Who says human nature has changed with the lapse of eras. If the developments around the South China Sea are any indication, nothing seems to have changed from the way humans behaved in the prehistoric times. Recall the ceremony of horse sacrifice in the Vedic Ages, of which those of us familiar with the two Hindu epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana would have some idea of. There is much more to this ritual of Ashvamedha Yajna, even pertaining to a primitive fertility ritual, but for the purpose of illustrating the postulate we are making here, another part of this same ritual is all that is necessary. In this Yajna, a white stallion is released by a king who wishes to demonstrate the extent of his influence and territory, and allowed to roam free for months. Stopping the horse even when it enters the territories of other rulers would be treated as a challenge to the king and any person or persons who have dared do this would have to deal with the king. Recall the story of how Rama fought and was defeated by his exiled twin sons, Luva and Kusha when the king`™s sacred stallion was stopped by the two boys. In like manner in the Mahabharata too, Arjuna`™s son Babruvahana, born of Chittrangada, one of Arjuna`™s many wives spread over the sub-continent, stopped his father`™s Yajna horse and ultimately killed his father in battle without knowing who he was. As to what became of these stories or what saved the situations are another matter.
What is noteworthy here is the drama unfolding in the South China Sea is very similar in theme and content to these ancient accounts of contests of power. The US has been using the seas and air in this region unchallenged, even though these are in the backyards of many sovereign nations. Then one fine day, its ships and planes sailing and flying over these seas are challenged by an emerging superpower `“ China. The last words have not been said yet, but the tension is currently palpable. China, in a recent White Paper of its military policy, clearly stated its intent of not restricting its power hold to just land, which was historically the focus of its Imperial outlook, and to instead go ahead and spread its influence far into the blue waters. It has accordingly begun claiming islands far into the South China Sea as its own, although many of them are in the vicinity of other smaller nations, escalating tension in the region. International headlines initially were dominated by its standoff with Japan on the ownership of the uninhabited Senkaku/Daiyu islet. And now the headlines have shifted to it is dredging and filling of the Spratly group of partially submerged reefs and islets about 950 km off its shores, to ostensibly build an airstrip over them. This has not only been met with resistance and apprehension by other smaller South East Asian nations such as Philippines and Vietnam, but also put China on a confrontational path with the USA which has used these waters and airspace as if they were its own all along though thousands of miles away from its own mainland. Many even predict open war over the issue, and at best a new Cold War. But in the inscrutable world of international diplomacy, what ultimately becomes of this faceoff still remains to be seen.
There are of course many implications of what is developing in the South China Sea, consequent upon the rise of China as a new superpower to break the sway of the US in a world which has since the fall of the USSR become mono-polar. It has serious implications for India too, calling for a need for it to readjust its political alignments. Indeed, it does seem China`™s dramatic rise in the past three or four decades is already beginning to shake up the world order in a big way. The Ashwameda Yajna vessels and planes of the US, and for that matter all else who have been using these waters and air spaces, are now being challenged by China. The question is what next. What is also of interest is our initial postulate. Humans have been territorial always, and perhaps it is another basic instinct. The horse sacrifice rituals of ancient times, and the contest for power these rituals signified, are still being played out today rather dramatically, and we must add, dangerously.
Leader Writer: Pradip Phanjoubam