“The question is whether it is the age or era that determines how the king will be or if the king determines how good the age will be. It is without doubt that it is the king who is the cause for good or bad times –
(Book of peace 70.6), The Mahabharata.
After reigning for 70 years (1953-2022), Queen Elizabeth II passed away at age 96 on September 8, 2022. Her death has engendered a wide array of emotions around the globe. As a psychiatrist, I have been mulling over this considerably. The dynamics of these emotions are complex and diverse. While delving into them, some obvious questions come to mind:
Why is there such a widespread interest in this event?
Given the history of the British monarchy, why has the monarchy been glorified in the way it has?
What lessons should our world learn from the end of this era?
Are there any reigning principles or standards of conduct which may provide us with guidelines?
The widespread interest denotes a whole range of emotions, as stated above, which are being experienced by many people from different walks of life. These include, but are not limited to, a sense of loss, sadness, feelings of an era bygone (i.e., nostalgia), resentment for atrocities and subjugation inflicted by the monarchy, a need for “undoing” (in psychiatric parlance) of painful memories, and a sense of lost opportunities for restitution (both materially and emotionally) etc.
Other reasons include basic human tendencies for vicarious and voyeuristic experiences of the lives of the rich and the powerful.
Lastly, despite her inextricable connection to her colonial ancestors, by all accounts Queen Elizabeth II carried herself with dignity and decency in public life. This image of her, combined with the fact that she was a female monarch – a rather uncommon event, conjures up a powerful and inspiring image that captivated scores of women of different nationalities and ethnicities around the world.
It is no secret that the British Museum of Art has the largest collection of stolen historical artifacts. These include, for instance, but are not limited to Australia’s Gweagal Shield, Iraq’s Ashurbanipal relics, India’s Amaravati Marbles, Nigeria’s Benin Bronzes, Ghana’s Akan drum, Egypt’s Rosetta Stone, Greece's Parthenon Marbles, Rapa Nui’s HOA Hakanani’a, Jamaica’s Birdman and Boinayel Figures, and China’s Summer Palace, etc.
It is also no secret, although, not known widely, that the British Empire plundered and pillaged the larger part of the world for every penny it could. For instance, from India (where I was born) alone, the British plundered almost $45 trillion in today's money, which is about 20 times more than the current Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Britain!!! Of course, many other countries were plundered as well.
Additionally, the British Empire was brutal. It perpetuated killings of many rebels, as well as innocent people, including women and children. Some of the worst atrocities committed by the British Empire are the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, the Mau Mau Uprising, and the Boer Concentration Camps. Yet this is just the beginning of a much longer list of atrocities carried out during the height of British colonialism.
I have been struggling with this a bit, but I think I have figured out why this attempt, especially among European institutions and those of European descent (with sizeable exceptions, however), has been and is currently being made in glorifying the British monarchy.
I must point out that this is in stark contrast to some of the other all-time largest monarchies, such as Mongol Empire, led by Genghis Khan, and the Japanese Imperial Monarchy, for example, which have been mostly vilified despite having shocking similarities to the British Empire.
In my opinion, the British monarchy, to many European institutions and people, represents perceived ascendancy of the Caucasian and Judeo-Christian race over others. In other words, this is a symptom of what I would call subliminal colonialism and white supremacy. The people from these groups seem to have a subconscious need, and even an overt one in some cases (Tucker Carlson of Fox News comes to mind!!!), to hang on to the jingoistic emotions that are apparently symbolized by the British Empire’s exploits and conquests.
In essence, the West, comprised mostly of Caucasian people, seems to have a vested interest in “white washing” the history with an explicit purpose of obliterating the ugly legacy of the British Monarchy. This was indeed evident in the “Operation Legacy,” (the name gives it away!!!) where British Officials compiled and destroyed any documents pertaining to the colonies that they did not wish to become public knowledge or be transferred to the colony when they became independent. It is no surprise that current textbooks in England, and in most of Europe, for the most part, do not mention the atrocities caused by the British Monarchy.
It should be clear to us that the subjugation of any group of people by the other is not something that could potentially advance humanity in the right direction. The ongoing war in Ukraine is the starkest, most recent and most topical reminder of this, while the British Monarchy is one of the oldest.
Her desirable personal attributes not withstanding, it is my opinion that Queen Elizabeth II squandered a large opportunity to contribute to the healing of the people around the world by not apologizing for the misdeeds of her ancestors.
Due to the Ukrainian conflict, we may be on the verge of a nuclear war, which was described, just today, as "unwinnable" by Joe Biden and Antony Blinken at the UN.
In my previous blog titled A Cosmic Paradigm for Peace and Prosperity - Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, Part 1, I argue that the ethos contained in the phrases “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” and “Sarvjan Hitaya, Sarvjan Sukhaya” should be the guiding principles for our family that is humanity. Once again, Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam translates to “the whole world is family” and Sarvjan Hitaya, Sarvjan Sukhaya translates to “welfare of all, happiness of all.” This is the timeless wisdom, embodied in The Manuals of the Cosmos™, that underlines and punctuates the cosmic forces moving humanity forward.
As a part of The Mahabharata, one of The Manuals of The Cosmos™, in the Book of Peace, the elderly character Bhishma, offers 36 characteristics of the ideal king, to the King Yudhishthira, while expounding upon RAJA DHARMA (meaning duty of rulers). These characteristics describe a monarch unlike any of those we have mentioned. Here are some examples:
They must be able to earn wealth without inflicting violence
They must be competent but must not speak harsh words
They should work in such a way that they do not hurt anyone
They should never award punishment without thorough inquiry
It should be mentioned that the word “king” as described in The Mahabharata could easily be ascribed to democratically elected world leaders of today.
Once again, the wisdoms, discussed in The Mahabharata, composed between 5000 and 6000 years ago, are clearly on a much higher moral and practical evolutionary plane than where humanity seems to be today. In this sense, the human civilization has been down a devolutionary path since the Vedic age!
Let us sincerely hope that our global family turns to the above-described eternal wisdom for the welfare of all.
And that’s all folks...
At least for now…
Until next time…
“We should take inspiration from the sun and work constantly for the benefit of mankind, so that peace and prosperity prevails everywhere.”
-Samaveda
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