“In time we hate that which we often fear” -William Shakespeare
“We fear what we don’t understand.”
Life is charming.
Significant wrongs in our civilisations are now conspicuous in retrospective patterns. The world, however, has fascinating ways. Suffix an -ism to a term and watch the room split into factions immediately.
THE GREATEST SCAM OF BORDERS
WARNING- based on a true story
Please do pore over Figures 1 & 2 before you proceed.
The whole planet was our ancestors’ oyster, until they made the most bizarre decision of settling down. From then ensued a spate of expansionary wars and land grabs, until imperialism rose.
Our DNA prioritises defence and smaller groups from the ancient days of hunting. To bond millions of people far from their immediate neighbourhoods against colonialists was then a herculean task.
That's where our primeval talent of creating myths came to the rescue. Like predecessors of religions, "shared or imagined realities"- as Yuval Harari defines myths, of Nations came up. Voila! There you had it- 350 million people, who had no clue of belonging outside of kingdoms in pre-British era, screaming for an 'Indian Independence' in the modern age.
Being Indian however has no meaning in isolation from the land's history. It means accepting a multitude of identities- from the Indus Valley Civilisation to being under the empires/kingdoms of Mauryas, Guptas, Greeks, Iranians, Turks, Pallavas, Shah Mirs, Cholas, Chalukyas, Satavahanas, Chauhans, Chandelas, Khiljis, Lodis, Tughlaqs, Suris, Marathas, Afghans, Ahoms, Sikhs, Mughals etc. to the British to now.
Being Indian isn't about land for possession of land is an accident as Figures 1 & 2 show. Land is permanent; the inhabitants ephemeral. The both cannot be equated ever. A nation, hence, is its history of civilisation- not a zilch less, more or abstract.
Identities are accidental, too. ‘India’, used in Greek literature about 2,400 ya, referenced to the people beyond the river Indus. We were first called 'Hindu' (an Arabic pronunciation of 'Sindhu' or Indus) by the Arabs. That's how our religion has been named Hinduism, and not vice versa! It was originally called 'Sanatan Dharma' i.e. Eternal Virtues/Duties/Righteousness (Check out my Hinduism series).
Even 'Bharatiya' is derived from either a king from an ancient tribal clan or mythology. There is no identity for peoples or places anywhere in the world bestowed upon from the heavens. Nor does any come with special or super powers. They are all contingent on history, geography, and society.
Cultures & Religions stopped being exclusive since the first annexations. They have widened, narrowed, transformed, adopted ideas and lent their own through empires, trade and colonisation. Projecting opinions on history from the vantage point of today, and claiming reversals to a specific point of culture is comparable to unravelling a spool of thread. After being extensively unravelled, it can only be wound clumsily or is rendered unusable at worst.
THE -isms OF NATIONS
"There is no history, only biography"- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Nationalism, as dissected above, is a modern myth. It is simply a pivot around which most modern nations including the United States of America were carved in the post-colonial era.
Patriotism is similar but different. It has in a way evolved from being associated with a tribe to village to kingdom to empire and then the newest, nation. It is about loyalty, love and pride for one's roots and, unlike nationalism, does not harbour sentiments of detriment to other people/nations. It is about discovering all of one’s identities and still feeling united with and rooted to where one started from.
Unlike nationalism, Patriotism embraces whosoever identifies with a shared culture or values with love. That's how so many who travelled to farthest lands, such as those that arrived to this land beyond the Indus in ancient and medieval times, became one with it forever and defended it time and again. That's how it has grown to include the emotion of 140 crores of Indians. That's how the world gets closer to a global order.
WHY BEWARE THE -isms?
Dodge the snare of labelling right-wing, left-wing, liberal-ism, conservative-ism etc.
Most -isms have no room for newer ideals with an evolving society.
They are far from their original manifestations. 'Racism', biologically subdued, loud in social statistics; 'Nationalism', more blinkered; 'Terrorism', internal, bigoted; 'Feminism', confused; so on.
People feel coerced to align their beliefs with the label they carry, and most are unaware of the entire ambit of ‘beliefs’ they register for. Consequently, they either project intransigence to appear informed or mosey about baffled or are shut up at the slightest suspicion of mouthing keywords resembling some -ism. This averts meaningful conclusions &/or solutions for issues.
By xyz-belief= xyz-ism etc., we validate its right to exist as an opinion. Notably, some opinions simply cannot be allowed- human segregation, false ad hominem attacks, violence etc. If they threaten somebody else’s rightful existence, they are hatred & spite in opinion’s disguise.
We have the right to decide differently for differing situations with our wisdom and intellect without restrained belief boxes.
Here we discuss that precisely.
HOW TO MAKE SENSE OF THESE?
Millennials & Gen Z, we must because we are the present and future. The future we believe in will exactly be the future we create.
1. Why We Think What We Think?
Here's the truth. Most of our thoughts are inherited. We receive multiple ‘opinions’ such as political leanings as heirlooms, a familial legacy.
Are you content with ‘believing’ in something without plumbing its depths? Evolutionary Biology doesn't think so. It supports your harbouring differing perspectives from your parents.
This year, read or watch, but delve deeper into beliefs and opinions that were a given for you.
While we are at it, question everything, yes, but seek answers to it before declaring it outrageous. Every inherited belief/activity is not antediluvian or a derivative of orthodoxy or some -isms. At times a modern perspective on the ancient thought can reveal answers more than we expect. (Check out my Hinduism series)
Caution: Reading with biases and from biased sources is futile. In this scenario we only read to find proof of what we believe, and we will always find it, interpretative authenticity notwithstanding. Trying to learn with biases is comparable to asking your relatives about your best qualities! 😉
2. Why ‘They’ Think What They Think- Your OPPONENT?
Insularity detests knowledge lest the latter obliterate it. It is clichéd, but I can confirm. Learn, Read, Interact, and Exit your cages to understand the other. It doesn't imply your concurrence with them, rather your understanding of why they would think on those lines (personal experience here!). You realise thoughts that once sounded blasphemous, sacrilegious or offensive to you.
Before you go against ‘them’, LEARN. You would know-
(a) who you are exactly against
(b) what it is that you fundamentally oppose
If your belief or existence is solely threatened with someone else’s being, your belief in your kind and ethos are perchance on an undulating ground. Repeat 1 & 2.
3. Patience is a beautiful virtue
We have never lived in silos more than now. What could become a beautiful exchange of thoughts has become a battlefield of invectives. We carry ammunition to the table and cover both our ears when the other side speaks, only to unsheathe our swords soon thereafter. That is how we get imprisoned in our opinions.
Problem? Millions have replaced academic and intellectual sources with social media to acquire limited knowledge of the world polity, science, economy, religion etc. This little knowledge is not only dangerous, but also grossly inaccurate, fictional and more often than not deliberately faked.
Therefore,
(a). Point 1 & 2. (b). Debate on facts, concepts or ideologies. Resorting to aggression and vitriol portrays our sole intent is stifling the other person.
4. ‘Them’ versus ‘Us’
“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.” – Mark Twain
Our species’ ancient instincts to ‘beware the unknown and stick with the alike’ helped in the wild.
Contrariwise, in the cookies-enabled, hashtag-oriented, IT cell-driven, propagandist present this leads to dehumanisation of ‘other’ groups, something that did not happen then.
Peruse Figure 4. The dividers find support in either fanatics (that belong to Point 1, never tried Point 2!) or those who are unable to find appreciation/purpose for their merit in a 'merit-based' society.
Figure 5 presents how the majority does not even have a voice on platforms we refer to as 'A Nation's Voice'.
We now know that most differences are imagined, like race, religion, caste, nationality are entirely human creations. They were deemed essential at their time- for colonisation; placation of events beyond control; orderly division of society for easier rule over masses etc.
We must right these wrongs.
Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities- Voltaire (paraphrased)
5. I, Me and Myself
Why live to prove our births extraordinary and superior to others?
Adolf Hitler might have thought he was born superior -propped by his pseudo-science project of human genome cleansing- but we name him as the perpetrator of one of the greatest genocides.
What we leave as our legacy is all that matters.
We owe everything - wealth, power, opportunities- to the society.
What we acquire or possess- money, 'merit'- is only worth having if humankind or society collectively values it so. Read it again. Let this sink.
6. Moral Code- You, Me and the System
Live your life as though your every act were to become a universal law – Immanuel Kant
Morality includes attributes of love, loyalty, humanity, respect, humility, honesty, kindness, compassion, justice etc. Individual integrity keeps a community, nation and the world running.
Our wrongs/immorality become our weaknesses. They also disintegrate the moral fabric of our society utterly. For e.g. one corrupt seeks the other corrupt out to bolster power. Soon it is both a vicious circle and chain. Or when someone stoops to nether levels of activity or communication- verbal, ocular, aural- they forget to marvel at our species’ brilliant mimicking skills (another survival strategy). The nasty behaviour ricochets and is furthered. Social media evidences for this.
Although not empirical, I think morality does have a plausible factual analysis - Stability. Nature strives for stability and equilibrium, from climatic & oceanic patterns down to the atom. Sapiens settled down for the same. Morality establishes equilibrium in our societies.
Ethics are a common ground. Shared attributes prevent us from self-centredness. Compare politically & judicially stable communities/organisations/countries with their opposites.
The wonderment is that moral attributes flourish in the wild, too.
7. Build the Narrative, Watch the Frame
“Whenever someone asks you to sacrifice your relationships, morality and humanity for 'the greater good', it means they are exploiting you for their own.” -Why Do People Join Cults
Nothing around us is devoid of a frame, and each pushes forth some pre-conceived notion- the informant’s interpretation.
Various perspectives of an event are rarely conveyed on social media’s domain. The other sources are becoming partisan, too.
We must, however, wield the immense power of framing wisely. Forgo discriminatory, defamatory, acerbic, apocalyptic, and especially, false narratives. Build the narrative of ‘Hope, Unity and A Better Future’ for people. In the direst of times, converse on how these can be pursued.
Treat people with faith that they are good, and they will be. Give others hope and become hopeful yourself. A few pioneering proofs of this are institutions (schools, hospitals, prisons, offices etc.) built around the good in people. E.g. Halden Prison in Norway; FAVI under Jean-Francais Zobrist; Buurtzorg Nederland under Jos de Blok etc.
The opposite has been proven by the biological & societal implications of systemic racism in the US; or any other violence-ravaged society for that matter.
How to ascertain if your words/thoughts/opinions are insulting, offensive or harmful to someone? Flip it placing yourself as the recipient.
CONCLUSION
"Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding." —Albert Einstein
Demand for the whole information, not divisive and partisan humbug. Being shorn of this would leave each one of us socially and politically indigent as the nation would atrophy cognitively, even if momentarily the voice of authority or narrator’s narrative feeds our ego.
Preserve our Rights because fear to voice oneself is antonymous with democracy, and billions worldwide are deprived of these.
The only sustainable ‘better future’ is one which is ushered peacefully for all of us. Defying this is against Nature. Unfair & unequal treatment agitates primates.
Ultimately, every single human walking the planet right now is an upright ape, branches from the same primate tree, descends from the same ancestors that ventured from Africa on first boats ever, shares 99% DNA with chimpanzees and 30% with Daffodils, and 20,000 genes with worms! Our being the way we are is an accident- Nature’s play (Figure 1).
Humankind has together been on critical journeys in the wild before. Today there are new ones in the form of the changing climate, polities & social structures.
I think we can make it through. We just need to be 'expansionary' once again; albeit this time for thought, solidarity, action & unity.
The world is beautiful, and brimming over with Good & Kindness.
For once if we kept our weapons down and gave each other second chances, we'd see ourselves in the mirror that is others. We'd hear and feel us in them. When we turn away from the hate being sold, we'll discover A Whole New World. One in which we can be at the pinnacle of joys, success and fulfilment without reducing someone else to misery.
Peace is within us. Find it. Emanate it. Be it.
That is all the change we seek outside.
Jai Hind! Jai Bharat!
“Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love; this is the eternal rule.” - Siddhartha Gautam
