By Madana-gopala Dasa
Beyond the Binary: Recovering Moral Clarity in a Divided World
When I wrote recently that the “No Kings” protests revealed the soul’s longing for genuine, caring leaders, for the spirit of Lord Rāma rather than another self-serving ruler, some readers accused me of being “too liberal.” Others said that if I spoke about the sacredness of unborn life, I would be branded as a “religious conservative.” It seems that in much of today’s world, nuance and independent thought have become acts of rebellion.
If there is one disease spreading faster than any virus, it is binary thinking, the tendency to divide everything into “for” or “against,” “our side” or “their side.” Every opinion, every moral question, and even every person, is forced into a simplistic ideological box.
This is not confined to one nation. Across the world, the same pattern repeats: complex moral and cultural questions are flattened into political slogans. In the United States, everything from climate policy to education is seen through partisan eyes. In Europe, debates about migration and national identity split societies between those who see themselves as “cosmopolitan progressives” and those branded “reactionary nationalists.” In the United Kingdom, the Brexit years hardened lines between “leavers” and “remainers,” with little space left for shared belonging. In India, spiritual and cultural issues are often painted in extremes, as “traditionalist” versus “secular,” rather than as opportunities for sincere dialogue about dharma and modern life. In East Asia, public life often oscillates between economic pragmatism and moral conformity, while in Australia, conversations about indigenous rights or environmental stewardship are too often reduced to left-right culture wars.
Wherever we look, the ability to hold a layered, balanced understanding, to see with both head and heart, is vanishing.
Read more: https://iskconnews.org/opinion-the-perils-of-binary-thinking-rediscovering-moral-clarity-beyond-partisan-politics/
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