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Thread: Hinduism, the Global Village, and One's Place in It

  1. #1
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    Hinduism, the Global Village, and One's Place in It

    Namaste HDF,

    (Disclaimer: I'll try not to get too much into my personal problems here. While the question I'm asking is borne out of experiences I've had as of late, I'll try to frame it in such a way that it's less personal and more applicable to others.)

    The world is getting smaller. Unless you've been living under a man-made mountain these past decades, the interconnected nature of Earth is becoming ever more apparent.

    Under these circumstances, one's responsibilities as a Hindu only seem to grow. One has to be aware of the goings-on of the world, and help out however one can. One also has to watch one's choices and make sure that they don't have any heavy impact down the line or far in the future.

    In light of this, living in today's world is often overwhelming...and one can lose strength very quickly. Because of the quickened pace of news travel, one can get bombarded with tragedy in a very short time, and lose one's resolve as a result. Also, one can only do so much physical action before one either is exhausted, or inadvertently does an action with dire consequences beyond one's comprehension.

    So what does one do as a Hindu when one's responsibility of caring for others gets to be too much? Oftentimes I've observed in the world that people are quick to morally condemn anyone who doesn't help their cause in a drastic way - the language the leaders of such causes use to get people to act is often laden with condemnations for those who don't help, and help immensely.

    One can't do everything, but the world asks you to.

    How can one be the perfect citizen in a global village? Is it even possible?

  2. #2
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    Re: Hinduism, the Global Village, and One's Place in It

    Quote Originally Posted by Webimpulse View Post
    Namaste HDF,

    (Disclaimer: I'll try not to get too much into my personal problems here. While the question I'm asking is borne out of experiences I've had as of late, I'll try to frame it in such a way that it's less personal and more applicable to others.)

    The world is getting smaller. Unless you've been living under a man-made mountain these past decades, the interconnected nature of Earth is becoming ever more apparent.

    Under these circumstances, one's responsibilities as a Hindu only seem to grow. One has to be aware of the goings-on of the world, and help out however one can. One also has to watch one's choices and make sure that they don't have any heavy impact down the line or far in the future.

    In light of this, living in today's world is often overwhelming...and one can lose strength very quickly. Because of the quickened pace of news travel, one can get bombarded with tragedy in a very short time, and lose one's resolve as a result. Also, one can only do so much physical action before one either is exhausted, or inadvertently does an action with dire consequences beyond one's comprehension.

    So what does one do as a Hindu when one's responsibility of caring for others gets to be too much? Oftentimes I've observed in the world that people are quick to morally condemn anyone who doesn't help their cause in a drastic way - the language the leaders of such causes use to get people to act is often laden with condemnations for those who don't help, and help immensely.

    One can't do everything, but the world asks you to.

    How can one be the perfect citizen in a global village? Is it even possible?
    Namaste Webimpulse , Your question is very interesting and I find myself wondering the same things at times. I am reminded of the child who was throwing starfish back into the water as he walked along the beach. An adult asked what he was doing and he replied that he was saving the starfish. The adult looked at all of the many lying on the sand in the sun and told the youngster that it was a hopeless job and his efforts would in the grand scheme of things make absolutely no difference. With that the child picked up one of them and tossed it back into the water. He then turned to the adult and said, “well, it made a difference to that one”.


    Taking your question a bit farther, say that you are throwing as many starfish back to life as you can. There are always some who will say you should do more, or do the same amount but do it differently. You are doing your yoga and God knows your heart and intentions. Sometimes others may have agendas that have actually nothing to do with the actual cause, but more to do with them and their egos.


    To answer your direct question, one person cannot save the world, but one person can help within his/her sphere of influence. In my humble opinion, if one is doing that then s/he being a perfect global citizen and if everyone else were we would have maybe a not perfect world, but a lot closer..
    AUM

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