Whether acknowledged or ignored, interdependence lies at the heart of existence; life thrives not in isolation, but in interconnectedness. Yet, history is rife with conflict — a result of ego, domination, and the failure to honour this fundamental truth

Whether one accepts it or not, one needs each other. Interdependency is the essence of life. The sooner one realises this, the more effective one’s range is. Goodwill for each other is needed not just for the other person but for oneself.

Life itself begins with interdependency when the infant needs the mother and then the father, not only to feed oneself but also to be free from disease, ill health, and more. As one changes because of changes in age, life, and status, the nature of interdependency changes, but dependencies continue. In such a scenario, the scope for arrogance and self-adulation can have little or no space.

It is unrealistic and impractical. Humility, therefore, becomes the key. Humility is only partly modesty. Essentially, it is a realisation of interdependency that is a hallmark of maturity. This is the core of the existence of living creatures, living beings. Many schools of philosophy across the world have expounded on this.

This approach is true for all living entities and not just human beings. It applies to non-living entities too. Water needs land, and land needs water. Together, they give life to living entities of plants, trees, and more, which in turn bear fruit for living beings. Clearly, interdependence is the key. Together with interdependency is a sense of the requirement of modesty, proportion, and respect for the other entity’s needs. Unfortunately, this simple truth is not recognised sufficiently in operation, and some entities destroy another entity’s existence in the interest of so-called self-preservation.

 A reaction can and does set in. This is a dilemma that is yet to be resolved. Empathy may provide a route to it.Therefore, one of the crucial questions of life is: where does interdependency recede, and the dominant takeover to establish their hegemony?

Attempts at hegemony can and do meet with a reaction sooner or later. This is the origin of war and the struggle for dominance takes on a violent shape. It is not surprising, therefore, that the story of different parts of the planet is dotted with anecdotes of wars, violence, and worse. If the theory of inter-dependencies is so obvious — which indeed it is — why does it escape attention? Philosophers have dilated upon this from the hoary past in Asia to the more recent past from the Renaissance onwards in the West.

The Chinese, the Indian, and subsequently the European thinkers have done their bit to plough the theme of inter-dependency, but no one has been able to convert this into practical terms for everyone’s welfare and everyone’s growth. There is a Sanskrit dictum to the effect ‘Sarve bhavantu sukhinah; sarve bhavantu niramaya’ (freely translated, it means: May all become satiated, may all become without attachment).

This too has often remained a distant ideal, and people do get attached, and people do identify with things material and otherwise. ‘This is mine and that is thine’ is a driving philosophy.

This has the roots of much conflict at many levels. This includes, as explained, conflict at an interpersonal level, group level, and at a larger social level, leading to wars and more.

Many people talk of wars and conflicts as not helping in solving problems, but they still indulge in wars or conflicts and worse. The tendency for domination overtakes the feeling of co-existence. To possess more than one’s share becomes a need for many. The pursuit of this need overtakes the pursuit of co-existence. The feeling and the realisation that whether one likes it or not, one needs each other, becomes a distant dream.

This planet is divided into races, colours, religions, and other distinctive categories. These constitute groups and periodically one or the other tries to dominate. It may not be fantasy to say that the history of this planet is also the history of wars.

Since time immemorial, groups have coalesced with weaponry and more to dominate other groups.

Dominating other groups has also become the route to access to resources and, therefore, greater physical comfort and material prosperity.

The matter does not stop there. Access to more resources leads to a desire for even more: not just resources but also comforts. This is then converted into more luxurious living, more luxurious housing, palaces, and luxury haunts.

Perhaps reversing this is a time-consuming and foundational effort. Many saints and philosophers have tried to do so by talking about peace, goodwill, and more. That movement is equally strong, and the names of many philosophers, thinkers, and enunciators come to mind.

The names of Buddha, Confucius, Moses, and others are but a few among literally dozens and hundreds of leading thinkers who would have preached the route and practice of peace and mutual goodwill. Thus, it is the interdependency and conflict that seem to run on parallel lines. Sometimes one seems to have the upper hand; sometimes the other.

Be that as it may, the history of the planet runs between co-existence and conflict. It is for the sake of the sanity of the species and the race that one must support the forces of coexistence and interdependence. This alone will bring to the fore and perpetuate the achievements of the race which dominates this planet. Being ‘human’ is perhaps the biggest achievement of it all.

(The writer is a well-known management consultant of international repute. Views are personal)