God Almighty created man and settled him on the planet earth. He gave man total freedom, which he was required to use in a self-disciplined manner. But he failed to do so. Greed for political power, economic self-interest and religious intolerance became the order of the day. The situation continued for several thousands of years. This was the basic reason for the prevalence of the war culture in previous centuries.
This state of affairs was against the creation plan of God. According to the creation plan, it was required that every man and woman should have a free environment in which to develop his or her personality. But over time this scheme was vitiated. Then, God endeavoured to manage history while maintaining human freedom. This required very intricate planning. It therefore took a long time for the goal to be reached. The present age is the culmination of this divine planning.
The limited options available in earlier times gave way to the gaining of monopolies over all things: political power, economic opportunities and religion. Everything was monopolized by one group or another. In such a situation, the Creator wanted to de-monopolize all the resources of life so that every man and woman might have freedom of choice. Therefore, God initiated a process of management of history. Our modern civilization is the culmination of this long process of divine management.
The age of democracy brought the de-monopolization of political power. Modern industrialization was the outcome of de-monopolization in terms of economic opportunities. The modern age of intellectual freedom made possible the de-monopolization of religious dogmatism. The emergence of modern science led to the de-monopolization of ideological regimentation.
It is this phenomenon that the British writer J.F. West has rightly called a great intellectual revolution.1 The de-centralization of all kinds of monopolies was bound to lead to a culture of peace. After de-monopolization, everything has come within everyone’s reach, so that there is no question of having to indulge in violence to gain one’s ends.
In previous ages, the choices were apparently very limited. It was this state of affairs that produced the culture of monopoly. Human beings were then divided into two groups: the haves and the have-nots. This division of people was bound to create a clash of interests between different groups. This was the main reason why people of the previous ages were frequently engaged in war and violence.
Modern civilization has virtually de-centralized all the opportunities of life. It has become possible for everyone to be free to achieve what he or she wants to achieve in the field of his or her choice. Then, why do we see that, even after the emergence of our modern civilization, the war culture has persisted in some quarters? The reason is unawareness of this change in history.
For example, if an individual wants to have political power, he does not need to wage war. In ancient times, a change in government could be brought about only by fighting and unseating the ruler from his throne. However, in a democracy, it is possible to take the place of the ruling party by the peaceful process of holding elections. It is these developments that have made the present age an age of peace, but to avail of the opportunities of this age requires education. This is why we see that in educated societies, a change in government is brought about smoothly by the peaceful process of holding elections, while in less educated societies, people, still in the grip of an outdated mindset, are still fighting to wrest control of political power.
The same is true of economic opportunities. Our ancient economy used to be based on agriculture and only by usurping others’ lands could one increase one’s production. Today, the vast field of industry has opened up and one can be successful by availing of the numerous opportunities offered in this sphere.
The de-monopolization of resources in the modern age is a great blessing, as it has made the violent method totally irrelevant. Now by peaceful methods, everything can be attained on a much greater scale. The end of the age of monopolization and the coming of the age of de-monopolization is, in other words, the end of the age of violence and the advent of the age of peace.
The age of de-monopolization has practically eliminated the option of war. Now opting for war does not arise out of any kind of necessity, but is only the result of the ignorant misuse of freedom.
Source: The Age of Peace
