Leave the prison

As I walked toward my freedom, I knew if I didn’t leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison.

Dr Nelson Mandela expressed the subtle meaning of being in the prison and of freedom. He struggled against the inhuman atrocities done to the indigenous people of South Africa. The natives were subjected to a little less than animal treatment. If compared to the Indian subcontinent, the situations in Africa were diverse. The Indian laity was ruled since times immemorial, they had an economy and were conscious people who had rich history, science and literature. But, Africans were innocent, naive, forest people who lived harmoniously with their natural habitat.

The Africans were deemed to be uncouth by the invaders, and were unaware of their invaluable resources. Europeans felt it as their moral responsibility to give them a glimpse of their civilization and bring them into the fold of it. However, people paid much to get civilized. Looking at the procedures any compassionate human being will choose to remain uncouth rather than getting civilized. The premeditated cold-blooded assaults endured by the aboriginals in the name of civilization are heart-wrenching.

In those turbulent times, such thoughts expressed by Mr Mandela need salutation. It requires a lot of courage and more than that the magnanimity to rise above one’s sufferings and ignore the vengeance. The world is suffering from the retribution against the injustice done in the past. The words of Mr Mandela enlightens both the oppressor and the repressed to reprise their role and come out of the prison of ignorance. If the bitterness and hatred are not purged, they will now swallow the human species. We should amicably bring all the incongruencies to an end otherwise the vengeance has only one sealed fate.

We have no control over the past, but certainly we can save our future. Firstly, we will have to detach ourselves from the anger against the injustice done in the past and then to assure prevention of their recurrences.