All for Money

Dr. Shobha Diwakar, Rtd. HOD of English, C. P. Mahila Mahavidhyalaya, Jabalpur M.P.

It’s a world crowded with fortune hunters
There is no limit to the greed
That poisons them to kill
Material wealth lines their pockets.
There is no dearth of things
They cannot buy, or roam the world,
Their moral values are blown with the wind
“What does wealth give them?” I ask myself
“Except the luxuries of life”
But … no mental peace.
Brothers and sisters
No longer share love and affection;
Property matters more
Parents are dumped aside 
Even as they survive the winds of change,
Their adorned life of yesteryears
Is now confined to some
Far away, corner of the house
Or ... an old age home
Material gains block and blind
The youth’s conscience
“Who is to blame?” I contemplate
“This global world,”
“The lust for power and prestige,”
“Loss of moral values,”
“Loss of respect for elders”
“The urge to become rich without struggle,”
I realize with dismay the causes are very many.
The spirit of adventure and the urge for lighter
Years ahead without struggling
Have marred healthy thinking;
People are killing
For earthy possessions;
They are blinded by flashy ads
And lured by bottled sprays
With filthy display of the human body;
There is no end to amassing wealth
For ulterior motives
This “I” has killed relationships.
“What a weird world we live in,”
Who is responsible?
The immoral concepts of life,
The foul environment of conceit,
Power and prestige,
Students’ elections;
Where rivals are fearlessly abused
The growing gap between the rich and the poor,
The skyrocketing price hikes… and unemployment,
The expanding material world,
The loopholes of law and justice
That drags cases for unending years
The young immature, mature mind
That is caught in this bushy, mushy cobweb;
The list is endless.
This Mahabharata for power must end.
The Ramayana of philosophical truths
Must be cultivated from infancy,
The growth of a healthy mind in a healthy body
Must adorn life
Evil must end
Krishna must awake
The dead conscience of man;
The battle between good and evil
Must pave the way to righteousness.

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