‘Mad World’ (一念无明) accurately depicts of how the mentally ill, who deserve more empathy by society get more demonisation instead. Much more dangerous than the extremely rare ‘raving lunatics’, are the masses’ ingrained assumption that the mentally ill are dangerous time bombs, who should be kept away from them.
When the so-called normal ones fail to understand the unwell, to offer them work and social opportunities, the unwell find it doubly challenging to fit in society to lead normal lives. How then will they ever truly heal, to rejoin society? The truth is, anyone of us might suddenly break down to be ill due to pressure. Yet the same pressure, when not relieved, only maintains the illness.
A father tells his son in a mental hospital – ‘You do not understand at all. I am not letting you leave, so as to protect you. This world’s people are all lunatics.’ Such is the sad and bitter irony, of how society at large discriminates the mentally unwell, to the extent that their condition might be aggravated by the unfair ostracisation of the misinformed.
Often, it is the rest of the world, that is more ‘mad’ than the supposedly ‘crazy’. The truth is, all of us are already mentally unwell, just to different extents, more or less constantly spiritually sick with the three poisons of greed, hatred and delusion. While medication currently has its limits, we know the true cure for all of us requires greater compassion and wisdom for one another!
