The New Year dawn with sad overtones
The joy escaped, while pain wedded life
Refugees fled with their flesh and bones
Maimed and shamed, but they strive
The morning light saw her raped and lone
(The Lone Mourn -DB)
What will be "To be or not to be" in a situation like today? Will it be to mourn or not to? Will it be to weep or not to? Will it be a reaction to be more a folly and shed more innocent blood? Will it be to be cold and unmindful? Will it be to heal oneself in the midst of mass miseries?
There is a Latin saying, " Si vis pacem, para bellum",which means, if you want peace, prepare for war. Are we already in the middle of that insane game? Ancient game.
It might have been very appropriate during the times of the Romans when Pax Romana or Roman Peace was being established by conquering countries far and wide to set up the Roman Empire.
Nation states have been employing high-sounding principles to justify their bloodshed. Never knowing the big principles would heal the loss of what life little has. Like the Creator man dictated the death of another man. The lunatic still talk sweet. He said, "All is fair in love and war."
They haven't heard children whining in fear and pain. Let him hear, if he has ear. It is sad as usual. Everything ended in disaster, but the eagerness remains undiminished.
How can this be relevant and pertinent to us? Small people.
Cracking voice.
Little might cannot see him. When the hearth in the evening can only burn with yellow flames, we still talk like the biggest and mightiest warlord.
You are not fair to dismiss me contemptuously as a peacenik I can be .At the same time, I may not be. When our lives are still numbered by the might of guns and trigger-happy crusaders, we are not far from the Latin saying.
The fact is even at the best and peak of good times, we will never be able to make peace while we are preparing for war.
Today, the means of futile mass destruction are ready at hand and we are inflicting and stuffing pain inside pain.
Like Naipaul said, mutinies inside mutinies. Thousands of small wars and battles inside another thousands of small wars and battles. Small, but destructive.
In the attempt to live and gain like the word "success" we snatch and kill.
The whole affairs continue like unfinished business.
'Fatherland'.
'Motherland'. 'Homeland'
There is an old story that God agreed to give a boon to the heads of some countries. The German Chancellor asked that Germany should once again rise over all others -"Deutschland,uber alles!"
And God said, "Not in your lifetime."
The British Prime Minister followed. He said, "Rule Britannia,as of old. Let the sun rise over the British Empire!"
And God said, "Not in your lifetime."
We also pray.
Struggle.
Sacrifice.
The blood flows. The cry never seems to cease. The wounds never heal. And the pain strikes harder.
Whatever is, it looks like it will evade this life of ours if it takes the usual path.
What do you think God will also say?
" Not in a lifetime."
David Buhril,a research scholar in JNU, contributes regularly to e-pao.net.
The writer can be contacted at [email protected]
This article was webcasted on February 26th, 2006
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