The
Danger of Anti-Westernism
As one sees the proliferation of
Western commercial culture and its destructive and debasing effect
all over the world one might be inclined to become anti-Western and
think that this might provide a solution. One might think that such
neocolonialism is the only real problem in the world and being
anti-Western will somehow be the solution. However we cannot like
the communists look upon colonialism or capitalism naively as
monsters, destroying which will save humanity of all ills. This only
caused them to create their own more destructive forms of behavior.
The continuing dangers of colonialism
reflect the dangers of materialistic thinking, seeing the highest
human good in economic terms, which inherently stimulates greed.
Unless we cut through the deeper roots of this problem, it will come
up again. The new faces of colonialism have arisen because the
materialism behind colonialism has not been adequately questioned.
There has been an attempt to make economic materialism more benign,
but by its very outward nature, it must bring about exploitation and
remove any of the finer sensitivities of the human spirit.
This is also not to say that there is
no value in modern movements toward human rights, economic
development, or technological progress. The problem is that such
movements are defined naively and in an unspiritual manner. This
allows them to be used by vested interest groups for their own power
and profit. Because these movements are formulated according to an
understanding that is spiritually backward, they can end up causing
more harm than good to the peoples they seek, however sincerely, to
help. Colonialism, whether political, economic or religious, is a
manifestation of ignorance of the deeper soul and Self of man, and
of the real goal of human life, which is not economic good, but
liberation (Moksha) from all external limitations. |