JAIPUR PAPER
de George Anca
9th International Conference on Peace
and Nonviolent Action (9th ICPNA)
Jaipur, December 17 - 21, 2017
AHIMSA AND GANDHI
notes on Anthropology of Violence
Dr. George Anca,
Romania
ABSTRACT
This
presentation belongs to a writer dealing for decennials with Indian and
Romanian spirituality. It includes: Gandhian Jainism in Romania (meeting
Acharya Mahapragya in Rajsamand – Gandhi and Sermon on the Mountain – Gandhi
and Romanian Parliament via Argentina – Satyagrha, ahimsa and aparygraha
statements); Indoeminescology – Mihai Eminescu and India; meeting presidents of
India Shanker Dayal Sharma in Romania and Pranab Mukherjje in India – The
International Academy Mihai Eminescu founded in India with Amrtia Pritam –
Indian poems on Eminescu); A master courses on energetic nonviolence and
non-possesion (anthropology of nonviolence / religion / mediation, Romanian
thinkers on the subject). Gloss on Ahimsa and translation of Introduction to
Jainism may have been a start in Romania - namo arihantaam namo sidhaanam namo ayariyanam namo loye sava sahunam.
Inside: Purvas by Lord Mahvira - Mahatma Gandhi on
satyagraha, ahimsa, and aparigraha - To believe in science is a form of
religion? - Rajsamand - Son of Gandhi -
Gandhi vs Machiavelli – Pedestal -
Religiology - Energetic nonviolence and non-possession
Purvas
His disciple the Ganadhara Gautama once asked
Mahavira: “Lord! Can man attain enlightenment (kevalya)?”
Mahavira
said, “Yes, he can”.
Gautama:
“Lord! how can he do so?”
Mahavira:
“By renouncing violence and possessiveness”.
Gautama :
“Can man be spiritually disciplined?”
Mahavira:
“Yes, he can”
Gautama :
“Lord! how can he do so?”
Mahavira :
“By renouncing violence and possessiveness.”
Gautama
asked Mahavira, “Lord! Are the souls of an elephant and a tiny insect equal?”
He replied,“Yes, Gautama, the souls of an elephant and a tiny insect are equal.
The body of an elephant is huge and that of an insect tiny. The difference in
the size of their bodies doesn’t affect the equality of their souls. One who
confuses the innate qualities of the souls with their external differences such
as bodies, sense-organs, colour and form, caste etc. cannot be a votary of
nonviolence. A nonviolent man is he who finds all souls to be equal in spite of
external differences.”
Mahavira
said, “O man! you have been passing through the cycle of various births from
eternity in the course of which you were born as mother, father, son or brother
etc. of each living being. Then, who will you treat as your friend or foe, high
or low, beloved or despicable? You are not born only now, hence do not adopt a
short-sighted view of things from a timeless perspective. Your soul is eternal
and therefore you should try to experience the relationships between all souls.
Try to control your mind by practicing concentration. By doing so, you will
attain equanimity at all levels of principle, nature and mind. Once you attain
equanimity, you will attain ahimsa. Where there is equality, there will be
ahimsa (nonviolence). Both are proportionate to each other. Equanimity excludes
love and hatred, attachment and aversion, inclination and disinclination. The
behaviour of an individual, whose conscience is entrenched in equality or
equanimity is always important. In the same way a society based on
egalitarianism is free from all sorts of discriminations. Mahavira said,
“Nobody likes suffering. Therefore don’t inflict suffering on anybody. This is
nonviolence, this is equality. It is enough for you to understand this. To
understand nonviolence in order to understand equality and vice versa is the
summum bonum of all knowledge.”
Mahavira
said, “He who does not see, does not look within, does not see himself, cannot
realize the self. His knowledge depends on others. It is attained either on the
basis of srutajñana (empirical knowledge), or through matijñana (articulate
knowledge derived through the sense-organs and the mind). It is not in the form
of innate knowledge. A man who has no direct knowledge of the self cannot
practice righteousness. His behaviour cannot be free from attachment, aversion,
and delusion. There can be no salvation (moksha) except through righteous
conduct. Moksha can be achieved only after attachment and aversion have been completely
annihilated. One who has not destroyed carnal desires cannot attain nirvana
(liberation). The first step in the journey to nirvana is spiritual vision or
self-knowledge. Mahavira said, “Perceive and discover the truth. Do not depend
only on what I say but develop your own spiritual vision.” (1)
Mahatma Gandhi on satyagraha, ahimsa, and
aparigraha
It is
impossible to detach, to separate the ends from the means.
Any economy ignoring moral values is
ultimately wicked and artificial.
The individual
entrusted with a public mission should by no means accept valuable
presents.
Any person
willing to act in support of social welfare should never depend on public
charity.
Only when a
person is able to look at his/her own errors through a magnifying glass
and at the
others’ through a minimizing one, is he/she capable to correctly evaluate
his/her and
the others’ mistakes.
Centralization as a system is improper for the
non-violent functioning, and organization
of the
society. It is hard to achieve a non-violent society within centralized
systems.
Most of the
people would rather forget their own father’s death than the loss of their
fortunes.
Not to admit
and to detest your enemies’ mistakes should never rule out compassion
and even
love for them.
The means
should be in harmony with the purpose.
It is
altogether difficult for a person living in dire poverty to achieve his moral
development.
Those who accomplish it in such strained circumstances are people of
extraordinary
ability.
Bad means
cannot help attain good ends.
In my
opinion any person who eats the fruits of the earth without sharing them with
the
others and
who is of no use to the others is a thief.
Non-violence
is indispensable to genuine economic development.
I think only
evil should be hated not evil-doers even when I could be the victim.
In my
opinion a person should never use friendship to gain favours.
I think that
the most efficient means to have justice done is to do justice to my own
enemy.
When many
people live in dire poverty, it is of utmost importance to cultivate in all of
us the
mental attitude of not boasting objects and appliances which are denied to
millions of
people, and, consequently, to reorganize our lives in keeping with this
mentality as
fast as possible.
I think that
each and every person should give up the desires to possession of as many
things as
possible.
Individuals
should primarily use goods produced by indigenous economy. (2)
To believe
in science is a form of religion?
1) What
distinguishes the science of religion: science reveals the theoretical reason
(the effort of knowledge), religion belongs to the practical reason; The
postulate of the objectivity of science related to the belief of religion
(3)
2) What
science religion brings: Referencing to faith; Their connection to metaphysics;
The relationship with illusion.
Science and
religion differ in purpose and means: there are two orientations on two
different planes: for the revealed religions, the truth is in a founding
discourse; For science the truth is infinite (Husserl); For religion, the truth
is given, for truth, the truth must be conquered forever; Is the subject of
their own discourse? (4)
Somehow the person becomes an embodiment of ahimsa. One perhaps would leave his / her own ahimsa
for the original one to drink from the spring started under the stars of India.
On the other part, for example, the world anthropology congress in Zagreb was followed by war in former
Yugoslavia. With name of the singing black bird, Kosovo seemed as if renamed by
a bloodshed in the threshold of the 3rd millennium. (5)
Rajsamand (7)
Meeting Acharya Mahapragya,
listening to His Words, reading his books, and especially understanding, all
the way through, what happens with one’s mind and actual Ahimsa path of
transformation of heart and thus of mankind itself were among life term
achievements. Post-Gandhian career of non-violence appeared as a global
re-foundation of urgent ahimsa practice, from a non-violent life style to
economics – e.g. hunger and poverty as sources of violence -, and spirituality
in the light of Ahimsa Prashikshan. Instead of formal declarations we shared,
tens and thousands of us, an intimate, almost silent consciousness change
helped by most qualified trainers, under the guidance of Acharya Mahapragya and
Uvacharya Mahashraman.
Mihai Eminescu (1850-1889) rewrote
in Romanian on his own the beginning of the world from a sparkling point, as in
Nasadya Sukta. Even a violent birth of
cosmos has to be challenged. I wish Eminescu were in Rajsamand and see the tenth
Terapanth Acharya Mahapragya as a confirmation of his holy visions. (3)
Climbing the Hill with thought to
Tirthankaras and Terapanths, some of us got an increased feeling of Christmas
on 25th December, few days after Id. Dr. Gandhi made clear once more our growth
through Rajsamand encounter, a landarmak in our way to better humanity. Rudi
sent me in Romania his Introduction to Jainism. Mezaki found similarities
between Shinto and Dacian Zalmoxis. Gabriela spoke of enthusiasm in Rajsamand.
Thomas reformulated his interfaith statement. (8)
Son of
Gandhi
Romanian priest and scholar
Constantin Galeriu speaks on Mahatma Gandhi as the only leader of revolutions
who discovered the Saviour, through Sermon on the Mountain preaching to love one's enemies. He proved to his enemies
that he loved them, even dying as a martyr. In his own words: “I think only
evil should be hated not evil-doers even when I could be the victim”; “Not to
admit and to detest your enemies’ mistakes should never rule out compassion”,
and even
love for them”.
The same spirit was shared recently
in Romania by the author of The man, his people and the empire, Rajmohan
Gandhi. After his address at university in Baia Mare, a northern Romanian city
of 130,000 that was once a major mining center, Prof Gandhi replied to a
student, who asked him what is freedom: ‘if the state tells me what to do, I
say I will resist. But if my conscience asks me not to do something, I want to
obey it. Then I find I have inner freedom.’
(9)
On the site of Biblitheca
publishing house, May 2011, Introduction to Jainism (in my Romanian trnslation
Introducere în Jainism) by Rudi Jansma and Sneh Rani Jain among key words of
the presentation for general public are:
Ahimsa - “the heart of Jainism” -, Gandhi – modern apostle of Jainism -,
Karma.
A letter sent to Romanian
Parliament by Cristina María Speluzzi from Buenos Aires República Argentina,
dealing with “the dark specter of a death sentence for strays”, is opened by a
quotation from Gandhi: “The greatness and the MORAL progress of a nation can be
judged by the way the animals are treated ” (M. Gandhi)
Gandhi vs
Machiavelli
In his book The Gandhian Mode of Becoming, (10) Dr.
Catalin Mamali adds to the “simple list” of comparison terms - Socrates, Jesus, Buddha, Confucius, Martin
Luther, Thoreau, Ruskin, Tolstoy, Steiner, Marx, Tagore, Freud, Mao, Lenin,
Savarkar, Martin Luther King Jr., and Mother Teresa - one more frame of reference: Niccolo
Machiavelli. A special feature for a book on Gandhi published in India may be
also the large number of Romanian authors in bibliography: Badina O, Blaga L,
Botez M, Brucan S, Constante L, Draghicescu M, Eliade M, Gusti D, Herseni T,
Ierunca V, Istrati P, Mamali C, Neculau A, Preda M, Zapan G.
“As a thinker and practioner of
politics Machiavelli had a profound influence on European
political
life. Seeking power through any means was the major principle of his
philosophy.
As against
this Gandhi preached and practiced ethical principles of purity of means for
attaining
his objectives. One can hardly imagine two completely opposite view points and
their paths
of life.” (Govindbhai Raval, Vice Chancellor, in “Foreword”)
“Mamali’s book has one organizing
axis a comparison of Gandhi with Machiavelli, for
understanding
both of them better, as each other’s contrast, dialectionally – not to end up
telling the
reader whom he should follow. Interestingly, they were both fighting for
freedom
of their
lands. But to Machiavelli such giant tasks accrued to the Prince. To Gandhi the
liberation
could only be done by those who should be liberated; the people, not the way
Machiavelli
(and the Marxist tradition) saw them, as “masses,” as superficial admirers of
success:
hence to be led by feeding them with successes.” (Johan Galtung in
“Introduction”).
In the end the author makes a pool
- each of the 140 statements can be given grades between 1 and 5 according to
the readers’ degree of agreement or disagreement to the respective
position.
Pedestal
In a song by Sarah-Hudson-Gandhi,
the verse "I wanna find peace like Mahatma Gandhi" is repeated.
After attending an addres by
Mahatma Gandhi at Lausane, Lucian Blaga wrote in an article:
“Gandhi then
began to speak, in a way that stunned by simplicity, first of all, by a simple,
unobtrusive simplicity, of the spirits who no longer see only the ultimate
essences. No gesture of a speaker, no rhetorical modulation in the voice,
nothing sought to perpetrate, nothing of that unbearable attitude of the
speaker. Gandhi spoke English in short phrases and predicates. He only
pronounces a rare, non-sentimental sentence. A Frenchman translated, standing
by the table, each sentence, and Gandhi, in a monotonous rhythm, continued.
This head, stunningly ugly in the photos, had something transfigured in reality
that it did not look bad anymore, though she had only a few teeth in her mouth.
In this man, everything was reduced to the essence, even the appearance; Even
the number of teeth, the unnecessary had fallen. Gandhi gives the strong
impression of a man who is in a constant inner concentration but for whom
concentration is no longer an effort but an organic state. His figure is
accompanied by movements strictly necessary to appear rigid. No nervous or
superfluous gesture. No word too much. Everything is mastered, without being
artificial.” (11)
Over years, within a roundtable
dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Surender Bhutani, resident in Warsaw, referred
to the book "Gandhi, a Sublime Failure" by Surender S.S. Gill,
adding question mark, but similarly
inviting Gandhi's descent from the pedestal. It was speculated in the context
that the Holocaust caused by the separation of India from Pakistan in 1947
could have been avoided. The speaker has been able to familiarize the audience
with both issues, including that current political-social, and Gandhi's
involvement at the scale of the Indian people and mankind (Gandhianism,
noticeably through Martin Luther King, and Barack Obama's presidential
campaign).
Some Western references on Gandhi:
“The
Political Power of Non-Violent Resistance: The Gandhian Technique.” (2006)
Non-violent action from Gandhi to the present,
Postmodern Gandhi, Gandhi as political strategist,
Struggling
for autonomy
The Experience of Non-Violent Action from
Gandhi to the Present.
New York:
Oxford University Press.Rowbotham, Sheila. 1974.
Postmodern
Gandhi and Other Essays: Gandhi in theWorld and at Home. (1979).
Gandhi as a
Political Strategist – War without Violence (1939)
Gandhi:
Struggling for Autonomy (2011)
“Toward a Revaluation of Gandhi’s Political
Thought.”
“Gandhi on Democracy, Politics and the Ethics
of Everyday Life.”
Religiology
Religiology or "Religious
Studies" - "Sciences de la réligion" -
"Religionwissenschaft"- "Ciencia de la Religión" etc. -
refers to the scientific, neutral and multidisciplinary study of religions. It
embraces and systematizes the conclusions of various sciences such as
anthropology, sociology, psychology, neurobiology. German Friedrich Max Müller
and Dutchman Cornelius P. Tiele are among the first representatives of the
movement started in the nineteenth century, with the flourishing of biblical
studies and the translation into European languages of Hindu and Buddhist
texts. Comparative religion studies and methodological traditions drawn by the
University of Chicago in general, and in particular by Mircea Eliade, have set
the scene.
Unlike theology, religiology
studies the religious phenomenon "from the outside", investigates and
systematises the observable aspects of all religions in a historical context.
The theologian is a believer, not (necessarily) a religionist.
Reference ancients in the study of
religions: Hecateus of Milet, Herodot, Cicero (De natura deorum). First History
of Religions: The Treaty on Philosophical Religions and Sects (1127) by
Muhammad al-Shahrastani. First Chair (Comparative Religion): Oxford.
Religious sciences: the history of
religions (the history of the characters, events, and religious doctrines), the
sociology of religion (the social aspects of religious phenomena), the
anthropology of religion (rites, beliefs, religious arts), the study of the scriptures,
Principles of interactions between communities and practitioners),
neurobiology, etc. Methodologically (phenomenologically), Gerardus van der Leew
proposes in Sixth Stage of Analysis in Religion in Essence and Manifestation,
1933: 1) splitting the phenomenon into distinct categories, for example
sacrifice, sacred space, sacred time, sacred words, festivities and myths; 2)
interpreting the phenomenon based on its own experience; 3) Applying the
principle of phenomenological reduction - "epoche" - suspending the
value judgment and adopting a neutral position; 4) clarifying the structural
relations and the holistic understanding of the religious phenomenon; 5)
"Genuine understanding" (Verstehen), the transformation of chaotic
reality into "revelation" (eidetic vision); 6) verifying the
conclusions through the results of other disciplines, such as archeology,
history, philology.
Socio-anthropology
of the sacred
Invocations / prayers in various
religions: Gayatri Mantra, Hinduism); (Khuddaka Patha, Buddhism); (Coran 1:
Al-Fatihah); Bible, Matthew 6.9-13: The Lord's Prayer - Christianity; Kaddish,
Judaism; Nuad, Sudan / traditional African religions; Avesta, Yasna 28.1,
zoroastrianism; Namokar Mantra, jainism); Adi Granth, Japji p. 1: The Mul
Mantra, Sikhism; Colibian Dance, Native American Religions); It is either the
words of my mouth / and the meditation of my heart / received in your sight, O
Lord, / My Rock and Salvation (The Bible, Psalm 19.14, Judaism and
Christianity).
God has become man so that man
becomes God (Holy Fathers)
Lat. Sacrum (priest) sacer
(priest), sanctum (apart), cf. greek Hagios, ebr. Qadash, polynesian tapu
(taboo), Arabic haram.
Numen (mysterious power), cf.
Sanskrit brahman, melanesian hand, old german haminja.
Religion: the consciousness of
being absolutely dependent on God (Friederich Schleiermacher). Establishing an
a priori sacred reality (Rudolf Otto). The sacred is society itself (Emile
Durkheim). The sacred (infinite) is not limited to the experience of a finite
object (Max Scheler).
Lat. Profanus (before / outside the
temple, fanum, temple).
Mircea Eliade, Sacred and profane
(1. Space and sacrament of the world 2. Sacred time and myths 3. Sacral nature
and cosmic religion 4. Human existence and sanctity life).
"Satan is an essential part of
the Christian system; Or, if he is an impure being, he is not a profane
being"(EmileDurkheim)
"The
important element from a practical perspective regarding the evolution of a
religiosity towards a religion of the Book - either in the full sense of the
word, ie the absolute dependence on a canon considered sacred or in a weaker
sense, according to which the holy, fixed rules in writing, is the decisive
criterion of orientation, such as those in the Egyptian Book of the Dead - the
evolution of clerical education from the oldest, purely charismatic stage to the
literary band. "(Max Weber)
Everyday's
Religiology
Religious rituality in the context
of postmodernity is the subject of religious work based on the thesis of the
movement of the sacred, on the religious content of the daily, individual and
collective life. Religion is defined as a hermeneutical view of the sacred
experience and expression inspired by the thesis of the movements of the
sacred. Religion would rather hold the order of an arts of gaze on the
religion, it would be a way of seeing. For the sake of sensitizing the
religious dimension to seemingly non-religious human productions, Denis Jeffrey
(in the "Prolegomenes of a Religiology of the Cotidian", 1996/1999,
on line) refers to works by Mircea Eliade, Roger Bastide, and Quebec, Yvone
Desrosiers). The religiologist studies religion from human sciences (sociology,
psychology, anthropology, etc.) Human activities can be translated,
hermeneutically, in religious terms.
Religiosity aims at: 1) preventing
events - risk factors, disorder, anxiety, fear, insecurity (sacred respect); 2)
transiting, pontificating the discontinuities of life (sacred transition); 3)
causing a discontinuity to bring altering, enchantment, creation (sacred
transgression) into life.
The
Promethean imaginary refutes human religiosity, and yet the Promethean
behaviors do not oppose religious conduct. The sacrament does not disappear, it
takes new and unique forms. The moment of dementia is the moment of transition
from modernity to postmodernity. The secularized man may be more religious than
ever, practicing a "nomadism of faith" or a tourism of religious
sentiment. Gardening, for example, denotes a religious respect for the earth, a
recurring eternity.
Dialectics
between the established ritual and the institutional ritual. The established
ritual refers to a codified system of rather rigid beliefs that condition the
practices of manipulating sacred inertia. Functions: protection, enchantment,
updating myth, perpetuation of petrified structures. The institute ritual,
which is the origin of the reorganization of a myth or the creation of a new
myth, gives access to "jouissance de l'interdit", generates disorder,
imbalance, discontinuity, and forces a mythical system to renew, to complex or
to transform. During an established ritual, such as Eucharist or Halloween, the
possible death is euphemized to the fullest; During an institutional ritual -
parachuting, rafting, Russian roulette, psychotherapy, etc. - Extending
excessive life forces to overcome the excessive limit of death.
The Candian School of Religiology
also expressed itself in the Religiologiques magazine, introducing themes such
as: invisible religion, atheism mysticism, postmodern as aesthetic of negation
(Frances Fostier), postmodern, another name of another profane (Pierre Hebert),
from our religion to our religiology (Despair), our religion is a fiction. In
the essay "The Trojan horse of philosophia perennis: Mircea Eliade's Quest
of Spiritual Transformation," Michel Gardaz, from the University of
Ottawa, referring to the most important aspects of Eliades' inheritance to
religious studies, concludes that “The Romanian scholar never reduced the
spiritual history of humankind to a mere socio-cultural construction”, adding:
“I hope that this essay will contribute to a better understanding of Eliade's
philosophical presuppositions”.
New
religions
The new 19th and 20th century
religions, with 130 million members, have their roots in older religious
traditions. If Hare Krishna or independent African churches are recognized by
the Hindus and African Christians, others, such as the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints, Jehovah's Witnesses Yogi Bhajan are in conflict with the
original religious institutions. New Sects and Movements in Hindus: Sri
Aurobindo Ashram, Arya Samaj, Brahmo Samaj, Ananda Marga, Transcendental
Meditation, the Society for Krishna Consciousness (Hare Krishna), and Meher
Baba, Sathya Sai Baba, Bhagwan Rajneesh and others. New religions in Japan:
Rissh-K-osei Kai, S-oka Gakkai, Agon-shu, Omoto Kyo, Sekai Kyusei Kyo / World
Messianic Church, Mahikari and Sukyo Mahikari, Perfect Liberty Kyodan.
Religious Movements in Korea: Tan Goon Church, Tae Jong Church, Han Il Church,
Chun Do Church, folkloric religious groups. Christian Sects and Groups:
Kimbangui (Zaire), Cross of the Cross and Star (Nigeria), Rastafari
(Caribbean). Additional scripture scripts: The Book of Mormon, Doctrine and
Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price; Writings by Mary Baker Edy (Christ Scientist),
Ron Hubbard (Church of Scientology). The Baha'i Faith, the writings of
Baha'u'llah: the Book of Certitude (Kitab-i-Iqan), the Hidden Words of
Baha'u'llah, and Epistle to the Son of the Wolf.
From Jung
Lexicon
Anima - the inner female feminine
of the man, the archetype of life itself. Animus - The male inside of the
woman. Collective unconscious - a structural layer of the human psyche
containing the entire spiritual heritage of the evolution of humanity, born
again in the structure of each individual's brain. The personal unconscious
contains lost memories, painful ideas that are repressed (ie, suddenly
forgotten), subliminal perceptions that mean sensory perceptions that are not
strong enough to reach consciousness. Dreams - Fragments of Involuntary Psychic
Activity. Mystical participation - mystical bond or identity between subject
and object. Puer aeternus / puer animus / puella anima. Renaissance -
Metempsyho (transmigration of souls), reincarnation (in the human body),
resurrection; Psychological revival (individualisation) and indirect change
that occurs through participation in the process of transformation. Religious
attitude - careful observation of, and respect for invisible forces and
personal experience. The term religion designates the specific attitude to a
consciousness that has been changed by the experience of numinosum. Religion is
an instinctive attitude specific to man, and its manifestation can be traced
throughout human history. Religious attitude is different from the belief
associated with a particular belief. Faith is a codified and dogmatized form of
an original religious experience and expresses a certain collective creed. True
religion involves a subjective relationship with certain metaphysical and
extramundic factors. A belief is a confession of faith intended primarily for
the world in general, and so is a intramundal business, while the meaning and
purpose of religion lies in the individual's relationship with God
(Christianity, Judaism, Islam) or the way of salvation and liberation
(Buddhism) . Jung believed that a neurosis in the second part of his life is
rarely healed without the development of a religious attitude inspired by a
spontaneous revelation of the spirit.
Energetic
nonviolence and non-possession
Lord Mahavira has classified people
in three categories: having many desires (Mahechha), having few desires
(Alpechha), having no desires (Ichhajayi). The economy of nonviolence, along
with poverty eradication, applies also Mhavira's concept of vrati (dedicated)
society. He gave three directions regarding production: not to be
manufacturated weapons of violence (ahimsappyane), not to be assembled weapons
(asanjutahikarne), not to be made instruction for sinful and violent work
(apavkammovades). Following anekanta, the philosophy of Mahavira synthesizes
personal fate and initiative.
The anthropology of non-violence
may deal with Jain ahimsa, Buddhist karauna, Christian mercy, Gandian
nonviolence; Principles of relativity (anekanta). According to United Nations
Conflict Prevention NHDR Thematic there are three level of conflict prevention:
a) systemic prevention: factors of the global conflict (the unfairness of
globalization, the negative effects of globalization, arms trafficking,
international organized crime); b) structural prevention: weak, falling or
predatory states, group identities, horizontal inequalities, inequity,
insecurity; c) operational prevention: conflict accelerators and detonators
(resource poverty, small arms influx, public health emergencies, military
dismantling, sudden immigration or population deployment, redistribution of
land, severe inflation, contentious choices, etc.
(Master Course: Psycho-sociology of
Deviance, Victimology and Social Assistance / Discipline: Anthropology of
Violence: Coordinator: Prof. Dr. George Anca)
Main themes of the master course in
psychology-sociology on energetic nonviolence and non-possession:
Exploring social violence.
Motivation of violent behaviour (protection, „fight or flight”, groups and
identity). Conflict prevention – systemic (globalization, international crime),
structural (predatory states, horizontal inequities), operational (accelerators
and detonators of conflict – e.g. Poverty of sources, influx of small guns,
elections).
Among the objectives of the
"anthropology of violence" program for the master courses in sociology were: deepening the theories,
concepts, socio-anthropological solutions and awareness of the conflict
dynamics; The appropriation of critical reflection on social violence, history
and humanity; Enhancing the capacity to use instruments of nonviolence,
reconciliation, peace; Developing collaborative abilities, learning and
creative teamwork, as well as individuals, in the perspective of doctorate.
Violence is investigated by socio-biology,
ethology, psychoanalysis, media studies, irenology, philosophy etc. Even if the
successive trends of social anthropology - evolutionism, functionalism,
diffusionism, structuralism, etc. - it does not provide theories or methods of
study of violent practices; at present, violence is central to theories on the
nature of society, from a comparative, intercultural perspective, to case
studies on war, state violence, sexual violence, genocide, ethnic conflict,
etc. Reconsidering subjectivity as intersubjectivity in a postmodern context
addresses themes such as: alterity, transcendence, responsibility, language,
community, politics, divinity, futurism. On a small scale, anthropology
analyzes the causation, experimentation and justification of violence (in
families, villages, suburbs, gangs, combat groups, committees, counseling
groups) on a large scale, the aggression (inborn or not) Species of mankind as
a whole. Thus, violence seems to be the true secret of social life, more than
death or sexuality.
Instead of violence, Origen and
Tertullian recommended martyrdom. Hermeneutical exercises of Origen of
Alexandria faced torture and martyrdom. As “decisive means for politics is
violence” (Max Weber), a post second World War example is given by torture of
political prisoners during Communist regime in Romania oposed by poems prayers,
perhaps in tune with non-resistance,
nonviolence, ahimsa, soul force, and satyagraha.
“Gandhi was particularly concerned
with how one might confront physical violence in the very moment it was being
practiced. He discerned that one might be able to engage in“conscious
suffering” (or tapas) where certain actions were taken with the expectation of
provoking physical punishment from others. This kind of suffering, unlike the
suffering of people resigned to their fate, could be used to one’s political
advantage.For political campaigns that might involve putting one’s body at
risk, he coined the term satyagraha, or 'holding fast to the truth.'The term
avoided the negative, inactive, and 'passive' connotations of non resistance
and non violence while acknowledging that refraining from violence in the face
of the violence of others is difficult. Gandhi also continued to employ the term
ahimsa to
refer to the broad range of practices (satyagraha among them) that he wished to
cultivate in himself and encourage in others.” (12)
Some modules:
1.1
Explaining social violence over time: symbolic and structural violence,
violence in war and peace, cataclysmic violence of the prolonged past in the
modern world - the persistence of prisons, campuses, ghettos, world wars,
genocides, terrorism;
2.
motivating violent behavior through: a) the need to protect self-respect, b)
the inborn "fight or flight" response, and c) the human tendency
towards group and identity formation;
3. conflict
prevention at three levels: a) systemic prevention: factors of the global
conflict (the unfairness of globalization, the negative effects of
globalization, arms trafficking, international organized crime); b) structural
prevention: weak, falling or predatory states, group identities, horizontal
inequalities, inequity, insecurity; c) operational prevention: conflict
accelerators and detonators (resource poverty, small arms influx, public health
emergencies, military dismantling, sudden immigration or population deployment,
redistribution of land, severe inflation, contentious choices, etc. (13) Cf
United Nations, Conflict Prevention NHDR Thematic
Within their three volumes (2009-2011,
Anthropology of violence, Anthroplogy of religions, Religion conflict and
Mediation) ), papers by master students
on Anthropology of violence /religiology / mediation make room too ahimsa:
Violence, another kind of religion; Nonviolence and Ahimsa Jaina – Martin
Luther King and nonviolence – Rituals in Judaic, Buddhist and Zoruba religions;
Rites of passage in life of a Hindu; Vegetarianism and violence; Violence and
sacred. Along with themes and
bibliography suggested (14) there were also approached updated happenings such
as: Pilgrimage on the Way of Saints, in
Bucharest; destruction of monuments from
the Jewish Cemetery; words about God said by parents to the children
("sees you and punishes you if you are evil"); fraudulent real estate
transaction between the Vatopedi Monastery on Mount Atos and the Greek State;
“Nymfos" site, translated with tendency to "Christian
Nymphomania";
Vatican's
suspension of 58-year-old Bishop John Thattungal from the Kochi Diocese of
India to adopt a 26-year-old woman ("Spiritual Power"); Religious /
satanic verbiage in electoral polemics.
Religious Conflict and Mediation
The paradox
of religion as a source of division and conflict, on the one hand, and
aspirations of peace and compassionate service, sacrifice, on the other.
Ambivalence
of the sacred. Religion, violence, reconciliation. What is a religious
terrorist and a peacemaker? "Religion causes peace," but it can
mobilize for war, attacking religious targets, or converting the enemy.
Authority,
autonomy and religious conflict. Politics of religion, cause of conflict. The
intensity of politicization is greater in monotheistic religions.
Secularization, religious revivalism, modern fundamentalism. Human rights,
religious conflict and globalization. Geopolitics of the main religions of the
world. Ultimate values in the new world order.
Ethnic-religious
conflict within states and in the international context. Ethnic and religious
conflicts in Southeast Europe and the Black Sea region. Confessional confrontation
between Protestants and Catholics, Muslims and Hindus, etc. Islam in Europe and
the world. Soldiers fighting against the same religions (American soldiers come
from 700 religions). "Cosmic War". "Peace Negative".
It was
religious extremism. Extremist movements, escalating conflicts. "Violence,
a debt". From fanaticism to terrorism in the name of religion. Holy war,
holy peace. Suicidal attacks, martyr operations. "Brainwashing" and
the movement of new religions. Satanic ritual abuse. The diabolical authority.
Limits of victimization.
Religion,
conflict and reconciliation. The contribution of religion and culture to
mediating peace and conflict. Narrative, ritual, context and symbol. Religious
reconciliation, in accordance with the rule of law, but also with the
principles of justice included in the scriptures (love, forgiveness,
reconciliation). The experience of mediation and prayer.
Religion
defined as mediation between finite and infinite (Hegel). Christ, mediator
between God and man, but also between the exorcist and the evil spirit. The
spiritual charismatic leader as a mediator of conflicts and intereligious
dialogue. "Demos and Deus".
Religious
construction of peace. Transforming the conflict through spiritual services.
Inner Peace and exterior Peace. The roles of religious actors, peace-makers,
the typology of pacifist activities. Sacred texts and conflict mediation /
transformation. Forgiveness and enemies. Healing and reconciliation.
Notes and
References
(1)As quoted
by L. S. Gandhi at Mahavira's 2616th birthday
(2) As quoted
by Catalin Mamali
(3) Jacques
Monod, Le Hasard et la nécessité, Seuil, pp. 184-195
(4) Cf.
Religion http://www.philagora.net/philo/religion.htm
(5) This
author presented literary, indological, anthropological, educational
papers with International Union of
Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (New-Delhi, 1978 ; Zagreb, 1988 ; Lisbon, 1991; Mexico, 1994; Williamsburg, 1998 . World
Association of Educational Research (Jerusalim, 1992; Rethiymno - Greece,
1997. International Association of
Education for World Peace ( associated general secretatry and editor
for I.A.E.W.P. News Letter in early
'90). Constitution and Parliament Association, first participation 1980,
New-Delhi, then registered as a member of International Academy "Mihai
Eminescu".
(6) See also
our book Chaos, Prison and Exile to Mihai Eminescu, Aron Cotruş, Radu Gyr and
Horia Stamatu.
(7) As a
Romanian, I tried to spread the teachings of Rajsamand. I wrote afterwards a
micro-novel / Jain poem – “The Orissa Woman” – and I did search for
Ahimsa in Romanian literature, publishing a booklet, “Gloss on Ahimsa”. Before
Rajsamand I lectured, at Delhi University, on Mircea Eliade’s Centenary in the
World, mentioning that he has introduced ahimsa concept in Romania and
commented Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violent revolution, also with reference to
Corneliu Zelea Codreanu.
(8)Vinod
wrote me a letter just in Rajsamand. And I received in Bucharest from the
editors – P.V. Rajagopal and S. Jeyapragasam – Ahimsa NONVIOLENCE -,
International Gandhian Institute for Nonviolence and Peace, Madurai, May-June
2007, including articles “Economics of Nonviolence and Peace” by Acharya
Mahapragyaji, and “The Nonviolent Revolution – the Italian who embraced
Gandhi’s Satyagraha to oppose Fascism and War-II” by Rocco Altieri.
“The search
for spiritual salvation did not require Gandhi to retire to a cave as a hermit,
for he carries the cave with him” (A. Capitini )
(9) An
article by Satish Kumar on Jain religion, translated into Romanian, keeps in
original the supplementary readings as for a global communion: Padmanabha
Jaini, Jaina Path of Purification, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi, India: Motilal
Banarsidas, 1979. / Acharya Mahaprajna, Anekanta: The Third EyeLadnun,
Rajasthan, India: Jain Vishva Bhavati, 2002. Email: books@JVBI.org. / Umasvati,
That Which Is: Tattvartha Sutra, translated by Nathmal Tatia, San Francisco and
London: Harper Collins, 1994. / Pratapaditya Pal, The Peaceful Liberators: Jain
Art from India (1995). New York and London: co-published by Los Angeles County
Museum of Art and Thames and Hudson. / Jan Van Alphen, Steps to Liberation:
2,500 Years of Jain Art and Religion (2000). Antwerp, Belgium: Etnografisch
Museum.
(10) Gujarat
Vidyapith, Ahmedabad, 1998.
(11) Peisaj
si aminire (Landscape and memory)
(12) Dustin
Elis Howes, The Failure of Pacifism and the Succes of Nonviolence, in Political Research Quarterly, June 213 / www.academia.edu/2634432)
(13) Cf.
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia; Cf United Nations, Conflict Prevention NHDR
(14)Themes
Violence in
a Transitional Romanian Society
Border
phenomenon and aggression theory
Overcoming
the state of conflict in ethnic relations
Corruption
in the Anomic State
Sociology of
dominance
Minority
neurosis and conflict of nationalities
Anthropology
of Violence and Eastern Communism
The theory
of social disorganization
Torture and
hermeneutics of nonviolence at Origen
Violence in
the ancient Greek tragedy and in Shakespeare's plays
Revolutionary
program of Ion Heliade Rădulescu
Eternal peace
to Mihai Eminescu
The
Realistic-Scientific Concept of Peace at Dimitrie Gusti
Regional
ontology at Traian Herseni
Socio-anthropology
of the totalitarian regime
Suicidal
behavior as a social phenomenon
Anomie,
crime, deviance
Social
Tanatology
The Concept
of Subjective Poverty in Romanian Society
Social
inequality for people with disabilities
Sexual
exploitation of children and women
Ethology and
prevention of murder offenses
Media and
violence, violence in television programs
Decolonizing
the future
Value
conflicts
Abuse of
authority
Violence and
aggression in the family
Contemporary
political crises
Contemporary
conflicts
Criminology
and sociology of crime
Victimization
in the social construction of murder
Romanians
about Roma, Roma about Romanians
Strategies
in Drug Prevention
Aspects of
cybercrime
Socialization
in total institutions
Preparing
and combating domestic violence
European
Differences of Social Tolerance
Types of
violence and crime among multicultural communities
Media
coverage of political crises and conflicts
Poverty,
effect or cause of juvenile delinquency
National
Anti-Poverty Plan and Social Inclusion
Restorative
justice, victimology and victim's right
Socio-anthropology
of social prohibitions
The
sociology of experience in limiting situations
Mediation
and reparation between victim and offender
Intolerance,
discrimination, extremism
Nature of
War in the 21st Century
"Anti-Semitism
of Romanian Intellectuals"
The media
construct of the actors of a conflict
Captures the
deviation from neutrality through trend analysis
Law on
Combating Domestic Violence
Aggressiveness
as a legitimation of political aggression
From gesture
aggression and speech to physical aggression
Carrier
Rituals
The Internet
as a wartime marketing support
Violence in
sports
Relapse
Social
phobia
Crime
committed in the name of honor
Press
aggression
Violence
against animals
Globalization,
localization and violence
Violence and
difference
The mimetic
theory of violence
The
Anthropology of Violence and Peace
Constitutive
violence and imaginary nationalist
"Is the
United States Europe's Other"?
Identity
Violence
Danger and
disorder
The cultural
difference and the craving to kill
Violence is
always a social act
Ritual violence
Creolisation,
cultural hybridization
Anthropology
of Social Exclusion and Structural Violence
The
socio-biological and psychological evolutionary basis of violent behaviors
Non-violent
social structures in the history of anthropological thinking
Practices of
social violence in ancient societies - war, slavery, sacrifices
When ethnic
identity is a stigma
Violence and
Peace in Cognitive Anthropology
Violence,
memory and natural cosmology
Influence of
alcohol and illicit drugs on the social context of violent events
Emic and
ethics in gang culture
Epidemiology
of alcohol and violence
Anthropology
of radical alterity and social commensuration
Violence, an
effective or final cause of social forms
Global
trials and violence - the war in Iraq, total war
Global governance
and new wars
Conflict
analysis - structure, profile, causes, actors, dynamics
Holocaust
Anthropology
Biology of
aggression
Violent
people in violent contexts
Violence as
raison d'etre, humanitarianism as violence
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