By Dr. Sawraj Singh
Understanding the alienation brought by capitalism is a very important aspect of Marxism. It means that people lose their identity in capitalism. Human spirit is the main part of human identity. Therefore, it basically means that people lose their spirit in capitalism. A very well-known Indian Urdu poet, Amir Menai, wrote these famous lines in the nineteenth century, “Huai Namavar Benishan Kaise Kaise. Zameen Kha Gaia Asmaan Kaise Kaise.” It means that those who were very well-known at one time have become unknown, and those who were flying up in the skies have fallen to the ground. He says that it is like earth has devoured these people. However, what he really means is that these people have lost their spirit. Who devours their spirit? It is the capitalist system who devours their spirit and reduces their existence to merely consumers, or worse, to just some digits. In capitalism, man just does not consume consumer goods, he is himself consumed by the capitalist system.
In my long stay in America, the most advanced capitalist country, I saw many people who lost their spirit to the system and became completely different people than what they were at one time. The worst thing is that they became exactly opposite to what they wanted or claimed to be. This happened because they lost their spirit to the system. I can give the example of three people, two from Andhra and one from Punjab. All these people claimed that they were communist revolutionaries and they were associated with the Naxalbari movement. However, all of them became the most loyal and enthusiastic followers and admirers of the American system.
In the early seventies, when I was doing my internship, I came across these communist revolutionary doctors from Andhra. One of these doctors told me that he had to come to America to save his life. He said that he could serve the cause of the Indian revolution by staying in America. However, after staying only a few months in America, he felt that this is the best country in the world to live in. He married a doctor and both of them started to fulfill the American dream.
Another intern from Andhra was even more zealous than the first one. He said that the only reason he came to America was to raise money and help the cause of Indian Revolution. However, after a few months, his revolutionary zeal completely cooled down and he started seeing America as the best place on earth to make money and raise your children. Now, he is a very successful businessman along with his medical profession.
I came across a firebrand revolutionary from Punjab. He told me that we need a cultural revolution like China in India. I asked him how a cultural revolution could come before a political and economic revolution. He said that if you have the spirit, then you can achieve anything. However, he lost all his revolutionary spirit after living a few months in America. Not only he gave up all his revolutionary ideas, he degenerated to almost a subhuman existence. He became very successful in the medical profession and joined the economic elite of America. However, as a person, he reached the highest level of degeneration. He not only mistreated his former comrades and friends, he got pleasure in humiliating them. I was shocked to hear about his sadistic accomplishments.
I started thinking about what happens to us in an advanced capitalist society. I came to the conclusion that the main problem is that in this society, for all practical purposes, life is limited to two dimensions only: physical and mental, and the spiritual aspect is almost completely missing. As a result of this, we lose our human spirit. Capitalism has given us a lot to consume and many comforts, but it has taken away our most precious asset, our spirit. According to Sri Guru Granth Sahib, the essence of our existence is our spirit, “Maan tu Jyot sarup hai apna mool pehchan” (O mind, you are the embodiment of the Divine Light- recognize the essence of your existence).
Dr. Sawraj Singh, MD F.I.C.S. is the Chairman of the Washington State Network for Human Rights and Chairman of the Central Washington Coalition for Social Justice. He can be reached at [email protected].
