Vajradhara
One of Many
Namaste all,
i've been pondering and meditating with regards to the whole newspaper drawings of the Prophet (pbuh) and the Muslim outcry and subsequent violent reaction by some of their adherents.
i've listend and read and considered what many other beings have had to say on this as it is, clearly, a matter of some discussion amongst a great many beings.
i can't speak for anyone else, however, when i lived in North Africa, such an idea as a free press, or more specifically, a press that didn't answer to the government, was unheard of. it was unthinkable. why would the government let them do that? if the press said something out of turn, the government was correcting them, arresting them, apologizing for them and taking the critisim for them.
the idea of a press which is not subject to government censure is a completely unknown idea to a great many beings. thus, when a Danish newspapers writer say something, for a whole great portion of the world, it is the same as if the Danish Monarchy (they still have one of those, yes?) or government was speaking. thus, the pictures of the Prophet (pbuh) were done by the government and thus the government needs to apologize.
further, the idea that other beings do not share this world view is, by and large, not considered. so much of this is dependent upon the individual nation and culture therein that it is somewhat difficult to be so general and still convey a valid point.
in any event...
since such considerations are absent from the collective consciousness of the mass of beings, they typically perceieve everyone else operating with the same, basic, world view they have especially with regards to political issues. recall, many beings in countries which the democratic socities would call "totolatarian" have an opposite view, they view democratic socities as being founded upon secular ideas which are incapable, at their core, of being able to govern humans. which is a long winded way of saying that many beings think that governments operate in the same manner throughout the world.
with such considerations in mind, i've come to the view that some of the resentment which is fermenting in the general Muslim populace is due to a misunderstanding of the role of the media/press in democractic socities and the role of government in regulating and censuring the media.
it seems to be a tricky sort of problem to resolve... on both sides of the view, it seems, are beings which are expressing their world view and their understanding of the way things "ought to be." to a certain extent, no being is to be blamed for their world view... by and large, these things are not consciously chosen, they are products of our enviornment, parental influence, peer influence and general social conditioning.
though arrogant i often am, i would not presume to be able to provide a solution to our current delimmia, nor do i expect a thread on an internet chat forum to do such a thing.
it is often demonstrated to me how appropos the statement "you give what you want to receive" is. i think that as human beings we all have a need and a right for respect... a basic human dignity that cannot be abrogated by any actions, thoughts or words. if i want you to respect my tradition and my views, then this is what i give to you and yours. should i want you to hold my tradition and views in contempt and disdain, this is what i give to you and yours.
all too clearly, in my view, we see that it is our own actions which directly influence beings around us and, ultimately, determine the nature and quality of our lives. we can choose to make this life as we want; full of compassionate concern for the welbeing of all sentient beings or strive and conflict for sentient beings.
i choose compassion.
metta,
~v
i've been pondering and meditating with regards to the whole newspaper drawings of the Prophet (pbuh) and the Muslim outcry and subsequent violent reaction by some of their adherents.
i've listend and read and considered what many other beings have had to say on this as it is, clearly, a matter of some discussion amongst a great many beings.
i can't speak for anyone else, however, when i lived in North Africa, such an idea as a free press, or more specifically, a press that didn't answer to the government, was unheard of. it was unthinkable. why would the government let them do that? if the press said something out of turn, the government was correcting them, arresting them, apologizing for them and taking the critisim for them.
the idea of a press which is not subject to government censure is a completely unknown idea to a great many beings. thus, when a Danish newspapers writer say something, for a whole great portion of the world, it is the same as if the Danish Monarchy (they still have one of those, yes?) or government was speaking. thus, the pictures of the Prophet (pbuh) were done by the government and thus the government needs to apologize.
further, the idea that other beings do not share this world view is, by and large, not considered. so much of this is dependent upon the individual nation and culture therein that it is somewhat difficult to be so general and still convey a valid point.
in any event...
since such considerations are absent from the collective consciousness of the mass of beings, they typically perceieve everyone else operating with the same, basic, world view they have especially with regards to political issues. recall, many beings in countries which the democratic socities would call "totolatarian" have an opposite view, they view democratic socities as being founded upon secular ideas which are incapable, at their core, of being able to govern humans. which is a long winded way of saying that many beings think that governments operate in the same manner throughout the world.
with such considerations in mind, i've come to the view that some of the resentment which is fermenting in the general Muslim populace is due to a misunderstanding of the role of the media/press in democractic socities and the role of government in regulating and censuring the media.
it seems to be a tricky sort of problem to resolve... on both sides of the view, it seems, are beings which are expressing their world view and their understanding of the way things "ought to be." to a certain extent, no being is to be blamed for their world view... by and large, these things are not consciously chosen, they are products of our enviornment, parental influence, peer influence and general social conditioning.
though arrogant i often am, i would not presume to be able to provide a solution to our current delimmia, nor do i expect a thread on an internet chat forum to do such a thing.
it is often demonstrated to me how appropos the statement "you give what you want to receive" is. i think that as human beings we all have a need and a right for respect... a basic human dignity that cannot be abrogated by any actions, thoughts or words. if i want you to respect my tradition and my views, then this is what i give to you and yours. should i want you to hold my tradition and views in contempt and disdain, this is what i give to you and yours.
all too clearly, in my view, we see that it is our own actions which directly influence beings around us and, ultimately, determine the nature and quality of our lives. we can choose to make this life as we want; full of compassionate concern for the welbeing of all sentient beings or strive and conflict for sentient beings.
i choose compassion.
metta,
~v
