S Radhakrishnan still speaks to our time

On October 20, 1936, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan delivered a seminal lecture titled “The World’s Unborn Soul” as the newly appointed Spalding Professor of Eastern Religion and Ethics at the University of Oxford. This lecture remains relevant today as it addresses the global issues of interconnectedness and the crisis of ideologies.

Global Interconnectedness and Political Fragmentation

• Unity Through Science and Technology: Radhakrishnan highlighted that science and technology have united the world into a single community of fate, where economic and political phenomena increasingly necessitate a global perspective.
• Failure of Political Adjustments: Despite this interconnectedness, political structures and individual identities remain fragmented and fail to reflect the reality of global unity, resulting in ineffective attempts at achieving human unity.
• Moral and Ideological Crisis: The misalignment between global interdependence and traditional political and social identities creates a moral and ideological crisis, jeopardizing the collective future.

Exhaustion of Ideologies and Emerging Challenges

• Historical Context of Civilizations: Radhakrishnan traced the evolution of civilizations from Greek empiricism to Enlightenment ideals, noting that while each era contributed to human progress, they also revealed the limits of their respective ideologies.
• Fragility of Modern Self: The decline of old faiths has led to a more fragile sense of self, with individuals increasingly relying on psychoanalysis to address existential issues and self-maintenance.
• State Power and Nationalism: The growing power of the state and the rise of nationalism are identified as dangerous developments, with nationalism serving as a regressive force that intensifies irrational and divisive sentiments.

Directions for the Future

• Cultural Openness: Radhakrishnan advocated for a fusion of global cultural influences, emphasizing that the world’s cultural base should extend beyond Eurocentric perspectives to include diverse global traditions.
• Self vs. Ego: The lecture emphasized the need to differentiate between the Self and the Ego, suggesting that true spirituality involves transcending the Ego and engaging deeply with the Self to overcome artificial barriers and prejudices.
• Global and Spiritual Unity: Radhakrishnan proposed that spiritual and moral renewal requires an open, inclusive approach that embraces global cultural contributions and addresses the inner conflicts of the individual.

Practice Question

Q. Analyze Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan’s views on the implications of global interconnectedness and the exhaustion of traditional ideologies as presented in his lecture “The World’s Unborn Soul.” How do these perspectives inform current global and national challenges?