Poverty-The Micro and the Macro

At Satyaloka we learned that it is somewhat delusional to expect world peace when we cannot even get along with the people in our own households or our next door neighbors. The Americans were there with the Russians that first year and there was a cold war of sorts going on between us, so it was quite a good lesson with many day to date oppertunities to see this.

Great importance was placed on perfecting relationships and realizing and working on our own condition before attempting to expecting any change in the world affairs.

The following is from "The Dharma of Kalki-an introduction" published that year-1998

"When we operate a software package in a computer system and problem that is encountered has to be treated one step below the level of language in which the package has been developed. A problem that is encountered has to be referred to one step lower, that is to the assembly language level of the programme. An obstacle there can be cleared at the machine language level of the programme, while the next step is addressed at the hardware or circuit level. The circuit itself comprises components like Silicon and Germanium which have various attributes. We have no control over the attributes. We can only understand them.

Similarly it is with life. When we encounter limitations as regards various issues of the physical dimension, we try to revert the second dimension which is one step behind i.e the psychological dimension. A limitation there leads us to the moral dimension. But we stop at the spiritual dimension. This to address issues at the spiritual dimension effects solutions at every other level.

For instance we do know that poverty is a major problem in India with just about everybody seemingly expressing concern over it. There are a lot of efforts also being made to provider welfare for people afflicted by the situation. These welfare measures operarte in the physical dimension of existence. At the same time there are developmental and activist interventions in each situation. which are trying to create a mass awareness of the problem in light of the root cause involved. Thus, there is an immediate attempt at addressing the issue, and an attempt is also made to identify the root -cause of the issue, to address them through a psychological intervention at a political level.

There is a man standing on the banks of a river, Suddenly he hears a child screaming for help. The child is drowning. He jumps in and saves the child. But to his surprise he, he soon finds another child crying for help, then another and another and another and so on. While the saviour does need to get in and save the child immediately, it also becomes necessary for him to look around and see if somebody or something is making the children fall into the river. This will enable him to understand and tackle the situation at its root. This also happens to be the goal of spirituality with respect to any situation encountered.

In the situation explained earlier, by the impact of various developmental and welfare measures that are initiated, it is obvious that not enough people really believe they have a stake in the life of every child who is born on this planet; a stake which will make them responsible and accountable. For if a quantum of people were to operate at that level, it would ensure a transformation at the macro level. Consciousness is Creation with its Own Law...........

Another global problem that is currently being addressed in the psychological dimension is the "environmental" issue. But, how often have we observed that every single person has an opinion of his own, which seems to be clashing with that of everyone else. People hardly ever come to an agreement about anything, what is generally worked out is a compromise-a temporary pushing of the issue under the proverbial carpet until the next crisis beckons us.

It should be noted that while the above is true of community situations, things are no different at the individual level. The conflict at the individual level manifests itself as the conflict at the community level. The micro influences the macro and herein lies the key.

All of us are concerned (or at least pretend to be) about the world around us. But the fact is that the collective consciousness of humanity has not yet been influenced by the flow of these thought processes. Isn't it an obvious fact that if enough people were concerned about the state of children or the state of the environment, it would enable a change in the current status quo with more effective implementation of the strategy supported by the majority?


Every individual tuning in to a particular thought process will impact the overall efficacy with which the issue under consideration is tackled. The sad reality, however, is that most of us are only concerned with the issues that wee profess to address. We look at issues only at the macro-level interventions that impact macro issues.

As an anonymous poet observed years earlier;

A tiny pebble idly tossed,
Into the placid stream,
With gentle splash it sinks from sight

And never again is seen.

But, outward from that gentle splash,
The spreading impulse tends.......
Who knows
On what distant shore,
The spreading impulse ends.

Today we are ignorant as regards the power of the thought process.

If we adress issues within an immediate context and if an immediate perspective, not really bothering about the macro, the macro will sooner or later take care of itself. We are blind to the crisis signals we are receiving from the immediate circumstance, or rather we would prefer not to address it, for it has embarrassing connotations. It is convenient to address situations from a distance for it means that we can transfer our responsibility. An immediate situation demands our immediate attention, It demands our taking responsibility for the situation. We certainly are not ready for it.

The key to the macro lies in the micro......

How often is it that when we have halted at signals at road crossings, street urchins come to beg? Can you recollect the confusion and embarrassment that we encounter in such moments? All our attempts at handling the situation are only mechanisms to get away from a disconcerting reality. Some of us, in fact, have developed a strategy in terms of an intellectual perspective to handle this situation are only mechanisms to get away from a disconcerting reality. Some of us, in fact, have developed a strategy in terms of an intellectual perspective to handle this situation. But all the same, deep down these situations are gnawing at our beings, demanding answers. We just shove them under the carpet yet again.

And then in meetings and seminars, we will discuss the same issue demonstrating extreme concern. From a distance, it is alright, manageable. But not as a stark naked reality.

Thus every moment we are making efforts to distance ourselves from the reality of our life situations. Today due to a making of our own choice, we are hopelessly out of touch with reality. We are basking in the glory of a fool's paradise......"