Understanding the psyche of a nation

Supongnukshi [dropcap]E[/dropcap]pidemics” as they say leaves a trial of destruction in its path. Here I am talking about the epidemic outbreak of rape and murder that is slowly creeping into the psyche of our people. 10 years back, incidences of a rape or murder straddled one and all, as such incidences were hardly heard of and probably we were more sensitive and less exposed collectively, towards such sinister acts. Over the years there seems to be a gradual erosion of our moral guard, making us less immune to the invasion of our minds. As Sir Cliff Richards, the noted musician sang- “ We are under the influence of somebody all of the time”, I feel we are definitely being influenced in a destructive way, whereby proliferation of demographic invaders manifests into ugly acts, as such characteristic behaviours rubs on.An individuals’ character is the sum total of his/her innate quality born with and the environment brought up in. As a Naga, we all have our Naganess in us and wherever we go, we carry that characteristic identity with us even if one settles in another country. In the same trend, immigrants settled in our state stays with us, habituated with their characteristic identity and practices. I once overheard the narration of an immigrant labour stating the state of affairs back in their country, to my uncle. He had brought along his family to Nagaland and had been working as a mason for a few years. With the money he earned in Nagaland, he had bought enough lands in his village but had no intention of going back there since there is too much killings and murders. People brought up in such a society cannot be expected to live like angels after migrating to our state. These external influences had been slowly seeping into the subconscious mind of our people, unaware of the changes that is bringing about eventually. Biologically speaking, there is always a competition amongst the different species and individuals whether in the plant kingdom or the animal kingdom, for survival. This universal law is called the survival of the fittest. We are inhabitants of our land and are of lesser threat to each other for survival. As it is an inbuilt mechanism amongst the species to survive and procreate, any invading species lie at a disadvantageous position, unless the odds are doubled. And these behavioural instinct calls for committing any act, throwing aside morality for survival. Close association of people leads to more interaction and cohabitation chances increases. This leads to intermarriages and intermixing with other tribes, castes, race etc. Controlling natural instincts like emotions and urges of different nature becomes a challenge to many when we are constantly in contact. Hence, slow amalgamation of demography proceeds, leading to a situation where one cannot separate the chaff from the grains. The government of the day alone cannot be an effective agent against such issues. It needs a greater involvement of all the civil societies, if we are to bring about a stop to the influx of the immigrants.