On Contradictions in a Developing Society

Amlan Datta A PERIOD of rapid social and economic changes is not a golden age. It is more likely to be a time of discord and suffering. The typical individual loses in this period what he needs as an essential pre-condition of happiness, viz, a secure sense of his own identity. In our traditional society with its caste system the individual knew where exactly he belonged. He knew whom to obey and whom to command, what exactly his rights and duties were, what he owed others and what were his dues. He knew his exact situation in society and he also knew, in his own way, how his society was related to God's great universe.