One question doing the rounds in both scientific as well as general circles is whether scientists are beginning to play God. The answer is not an easy one. Very often in life, good comes out of what at first seems an evil and vice versa.
To explore the powers and potentialities of matter and life, to discover the powers of the human mind that are now asleep is all very well, provided the search or the utilisation of these powers does not stop there and they are not put at the disposal of forces whose sole agenda is an egoistic expansion of life and the forced submission of the earth to hidden greed and desires. For whatever powers man may wrest from Nature by force and whatever knowledge he may acquire through his skill and technology, he cannot play God. What man is doing now has been done and perfected by Nature for millions of years. And what God and Nature intend to give to man in the future is sealed to our human eyes. Even when we appear to command Nature, we are still her slave. Even when she places some of her powers at our disposal by playing through our bodies and hands and brains, she still holds us captive by the very same powers that she seems to have granted to abet our freedom! She lures us from chamber to chamber in her vast mansion, dropping a hint here and a suggestion there of her ultimate secret. But when we reach the secret room, we find that she has only managed to fool us once again and held us captive in new ways instead of old. And the worst of all captivities is this, — to believe that we are free and powerful whilst in reality we remain the same old Adam ready to fall for the imperfect fruit and partial prize.
But man’s soul is meant for greater things and all this cannot be anything more than a passage or brief incident in endless time. It may fascinate us for a while, we may play with it and even do some astounding things. We may even blow up the universe a couple of times casually playing with atomic energy. Yet this cannot be the end or even the proper beginning of the conquest to be won.
Yes, man is meant to be a god, a portion of God Himself, to know, live and be as He does. But this cannot manifest merely by learning some secrets of matter and manipulating the building blocks of physical life. Much more awaits our discovery, much more seeks its release and to greet our vision and fulfil our life. Till we turn our gaze towards that, we will continue to meet the same fate as other civilisations that have gone before us. The eternal Sphinx, the evolutionary energy of the race, will meet us with her question one day and unless we reply to her satisfaction, the last secret, the ultimate truth will always be held back from us.
