Since the advent of time, the medical profession has been considered a noble profession, for its members render a valuable service to mankind by preventing, alleviating, controlling, or eliminating disease, pain, and suffering. So, the members of the profession truly needed to be complimented by the society.
However, it has been observed lately that many members of the medical profession in this era of increasing urbanisation and spread of industrial civilisation and technological culture also face the great pressures of materialism and are hard-pressed for time. Being always in a hurry and with the object of providing medicine to the largest possible number of patients within the set time-limits, they are now more and more preoccupied with only the physical well-being of their patients.
Even though they know that most diseases are psychosomatic in their nature and that the personality-traits and the behavioural pattern of a person also play a major role in causing stress or trauma or in aggravating the disease, they, for various reasons, do not or cannot pay adequate attention to the social and moral dimensions of health and disease. The reason for this is because their main attention is on the symptoms and on prescribing suitable medicines.
But, if we think deeper, we find that without controlling, reducing or eliminating the psychic or the behavioural causes, there cannot be any lasting cure for many diseases. Another serious thing which occurs as a result of moral or social ill-health of a person but which is not given serious attention to is that not only does the person himself suffers from its evil effects on his body but, as a result of his these psychic factors, he causes ill-health to many others also who live with him, work with him or deal with him.
For example; a person who easily loses his temper or is prone to anxiety does not only himself suffer from avoidable worry and tension but often causes mental tension and anxiety to others as well. Most of our present-day problems are due to the moral and social ill-health of our citizens, generating a chain reaction and contributing peacelessness to the total atmosphere.
So, while doctors talk of holistic health, hypertension, psychosomatic diseases, drug addiction or AIDS, we wish that due attention is also paid to the turmoil caused by one’s moral sickness or social illness in the socio-political or socio-economic atmosphere of the society.
(The writer is a spiritual educator & popular columnist for publications across India, Nepal & UK. You can reach out to him at: nikunjji@gmail.com/ http://www.brahmakumaris.com)
