An Era Gone For Good

Fazili laments about the times and recall glory days that will never return

(Er. Mohammad Ashraf Fazili, 69, was born in Srinagar. He received his early schooling from the Government Middle School, Nowhatta, Srinagar, and from M.P. High School, Baghi Dilawar Khan in Srinagar. Mr. Fazili completed his F.Sc. from the Sri Pratap College in Srinagar, and received his Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from the Annamalai University with honours grade. He joined the J&K government service upon graduation and steadily rose up the ranks to the position of Chief Engineer at his retirement. He managed a number of important infrastructure projects during his government service, including the Model Town Chrar-i-Sharif, Lower Jhelum Hydro Electric Project, Solid Waste Disposal Scheme Srinagar City, Circular Road Project Srinagar City, etc. He has numerous publications to his credit, including Srinagar the Sun City, Our Ancestors and Saints of Kashmir, etc., which were presented in seminar and symposia. He writes for various journals and is presently working on the Jhelum Valley Civilization.) 

MORAL BANKRUPTCY

Ministers, Bureaucrats, Preachers etc. found in the same dock. Every now and then some kind of scandal is reported in the media either from the quarters of the top brass like ministers-(the so-called elected but not selected public representatives) or the top bureaucrats – (the educated elite of the society) or the common hooligans. Although the treatment to this disease prevailing among human beings has been devised by many doctors of morality over the years, yet the same seems to be failing now-a-days, for which root cause needs to be found and treated permanently; instead of slip-shod methods or spot treatments, used by the present set-up at the helm.

There is a lacuna in our education system, where children in very early age are loaded with heavy bags of books exceeding their own weight, but not carrying a single book on real moral education. Before the introduction of modern system of education, the child was sent to learn Quran, Shaikh Sadi’s Karima-Nami Haq and then Gulistan Bostan, Ikhlaq-i-Mohsini, which are based on stories with a moral end, and the same would remain inscribed in the child’s mind throughout his life. Later on, even the subject of Dinyat- taught till 5th primary was also removed from the curriculum with sinister designs. It appears that Iblis has succeeded in his mission in distracting the people from their moral path. All this is responsible for the present day moral bankruptcy that we face at the level of ministers supposed to be the law-makers, but functioning as law-breakers and also at the level of bureaucrats reared in a system devoid of moral education.

In earlier days, the common man would inculcate fear of punishment of judgment-day through the sermons of Imams on Friday prayers, which too has lost its effect as many religious heads too have reportedly indulged in immoral activities. The respect and fear of elders too has been lost. The process of the building of morals starts from mother’s lap, so first of all, the parents have to set up an example- a role model, for the child to follow; next the proper moral education needs to be introduced in the curricula for all the classes; besides dire legal punishments need to be imposed in public to the culprits to serve as a deter for others. The present situation has been predicted by Shaikh-ul-Alam about eight centuries back as:

 "Ether is khan hendhar grezan-gold braid aasi property wandahar raj" i.e. The rivers will dry up and the polluted drains will gush forth; that time the apes shall be the rulers.