Whenever Righteousness Declines, the Destruction of Evil Becomes Necessary
Dussehra Is Not Merely a Festival of Burning Ravana’s Effigy; It Is a Pledge to Eliminate the Evils Within Ourselves
The Message of the Bhagavad Gita
In Chapter 4, Verses 7 and 8 of the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna says:
यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य ग्लानिर्भवति भारत।
अभ्युत्थानमधर्मस्य तदात्मानं सृजाम्यहम्॥ 4.7॥
परित्राणाय साधूनां विनाशाय च दुष्कृताम्।
धर्मसंस्थापनार्थाय सम्भवामि युगे युगे॥ 4.8॥
English Translation:
“Whenever there is a decline in righteousness, O Bharata, and a rise in unrighteousness, I manifest Myself.
For the protection of the virtuous, the destruction of evildoers, and the re-establishment of righteousness, I appear from age to age.”
— Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 4, Verses 7–8
The message of these verses is not limited to religious faith alone. It also inspires us to stand against injustice, uphold the truth, and establish justice and moral values in society.
What Does the Battle Between Lord Shri Ram and Ravana Teach Us?
The battle between Lord Shri Ram and Ravana is regarded as a symbol of the struggle between righteousness and unrighteousness.
Vijayadashami, popularly known as Dussehra, reminds us that no matter how powerful arrogance, injustice, oppression, or evil may become, they must ultimately be overcome.
The victory of Lord Shri Ram teaches us to follow the path of truth, dignity, compassion, duty, and justice in our lives. The downfall of Ravana teaches us that despite possessing knowledge, power, and wealth, a person who chooses arrogance, injustice, and immorality ultimately faces destruction.
The true meaning of Dharma is not limited to worship, visiting temples, or following religious traditions. Its real essence is reflected in our conduct, our thoughts, and the way we treat others.
Dharma teaches us to feed the hungry, help those in need, support the poor and vulnerable, and refrain from committing injustice against anyone. It also inspires us to raise our voices against oppression and injustice to the best of our abilities.
Dharma teaches us to respect our parents, fulfil our responsibilities towards our brothers and sisters, maintain good relations with our neighbours, and understand our duties towards society.
It also teaches us to earn an honest living through hard work, provide for our families, care about our children’s education and future, and never deprive others of what rightfully belongs to them.
In contrast, the path of Adharma leads towards lies, deceit, arrogance, violence, oppression, exploitation, the killing of innocent people, and the violation of others’ rights.
Dharma teaches us to build bonds between human beings, whereas Adharma destroys these relationships through hatred and injustice.
What Is the Real Purpose of Dussehra?
Every year, we burn Ravana’s effigy on Dussehra. However, we must also ask ourselves an important question: Have we eliminated the Ravana within ourselves?
Have we conquered our arrogance, anger, greed, jealousy, hatred, and tendency to commit injustice?
Do we feed the hungry? Do we help those in need? Do we fulfil our responsibilities towards our parents? Do we stand by our neighbours in times of happiness and sorrow? Do we support the weak and the oppressed?
Only when these questions inspire positive changes within us does the message of Dussehra become meaningful in our lives.
Burning Ravana’s effigy is a tradition, but burning away the arrogance, injustice, and hatred within ourselves should be our true commitment in life.
The path of Dharma does not teach us to hate others; it teaches us to oppose evil. Disagreeing with someone does not give us the right to treat that person unjustly. True Dharma inspires us to act fairly, even towards those who oppose us.
Humanity demands that we feed the hungry, provide water to the thirsty, support the helpless, and try to bring smiles to the faces of those who are suffering.
When helping someone in need, we should look at their circumstances and needs rather than their religion, caste, language, or community.
This is humanity. This is compassion. This is the foundation of social harmony.
Let Us Make These Pledges This Dussehra
Let us follow the path of truth and honesty in our lives.
Let us refrain from hatred based on religion, caste, language, or community.
Let us raise our voices against oppression, exploitation, and injustice.
Let us strive to provide food to the hungry, assistance to those in need, and support to the vulnerable.
Let us fulfil our responsibilities towards our parents, siblings, neighbours, and families.
Let us earn through hard work and honesty, provide for our families, and never deprive others of their rightful share.
Let us strive to raise our children not only to be educated but also to become compassionate, responsible, and good human beings.
Let us make festivals a means of promoting love, mutual respect, brotherhood, and communal harmony.
The Final Message
Dharma is not merely what we speak; it is what we demonstrate through our actions.
Dharma does not teach us to hate others. It shows us the path of humanity, compassion, and love.
Standing against Adharma does not simply mean criticising wrongdoing; it also means establishing goodness through our own conduct.
The victory of Lord Shri Ram inspires us to embrace truth, justice, compassion, love, and moral integrity in our lives.
This Dussehra, let us not merely burn Ravana’s effigy. Let us also pledge to eliminate the arrogance, hatred, greed, and injustice within ourselves.
For the day humanity awakens within us, the day the hungry receive food, the vulnerable receive justice, and people stand beside one another through happiness and sorrow, will be a day when we take a meaningful step towards fulfilling the true purpose of Dharma.
Warm Wishes on Vijayadashami!
May truth prevail over falsehood, righteousness over unrighteousness, love over hatred, and humanity over cruelty.
Jai Shri Ram!
Long Live Humanity!
Long Live Brotherhood!
Long Live Love and Compassion!
— Shabu Zaidi