It is supportive to read something that reflects your own thoughts, especially when those thoughts are not widely discussed. I felt exactly this way when, driven by a desire to better understand the link between mental illness and human morality, I began re-reading Dr. M. Scott Peck’s book, People of the Lie.
“Laymen are inclined to think that people who go to a psychiatrist are ‘pathological’ cases, that there is something fundamentally different about them from ordinary people. This is not so. It may not please you, but psychiatrists find no less psychopathology at cocktail parties, conferences, and in large corporations than in their own offices. I do not mean to say there is no difference between people who visit a psychiatrist and those who do not, but the differences are subtle and not infrequently put the ‘normal’ in a more unfavorable light.”
— M. Scott Peck, People of the Lie
One does not need to attend a cocktail party to see the extent of psychopathology outside the psychotherapist’s office. It is visible in key government positions and high administrative posts—in politics and in business; among corporate CEOs and members of parliament. In this case, we are not even talking about average levels of mental health, which by rule contain many beliefs incompatible with healthy criteria. We are talking about low levels of mental health among a significant number of people holding high positions of power in society.
When it is said that “society is sick,” what I hear is that behind people with a sick ambition for power stand more people who vote for them; that beneath those with sick ambitions are even more people who listen to them. This results in governance not led by a goal of care and service to the people, but the exact opposite—where people serve the interests of those who rule them. This signifies a lack of responsibility, maturity, wisdom, awareness, creativity, transparency, openness, concern, respect, and justice. These values are the fundamental criteria for mental health, regardless of whether we are speaking of individuals, families, or groups.
To me, this is not criticism; it is a diagnosis. I do not like criticism, especially the kind that leads to feelings of fear and helplessness. A diagnosis, however, is different. If it is correct, it leads to the prescription of a treatment. With a diagnosis, there is a chance for a cure.
“Satyagraha” – Non-cooperation with Injustice
If the diagnosis is a “sick society,” here is the prescription for healing. We can call it “Satyagraha,” following the philosophy and life’s work of Mahatma Gandhi. It is based on the following attitude:
“I will not use violence against you. If you act unjustly, I will not oppose you with violence, but with the force of truth—the integrity of my beliefs. My integrity finds expression in my will to suffer, to expose myself to danger, to go to prison, even to die if necessary. But I will not cooperate with injustice. As you see my will, as you feel my compassion and my sensitivity to your needs, you will respond in ways that I could never provoke through threats, bargaining, pleas, or physical force. Together we will be able to resolve the problem. Because it is our adversary, not we, one to the other.”
Satyagraha is the power of a minority to change the majority. It is the power of soul-effort, not physical violence. It is the paradoxical combination of the values of “fervent autonomy” and “complete compassion.”
“It is a superstition and an ungodliness to believe that an act of a majority can bind a minority. Many examples can be given… Quality, not number, is what matters… I do not consider the power of numbers necessary when a cause is just.” — Mahatma Gandhi
The Good News – In the End, You Win
This is the good news. Though it is less present in the television news, to me it is truly important: the number of people deciding to embark on the narrow and steep path of their spiritual and personal development is growing. I witness this constantly. To them, and to those I do not personally know, I want to say that they have every chance of victory.
These are people who possess the “will to suffer” and therefore make the efforts and take the risks that inevitably accompany the decision “not to cooperate with injustice.” Regardless of where their path of self-discovery leads—through spiritual practices or reading books, through participation in psychological seminars or psychotherapy—they are the modern heroes who change the world by starting the change within themselves.
“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, and then you win.” — Mahatma Gandhi
It is good not to adapt to what is sick. It is good not to fear evil. And it is even better if we succeed in changing it through the power of Satyagraha—the power to influence not from a position of authority, but through the courage and compassion of our hearts.
Kameliya Hadzhiyska
