Exploitation.

Years ago ,I had read an article by Bunker Roy, that the more educated we are,the more, we tend to exploit the other lesser mortals.

I am narrating a story now-a present day tale which will raise doubts as to who is exploiting whom ?There is a man who is physically challenged. He is married to a village girl for obvious reasons.His elder brothers-two of them are married to two sisters who are from town & from families who are better off as against the family of the village girl.The in-laws stay with the physically challenged man & wife.The family is fine as time passes & he fathers two sons.But the wife feels inferior or maybe thinks that she has been cheated & starts raising her voice.This leads to frequent arguments in the house & later to physical violence.Finally,the two separate & an alimony of a pittance of five lakhs is paid & the wife goes back home to her village.A part of the deal, is that, the sons will stay with the father & grandparents.So now,in this case who is exploited ? The man or the wife ? What about the kids ? Also,the grandmother is now constantly on her toes taking care of the kids-they have just started going to school.One solution suggested, would be, to send the boys to a hostel from where they complete their education.But the father though working in a bank is not earning so well that he can support an expensive education for them.

In all this,who is to be blamed-the inlaws,the parents of the village woman as they thought an alimony in lakhs would somehow alleviate their poverty? But where does all this leave the kids ? They have to spend their entire life without their mother for no fault of theirs.Did the brothers who got married to the two sisters do nothing to save their brother's marriage ? Moreover,why was a simple village girl chosen for him -so that she would accept everything & not protest ? In such situations,it is indeed difficult, to point fingers & say that one person is at fault.
But such situations,make us understand that we all are perpetually exploiting one another -consciously as also unconsciously.An office acquaintance -between a woman & a man though starts off as a friendship goes on to become a torrid affair.Many times,the man may be blamed for exploiting the woman for seeking sexual favours but sometimes the woman is also game to it whereby, she also is seeking a promotion or maybe she just wants to have fun.But in today's age,the morals of yesterday no longer hold good.But still,the bottom line, must be, not to seek pleasure at the cost of causing pain to others.This is because, if we are cruel to others because they behaved that way ,then there is no difference between them & us.

Sometimes,it is, for our own selfish needs & at other times, for satisfying our egos.We have all behaved as sadists in many situations in our life-causing untold pain,grief & misery to others which in turn comes back to haunt us.

Perhaps,this will end, only, if, we try to be less & less egoistic & think about the pain we will inflict on others as also the consequences of our actions.