Using knowledge and resources, humankind is not sparing any effort to challenge the supremacy of humanity in many ways. Technology has equipped humanity with enormous power. Instead of using it for improving the lives of people, power has captivated their minds with immoral and arrogant behaviour.
by Anwar A. Khan
Rather than love, than money, than fame, give us truth. But we are witnessing an era of turmoil and conflicts compounded by diseases that are threatening the lives of millions on earth. Neither accelerated medical research nor unprecedented developments in technology, neither billions of dollars spent on weapons nor fervent messages of peace are bringing comfort, peace and harmony to this world.
The 20th century has been described as the bloodiest century of this age and the first decade of the 21st century has been a continuation of the same. We are witnessing a violent World, a grim reminder of the ancient past, where human life had no value.
We need to bring good back in our life. We are witnessing a sudden rise in natural disasters around the World. There have been more than 30 major Earthquakes (loss of lives exceeded 1000), in the last 20 years. Powerful Tornadoes ravaged many parts of North America in the last ten years. Volcanic eruptions in different parts of the World, even from the dormant volcanoes, have been occurring frequently. The floods in many parts of the World devastated many agricultural lands and localities. And lastly Disease like coronavirus has taken very bad-mannered form taking lives of hundreds of thousands of lives in China and elsewhere of the world.
We find humanity has drifted away from the right path and this has given rise to unprecedented levels of arrogance, transgression and rejection of the power of humans.
Using knowledge and resources, humankind is not sparing any effort to challenge the supremacy of humanity in many ways. Technology has equipped humanity with enormous power. Instead of using it for improving the lives of people, the power has captivated their minds with immoral and arrogant behaviour.
If we are to leave a legacy of love and harmony for our coming generations, then we must overcome our differences whatever they may be for working as a family of mankind, to enhance and promote the good deeds.
The erosion of values is causing havoc in our society. Cases of murder, kidnapping, forgery, dowry deaths etc. are on the high. Why? Money……Money my friends is the root cause of all these problems. Thus, value education is imperative in today’s world. ‘All things in nature are dependent on one another!’ ‘Man is an integral part of society!’ Environmental population, ecological devastation, ozone depletion, rivers filled with industrial waste, concrete jungle in the cities-all things, tell us, just how much we love mother earth! After all, I can’t stop to think about rivers and trees when my next-door neighbor is buying luxury car and planning to go on a world tour Eh!
The present position of Bangladesh’s society and the erosion of social values can’t easily analysed. Thoughts, ideologies, code of conduct and sets of values, psychological pattern of behaviour have failed in transforming man. Man, with the help of thought organisation has created a marvelous scientific and technological world, but human being, as an individual, is unhappy and frustrated, not at peace with himself, not at harmony with the different layers of his being. Man is so materialistic, bewildered, frustrated and confused that he does not know the art of living with others in love, peace and harmony. Erosion of social values can be outlined as under: Lacking the requisite qualities or resources to meet a task; it is proving a serious obstacle to social progress and the establishment of a democratic society; it is opposed to nationalism; and our society is being rapidly fragmented into small units because of the influence of communalism... As a result, one finds social disorganisation.
The number of disorganised marriages is increasing due to the dowry, increase in divorce rate and changes in the functions of family. All type of corruption, bribery, dishonesty, disloyalty, nepotism and other malpractice from the top to low is increasing. People are becoming more and more money-minded and materialistic. They want to collect more and more money by one way or the other at the cost of values. They want to become rich overnight through illegal means or corrupt practices. People have become the victims of callous selfishness, egoism and unlimited greed. They have their own axe to grind in every field of life.
Social indiscipline is on the increase. There is gross violation of social values, social norms and social conduct. There is lack of social discipline, social courtesy, social sensitiveness and respect for elders. We do not get justice. Social justice has become a thing of the past. As a result, most of the people are frustrated, dejected and unhappy. Love affection, industriousness, co-operation, fellow-felling, brotherhood of man, welfare of others, equality, fraternity and social sensitiveness are disappearing.
These are not viewed as social values. People do not adhere to these values. There is social exploitation everywhere. People do not hesitate to exploit others for their own benefit. The present society has lost faith in social, cultural and moral values. Hence one finds complete disorganisation of values. This acts as a serious impediment to values. Erosion of cultural values India has been marked in the world for its diversity, values, ethics and culture, we are very much known to the world for our cultural heritage.
Not in our dressing sense but our cultural values have been affected way from eating, talking, living, fashion and now we are proud of our pomp and show in the name of modernization. In previous days we used to respect our elders and can never imagined talking back but now our children they not only talk loose but abuse elders. we use to respect women a lot in olden times but now due to erosion in cultural values women is now treated as model or a thing of joy. We never use to hurt anyone not even animals. We lie, we steel, we don’t respect our elders, we don’t give time to them, we talk loose, we do corruption and easily play blame game and at the end, we say we acquire rich cultural heritage which has been contaminated now and what we are left with are small broken pieces of the mirror. We must once again stand united against erosion of cultural values so that our coming generations could learn and be proud of that legacy which was once our proud.
There is erosion of economic values. Erosion of these values may be attributed to these factors or causes: We are living in the age of science and technology. Science and technology have given us abundant power. Unintelligent and wrong use of this power can destroy the entire human race and other forms of life on earth. Advancement of science and technology has given birth to cut-throat competition, materialism and barbarism.
With emergency of materialism man has become a machine. He is so busy in amassing wealth that he has discarded values like honest, social service, service of mankind, perseverance and patience. With the coming up of science and technology there is a tendency towards industrialisation and consequently, urbanisation. The growth of industrialisation and urbanisation has given birth to commercial outlook to life in its varied manifestations. The traditional joint family system is disappearing and the single-family system is increasing.
These changes have causes erosion of values. Psychological movement has considerably influenced the value system. Psychology attaches importance to instincts, drives, urges, impulses, desires and motives etc. As a result, man has become a slave of these tendencies. He is losing touch with the values. We are living in a state of political tension, economic stresses, fears and frustrations. Exploitation, corruption, disaster, destruction, selfishness and violence are having their head high. There is chaos, turmoil and disorder.
Causes (factors) of erosion of political values are: There is lack of true leadership. political leaders are motivated by their party politics. Many high-ups in the political circles do not deserve the rank, but they continue holding it shamelessly. Most of the political leaders exploit the masses to achieve their narrow selfish ends. National interests are sacrificed for personal petty interests. Political revelries get priority in the national agenda. The masses are misguided and used against the rival groups. Politicians lack code of conduct. They are above the laws of the land and constitutional directives. They indulgence in political corruption. Our assembly halls and parliament house have lost their charm and dignity. Policemen atrocities and brutalities are committed on the advice of politicians. Anarchy, scandals, militancy, rape…et al have soaked up our society to the core.
Responsibility to promote moral values in students are not taken seriously by parents, teachers and institutions which results continuous erosion of human values and social relations. Therefore, there is urgent need to take serious action for the restoration of moral values among youths of our country. In this article attempt has been made to identify the need of moral values in today’s scenario.
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The writer is an independent political observer based in Dhaka, Bangladesh who writes on politics, political and human-centred figures, current and international affairs.
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