How can we possibly make a difference in the world? There is violence and killing on a scale that is so overwhelming it is almost impossible to comprehend. Sure, when we train in our nice dojo we are practicing a discipline that is designed to provide a defense to a violent attack without injuring the attacker. This is all very nice, but does it fit into our view of the dangerous place that the world has become?
Often we view peace as an abstract. We see it as an unlikely prospect that is dangled before us by politicians the way an apple is dangled before a recalcitrant mule. We are told that if we fight long and hard enough there will be "peace in our time."
The reality that confronts us is, however, an entirely different matter. We have never lived in a world that is at peace. Since the beginning of recorded history there have been nations and peoples waging war against one another. Even our religious leaders have told us that war, not peace, is the norm. And yet, we are convinced that by waging war against the "evil ones" and prevailing against them we will have peace.
The Twentieth Century was a century of war. The first decade was marked by the Boxer Rebellion in China, the end of the Boer War in Africa and Russo-Japanese war in Asia. The second decade saw the "war to end wars" or then known as the Great War. The 1920's and 1930's saw revolution and a build up to World War II (the Great War was now renamed World War I). When World War II was brought to a conclusion with the dropping of nuclear weapons on Japan we entered a new and terrible age of Cold War. This era included the Korean and Vietnam wars. It was defined by the threat of mutual destruction and the stockpiling of thermonuclear weapons. There was no peace.
The last twenty years have been pocked by war after war after war. The threat and reality of terror have permeated our existence. Our nation now has armies engaged in two separate wars in the Mideast and Asia. We accept war as the normal state of affairs. We have stopped asking why. Even our most vehement anti-war protests are a cry in the wilderness. Despair is the meat of our existence.
How can this overwhelming tide be reversed? How can we avoid being swept away by the waves of destruction? Can peace ever be more than an ideal that will never see fruition? The answers to these questions are crucial to our very existence. If humankind is unable to wean itself from the drug of war, the future of our children and grandchildren is bleak indeed.
The roots of war are elusive. The vast majority of the the world's population is against war. Very few individuals identify themselves as being "pro-war." Even those who express support for a particular war or wars will, if pressed, add that some wars are necessary or justified but agree that war in general is not a good thing. Most people will agree that an enterprise that is marked by killing, destruction of property, conquest of nations and subjugation of peoples is inherently evil.
Why then do we persist in waging wars? Why don't the victims of war (that would be all of us) say, "enough... it must stop!" The reason is, of course, that even overwhelmingly popular opposition to war is not enough to bring about peace. This is the hard lesson learned by those who protested the war in Vietnam. It is unrealistic to believe that peer pressure will cause nations to throw down their arms and declare peace.
In order to bring about world peace it is necessary that a philosophy of peace, that will replace the current (and historical) philosophy of war, be generally embraced. Only when the security of the world can be assured, by this new way of thinking, without resorting to threats, intimidation and agression can peace flourish. Such a philosophy is embodied in the principles of Aikido.
The principles of Aikido are, by no means, bleeding heart capitulation to the will of aggressors. Naked aggression by any nation, religion, political sect or criminal enterprise should not and can never be tolerated. Through Aikido we defend ourselves against attack, from individuals, by blending with and redirecting force. Nations must implement like tactics and diplomacy to achieve these same ends. The current philosophy of defense is one that foments violence, revenge and distrust. In order for the world to be peaceful it must be replaced by a philosophy of understanding and acceptance that still projects the futility of aggression.
What does this mean to us personally? It means that we hold the seeds to world peace. We have been entrusted with the knowledge that war does not have to be the normal state of affairs. When we are confronted by the argument, "there will always be war" we can state categorically that it does not have to be so. We can also say that peace is as real as the implementation of the effective principles of Aikido. The world may not know about or understand Aiki but we can be more than a voice in the wilderness when we study and spread the Aikido philosophy.
Peace in the New Ages through Aikido
Tom, Sensei
Often we view peace as an abstract. We see it as an unlikely prospect that is dangled before us by politicians the way an apple is dangled before a recalcitrant mule. We are told that if we fight long and hard enough there will be "peace in our time."
The reality that confronts us is, however, an entirely different matter. We have never lived in a world that is at peace. Since the beginning of recorded history there have been nations and peoples waging war against one another. Even our religious leaders have told us that war, not peace, is the norm. And yet, we are convinced that by waging war against the "evil ones" and prevailing against them we will have peace.
The Twentieth Century was a century of war. The first decade was marked by the Boxer Rebellion in China, the end of the Boer War in Africa and Russo-Japanese war in Asia. The second decade saw the "war to end wars" or then known as the Great War. The 1920's and 1930's saw revolution and a build up to World War II (the Great War was now renamed World War I). When World War II was brought to a conclusion with the dropping of nuclear weapons on Japan we entered a new and terrible age of Cold War. This era included the Korean and Vietnam wars. It was defined by the threat of mutual destruction and the stockpiling of thermonuclear weapons. There was no peace.
The last twenty years have been pocked by war after war after war. The threat and reality of terror have permeated our existence. Our nation now has armies engaged in two separate wars in the Mideast and Asia. We accept war as the normal state of affairs. We have stopped asking why. Even our most vehement anti-war protests are a cry in the wilderness. Despair is the meat of our existence.
How can this overwhelming tide be reversed? How can we avoid being swept away by the waves of destruction? Can peace ever be more than an ideal that will never see fruition? The answers to these questions are crucial to our very existence. If humankind is unable to wean itself from the drug of war, the future of our children and grandchildren is bleak indeed.
The roots of war are elusive. The vast majority of the the world's population is against war. Very few individuals identify themselves as being "pro-war." Even those who express support for a particular war or wars will, if pressed, add that some wars are necessary or justified but agree that war in general is not a good thing. Most people will agree that an enterprise that is marked by killing, destruction of property, conquest of nations and subjugation of peoples is inherently evil.
Why then do we persist in waging wars? Why don't the victims of war (that would be all of us) say, "enough... it must stop!" The reason is, of course, that even overwhelmingly popular opposition to war is not enough to bring about peace. This is the hard lesson learned by those who protested the war in Vietnam. It is unrealistic to believe that peer pressure will cause nations to throw down their arms and declare peace.
In order to bring about world peace it is necessary that a philosophy of peace, that will replace the current (and historical) philosophy of war, be generally embraced. Only when the security of the world can be assured, by this new way of thinking, without resorting to threats, intimidation and agression can peace flourish. Such a philosophy is embodied in the principles of Aikido.
The principles of Aikido are, by no means, bleeding heart capitulation to the will of aggressors. Naked aggression by any nation, religion, political sect or criminal enterprise should not and can never be tolerated. Through Aikido we defend ourselves against attack, from individuals, by blending with and redirecting force. Nations must implement like tactics and diplomacy to achieve these same ends. The current philosophy of defense is one that foments violence, revenge and distrust. In order for the world to be peaceful it must be replaced by a philosophy of understanding and acceptance that still projects the futility of aggression.
What does this mean to us personally? It means that we hold the seeds to world peace. We have been entrusted with the knowledge that war does not have to be the normal state of affairs. When we are confronted by the argument, "there will always be war" we can state categorically that it does not have to be so. We can also say that peace is as real as the implementation of the effective principles of Aikido. The world may not know about or understand Aiki but we can be more than a voice in the wilderness when we study and spread the Aikido philosophy.
Peace in the New Ages through Aikido
Tom, Sensei
I enjoyed your post, Tom Sensei. Because there's currently a lot of talk about Ayn Rand, my brother wanted me to read the book so I could discuss it with him and some of his friends. I think you're post hit on something about the book that really bothered me. It seems to force people into two categories, the weak willed, and those who are willing to take what they want without regard for others. Of course, in Rand's world, things work out best for everyone when those who pursue their own self-interest regardless of the needs and desires of others. I believe that philosophy is wrong from the outset, but I think the real mistake of the book is that it ignores the other way--the way of Aikido, the way of Gandhi, the way non-violence and strength, the way of cooperation without capitulation.
ReplyDeletegreeting aikidokans :)
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