Saturday, March 17, 2007
Blessed…
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted”
“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you
(Matthew 5 The Sermon on the Mount)
I am not a pacifist, and I refuse to turn the other cheek, when slapped on one. But, I also can’t bridge the gap between what is faith and what is known. There is no chapter on proof, in the Vedas. I believe humans were not intended to be skeptic. No one asks for a justification. Yes, man is still considered rational.
But I know not what I feel, when I read of the killings in Chattisgarh. Reminds me of the of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, I read in history and I wondered, how ghastly would a man’s psyche have to be, to have to open fire on innocent people, and its not 1919 anymore, but the thoughts are the same.
But, Should I talk about the killing of 11 unarmed protestors in Nandigram by police fire or the killing of 49 policemen by naxal fire? Reality Check thinks that the killings of the policemen are more shocking because the police represent the states’ monopoly over the use of violence (or in this case, the lack thereof). The monopoly over the use of force is the bedrock on which countries are built.
But, I am not here to challenge reality all I know is,there has been a mass killing, there has been a massacre, a state sponsored blood war. History does repeat itself.
One page of today’s news paper has all shades of this nation, a funeral for the men who were killed in the horrendous Maoists attack, a communist party reconciling with a massacre over a capitalist dream, an esteemed Supreme Court judge breaking down in public over allegations on his ethical character- a delayed verdict, a city struggling with basic problems of water, and a cricket super hero taking pleasure in the awe of his fans.
I believe this country’s emotions are as fragmented as this post and I don’t think I can really write anything more as; I wallow in my painless grief.
As a friend says very rightly’ Industrialization is about progress not regress’. But who will tell this, to the ‘uneducated’ literate bastards.
If killing is democracy …I am not Democratic!
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4 comments:
There is a subtle rebel streak in this post...mellowed RDB!
Agree with u on parts...still pondering on the other...
good one!...yet again!!
There are many interesting questions you have asked in this post. Especially the one about turning the other cheek forward.....
Analyse the situation with your head....and then do what your heart tells you to do....no need to cling on extremes of a pacifist Gandhi or a rebellious Bhagat Singh...there is always a Golden Mean....
There are some things so serious you have to laugh at them - Niels Bohr.
I dont know if this made sense. But these things seem so funny. That in the end all kill for the same purpose, just that they are on different sides of the battlefield!
..everytime our actions outpace the reality of us being able to think rationally,
no amount of justification can rationalize this!
thats all 'm saying...
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