67. The modern slave

The audio recoding is available at https://youtu.be/SQ-kxttfHlo.

In understanding our life and, through it, our transcendent existence, the question is not only how we understand the world within us, but also how deeply we understand it. How close to the One? The so-called modern science, the various philosophical schools, and the equality-driven system called democracy have contributed significantly making the man to see only the surface, leaving the deeper meaning of things hidden. Religion has also played a part in this concealment, as the Christian religion’s view of depth has gradually been lost to humanity, and in fact, it was humanity that became lost to Christianity. This is the transcendental blindness of our time. The sad truth is that because of religion's surface-level, humanist, and celebrating nature, it has given up the man. Despite this, religious people cling to the appearance of things, which is the kind of Pharisaic behaviour against which our Initiation Master always fought—see the expulsion of the money changers from the temple. 

Today, the consumer mass-man, the tax-paying citizen, is a piece of human material, a statistical individual, who is minimally counted every time there is an election campaign, but otherwise not at all. The modern slave, proudly carrying his ID card, and working in glass towers and office buildings, is unaware that his slavery means social exclusion. Slavery is not made by his circumstances, but by the fact that he has given up his unity with the One, and now behaves as a slave, knowing nothing but to serve. Among the slaves, the singles form a distinct caste: they meet up, enjoy parties, irresponsibly travel the world as tourists, feel good, and have no intention of marrying or becoming fathers. They think they still have time, maybe until they’re fourthy, or even fifty. But by then, they have become so accustomed to their solitary comfort, their materialistic religion, and their partying lifestyle, that neither the husband nor the wife wants to take on a child, as they call it, "a burden." They forget that at one time, they themselves were that "burden" to their parents. This too is one peak of selfish Pharisee behaviour, where order is broken. 

But what is the life of the modern urban slave today? For example:

5:30 AM: Wakes up, checks his mobile phone to see if any messages have arrived overnight, perhaps from the multinational company he works for, about any tasks that need to be completed. He turns on his computer and checks his inbox. He makes his coffee.

6:00 AM: Returns to his computer to check the stock market news and the value of his shares. He tries to decide which of his stocks to sell or which to buy.

6:20 AM: Drives to work, aiming to do his morning workout in the corporate gym. It’s no longer fashionable, like in his father’s time, to jump ditches, climb ropes, lift railway tracks, or swim underwater. Instead, there are the treadmill and the weights. He just has to move them on.

7:55 AM: Takes out his access card and, as a fresh and fit employee, enters the multinational company building.

8:30 AM: Attends the first meeting of the day, where the topic is how much coffee or tea to drink and where in the office building it is allowed to smoke. Some participants in the meeting believe that because these products are imported, a true Hungarian patriot should avoid consuming them. Other members of the group, however, argue that the state imposes high taxes on these goods and wants to keep control of their sales through national tobacco shops, thus generating revenue for the state. Therefore, the good patriot drinks coffee and tea and smokes heavily when possible. Since no clear decision is made during the meeting, the topic will be referred to the management for final resolution.

2:30 PM: Is called to a second meeting, where a decision needs to be made about raising the prices of certain company products. The participants unanimously accept the management’s proposal to increase the prices of these products by 8%, thus demonstrating their loyalty to the leadership in fulfilling the revenue target set for the end of the year. During the meeting, he checks stock market information on his mobile phone.

4:20 PM: Attends a company training on new tax and payroll regulations that will be implemented starting next year. The speaker mentions that due to changes in the legal environment, layoffs are expected in the company.

5:30 PM: Takes out his access card, scans it before leaving the office building. On his way home, he stops by the insurance company to pay his accident and life insurance, as well as insurance for his apartment covering burglary, fire, and hail damage. He has to do this now because tomorrow he is going out with friends to party, and then to a car race. He only has one afternoon left this week for a company-sponsored excursion. On the way home, he does his regular shopping at the grocery store.

6:00 PM: Arrives home, just as his girlfriend does. They have a coffee and talk about the events of the day at work. To unwind from the day’s fatigue, they take the dog for a walk in the nearby park, where they meet a neighbour walking his children. The weather has turned cooler, and at his girlfriend’s suggestion, they decide to go to the cinema. At the ticket office, they buy tickets for tomorrow’s rock concert.

7:30 PM: Watches the TV news, where Fundamenta Savings Bank announces a discounted 6% state-subsidized loan for new apartments. After some quick calculations, he decides to change his current apartment for a larger one, so he quickly checks the loan details online. He thinks, “I’ll decorate my new apartment with reproductions from the nearby plaza.” While his girlfriend takes a bath, he checks the stock market again. He tries to decide which stock to sell or which to buy and checks his company email. He briefly responds to the urgent emails.

9:30 PM: Goes to bed, but since he has exams next week in finance and marketing, he pulls out his course material and reads through it, trying to memorize the data from the charts and graphs. He’s 40 years old now. 

Tomorrow, he’ll start again.