It's a common sight nowadays to come across news highlighting the plight of various animal and bird species being labelled as endangered by governments worldwide. These announcements trigger widespread concern, leading to global campaigns aimed at raising awareness about the urgency of devising action plans for their protection and conservation. As a result of which, worldwide campaigns are launched for creating awareness about the need to make action plans for their protection and conservation.
But, surprisingly, never has adequate attention been paid to the fact that in the present disturbed moral ecology characterised by the environment of corruption, climate of crime, high spurts in mental pollution, the severe droughts in the minds of men which have become barren of love and sympathy and the inroads made by pernicious elements, through the electronic media into the workplace and the home — the natural habitats of man — the ethically sound elite class and the morally strong middle class have become an endangered species.
The invasion of the audio-visual means of communication or entertainment and the primacy of the idiot box and of course the social media, have really endangered these species. The print media, which is the promoter of popular culture, is also tilted towards agitations, sensations, strikes, social and economic storms, entertainment-good and bad — and “hot news” or as they say “Breaking News”.
There is still a large section in the society who still believe in reading books and magazines in physical format rather than digital. As a result of this, the publishers come out with a variety of magazines and books every few days and do lots of publicity campaigns to grab more and more eyeballs.
However, at the end of all this, the simple policy that rules the market is that ‘One who entertains well will sell well’ irrespective of whether they are educating or influencing the reader in a positive way. There is thus the need for innovation and co-ordinated strategy for the protection of the spiritually less developed people and the intellectually unsafe and hapless people on whom is foisted all kinds of entertainment material.
We should not forget the fact that there was a time when India had pride of place in the comity of nations because of its moral and spiritual stature but now it is way behind.
As things stand at present, people say that it is difficult to find business and ethics or legal and medical practice and morals going together. People, firmly following moral norms in the face of heavy odds, have now become a vanishing tribe.
There is thus the need to have moral and spiritual centres dotting the entire landscape of the country so as to protect and promote the moral atmosphere. Remember! If we don’t act NOW, then it would be too Late.
The writer is a spiritual educator and popular columnist for publications across India, Nepal and the UK. He can be contacted at nikunjji@gmail.com / www.brahmakumaris.com
