Opinion | Kashmir and humanity : Then and now

All living creatures or all people on the earth have certain basic needs to survive. Air, water, food etc. are some basic needs without which the existence of living beings is not only difficult but also impossible. There are some of the basic requirements that are necessary for their existence. As long as these basic needs are met, a living being can survive. But if these needs are not met, then its existence also starts to waver and eventually its existence also ends due to non- availability of these needs. In order to achieve its basic needs and to maintain its existence, a living being has to struggle a lot sometimes facing severe difficulties because the conditions of its environment are not always favorable to it. Although mankind has the honor of being the best of all creatures, they are also bound by these basic principles of the universe, they also have some basic needs to survive and like other creatures, they also have to struggle to maintain their existence. No human beings can maintain his survival in a state of immobility or stagnation by going against the law. Instead, every individual has to struggle till his last breath to fulfill his basic needs.
Along with changing times and circumstances, it also has to change and learn new ways of living. But the case of human being is somewhat different compared to other creatures. Man does not limit himself to getting only the basic needs, but his material greed and selfish desires prompt him to get more and more. In the temptation to fulfill his desires, man pursues a race in which no individual has succeeded since the creation of Adam.
This fact is evident that man is a mixture of innumerable desires. Every human being has innumerable things like success, happiness, power, wealth, fame and honor. Desires are piled up, if these legitimate desires are obtained in a legitimate way, then the life of a person becomes bright and a person becomes entitled to a high position. If he forgets to distinguish between good and bad by crossing all limits to do so, he surely goes astray. When our desires cross our rational and intellectual limits, we fall from the position of Asrah ul Makhluqat and become possessor of animal attributes.
A person’s desires start from his childhood and do not leave him till the end of his life. Since there is no end to material greed, human desires continue to increase with each passing day. ……

Kashmir is called the Paradise on earth and also is known as Peer Vaar( the land of the sufi sages).Forty years ago, the culture of Jammu and Kashmir was fundamentally different, the way of the life, customs and traditions, dress and moral standards were completely different from today. If the Kashmir society of forty years ago is to be culturally defined, so we have to call the Kashmir society of that time a natural society and a natural cooperative society. In this era, the culture of doing everything together, marriage and other social events, the tendency to do it together, during this period, the economic dependence of the people was on agriculture. Even though rupees were scarce at that time, people were healthy and strong because of eating the pure and potent food of their lands. This is the reason why the people of that era/ time had long lives, some people used to do all the housework by themselves even after reaching the age of one hundred years and above, so people used to live very contented lives.
The culture of the past was the culture of the living peasant society. Public morality was also linked to the land like the crop. They cultivated crops together and used to harvest crops together. There were moral values in every sphere of life. Everyone was working out of greed. During this period, the occupations of women were very laborious and tiring, for example women grinding mills. The spinning mill used to cut grass for the mice and fetch water from far and women were discussing every issue of life. In this neighborhood and even the entire village was aware of the conditions of each house. In this way, water fountains also became a source of awareness of every family, good time it was , how much love and sincerity there was, sacrifice for each other was an example of passion. People used to eat together in the same thali(Plate), mutual brotherhood was on the rise. People were free from greed, envy, jealousy, drug addiction, gambling and other social myths. There was no even a shadow of western civilization. People were polite, modest and kind hearted. The elders were kind to the younger ones, and the younger ones used to respect the elders. People were festive, hardworking, ate less and had less grief. The society was free from corruption, immorality, gambling, drug addiction and murder. People’s aspirations were also as low as money. People were free from greed and excessive desires and used to buy the necessities of life in a simple manner. Worldly desires had very little influence in the hearts of people, if they had excess wealth or other goods, they would give it to others. People used to live very contented lives and satisfied with the blessings given by God.
Yes there was a time in Kashmir when people took only as needed, it was the primitive age, when there was very less population, they lived on their own and used what they needed. Above is the real life example of people of kashmir. As time changes, cultures and moral values also evolve, often influenced by technological advancements, social movements and globalization. New technologies can significantly alter social interactions and cultural norms. For instance, the internet has changed how people communicate and access information, impacting social values. Increased global interaction can lead to the exchange of cultural practices and ideas, influencing moral perspectives within different societies. When population increased, civilization came in, there was once a system called barter system, people used to give what they had and take what they needed, but when kingdoms formed, trade and currency came, then everything started to change, and everyone knows about what happened later. With th e passage of time, cultural, moral and economic changes came in the society. When new technologies and development came, it affected the social, moral and cultural life of Kashmir. Seeing the lifestyle of the rich, the aspirations of the people here increased, which gave birth to greed, wealth, envy, luxury, western civilization and show off. In the present era, conditions like greed, selfishness and envy have gained a lot of strength. Writings, speeches, religions, marriage and other social affairs are full of greed. People do not even remember God without greed. Religious places are being used for greed.( Those who were holy and blessed places of worship were only for the worship of God, spiritual salvation and increase in humanity, and the signs of close servants of Allah/God are mostly used by greedy people). The poison of greed is circulating in human veins like blood. Greed and other social evils destroyed the brotherhood here and people forgot to distinguish between right and wrong, good and bad, legal and illegal, own and alien. People left each other because of worldliness and greed for money. People forget brotherhood and relationship, everyone wants to stay away from each other. Due to worldliness and greed for money, people stopped even resting at night. People want to become rich overnight. The mutual brotherhood, love, affection and sympathy that existed in the hearts of the people is now nowhere to be seen. People have stopped helping each other. Because of the greed of money, the relationship between the son and the father has ended and the brother wants to stay away from the brother. Not only that, but people have more expectations than their body weight. In order to fulfill these aspirations and desires, people do not care about right and wrong, good and bad and their aim is to get money by any way. People hate poverty and everyone wants to become rich overnight. People got addicted to many types of gambling to get money. Sometimes due to heavy loss in gambling these people sell their kidneys, and sometimes these people also steal things and sometimes they are also forced to commit suicide. Every aspect of people’s life is full of greed.
The modern world is built on greed. People are encouraged to do whatever makes them happy, to chase their dreams, to be themselves, and to not care what anyone else thinks about them. Greed is not because of fear or insecurity. It is because of excessive selfishness, which is the result of ignorance, lack of wisdom, lack of kindness and love. Greed can also lead to shallow relationships, a lack of focus, and dissatisfaction. Greedy people may only have relationships with people who can help them get more, and those relationships are always shallow. Greed can also make people lose sight of their true mission in life or business, because their focus is on themselves and their money. People who are greedy may never be satisfied. Everybody is greedy in one way or another. Some are blind to materialism, while some run behind false praise. Some want to rule over others, while many want to look pious in the eyes of others. In this way, no one is free from the evil of greed. Greed has been here since time immemorial. After the creation of this universe, the evil of greed was sown, and now it has become so strong and toxic that no amount of hard work can shake its foundations.
Greed has devastated our lives. Crimes, moral bankruptcy, wars, pollution, diseases, etc are the evil fruits of greed. A man’s heart is beating restlessly due to the unquenchable greed for one thing after another. However, the fact of the matter is that it is like saline water ; the more you drink, the thirstier you feel. Ethnic cleansing and civil wars are also repercussions of this nasty evil. The erosion of trust in our lives is due to its toxic nature. Family ties are snapped due to the omnipresence of greed.
In order to live a contented life, we must not chase greed blindly. As mentioned above, it leads towards a dark well from which escape is quite impossible. Being rational human beings, we must not crave more and more. Now it is up to us to bring the requisite changes in our lives. This life is more than longing for greed only. This beautiful life must be taken care of. On the deathbed, when the last breath leaves our nostrils, we must be proud of ourselves. So, the need of the hour is to live contented lives as much as we can.

Absaar Abass Muhammadi
Kaladrang Frisal Kulgam
( Writer is govt teacher from Kulgam can be reached on
ammarabass321@gmail.com )