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Connected to Earth: The Oneness of Humanity Yvette
Boodhoo, Ph.D. |
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In the beginning, we all grope around a cave, attached by the umbilical cord to our own unique and limited landscape of reality. In time, we absorb the prevailing attitudes, values, and rules of our culture - the rules of survival - but in the process, there is distortion. The resulting perception of reality is fueled by fear, ignorance and misinformation. We look to family, to institutions, such as schools and the media in the process of learning and automatically absorb their perception. The result has been centuries of distrust, slavery, war, and other forms of oppression, as we dehumanize the other and differentiate and distance our self from this alien other. Dinah Eng, a leading Chinese American journalist, wrote recently: ?Whatever the achievements (of Chinese Americans), negative images seem to always hold sway over the positive. At the heart of negative attitudes, is fear.? She invites us to look deeper in our hearts. In the aftermath of the Second World War, the great Swiss psychologist, Erich Fromm, struggled to understand humanity?s genius for both good and evil, both love and hate. In ?The Art of Loving,? he states: ?Unknown is unloved? and describes the difficult practice of love as the way beyond this wall of separateness. As
a child on the beach in Jamaica, I looked at the horizon and felt sure
that the world ended where the sea and sky met.
Later, I revised my world-view and wrote my address as:
Wakefield, Trelawny, Jamaica, Caribbean Sea, Western Hemisphere, Earth,
Solar System, Universe! There?s
a fundamental shift when you launch yourself from that cave and see
yourself as a child of the universe. That has been the perspective of
many astronauts, who have, with their own eyes seen the boundaries of
Planet Earth dissolve and have recognized that our destiny as a planet
is intertwined. When we
recognize this, we rise to glorious heights Many
preliterate cultures used the name ?Malkatuh ? Great Mother? for
their experience and understanding of the world as interconnected. Yet,
the early years of our discovery of each other have set the stage for
conquest and exploitation, as well as the sharing of ideas and
technology. The scientific and technological explosion of the last
millennium, especially of the last century, has not necessarily advanced
our ability to connect with each other as human beings. Yet, at the cusp
of this new millennium, we are in a unique position, with our sense of
global consciousness, to discover the great community of the earth; to
recognize that intimacy with the earth can be a way of intimacy with
each other. On this journey of social evolution, the stage is set for us
to move beyond the distorted fragments of information about each other
to genuine encounter. We now have the opportunity to come together,
listen to each other?s stories with empathy and understanding, and
discover the oneness of the great community of the Earth. (I hope that
some of this will happen here today). Albert
Einstein
recognized both this danger and opportunity in human relations when he
pleaded that we free ourselves from the delusion of separateness ?by
widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and
the whole of nature in its beauty.?
Robert Bellah, in ?Habits of the Heart? calls for a return to
an emphasis on the common good, a rediscovery of civic involvement, the
re-creation of community, and a recognition of our common destiny in the
Global Web of Life. From
Clarence Darrow, the eloquent attorney, who never lost a case, we hear: ?Every
atom of life is bound up together. I know that a pebble cannot be thrown
into the ocean without disturbing every drop of water in the sea.
I know that every life is inextricably mixed and woven with every
other life. I know that
every influence, conscious and unconscious, acts and reacts on every
living organism?? Does
this mean the giving up of one?s own identity as a social, cultural,
spiritual being? On the
contrary, it becomes even more important to recognize that which we
truly are, the ground of our being.
This oneness is not sameness ? that would be boring.
Look at nature ? flowers, insects, fruit; look at each other
and see the varied ways in which we are beautiful, gifted, and special.
Since 99% of the people in the U.S. are the descendants of people whose
roots are in other continents, it is imperative that each
generation contributes to the solidity and stability of those who
follow us; there is incredible strength in feeling connected to other
links in the chain. Alex
Haley?s book, ?Roots,? and the TV dramatization of this saga of
African-Americans, captured the imagination of the entire nation in the
1970?s and brought attention to a phenomenon which spoke to the deep
need for connection to one?s past, and restored a sense of continuity,
not just to African Americans, but to millions have been inspired to
trace family and ethnic roots. Sharif
Abdullah, in ?Creating a World that Works for All? conceptualizes social evolution as a series of
stories: The
Original Story is that of ?The Keepers,? for whom affiliation is a
core value. The
Dominant Story is that of ?The Breakers,? for whom control and
competition are core values; they break records and traditions. The
Emerging Story is that of ?The Menders,? for whom intimacy is a core
value; they mend relationships and fences. The
essence of the Keepers?
story: ?We live our lives
in harmony with all our relations.
For thousands of years, the Breakers have appropriated our land,
destroyed our lifeways, dishonored our ancestors, ruined our magic, and
forced us to adopt their ways. They have called us primitive, savages, natives, aborigines,
heathens, pagans. The
Breakers have been at war with the earth and we have all suffered the
consequences.? ?We
are the Breakers:
The Earth and all its riches were created for Man; we have the right and
responsibility to control and conquer it. It?s our destiny to control
all life forms, including humans who are not like us, because there
isn?t enough for all. We call ourselves by many names, most positive;
civilizers, settlers, pioneers, explorers, industrialists.
?If it ain?t broke, Break it!?
Our watchwords are ?More!? and ?Mine!? ?We
are the Menders:
We believe the Earth and its inhabitants need to be healed from their
excesses. Our goal is to
heal the damage caused by the Breakers and restore balance. We reject
all privileges that have come to us at the expense of others? lives,
freedom, or comfort. There
is a key difference between the Keepers and the Menders. The Keeper
mentality is that of the village - local consciousness prevails.
Menders, on the other hand, try to adapt the values of the Keepers to a
global reality; a reality based on the awareness that ?We
are One,? ?members of one family, fingers of one hand,? as
Tara Motlagh so graphically reminds us.
Native American prophecy proclaims that the time will come when we will listen to elders from all over the world and strive to restore right relationships, to come into balance, to recreate harmony. What are some ways in which this might come into being? We cannot coerce people into change: if we try to, we create separation and revenge feelings. The appeal to reason and the appeal to the heart: which is more likely to prevail? Compassion
has been recognized as the most powerful force for social change.
When people are reminded of their highest ideals and values, and
when they see these values catalyzed in lives of authentic leaders,
lasting change has resulted. There are records of this power in the lives of Jesus, the
Buddha, Baha?u?llah, the Dalai Lama.
The appeal to the heart has been at the center of social
movements led by Nobel Peace Prize Laureates - Mahatma Gandhi, Martin
Luther King., Jr., Vaclav Havel, who engineered the ?Velvet
Revolution? in Czechoslovakia, Desmond Tutu, and Oscar Arias who
abolished the army in Costa Rica. This opening of the heart isn?t alien to us: In periods of crisis, we learn and practice the lessons of social cooperation. We experienced this sense of connectedness and an outpouring of compassion as a community during the threat of firestorms in the memorable summer of 1998. Rev. James Farinet, president of The Interfaith Alliance of Brevard, has called on us to ?Stand together and affirm each other, regardless of race, ethnic origins, or other differences. Let?s celebrate our race, the human race!? What
might this mean to you and me? It might mean acting in the face of
overwhelming odds, with no guarantee of success.
It might trust that our actions have positive unexpected
consequences! The
son of a farmer in 19th century Scotland saved a young boy
from drowning. The next
day, a nobleman?s coach pulled up at the farmer?s home.
The nobleman insisted that the farmer should name a reward; the
farmer refused. Finally, as
the nobleman insisted, an arrangement was made for the nobleman to pay
for the education of the farmer?s son.
This son, Alexander Fleming, went to medical school and later
discovered penicillin. Years
later, the nobleman?s son, Winston Churchill, contracted pneumonia and
his life was saved once again? by penicillin. Like
the ripples, our simplest actions radiate into the world, with the
potential for making a difference in incalculable ways. You can make a
difference in your community when you see a need and decide to take
action ? it could be saving sea turtles or children in your
neighborhood; it could be in your faith community; or anywhere in the
world! How
do we awaken compassion and understanding?
Fear keeps us from getting involved. There is always the risk of
rejection or feeling foolish. In my work with graduate students in
multicultural counseling, change has not come about from readings or my
words, but from the students? willingness to create genuine encounters
with the people they want to learn more about.
Frequently, the result has been an opening of the heart and
?the third eye.? After our recent ?Getting to Know Your
Neighbors? Day at Brevard Community College, one of the students
shared this experience: ?Everyone made a square for a quilt: I chose to put the Star of David, because I?m Jewish. Next, we all went outside for a real treat ? a Haitian band from Miami. I watched as Persian dancing was performed with Caribbean music! I am a drummer and music is a language to me. Granted, I didn?t understand the lyrics, but the music said everything I needed to hear. I really wanted to play with them. I was really nervous, but I finally got the courage to ask. The reward was an amazing experience playing with professionals. I didn?t understand what they said to me, and they probably didn?t understand me but we spoke through a common language that was music.? Here
are some steps that all of us can take to become more involved: 1.
Welcome and celebrate diversity: intergenerational as well as
ideas; recognize everyone?s importance
to the great web of life. 2.
Eliminate the artificial boundaries of race, language, etc. 3.
Let go of the idea of separateness; look for common ground with
the Other; Get to know the Other; don?t make an enemy of a potential ally. 4.
Create opportunities for real communication ? email and the
internet are tools, not substitute for human interaction. 5.
Don?t let fear direct your action.
Examine your own heart for vestiges of bigotry.
It?s easy to consider one?s own brand of bigotry as rational. 6.
See yourself in the eyes of the Other. Maya Angelou says:
?you?re not your brother?s keeper; you?re not your sister?s
keeper. You are your
brother; you are your sister.? I
leave you with a paraphrase of a Native American prophecy: ?There will come a time when people of all colors, all nations, and all traditions will come to dance together under the great tree of peace. A few will start, while others hang back in fear or greed. Little by little, others will join in and weave a great web. And a new order will come into being.? |
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| Published with permission |
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