Reflects the
Emergence of Our Mentality
Democracy
is Indicator of Mental Stage of Development
The Mental
stage of social development is indicated by an increase in freedom,
democracy, mental inquisitiveness, human fulfillment, and higher
levels of organization.
(MSS)
Ascendancy of Mind
and Democracy
In addition to individual expression, the
ascendancy of mind has expressed at the societal level as well.
It expresses in the great movements in the last century that have led
to greater human liberty and freedom; to the emergence of democracy
throughout the world; and to the growing sense among the general
population that every person deserves to fulfill his potential in his
own lifetime.
Democracy in
Plane 2 of Mind
Democracy
emerges in the second plane of mind, (Vital Mental); i.e. where
sentiments, values, and ideals develop.
Social Evolution & Democracy
Humanity has evolved from a society mainly concerned with physical
realities, such as survival, fears and threats from without, and
complete deference to authority, to one engaged in vital interests,
such as expansion, trade, travel, social interaction with others, and
the concern for our own individual needs, wants, and desires, to the
present emerging mental stage where peace, freedom, democracy, the
fulfillment and empowerment of the individual, the emergence of fast,
complex organization, and the extraordinary power of thought to shape
our world for endless progress emerges. (MSS)
Evolution, Spread of Democracy
Democracy
Greece is where democracy was born. There was the British patronage of
democracy.
Martin Luther and Democracy
The first visible sign
[of emergence of democracy]
was Martin Luther's break with the Church by which he proclaimed
to the world that every man born is equal in the eyes of God. The
priest's special right to represent God to others was denied. Man, the
Individual, was thus emancipated from the thraldom of Church, the
organisation. (MSS)
From Monarchy to
Democracy
-Monarchy became
democracy when the entire population made this mental progress from
their physical existence
-Monarchy considered the common man's
aspiration to the throne as treason while democracy accorded him not
only the right to choose his 'king' but also the right to become one.
(MSS)
Democracy
and Development through Internal Motivation
The
transition of society from monarchy to democracy marks the replacement
of external authority by internal motivation as the driving force for
social development. (MSS)
Democracy, The
Industrial Revolution, and Social Development
The end of feudalism in Western Europe was
an important contributor to the onset of the mercantile era and the
founding of the great European commercial empires. The further
transition from monarchy to democracy stabilized the internal order
and provided the social foundations for the Industrial Revolution. It
stimulated innovation by encouraging the free exchange of ideas and
provided incentives for greater individual effort by legally
safeguarding property from arbitrary confiscation.
(MSS
How
Democracy has Shifted Power
The further transition from monarchy to
democracy has shifted power from concentration in a tiny aristocratic
elite to distribute it over a large number of elected political
leaders and administrative officials and through a increasingly
complex system of laws and judicial mechanisms. At the same time
democracy has extended the authority of the state enormously. In
addition to maintenance of law and order and national defense,
governments today exercise extensive and detailed authority over
almost every aspect of life, including all forms of transportation and
communication, manufacturing, export and import, banking, investment,
employment, health, insurance, zoning, construction, broadcasting and
preservation of the environment. Government in most countries today is
the single largest employer and most of these employees exercise a
measure of authority over some aspect of social life.
(MSS)
Democracy and Social Progress
Since 1980, a democratic
revolution has been spreading through Latin America, Eastern Europe
and, most recently, Africa, freeing hundreds of millions of people
from repression by authoritarian regimes. As peace provides a secure
external environment for international development,
democracy provides a stable and conducive environment within
countries for more rapid social progress.
Democracy raises human aspirations. It encourages individuals
to take active initiative for their own advancement. It facilitates
freer and wider social interactions. It releases greater social
energy. It vastly increases the dissemination of information and the
multiplication of new organizations. As the transition from monarchy
to
democracy was a catalyst for rapid
economic advancement of Western countries over the past three
centuries, the spread of democratic institutions today opens up
greater possibilities for global expansion.
(MSS)
Democracy and the
Aspiration for Progress
Spurred by the end of
colonialism and the diffusion of democracy, since then this revolution
has circled the globe and ignited a clamor for education, higher
levels of consumption and opportunities for advancement among billions
of people. The universal awakening of this urge for progress is
another compelling reason why the speed of development is increasing
so rapidly. (MSS)
The Majority & Minority in Democracy
-Rule of majority is the strategy of democracy.
-Democracy is
the rule of majority to which the minority consents mentally.
(MSS)
Democracy as
Catalyst for Social Development
Peace, social stability,
democracy, the increasing velocity of social transactions, the rate of
adoption of new technologies, and global influences and opportunities
are catalysts for social development.
(MSS)
Its
Spiritual Source and Nature
Spiritual Nature of
Democracy
Every man born is equal is the basis of
democracy. It utters a spiritual truth that in his depth, man is
spiritual, and all spirits are equal.
(MSS)
Birth of Freedom and Democracy
Sri Aurobindo says that the earliest preoccupation of man is the
search for God, Freedom, Light and Immortality. That is man's spiritual
quest. This is reflected in his social life as the quest for equality in
Knowledge, Power, Status and Capacity.
The first visible sign was Martin Luther's break with the Church
by which he proclaimed to the world that every man born is equal in the
eyes of God. The priest's special right to represent God to others was
denied. Man, the Individual, was thus emancipated from the thraldom of
Church, the organisation. Kings ruled the nations.
The divine
right theory sanctioned their right to rule. Democracy was ushered in
and every citizen was accorded the right to choose the ruler as well as
become the ruler if he is chosen. (MSS)
Democracy
and Fulfillment of Human Potential
Democracy and freedom is the basis for the full unfolding of human
potential. (MSS)
Other
Non-Warring of
Liberal Democracies
Liberal democracies do not go to war with each other. Self-defence
is an exception. (MSS)
Democracy for
Uneducated, Non-Secular Can Be Dangerous
The spread of
education and democracy after 1950 leading to a veritable democratic
revolution in South America, Eastern Europe, Asia and most recently
Africa has extended social freedoms to millions of previously
suppressed people around the globe. This, coupled with rising levels
of economic freedom and prosperity, has released people from near
total preoccupation with physical survival and freed their energies to
express previously suppressed tendencies. These events also illustrate
the inadequacy and potential danger of democratic freedom when
extended to populations with very low levels of education or to those
lacking a history or commitment to secularism. Democracy without
education and secularism can become a breeding ground in which
anachronistic, parochial or communal ideas flourish. (MSS)
Beyond Democracy to
Spirit in Human Evolution
Science, economic development, democracy, religion, and other
institutions and ideas and ideals are alone incapable of addressing
the evolutionary needs of the emerging collective life. If the gnostic
beings help establish this integral, unifying gnostic consciousness on
earth, it would provide a far greater power and knowledge than mental
man has for understanding and acting on the needs of the emerging
collective. (MSS)
ICPD Article -- Social Origins of Democracy
