Democracy is not a Spectator Sport | Sadhguru

Founder of the Lok Satta Party, Jayaprakash Narayan, asks Sadhguru how India should deal with its corrupt politicians. Sadhguru reminds us that democracy is not a spectator sport, and only when citizens get involved with governance can corruption be eliminated. He looks at why democracy is still in a fledgling state in India, and how the country has not been educated about the fundamentals of democracy.

Yogi, mystic and visionary, Sadhguru is a spiritual master with a difference. An arresting blend of profundity and pragmatism, his life and work serves as a reminder that yoga is a contemporary science, vitally relevant to our times.

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Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan: Sadhguru, before we go into the issue of politics and corruption,

because all of us love to hate politicians.

Sadhguru: I I wouldnt allow that

because its become a fashion and a fad

and almost a compulsion

that wherever you go,

people are talking politics

how horrible the politicians are

whether they know about it or they dont know about it

from a tea shop, to an office and wherever else it's happening.

If you are a responsible citizen,

what democracy means is,

it is the peoples government.

These politicians did not land from the sky.

Theyre one among you, who stood up to do something.

Now for whatever reasons, theyve become the way theyve become.

You do not know how many have become like that,

how many not.

Were generalizing because we have a certain pleasure

in painting everything very bleak and black.

If your nation is important for you

and if you believe that you have handed over your nation to a bunch of crooks

and youre sitting here and it's entertainment for you,

I think it is you who need to be punished, not the corrupt. (Applause)

Because democracy cannot be a spectator sport,

it is a participatory process.

If I say participatory,

most peoples understanding of this is,

if I come out once in five years and vote,

my responsibility is over.

No,

democracy has various instruments through which you can participate

on a daily basis in the governance of your country,

your state,

your city

and your street.

There are various mechanisms.

Oh, I dont know.

Why you dont know?

Because youve not cared, isnt it?

Why you have not educated yourself to know

is you have not cared

because the idea of the nation has not gone deep enough in this country.

Still, our identifications with our religions,

our caste, our creed, our family is more predominant

than the identity of the nation.

This is the reason why these things are happening.

So democracy in India is still in an evolutionary state,

needs lot more evolution

and nobody has done to educate people

as to what is democracy.

Not enough work has been done.

It has not been brought into our education systems.

Social organizations,

the government itself should have taken it up in a big way to educate people,

why democracy.

See, the moment we vote for our religion,

or caste or creed or even family,

if you vote, there is no democracy anymore.

There is only feudalism, isnt it? (Applause)

Democracy will be a functional democracy,

only when

you go and vote and you dont know who your wife voted for,

who your husband voted for

and you dont want to know.

Only if you have this kind of integrity,

democracy will work.

You tell your whole family,

You vote for this person

this is not democracy, it's finished.

Im saying that has not been understood at all.