Abhijit Naskar's Blog - Posts Tagged "peace-on-earth"
When you are Wise, Peace shall follow
Peace and War are two sides of the same coin. Where there is peace, there will be war - where there is war there will be peace. War is only the making of peace. This war does not necessarily have to be external. In most cases, the real war is internal, which means, it takes place within the human mind - within you. One way or another, war will keep on festering on this planet, until humanity becomes a real wise species. And we have a long to go till we actually achieve it, mostly because, we are still not an advanced species, no matter how much we boast about it. We just like to feel that we are advanced, for all the basic technological discoveries that we have made. But the point is, technological discoveries may make a species advanced, but they do not necessarily make a species wise. A wise species would be the one at peace with the self. Without the self there is no excellence. Without the self there is no advancement.
All creatures have it - the self, but the humans are the most advanced, because, they have the most complicated form of the self on this planet, thanks to the process of Evolution, which led to a uniquely intricate neural network inside our head. Other creatures just have the taste of it, because most of their brain power goes to managing the physical functioning of their body, and very little is left for mental faculties beyond the needs of survival. However, do not for a second think, that we are the best there shall ever be. Yes it is true, that in aspects of excellence, especially the ones that have to do with the faculties of the mind, we are indeed the best. But we still have a long way to go to become a real wise species, at least the way we hail ourselves to be in the very title "Sapiens".
To become real Sapiens, we need to act as sapiens. And even though some humans do act as true sapiens, or at the very least, they try to act that way, the unfortunate reality is, most humans don't. These humans often lose their basic faculty of reasoning to such an extent, that they adamantly vote for a narcissistic, human-looking, orange orangutan and make him the leader of a great nation. Such a scenario is only possible because a huge portion of the human society is still infested with superstitions, prejudices, sectarianism, mysticism and bigotry. And we the humans shall not be worthy of the title "sapiens", unless we do away with these primitive evils, that consistently drag the human civilization back to stone age.
Do away with prejudices - do away with separatism - do away with bigotry, and you shall witness the dawn of a new world- a world of real peace - real harmony - real acceptance. In that world, love and kindness shall run in the veins of humans, instead dogma-induced hatred. Such humans will be worthy of the title Sapiens. They shall be qualified, by all means, for the title "human". But the point is, it is not going to happen so easily. And more importantly, it is not going to happen, unless humanity learns to value humanity over everything else - and I mean everything else. No Bible, no Church, no Priest, no dogma of any kind, shall be above the humans - above basic human elements, such as love, compassion and reasoning. Human character should be judged only by the measure of these elements, not a book, a prophet, a messiah, or an institution. To quote from Principia Humanitas"
"Human you are, and your religion Humanism."
That's it. That's all there is. If you are a human, you have all the religions in you, if not, then no matter how many scriptures you hold dear, it will not make you worthy of the title "human", let alone the title "religious." As I have said in "Illusion of Religion: A Treatise on Religious Fundamentalism"
“Let your conscience be your scripture and your actions be your religion. Let the humans be your church and compassion be your worship. Let love be your gospel and acceptance be your revelation.”
When you are wise, peace shall follow, or we can also see it the other way round. When you are at peace with the self, you will be wise. And from that internal wisdom, shall emerge peace for the whole world - real peace - peace that will unite, not divide - peace that will be celebrated, not fought for. So, start working for that peace my friend. Let your child have a better world, than the one you were born in.
Further Reading
Principia Humanitas
Illusion of Religion: A Treatise on Religious Fundamentalism
All creatures have it - the self, but the humans are the most advanced, because, they have the most complicated form of the self on this planet, thanks to the process of Evolution, which led to a uniquely intricate neural network inside our head. Other creatures just have the taste of it, because most of their brain power goes to managing the physical functioning of their body, and very little is left for mental faculties beyond the needs of survival. However, do not for a second think, that we are the best there shall ever be. Yes it is true, that in aspects of excellence, especially the ones that have to do with the faculties of the mind, we are indeed the best. But we still have a long way to go to become a real wise species, at least the way we hail ourselves to be in the very title "Sapiens".
To become real Sapiens, we need to act as sapiens. And even though some humans do act as true sapiens, or at the very least, they try to act that way, the unfortunate reality is, most humans don't. These humans often lose their basic faculty of reasoning to such an extent, that they adamantly vote for a narcissistic, human-looking, orange orangutan and make him the leader of a great nation. Such a scenario is only possible because a huge portion of the human society is still infested with superstitions, prejudices, sectarianism, mysticism and bigotry. And we the humans shall not be worthy of the title "sapiens", unless we do away with these primitive evils, that consistently drag the human civilization back to stone age.
Do away with prejudices - do away with separatism - do away with bigotry, and you shall witness the dawn of a new world- a world of real peace - real harmony - real acceptance. In that world, love and kindness shall run in the veins of humans, instead dogma-induced hatred. Such humans will be worthy of the title Sapiens. They shall be qualified, by all means, for the title "human". But the point is, it is not going to happen so easily. And more importantly, it is not going to happen, unless humanity learns to value humanity over everything else - and I mean everything else. No Bible, no Church, no Priest, no dogma of any kind, shall be above the humans - above basic human elements, such as love, compassion and reasoning. Human character should be judged only by the measure of these elements, not a book, a prophet, a messiah, or an institution. To quote from Principia Humanitas"
"Human you are, and your religion Humanism."
That's it. That's all there is. If you are a human, you have all the religions in you, if not, then no matter how many scriptures you hold dear, it will not make you worthy of the title "human", let alone the title "religious." As I have said in "Illusion of Religion: A Treatise on Religious Fundamentalism"
“Let your conscience be your scripture and your actions be your religion. Let the humans be your church and compassion be your worship. Let love be your gospel and acceptance be your revelation.”
When you are wise, peace shall follow, or we can also see it the other way round. When you are at peace with the self, you will be wise. And from that internal wisdom, shall emerge peace for the whole world - real peace - peace that will unite, not divide - peace that will be celebrated, not fought for. So, start working for that peace my friend. Let your child have a better world, than the one you were born in.
Further Reading
Principia Humanitas
Illusion of Religion: A Treatise on Religious Fundamentalism
War Ain’t Peace (The Sonnet)
Hudson, Thames, Nile and Sindhu,
All are now red with the blood of the innocent.
Who is to blame for such catastrophe,
Everybody who accepts arms race as upliftment.
Suited savages have seduced them to believe,
That bigger the military greater the pride.
It’s necessary for politicians to sell nationalism,
Or else their loyal subjects will all get untied.
Acts of national security only breed insecurity,
Which forces people to seek comfort in weapons.
True, lasting stability and serenity of a nation,
Comes only from a universal desire for union.
Let the politicians sell war in the name of peace.
Why must the citizens buy it like rats chasing cheese!
All are now red with the blood of the innocent.
Who is to blame for such catastrophe,
Everybody who accepts arms race as upliftment.
Suited savages have seduced them to believe,
That bigger the military greater the pride.
It’s necessary for politicians to sell nationalism,
Or else their loyal subjects will all get untied.
Acts of national security only breed insecurity,
Which forces people to seek comfort in weapons.
True, lasting stability and serenity of a nation,
Comes only from a universal desire for union.
Let the politicians sell war in the name of peace.
Why must the citizens buy it like rats chasing cheese!
Sonnet of National Beauty
Beauty and ugliness as we know them,
Are the product of an ugly mind.
Once we step across all pretenses,
We learn how much we’ve been blind.
The whitest places on planet earth,
Happen to be the ugliest of all places.
For what appears to be a fancy joint,
Is filled with a bunch of suited savages.
Nations of color have problems too,
But they don't pretend to be advanced.
When we claim to be a global leader,
We must first practice inclusion on demand.
Great is not the nation that appears fancy,
But one which values people over diplomacy.
Are the product of an ugly mind.
Once we step across all pretenses,
We learn how much we’ve been blind.
The whitest places on planet earth,
Happen to be the ugliest of all places.
For what appears to be a fancy joint,
Is filled with a bunch of suited savages.
Nations of color have problems too,
But they don't pretend to be advanced.
When we claim to be a global leader,
We must first practice inclusion on demand.
Great is not the nation that appears fancy,
But one which values people over diplomacy.
Human Bulldozer (The Sonnet) | High Voltage Habib
I am no Gandhi, that I’d sit quietly and spin a wheel,
While people suffer in the clutches of imperialism.
I am no Guevara either, that I would shoot anyone,
Who looks suspicious, in my revolution for freedom.
Gandhi and Guevara are two extremes of human struggle,
One glorifies submission, another heralds new oppression.
Neither is fit for an infant world aiming to be civilized,
For one lacks backbone, the other weaponizes assumption.
We may take a little from Gandhi, a little from Guevara,
Without rigidity we may administer them accordingly.
I am an accountable human living in a world run by biases,
So most times I’ll keep quiet and act as a harmless dummy.
But whenever inhumanity goes overboard wreaking havoc,
The human bulldozer will rise to cleanse every epoch.
While people suffer in the clutches of imperialism.
I am no Guevara either, that I would shoot anyone,
Who looks suspicious, in my revolution for freedom.
Gandhi and Guevara are two extremes of human struggle,
One glorifies submission, another heralds new oppression.
Neither is fit for an infant world aiming to be civilized,
For one lacks backbone, the other weaponizes assumption.
We may take a little from Gandhi, a little from Guevara,
Without rigidity we may administer them accordingly.
I am an accountable human living in a world run by biases,
So most times I’ll keep quiet and act as a harmless dummy.
But whenever inhumanity goes overboard wreaking havoc,
The human bulldozer will rise to cleanse every epoch.
The First Peacemaker | Visvavictor
As the tail on our back disappeared as we no longer had any use for it, nuclear weapons will also disappear once we realize, we no longer have any need for them. But no matter how much we daydream, it will never happen as some sort of grand geopolitical gesture of international collaboration – somebody has to take the first step – one nuclear-capable state has to take that first leap of bold faith and naive trust! The question is, who will it be? The first nuclear nation to abandon its nuclear weapons, will be the First Peacemaking Nation of Earth – and their head of state, the First Peacemaker.
Visvavictor Sonnet
I am not a poet,
I am a paradigm.
I am no religionist,
But the source divine.
More than a scientist,
I’m a compass to science.
I am not a philosopher,
But a purposeful alliance.
I am not some legal giant,
But a valley of lawless order.
Transcending Sieg Heil and Star Spangled Banner,
I am the Visva (world), I am the Victor.
I am a paradigm.
I am no religionist,
But the source divine.
More than a scientist,
I’m a compass to science.
I am not a philosopher,
But a purposeful alliance.
I am not some legal giant,
But a valley of lawless order.
Transcending Sieg Heil and Star Spangled Banner,
I am the Visva (world), I am the Victor.
Nonviolence is Nonsense | Abhijit Naskar | Radioactive Ruhunium
Nonviolence is nonsense – or to be more accurate – bookish nonviolence is nonsense. Nonviolence is to injustice, what homeopathy is to illness – it claims all the credit without any of the responsibility. Placebo brings comfort, not change.
Does that mean, violence is the solution? That’s the problem, you see. This prehistoric world has an instinctual affinity to black and white concepts – to binary concepts – and a gigantic blind spot for grey areas. Justice is too grand an exercise to be contained by the primitive dualistic nonsense of violence and nonviolence.
Let me put this into perspective with an example. Bullets are an act of violence, silence is an act of nonviolence – but there is a third option – the option of the slipper.
Slippers are more effective in fighting bugs, than bullets – bullets make martyr of the bugs, slippers put them in their place. When the slippers of a nation’s civilians combine, even the mightiest of tyrant is bound to fall – be it a state head, court judge or law enforcement officer.
Whenever a bunch of bugs turn the courts into a cradle of animal masculinity – whenever a bunch of bugs turn the parliament into a cradle of fundamentalism and bigotry – whenever a bunch of bugs turn the police stations into a cradle of badge-bearing barbarism – grab hold of that household bug-repellent you wear on your feet, and put them to some good, wholesome use. Treat the corrupt and bigoted like your children, and do with them as you would your own child when they go astray.
When your child starts to bully other kids, if you adopt pacifism and pamper them further in the name of nonviolence, instead of taking stringent steps to nip their megalomania in the bud, it’s very much possible, they might grow up to be the next orange-haired terrorist to roam the oval office or the next musky moron who takes pleasure in destroying people’s livelihoods and providing safe haven to hate speech and disinformation to satisfy their giant ego and puny mind.
So, I repeat – pick up the democratic superweapon from under your feet and put it to good use – treat the privileged orangutans like your children and put them in their rightful place, without actually harming them. Your world, your rules – remember that. Slippers are democracy’s first line of defense, bullets it’s last.
Does that mean, violence is the solution? That’s the problem, you see. This prehistoric world has an instinctual affinity to black and white concepts – to binary concepts – and a gigantic blind spot for grey areas. Justice is too grand an exercise to be contained by the primitive dualistic nonsense of violence and nonviolence.
Let me put this into perspective with an example. Bullets are an act of violence, silence is an act of nonviolence – but there is a third option – the option of the slipper.
Slippers are more effective in fighting bugs, than bullets – bullets make martyr of the bugs, slippers put them in their place. When the slippers of a nation’s civilians combine, even the mightiest of tyrant is bound to fall – be it a state head, court judge or law enforcement officer.
Whenever a bunch of bugs turn the courts into a cradle of animal masculinity – whenever a bunch of bugs turn the parliament into a cradle of fundamentalism and bigotry – whenever a bunch of bugs turn the police stations into a cradle of badge-bearing barbarism – grab hold of that household bug-repellent you wear on your feet, and put them to some good, wholesome use. Treat the corrupt and bigoted like your children, and do with them as you would your own child when they go astray.
When your child starts to bully other kids, if you adopt pacifism and pamper them further in the name of nonviolence, instead of taking stringent steps to nip their megalomania in the bud, it’s very much possible, they might grow up to be the next orange-haired terrorist to roam the oval office or the next musky moron who takes pleasure in destroying people’s livelihoods and providing safe haven to hate speech and disinformation to satisfy their giant ego and puny mind.
So, I repeat – pick up the democratic superweapon from under your feet and put it to good use – treat the privileged orangutans like your children and put them in their rightful place, without actually harming them. Your world, your rules – remember that. Slippers are democracy’s first line of defense, bullets it’s last.
How come we can invent better ways to kill each other, but not one to preserve peace! – Abhijit Naskar
Couple of years back I once wrote – how come we can invent better ways to kill each other, but not one to preserve peace! Tracking back the origin of the statement I found out that, it’s not from any of the books, but a part of an introduction to the Memorial Day Sonnet released on my wordpress site.
Anyway, the point is – today that question rings more evident than ever. So, I shall convey it in a few other languages in order to make it more universally organic. Because guess what – even though English is the universal language of earth, due to its primitive colonial escapades, and indeed the most convenient, it is neither the most beautiful nor the most soulful language on earth.
Therefore at this difficult humanitarian moment I say to you once again:
How come we can invent better ways to kill each other, but not one to preserve peace!
¡Cómo es que podemos inventar mejores maneras de matarnos unos a otros, pero ninguna para preservar la paz!
Come mai possiamo inventare modi migliori per ucciderci a vicenda, ma non uno per preservare la pace!
Nasıl yani, birbirimizi öldürmenin binlerce yol biliyoruz, ama barışı korumanın bir tane bile yok!
كيف يمكننا أن نبتكر طرقاً أفضل لقتل بعضنا البعض، ولا نجد طريقة للحفاظ على السلام!
ایمان انسانیت،
مذہب محبت؛
خون کی نہیں،
امن کی ہے چاہت۔
Hur kommer det sig att vi kan uppfinna bättre sätt att döda varandra, men inte ett sätt att bevara freden!
Wie kommt es, dass wir bessere Wege finden können, um einander zu töten, aber nicht um den Frieden zu bewahren!
Anyway, the point is – today that question rings more evident than ever. So, I shall convey it in a few other languages in order to make it more universally organic. Because guess what – even though English is the universal language of earth, due to its primitive colonial escapades, and indeed the most convenient, it is neither the most beautiful nor the most soulful language on earth.
Therefore at this difficult humanitarian moment I say to you once again:
How come we can invent better ways to kill each other, but not one to preserve peace!
¡Cómo es que podemos inventar mejores maneras de matarnos unos a otros, pero ninguna para preservar la paz!
Come mai possiamo inventare modi migliori per ucciderci a vicenda, ma non uno per preservare la pace!
Nasıl yani, birbirimizi öldürmenin binlerce yol biliyoruz, ama barışı korumanın bir tane bile yok!
كيف يمكننا أن نبتكر طرقاً أفضل لقتل بعضنا البعض، ولا نجد طريقة للحفاظ على السلام!
ایمان انسانیت،
مذہب محبت؛
خون کی نہیں،
امن کی ہے چاہت۔
Hur kommer det sig att vi kan uppfinna bättre sätt att döda varandra, men inte ett sätt att bevara freden!
Wie kommt es, dass wir bessere Wege finden können, um einander zu töten, aber nicht um den Frieden zu bewahren!
World First, Nation Never (Denationalizing Sonnet) | Abhijit Naskar | Military is Terrorism
No government wants to manufacture terror,
But they do want to manufacture control.
In doing so they end up manufacturing terror,
Thus they end up manufacturing war.
There is no such thing as war on terrorism,
The whole narrative is rigged to peddle fear.
Citizens without fear are citizens without border,
Democratic autocracy thrives on civilian fear.
Ceasefire only postpones war,
What’s needed is demilitarization.
Till borderly apes wake apart national pride,
Democracy only sustains a paradigm of poison.
World first and forever, nation never;
Till then, all blood is on your hands.
Either you are a nation’s simian citizen,
or you are planet earth’s civilized human.
But they do want to manufacture control.
In doing so they end up manufacturing terror,
Thus they end up manufacturing war.
There is no such thing as war on terrorism,
The whole narrative is rigged to peddle fear.
Citizens without fear are citizens without border,
Democratic autocracy thrives on civilian fear.
Ceasefire only postpones war,
What’s needed is demilitarization.
Till borderly apes wake apart national pride,
Democracy only sustains a paradigm of poison.
World first and forever, nation never;
Till then, all blood is on your hands.
Either you are a nation’s simian citizen,
or you are planet earth’s civilized human.
Orphanizers (Demilitarization Sonnet, 1303) | Abhijit Naskar | Visvavatan: 100 Demilitarization Sonnets
Show me a nation with a huge defense budget,
I’ll show you a demented nation.
Show me a nation with a big education budget,
I’ll show you a nation of the future.
Disband the soldiers, empower the teachers,
Thus you plant the paradigm of peace.
Abolish all pride in nation’s military,
Thus you emerge as maker of peace.
The real warmongers of the world are,
Not the world leaders, but the civilians,
Who can’t think past the strength of military,
Who take pride in a genocidal arsenal of weapons.
With such civilian primitiveness rampant in society,
No conference can ensure the promise of peace.
If you really want to ensure peace on planet earth,
Denounce all politics and democracy militarist.
Stop taking pride in your national military,
That very pride floods the world with orphans.
Amidst the herd of widowmakers and orphanizers,
Wake up alone, and slogan for demilitarization!
I’ll show you a demented nation.
Show me a nation with a big education budget,
I’ll show you a nation of the future.
Disband the soldiers, empower the teachers,
Thus you plant the paradigm of peace.
Abolish all pride in nation’s military,
Thus you emerge as maker of peace.
The real warmongers of the world are,
Not the world leaders, but the civilians,
Who can’t think past the strength of military,
Who take pride in a genocidal arsenal of weapons.
With such civilian primitiveness rampant in society,
No conference can ensure the promise of peace.
If you really want to ensure peace on planet earth,
Denounce all politics and democracy militarist.
Stop taking pride in your national military,
That very pride floods the world with orphans.
Amidst the herd of widowmakers and orphanizers,
Wake up alone, and slogan for demilitarization!
