The Speaking Tree | 1st Dec. 2011

If an engine driver is to set his locomotive in motion, he has to stand before the fire and endure it in fierce heat. This huge and complex machine, built up of so many parts,will remain immobile unless he is prepared to do so. The same goes for society.It will not function unless the individuals who have to make all its parts work are prepared to sacrifice something of their own and are ready to endure difficulties, if not actual hardship. And just as all the moving parts of a locomotive have to be kept regularly oiled, if they are not to be worn out with friction,thus bringing the machinery to a standstill, so tolerance must be a feature of society, if it is to function as a harmonious whole. Tolerance is the oil which will let the wheels go round. There can be no teamwork without it.

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When people work together in groups, it is inevitable that there should be disagreements and that complaints should be voiced. However well-intentioned the individuals concerned may be, such negative feelings are bound to surface sooner or later.How is it possible then to work together in harmony? There is only one way, and that is to make a considered decision, to remain united in the face of disagreement. It is a question of individuals being conscious of the necessity for harmony, and willing themselves to take complaints in their stride and to start the process of self-examination, if the grounds for complaint have any validity in even the smallest measure. This is not asking for the impossible.Who does not do exactly this in his family life as a matter of good sense and practicality? When family members are living in close proximity, grievances do arise and tempers often flare up. But family cohesion is not destroyed because of this, for blood relationships prevent such feelings from getting out ofhand. Grievances are swept away by mutual love, and tempers are cooled by words of regard and affection. And so the unity of the family remains intact. The home, indeed, is a microcosm of social existence. It provides a day-to-dayworking model of social harmony unflawed by grievances or disagreement.

The feelings of love which cement family life can be brought into being in social life through conscious deliberations. Unity can spring from a human awakening to its ultimate necessity.

Where family life is governed by the heart, social life is governed by the will. There is nothing that cannot be endured for the sake of unity, provided there is the will to achieve it.