Progress

Progress does not only mean that roads become wider, buildings become taller, cars become newer, a mobile phone comes into one’s hand, clothes change, language changes, or the way of living changes. All of these are changes, conveniences, and signs of the speed of time. But even all of these together do not make a human being truly human. A person does not become great through progress; a person becomes great through character.

If progress has no feeling with it, it remains only glitter. There is light outside, but darkness remains within. A person gains money, but the heart remains narrow. The house becomes bigger, but the space in the heart becomes smaller. New words enter the language, but gentleness disappears from speech. The clothes become clean, but the intention remains dirty. It is easy to call such a person developed; it is difficult to call him human.

Progress should, in truth, make a person better. It should make him more understanding, softer, more responsible, and more just. If a person becomes educated yet still humiliates the weak, gains money yet begins to buy relationships, receives power yet begins to suppress others, gains freedom yet becomes insensitive, then this is not progress. It is only a change in appearance. Inside, the same old greed, the same pride, the same calculation, and the same selfishness remain alive.

Some people think that leaving old things behind is progress. This is not correct. Not every old thing is good, but not every old thing is bad either. In earlier times there were hardships, injustices, pressures, and wrong customs. But there were also some basic things that carried the weight of humanity: respect for elders, appreciation of livelihood, dignity of labor, regard for relationships, care in speech, and responsibility for the home. If these things are old, it does not mean they should be thrown into the trash.

In the same way, not every new thing is good. A new way of thinking is good if it frees the human being. If it makes him shameless, insensitive, and selfish, then it is bad even if it is new. Time should change, but the conscience of the human being must not die. Roads may change, homes may change, countries may change, clothing may change, language may change. But this truth must remain alive within the human being: he cannot become great by trampling upon the labor, sacrifice, and rights of others.

The most dangerous lie of progress is that a person begins to believe that he no longer needs anyone. He says: I earn by myself, I live by myself, I make my own decisions, I do not need to remember anyone’s kindness. This is the very place where a person breaks from within. Because no human being becomes who he is alone. Behind every person there is someone’s effort. Someone raised him, someone taught him, someone gave him a path, someone tolerated him, someone gave him time, someone gave him space. A person who forgets the silent efforts standing behind his becoming may be successful outwardly, but inwardly he remains incomplete.

Ungratefulness does not only mean that a person does not say thank you. True ungratefulness is when a person denies his own foundation. He says: Whatever I am, I am only because of myself. This sentence sounds powerful, but often pride is hidden behind it. A person can walk on his own, but he is not born on his own. He can earn on his own, but he does not grow up on his own. He can move forward with his own intellect, but that intellect too is formed through some environment, some upbringing, some experience, some pain, or some support.

When progress turns into ungratefulness, relationships begin to weaken. Then parents become the old generation, the teacher becomes an old method, the elders become an old mindset, the family becomes a burden, and society becomes an obstacle. A person wants to cut away everything that once held him in some form. He thinks he is becoming free, while in reality he is cutting his own roots.

A root does not mean imprisonment. A tree is tied to its root, but it also stays alive through that very root. If the root is cut off completely, the tree may stand for a while, but inside it begins to dry out. The human being is the same. If he turns his foundation into an insult, makes his benefactors into a burden, and sees his past only as shame, then he cannot give depth to his present life either. He only shines on the surface, while inside he remains empty.

The true meaning of progress should be that a person leaves old mistakes behind, but does not kill old feeling. He should leave oppression, but preserve respect. He should leave pressure, but preserve responsibility. He should leave blind obedience, but preserve decency. He should leave fear, but preserve modesty. He should leave old ignorance, but preserve humanity. If progress becomes only rebellion and has no moral direction, it very quickly turns into destruction.

A society truly moves forward when its people protect the weak more than before. When the elderly can live with more dignity than before. When a woman is understood more as a human being than before. When a child is safer than before. When the labor of a worker receives more respect than before. When the law is law for the powerful and also support for the weak. If, after progress, the weak still remain afraid, the elderly continue to be humiliated, women continue to be pushed down, children remain unsafe, and workers continue to go hungry despite their sweat, then progress exists only on paper, not on the ground.

One sign of progress is also that a person becomes better in his behavior. His tone becomes better. In his eyes there is respect for another human being. From his hands there comes less oppression. Justice enters his decisions. In his home, fear decreases and peace increases. If money has entered the home but the tongue remains poisonous, if the children are educated but the parents remain humiliated, if a house has been built but walls stand between hearts, then this is not progress. It is only an increase in possessions.

An ungrateful person always considers himself great. He thinks he is ahead of his time. In reality, however, he has remained far behind within himself. Because a person who does not know gratitude does not know relationship. One who does not know relationship does not know loyalty. One who does not know loyalty looks at everything according to benefit. Then even human beings become objects of use for him. As long as someone gives benefit, they are good. When the benefit ends, the relationship ends.

This is the place where progress becomes insensitivity. A person says he is modern, but his modernity is limited only to his own comfort. He wants freedom for himself, but leaves no space for others. He wants respect for himself, but does not respect the age, labor, and sacrifices of others. He makes noise about his success, but does not see whose silent sacrifices lie buried in the foundation of that success.

The enemy of progress is not the old age. The enemy of progress is the insensitive human being. If feeling is alive within a person, he can remain noble even while living in a new age. If feeling has died, he was cruel in old clothing and will remain cruel in new clothing as well. The problem lies less in the age and more in the inner weight of the human being.

True progress is that which does not move the human being away from other human beings, but brings him closer. It does not teach him to hate his roots; it teaches him to understand them. It does not make him see his benefactor as a burden; rather, it gives him the awareness that bringing down the one who once lifted you can never be your progress.

If, while walking on the path of progress, a person loses gratitude, modesty, feeling, relationship, livelihood, labor, and respect for the weak, then he is not moving forward. He is only moving away from his own soul. And when a person moves away from his soul, then even if he possesses every convenience in the world, he remains poor within.

Shahid Shakil

2026-07-05