Can
we
talk?
Enter the dragon
Enter the Dragon of Activism: The image of a fearsome creature like
the dragon, to most Sri Lankans would conjure up the smell an taste of
Chinese food, if not - might be Bruce Lee. But, for the rest of the
world, dragons are legendary creatures featured in myths of many
cultures. Although dragons occur in many legends around the world,
different cultures have varying vapours about monsters that have been
grouped together under the dragon label. Some dragons are said to
breathe fire or to be poisonous. Dragons are often held to have major
spiritual significance in various religions and cultures around the
world.
In many Asian cultures dragons were, and in some cultures still are,
revered as representative of the primal forces of nature, religion and
the universe. They are associated with wisdom - often said to be wiser
than humans - and longevity. They are commonly said to possess some form
of magic or other supernatural power. In some cultures, they are also
said to be capable of human speech. In fact, in some traditions dragons
are said to have taught humans to talk. And just because of it, my
readers should not run away with the idea that 'Can We Talk' is
presented by a Dragon; though many of the attributes mentioned above is
and will be visible in the column.
In the book 'An Instinct for Dragons', anthropologist David E. Jones
suggests a hypothesis that humans just like monkeys (that Darwinian link
again) have inherited instinctive reactions to snakes, large cats and
birds of prey. Dragons have features that are combinations of these
three. Our instinctive fear for these three would explain why dragons
with similar features occur in stories from independent cultures on all
continents. Throughout the Middle Ages, the devout assumed that dragons
existed; the Bible said so. The 300-eyed steam-spewing Jordan-swallowing
Leviathan in the Book of Job is a dragon, and so, according to early
translations and many medieval paintings, is the creature that tempted
Eve. After all, it would be hard for a mere snake to offer an apple
while whispering sweet temptations.
Fabled cousin
However, the Dragon that is the subject of our dialogue today is not
the dragon of folklore. Our dragon, unlike its fabled cousin, is a very
much live entity in all continents. This dragon sends shivers down the
spine of so-called elites in many countries of our planet earth. This
dragon is called 'Activism'; and, for all intent and purpose, the age of
activism has dawned upon mankind. Many may wonder as to what activism
is. Activism consists of intentional action, by people, to bring about
social, political, economic, or environmental change. Thus, once again,
man has begun to march - to parade against: the corrupt, the dishonest,
the fraudulent, the rotten, the shady, the unethical, the unprincipled,
the unscrupulous, and the venal. Breach of trust is no more condoned in
the age of activism.
According to John Feffer who writes for 'Foreign Policy in Focus':
"In the Age of Activism, protesters aren't venting rage just at
authoritarian governments, like those of Egypt and Tunisia. They've gone
into the streets against democratic governments in Croatia and Greece
and Wisconsin.
They protested the Islamic republic of Iran. They are organizing, if
only indirectly, against China's communist government. The modern state
has proven woefully ill-suited for dealing with the challenges of the
international economy, the worsening environment, or the aspirations of
rising classes. The state is letting us down. And we're beginning to
sense that a mere rotation of elites, through election or selection,
isn't good enough. And so, the current wave of activism challenges the
state as a vehicle for the enrichment of elites at the expense of the
common good" at the local, national, and global levels. The Age of
Activism isn't, of course, all about progressives. There have been tea
party activists, radical Islamists, European racists, and ugly populists
of all hues. They also use the Internet, dislike economic austerity, and
rage against corrupt elites. We can imagine more democratic forms of
governance at the global level. Activists are championing sustainability
at the local level through community economics. But the real struggle in
the Age of Activism is over that middle term, the state. In our era, a
laissez-faire state cannot provide justice for the disenfranchised or
tackle the major threats of climate change and nuclear proliferation.
And our welfare states struggle to deal with the scarcity imposed by
ecological and economic limits.
We must conjure a different kind of state, which intervenes just
enough to subordinate the military and the corporation on behalf of the
common good. It must adhere to the principle of subsidiarity by which it
performs only those tasks that can't be done effectively at a more local
level. And it must be thoroughly transparent to reduce corruption to
minimal levels. This is what activists are fighting for in Egypt, in
Croatia, in the peace movement, and the anti-globalisation movement.
Political entity
We must fight hard in our Age of Activism to construct this new
political entity: the activist State. This is, literally, a do-or-die
situation. If we fail, we will slip, inexorably, into an Age of
Apocalypse".
John Feffer, of course, is writing for the admirable and commendable
mankind of the world. We Sri Lankans do not fall into that category of
people. Sri Lanka, after all, is not the land of the Dragon. Ours is the
land of the Yakos; and, as I said in an earlier piece, we are the
progenitors of Ravana, the Asura or Demonic king of Lanka. Hence, we
admire beauty in nature and art; we approve what is excellent, applaud
heroic deeds, esteem the good, and love our friends. We honour and
respect noble character wherever found; we revere and venerate it in the
aged. We extol or adore goodness, majesty and power. Yet we are base,
brutish, carnal, coarse, ignorant, insensible, sensual, stupid,
unintellectual, unspiritual, and vile - the latter three qualities
coming not from Ravana who was noble, spiritual and an intellectual; but
perhaps, through an earlier ingestion into our genes. We possess the
same trait of back stabbing as Marcus Junius Brutus - the Roman
republican leader - one of Caesar's assassin. We crave for wealth, even
if it be tainted. We cower before the wealthy, even if they be a known
looter, a plunderer and/or a downright robber.
Sri Lanka is a wealthy land as designed by nature. Yet, the travesty
of justice in the universe has ensured that it be adorned by a people
called Yakos. If one looks up the word Yako in the Webster Comprehensive
Dictionary, it will refer you to look up Jaco (pronounced as ya'koo) - a
five square miles island off Portuguese Timor.
To the left of the word Jaco, you will find the word Jacko - meaning
- an Ape. An ape is a large tailless Old World primate, as a gorilla or
chimpanzee and when loosely used, means any monkey. Ape also means: to
imitate, mimic. Thus ape man is any of various primates resembling man,
as Pithecanthropus. Now, I suppose, as legend would have it and as
stated in the Ramayana of Valmiki; when Sri Rama invaded Lanka of yore
with his hoard of monkeys and defeated the demon king Ravana who had
abducted his wife Seetha and imprisoned her in the Asokavana, presently
said to be in Seetha Eliya near Nuwara Eliya - Ravana's noble qualities
preventing him from taking her by force; many of the band of monkeys
accompanying Sri Rama must have stayed behind -entrapped and enamoured
by the enchantress called the island of Lanka. Rama also must have
gifted the first part of his name 'Sri' to Lanka in memory of his
invasion and victory. Sri Lanka, through the ages, has also been the
accommodating ground for all unwanted characters and outcasts from the
Indian subcontinent. Thus, my readers will now understand that it is no
surprise that Sri Lankans are adorned with the qualities espoused.
Perhaps, we must await the abduction of another Seetha once again from a
land of courageous, enlightened and virtuous people, for us to have
another ingestion of better genes in order to modify our attributes,
features, mannerisms and qualities.
Until then, keep thinking, keep laughing. Life is mostly about these
two activities. See you this day next week.
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