"Material progress is meaningless if it does not go hand in hand with moral and spiritual progress." Comment.

The word 'progress' generally unfolds before our mind's eye worldly achievements in terms of money, prosperity, physical comforts and amenities. Worldly achievements constitute our material progress. Usually every one of us aims at material progress - economic prosperity, professional success and more money accruing from it, etc. But is it enough that we achieve only material progress? Has material progress any meaning if it is not accompanied by our moral and spiritual progress?

Most of us crave for progress and work for it. But the kind of progress that we work for is only material progress and worldly success. We are over-enthusiastic about repeating spiritual slogans and doctrines, but are not keen on practising them. We pray to God, not for spiritual regeneration, but for worldly success. We are like Claudius in Hamlet; our souls remain below; our words go up. Our feet are on the rungs of the ladder of worldly success with our eyes turned upwards and with our mouths watering for the bunches of ripe grapes. Actually, our religious protestations, prayers and practices are only a means to an end; we seek God's intervention to help us in our worldly success - in our material progress. We do not pray for the betterment of our souls. We are down- right hypocrites even when we pray. We do not pause even for a moment and ask ourselves: "What does it matter if we gain the whole world but lose our souls?"

Material progress alone is not enough; it should go hand in hand with spiritual progress. Then only can we become developed, well-integrated individuals. As Carl Jung says: "Out of the fullness of life shall you bring forth your religion: only then will you be blessed."

It is not that material progress is not at all necessary; it is not that we should take to asceticism, austerity and poverty, and live like sages. We should achieve material progress; we should enjoy the fruits of science; affluence and prosperity should be achieved, and we should work for prosperity. But prosperity should not blind us to 'the fruit of the spirit'. Our prosperity should help us evolve ourselves into spiritually mature persons.
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