JOIN USMan has come a long way since the paleolithic ages. The massive scale of discoveries and inventions — in the last decade alone — are par excellence and speak volumes about humanity’s sense of curiosity and intelligence.
Despite our impressive achievements and development, however, humankind has not found fulfillment and harmony. There is an obvious absence of liberty, equality, fraternity and equanimity among the people who walk the earth. The living conditions on our planet seems to be getting worse by the minute as the quality of life is deteriorating physically, mentally and spiritually. Besides we have not arrived at any clear or satisfactory answers to the two primeval questions that continue to boggle mankind.
We are yet to figure out who created the universe and what exactly happens to life after death. Science, religion, occult and philosophy among other fields of research have come up with suggestions and possible solutions. Though all the theories seem to be palpable none of them happen to be conclusive.
Rabindranath Tagore, in his infinite wisdom came up with a practical suggestion to solve this enigma which continues to boggle humankind. He recommended a “Meeting of Races” in which competent and knowledgeable people endowed with a spirit of tolerance and understanding meet and propounded theories.
This convention could pave way to a clearer mind where one is able to perceive the similarities and differences between various schools of thought. Then the delegates could construct a common platform on the basis of the similarities and put the rest of the findings through a litmus test and consolidate their findings.
This method, he hoped, would ensure that man does not spend more time re-inventing the wheel and is able to take forward his findings to a logical and a practicable end.
Tagore said, “Today, more than ever before in our history, the aid of spiritual power is needed. Pioneers should come to take up this adventure and suffer and through suffering open out a path to that higher elevation of life in which lies our safety.”
“The Meeting of Races” cannot be dismissed as a farfetched idea in a world which is closely knitted through excellent transportation and electronic communication. Nations across the globe are presently riddled by multiple headed monsters like poverty, disease, natural calamities, war, global warming and recession.
If the heads of nations take cognizance of the problems faced by the denizens of the planet earth, they would do well to take the idea of Tagore sincerely and arrange for a “Meeting of Races” at the earliest date.