Morality-The Recipe to a Shining Future

Great nations are known to be an evident proof of character and character is depicted through the morals and values that a nation adheres to.  The more value a society attaches to the norms of honesty, equality, fraternity, sacrifice, progress and passion; the higher rank it attains amongst the comity of nations.  On the contrary, a society in which debauchery is compulsory for moving up the ladder, where honesty is not given its due importance, where peace and calmness seems improbable, where women and adults fail to earn the due respect and where people pursue personal interests against national interests gets trapped in a vicious cycle from where escape is not a concrete dream unless the society makes it out of chaos and uncertainty-and this usually does not happen without bloodshed.

            A cursory look around is enough to suggest that our society is following the same path; the path that leads to an abyss. Honesty is rare nowadays: the leader does not give the importance entailed by his subjects, the trader tries to exploit the customers, the clerk does not pass on a file to the officer without a bribe, the policeman can be coiled by offering a small lump sum, the individual lies to his family and friends for personal benefits and the common man is not honest to himself. The sanctity of a human life-or in fact any living being-is derided and mocked in this society. Fights are ensued and pursued for the sole reason of establishing dominance over the other party which eventually leads to grievous consequences. Furthermore, every other person-be it a leader, a corporate manager, a business man or a common individual-appears prepared to exploit the resources of his motherland for personal gains: the wealthy do not pay the taxes, the leaders do not pay due attention to the pending policies, the prospective applicants in labor market no longer believe in serving their country but their sole aim is to fulfill their personal dreams-sometimes even at the expense of national interests, and the common man has become so myopic that the circumstances prevailing in Pakistan hold no significance for him as his only interest is achieving his personal goals.

            It is about time we realize that criticizing and censoring the characteristics of our society is simply inefficacious. It is imperative that moral norms and ethics are revived in our society. This dream will only materialize when those who comprehend the dilemma decide to take a pragmatic action and spread awareness in the society. It is not only up to the literary and well known figures to undertake this task on a general level but every individual who wants Pakistan to realize its actual potential needs to shoulder this responsibility on the petty level. Besides, the most foremost change is required in the curriculum so that-the new generation does not lose its focus on ethical norms but consciously understands that communal objectives are more important than personal motives and gains- and its top priority is helping the nation on its path to success by following the virtues of equality, honesty and respect for the rights of others.

            This first step is mandatory for removing obstacles from the road-small it may be though-for its necessary to nudge and tweak the consciousness of our society; it would be impossible to revive the spirit of patience, truthfulness, determination and motivation to serve the society unless this is done. There may be bumps on the road and pitfalls on the way but determination and passion can help us make it out of chaos and uncertainty.