SHOULD WE LIVE BY STRIFE?

A WIDE CANVAS

SHOULD WE LIVE BY STRIFE?

We are engulfed by strife on all sides.No matter where we look in the world, nations are at war, religions are at war, sections of society are fighting each other- on practically every ground: race, language, ethnicity, ideology, culture, creed, gender,economic factors, natural endowments like water, etc. The grievance may be current or historical, real or imaginary. Where the society is generally sober and what we would call 'cultured', the people are afraid of extremist attacks.Even within the same political party, there are often group clashes. There is no peace in any corner of the earth today.

Students of history would know that in the last 2000 years, most wars have been caused by the two Abrahamic religions- Christianity and Islam. They have been fighting others, each other, and within themselves.

 In fact, seeds of conflict are sown in the very beginning of human history, if we go by  the Old Testament. The origin of the human race is covered there in Genesis. There we get the story. Adam and Eve are the first parents. Eve first delivers a boy, Cain who becomes a farmer. Then she begets Abel, another boy who becomes a shepherd. When the time comes, they take their first produce as offering to God. God is pleased with Abel's offering and God tells Cain that He is not pleased with his offering. Cain becomes jealous of his brother and  as they return home, Cain kills Abel. When Abel does not return, God asks Cain. Cain pleads ignorance and makes that famous statement: Am I my brother's keeper?

Cain killing Abel.
Peter Paul Reubens.

So, the first son of the first parent, the first human creation of God, inaugurates human history with a murder in the first family, of his own brother! What a splendid beginning for humanity! And since Jews, Christians and Muslims share the Old Testament, they share this story. And true to it, they are fighting even today! 

Another View: 

"Cain leadeth Abel to death" by James Tissot.

Psychologists , philosophers, theologians etc have their own spins on the story, weaving many theories. But what we see from world history in the last 2000 years is that most conflicts have been due to these religions. In the 5th Century, Christianity captured power in Rome, and started persecuting the so called Pagans. In the hundred  years since the death of prophet Mohammad, Muslims captured the Middle East, destroyed the 1000 year old Persian empire, dismembered the Byzantine empire, confining it to the area around Constantinople. and invaded Europe, capturing even Spain. Constantinople was taken by them eventually in 1453. Then, Christians under the orders of the Pope marched on Muslims to recover Jerusalem, and beat them back. They did not succeed fully.Since then, they have been at each other's throat. Jerusalem and Palestine are disputed areas even today! What an irony that the two religions which claim to promote peace are fighting each other for the last 1300 years! One feels so sad!

 In the process, the Jews, the original parents (Old Testament is their story) were driven out of their homelands, settled in many countries but treated badly everywhere- in fact they were confined to specified areas in most Christian countries- to ghettos. They were not allowed to integrate with others, and were not allowed to practice many professions and trades. 6 million Jews were killed by Hitler in the holocaust. But they were given a tiny homeland- modern Israel- by Western powers in the teeth of opposition from the  Muslims in 1948! There are people in the world - including all Muslims and many Christians- who are against Jews as a race- anti-Semitism; and against separate Jewish state: anti-Zionism. Thus, up to now, these three people sharing the same Bible - called the people of the Book- are at the centre of almost all the conflicts in the world. And the two World Wars in the last century were fought mainly among the Christians themselves! Some Christians believe that the Jews wandered without a homeland for 1900 years due to the curse of God, as they rebelled against Him, as prophesied in the Bible and that it is also prophesied that they will return to their homeland "at the end of time" ie when they get back to their homeland, the world will end! There are others who dispute that the present Israel is their promised home land!

Hungarian Jews arrive at the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz, Poland in 1944.

Bundesarchiv,Bild 183-N0827-318/CC BY-SA [CC BY-SA 3.0 de

http:://creativecommons.org/licenses/by sa 3.0/de/deed.en)] via Wikimedia  Commons.

But one fact has to be remembered: The Jews have been an important element of modern world history. Even their intellectual contributions are immense. Consider just 4 of the eminent Jews who have contributed to the making of the modern world: Jesus (yes, he was a Jew, not a Christian), Karl Marx, Einstein, Sigmund Freud.  If you consider the Nobel Prize as a valid index of intellectual eminence, Jews have figured in all the categories: Literature:12, Chemistry:35, Medicine: >40, Physics: >40, (including Einstein, Neils Bohr, Wolfgang Pauli) Peace:9,Economics: 26 (including Paul Samuelson, Milton Friedman, Joseph Stiglitz, Paul Krugman) Their contribution to every aspect of modern life and thought is immense, not just banking and finance, as most people suppose. But still, there is so much of anti-Semitic feelings in the world! I feel at times that it is good for the world that the Jews remain scattered and settle in every land- they can enrich life everywhere!

Hindus are the only people who have never fought in the name of religion. We are the only people who have never sought to convert anyone. We have never conquered and kept a colony. We have never at any time cast a covetous eye on our neighbour's wealth. Instead it was the Muslim invaders who looted our wealth.It was the European Christian powers which impoverished our economy. Still, Gandhiji taught us not to hate them.(It does not mean we should not defend ourselves or safeguard our interests.) Our orthodox prayers always conclude with an invocation of Peace: Om Shanti: Shanti: Shanti:. I feel we should all pray even more consciously and earnestly now for peace on all sides. And we should pray specifically for the welfare of the whole world.We may not contribute much by way of GDP of the dry economist, but we can surely promote Global and Domestic Peace.

Om

Sarve Bhavantu sukhina:

Sarve Santu niramaya:

Sarve Bhadrani pasyantu

Ma kaschid duhkha bhaag bhaved.

Om Shanti: Shanti: Shanti:

Om

May  all Beings be happy

May all beings be free of illness

May all beings see what is auspicious 

May no one be subject to suffering.

Om Peace, Peace, Peace.

This was how aspects of Hindu thought were explained to earnest seekers.They were not preached to all and sundry, nor were they propagated with a sword in hand. Our pearls were not cast before swine.