What is True Freedom?

Freedom....

The cherished goal of humanity throughout its history.

No society has ever been happy under the rule of people of some other society. History, from one perspective, is nothing but a struggle between two groups-one attempting to enslave or keeping enslaved the other and the other fighting incessantly to ward off this slavery. All wars are nothing but a manifestation of this ancient phenomenon. It seems we cannot tolerate losing our freedom and at the same time we cannot allow others to be free. When we are under the rule of someone else we fight to throw off the shackles and when we are free we strive to enslave others.

It is true not only for political or social groups but also for individuals. Just have a look at the kind of relationships we have built. Don't we try to dominate all persons we come across? We can see parents trying to dominate children, husbands trying to dominate wives, bosses trying to dominate subordinates and vice versa. Even friends try to dominate each other. It seems life is nothing but a struggle to dominate the other.

It can be said that there are nations, societies, groups or individuals who are free. Today, in the modern world, autonomy seems to be the norm. We can see autonomous entities all around, but this autonomy is superficial. Such autonomy remains in existence only till such a time when a more powerful entity decides to take it away. A behind the scene power struggle is going on every where. Human beings are not left untouched by all this. They can feel it subconsciously. As a result, modern man is continuously trying to defy authority or any force which makes him feel bound in any sense. To take a small example, individual human beings, these days, are preferring not to marry at all. Even after marriage, the moment one feels that his/her freedom is being curtailed, one walks away. Religious, legal or social pressures are proving inadequate in preserving the institution of marriage.

In my opinion, freedom is one of the greatest values in life. It is in our very nature and that is the reason every one resents if his/her freedom is encroached upon. The only trouble is that most of us are not even aware of our shackles. We do not even have a faint inkling of the numerous ways our freedom is denied to us. On the surface it appears that modern man has certainly acquired a degree of freedom unimaginable in the past. But it is only a mirage. There exists no freedom at all. There is a subtle and vicious system of slavery which has become all pervading. You need to ask one question only to see through the mist we are all mired in. The question is: can I identify the person, group or element who can take away my freedom?

If you cannot identify a single element, let me congratulate you. You are fortunate in the sense that you are not aware of the tenuousness and fragility of the so called freedom of yours. It means that you have not really had any brush with authorities (in any sense of the word). It is only a matter of time and if you are fortunate enough the time of realization may not come in your life at all and you will depart happily from this world thinking that you lived a free life.

If you can identify even one force on this earth which can curtail your freedom in any way, let me congratulate you too. For it means that you can see things if you wish to. Our freedom can maintain its status only as long as someone more powerful than us doesn't see us as a threat to his interests. Step in his way and he will force you to open your eyes. It is not at all difficult to conclude that the so called freedom we have, lasts only as long as someone else (who is more powerful than us) allows us.

This article does not intend to discuss our freedom in political or social sense. It can be shown that freedom does not exist in this sense anywhere on this earth. It is easy to see that the moment your interests, however personal, go against some authority you are subdued by the powers whose interests collide with yours. It is almost futile to aspire for freedom at such a level simply because at this level it is "power" which defines freedom. The more the power, the more the freedom. And since ordinary human beings like us, who are not politicians or officials or priests, cannot wield much power, we should not hope for freedom in this sense.

All thi