Sacrifice and nation building

Dec 08, 2008 Editorial

Today, the nation joins the Muslim community in observing Eid-ul-Adha – the festival of sacrifice. Grounded in an event that is of critical significance to three major world religions – Islam, Christianity and Judaism – its import has resonated in almost every culture of mankind.

The literal story of the origin of the festival tells of the willingness of a pious man to sacrifice to God that which was dearest to him. But believers know that the Almighty is perfect and that, while the “sacrifice” may be to Him, it is for the benefit of Man and mankind.

All human achievements arise out of sacrifice: the artist sacrifices his time to produce the art that stimulates the feeling of wonder of his society; the scientist sacrifices the same to advance the knowledge of mankind. The mother of everyone who is alive today made some sacrifice for her child: some say that sacrifice may be wired into our very genes. They call it the altruistic gene.

Man is irretrievably a social creature: the rare individuals who have been forced to live from childhood in the wild on their own developed into feral beasts with little “human” about them. The essence of the social relationship is reciprocity – the willingness not only to receive from others, but to give. It is from this giving that the spirit of sacrifice or altruism springs: we give and expect nothing in return.

The learned demonstrate that it is these acts of sacrifice that form the cement that ultimately binds humans into healthy and vibrant societies. Not only the religions, but the myths, stories and all the other narratives of successful communities abound in these stories of sacrifice.

On this special day that it has been our good fortune to have had placed on our list of public holidays, it behoves each citizen of our country to reflect on the reason why we are not a more cohesive society. Is it perhaps that we have not been willing to make the sacrifices that are necessary to bring us together to live out the meaning of our motto: One People, One Nation, One Destiny? We believe, in fact, that this refusal may be a part of the answer. And if this is so, it means that it lies within our grasp to rectify the situation and build a more harmonious society.

Some historians emphasise the communal riots that wracked our country just before independence from Britain was granted. But out of those riots there was also something positive that was unleashed – it was called the spirit of “self-help.” It could as easily have been dubbed “self-sacrifice.” Schools, hospitals, bridges, and so much local infrastructure were created as communities girded up their loins and worked for the common weal.

The effort encompassed all communities – there were no slackers. While the material artefacts were and (many still are) there for all to behold, the “togetherness” and feeling of success that were engendered in the hearts of the participants were even more valuable. Today, the economists even have a name for that intangible feeling — social capital – and gravely inform us that, without it, no development in possible in a country. Petty politics soon dissipated the early euphoria of “self-help,” and we reverted to our own version of the Cold War.

It is our firm belief that the day has come for us to end that Cold War. In the recent words of someone who had plunged aggressively into that abyss, the time has come to acknowledge that progress can never come by the incessant internecine sniping that has come to characterise our inter-personal relationships in this country of ours. Let us reach within ourselves and rekindle our innate capacity to sacrifice for others.

For Hindus, they are exhorted to remember that their texts constantly remind them that their lives ought to be lived as a “yagna” or sacrifice. Their ceremonial yagnas have to be replicated in their quotidian tasks and interactions: “this is not for me”.

Christians are entering their “season of goodwill” and are asked to recreate in our human plane the spirit in which God gave up his Beloved Son. And, of course, the message of Eid-ul-Adha must become a constant refrain in the Muslim community. We can all become one and build this nation in the spirit of sacrifice.

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Sacrifice and nation building

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