Respect

Respect is a value, isn't it? Oxford defines the word in the noun form as "a feeling of deep admiration for someone or something elicited by their abilities, qualities, or achievements.". Elicited is a word I had no clue about until now, so I googled it. It means "evoke or draw out (a reaction, answer, or fact) from". Or in simple language, respect is a feeling of deep admiration for someone or something, which has been caused by their abilities, qualities or achievements. Why do people need to be respected? Is that a sense of false belief? Hasn't society created the need for someone to crave for respect? I've heard of people commit atrocities due to fear of losing respect. So how did this whole agenda come into place? Probably our ancestors were smart enough to understand that unless a hierarchy is built, there is absolutely no way to keep control over other human beings. I've often heard people comparing humans to animals in a demeaning manner. Don't animals deserve the respect they've acquired? They've also come a long way in this journey since when the universe originated. They've adapted to change as well. Probably in their brains, due to the lack of communication skills and thinking power, they haven't been able to evolve as much as us. But in their own manner, they have adapted and strive to live alongside us. Obviously respect is a man-made word. Probably created by notorious rulers who wished to sustain themselves by controlling naive citizens who were blind enough to see the bigger picture. And as generations passed, this became normal. One of my friends while studying in studying in South Africa once refered to white people as normal people. It was a casual conversation where the delicate topic of racism came up, but we had a good laugh, were I scared him asking if Indians weren't normal. Why did I talk about racism now? What does racism have to do with respect? Well, there's always been this false sense of inferiority especially when race is involved. I have noticed people who have a darker skin colour have some sort of childhood truma because of the fact that they have been abused or bullied in some way or the other by the lighter skinned counterparts. How smart you are doesn't really matter if you look good. Ridiculous, don't you think? Rather than people who look good, shouldn't respect be given to people who can think and create a better future for the rest of their counterparts? Rulers, law makers, companies all work under a form of hierarchy where respect is given to popular people, especially politicians. Why hasn't society created a democracy where each and every aspect that is an issue of the public or a certain community should be put to vote? That sort of system did exist actually, Panchayats. It was a very efficient system respecting the needs of everyone in the community. I think it is still followed in rural parts of Tamil Nadu. Hope everyone understands the true value of respect and strive towards sustainability.