Sankardeva's ideology in recent social life: An introspection

Debojit Bharali (dbharali83@gmail.com)

Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardev is the name that fills Assamese minds and souls with reverence and devotion. Guru Sankardev is the greatest symbol of national identity and the source of national inspiration. He built a larger Assamese society for the Assamese national life. The indefinite contribution has been made, it cannot be overstated. What do we call him? A preacher, a socio-religious reformer, saint, scholar...? There is no doubt, above all logic, this polymath is the greatest Assamese of all time.

But nowadays, that is what can be felt, the level of reflection of Guru's ideology in the life of our native (Assamese) society or the effect of that ideology is really limited to today's Namghar-Xatra only. It is important to consider whether Sankardev's ideals are reflected in the practice of excluding oneself from a society that seeks to become self-reliant through animal husbandry such as pigs. It is important to note that whether Sankardev's greatness is felt in the bones of the bridge of social cohesion introduced by him or to note that whether contemporary society has been able to keep itself tightly bound or not.

It is not possible to cover all the topics in this short article. Rather, it is being tried to roughly highlight some related key areas.

At present, human values ??have declined in society. The signs of moral decay in the political, economic, social, cultural and other spheres are becoming more and more evident day by day. There is a deviation from humanitarian thinking and for such reason, a society based on morality, justice, well-being and cleanliness is facing a crisis of existence. Gradually, the character of social life has also paved the way for the loss of its identity. Differences in social thought, differences in ideology have taken a toll on national life. The more we move towards the pinnacle of civilization, the more our evolving thinking is distorted. If we are in the process of finding a way to solve a problem, then we often give priority to our petty interests, looking for a safe haven. If we have ever taken any step in the larger interest of society, then we are continuing our selfish endeavours in one way or another. In general, there is no end to the problem. Over the years, human civilization has flourished based on human thought, hard work, research and aristocratic experience. Through this, people-oriented, creative-oriented, benevolent values have been established. Civilizations now seem to have become paralysed due to lack of value, misapplication of ideas and lack of social incentives for the development of new values in a timely manner. In the light of these circumstances, the social space of the Guru's ideology has become unstable. Most of the time, except for a handful of conscious, devout people, it seems that his ideas could not be drawn.

However, Sankardeva is bound to unite every element so that the national life of the society can be celebrated with dignity. The greatest Assamese of all time is truly a part of the benevolent God. According to the prominent Assamese writer, novelist Abdul Malik Sahab, "we are the people of Assam, the people of the land of Sankardeva. Therefore, we, the citizens of Assam, carry this identity and should carry it."

Sankardeva's teachings on religion, simple ideals, have taught us to respect life. He showed the way to do good deeds to make life pure and unadulterated and unquestionably it's a great way to get acquainted with people you know and love. In our society, these best thinkers should be given due respect. But on the contrary, the image of our society has become very grey and it is unfortunate for us. Today's society that Sankardeva dreamt of has been almost torn apart by caste, class hatred, communal divisions, political conflicts and other undue factors. Hence, in very recent times it is our utmost duty to strive to build a new humanitarian society with all virtues and wisdom where the ideals of the Sankardeva are sure to return dignity. And this call should be respected by all the people of Assam. What's not Sankardev given to us? By wandering the world, he brought the golden wisdom of "Vaishnavism" with immense effort and built the monument of social wisdom. By spreading the "Naam Dharma" in a simplified way saint Sankardev educate many and enlightened their minds which helped overcame superstition. As a result, he still resides in the secluded corner of the heart of every people of his land.

However, in course of time, the place of Sankardeva's ideology has been degraded by society. In villages, different games are being played, separate namghars are being set up, and the new generation is keeping their learning without knowing this master. How can it be convincing as a good sign for the native society? If we think deeply, we will not be able to find any reason to go ahead without knowing, ignoring the guru Sankardeva. In doing so, we will be ungrateful to him as well as for his contributions. It is the duty of every people to understand that it is the responsibility of people here to enrich the life of the society with the ideals of Sankardev and the place of that ideal is in every sphere of life.

Moreover, "unity among diversity" is a feature of our nation and it is impactful to our social life. Change is inevitable but in the midst of change, the promise of human progress and uplift is desirable. There is no reason to reject every notion of human welfare; rather there is a need for collective thoughts for the purpose of establishing the life-giving interest of life. However, in the fast-paced journey of progressive thought, there is no meaning to give up one's national thought. The collective value of humanity, cosmopolitanism, self-sacrifice, honesty, etc., is the basis of human civilization, and there is no reason to push the national existence to the brink of a critical crisis. Although we are temporarily lost in the fast-paced society, the collective effort to remove towards greater national self-interest with the wisdom of conscience and self-realization must be taken into account. Only such consistent efforts would be the exact tribute to the ideology that guru Sankardev showed our society.