields look barren and ugly. All efforts go waste. These seeds could have at least been used as food grains. Now that they have been sown, they can not serve that purpose too.

With the help of this example, the above Sookti is driving home this point: The leaders who wish to reform the society should allow children to mature. After they attain maturity, they can be used in social activities. Only then they will be useful – just as mature seeds alone are useful for a good harvest.

On the other hand, if children are encouraged to take part in politics when they are still students, the country will become deprived of educated citizens and will cease to develop. All developments – social, cultural, scientific and technological – will cease to take place for generations to come. The above Sookti is warning us about such a dire consequence.

The ancient Rishis have laid down the duties of teachers as well as the pupils. Goutama Dharma Sutra, an ancient treatise on Dharma Shastra clearly warrants against students taking part in congregations and symposia that do not pertain to education. After having ignored this warning, we complain that the present students are arrogant, lack discipline, lack honesty and so on. We shout helplessly that the present day education has made man more materialistic!

Let us grasp the message of the above Sookti and refrain our children from indulging in what they do not need. Let us make them concentrate more on studies. Let us create a society that does not encourage children to indulge in non-educational activities

Jaya Guru Datta.

Sri Swamiji