Philosophy

Always On The Side Of The Egg

March 5, 2009 by Ian MacKenzie

I recently came across this gem of a speech delivered by Japanese author Haruki Murakami.

He was in Israel, accepting the Jerusalem Prize, given to writers whose work deals with themes of human freedom, society, politics, and government.

An excerpt:

“Between a high, solid wall and an egg that breaks against it, I will always stand on the side of the egg.”

Yes, no matter how right the wall may be and how wrong the egg, I will stand with the egg. Someone else will have to decide what is right and what is wrong; perhaps time or history will decide. If there were a novelist who, for whatever reason, wrote works standing with the wall, of what value would such works be?

What is the meaning of this metaphor? In some cases, it is all too simple and clear. Bombers and tanks and rockets and white phosphorus shells are that high, solid wall. The eggs are the unarmed civilians who are crushed and burned and shot by them. This is one meaning of the metaphor.

This is not all, though. It carries a deeper meaning. Think of it this way. Each of us is, more or less, an egg. Each of us is a unique, irreplaceable soul enclosed in a fragile shell. This is true of me, and it is true of each of you. And each of us, to a greater or lesser degree, is confronting a high, solid wall. The wall has a name: It is The System. The System is supposed to protect us, but sometimes it takes on a life of its own, and then it begins to kill us and cause us to kill others – coldly, efficiently, systematically.

I have only one reason to write novels, and that is to bring the dignity of the individual soul to the surface and shine a light upon it. The purpose of a story is to sound an alarm, to keep a light trained on The System in order to prevent it from tangling our souls in its web and demeaning them.

Judging by the comments on the speech, it appears the metaphor was lost on many of the readers. A Philosopher wrote:

…If the situation were reversed and the Palestinians were instead in possession of tanks, there wouldn’t be any eggs left in the middle-east.

The wall we build is exactly to protect us, as eggs, from the wolf lurking outside. And if the terrorists didn’t use their own eggs as shield, they wouldn’t break either.

Thankfully, at least one person understood. AT wrote:

Murakami isn’t suggesting that Israel is the system and Palestine the egg. The System is the Israeli government and the army and the dangerous ideas of Zionism; it’s also Hamas and Fatah and the networks of terror. The two aren’t exclusive.

The eggs are not just the Palestinian civilians slaughtered by the Israeli army for political gain; they’re also the Israeli civilians, and the soldiers sent to war, and the people convinced to blow themselves up as suicide bombers, and – perhaps most of all – the precious few on both sides crying “Stop! This is madness.”

Read the entire speech here.

The Problem With Conspiracy Theories

March 3, 2009 by Ian MacKenzie

Spend enough time on the internet and you can find information on just about anything.

For instance: did you know that the Apollo moon landing was a hoax? That 9/11 was an inside job? That flouride is a mind control substance designed to keep humans dumb and under control?

The list goes on. Some of these theories may, in fact, be true. The vast majority of them are more likely false. But given an infinite space as vast as the web, and the tools for anyone to publish any thoughts in their head, and you have the ability to refute or bolster any claim imaginable.

Therefore it is much trickier to believe that any worldview is “the truth.”

The problem with conspiracy theorists is they ask you to demolish your mental programming, but demand you replace it with their own.

The result is to exchange one unproven worldview for another. And unfortunately, basing your decisions on the conviction of “knowing” is responsible for many of the world’s ills.

The only real truth is that it’s impossible to “know” anything. And the only real method of making decisions is through probability.

Bonus: Michael Shermer on why people believe strange things

The Message Or The Messenger?

February 28, 2009 by Ian MacKenzie

Last week, I covered the Carnaval Baranquilla Colombia.

Aside from the colourful costumes and legions of dancers, I couldn’t help but notice a little booklet that kept appearing. The book was called El Camino de la Felicidad (The Way To Happiness).

IMG_8491

I couldn’t read the book itself (since it was in Spanish) but something about it seemed…odd. It definitely had the air of a religious text, that much was clear. But even more bizarre was when I realized the books were being handed out to the crowd by the soldiers.

Why would the theoretically neutral army agree to hand out religious texts at the Carnaval?

scientology

I asked a Spanish speaking friend to call one of the soldiers aside and ask why he was handing them out. He said they were told to. My friend asked if he knew what the book was about. He shook his head, though said “Something about how to live better?”

A large truck drove by, loaded to the brim with boxes upon boxes of this handbook. Children clutched the book in their fingers as their moms flipped through the pages of their own copy.

A group of performers walked up to the barricade near me and offered me the book. I held up the copy I was already studying – they nodded and continued on.

I had to get to the bottom of this mystery. I searched the book for any more clues as to the origin.

Finally, on the copyright page, one name struck me: L. Ron Hubbard Publications.

I couldn’t believe it. It was Scientology. Somehow, they’d managed to convince the Colombian army to hand out their “non-religious” booklets as if it were an official document, sanctioned by the state.

On the last page, a website was listed: The Way To Happiness.

Visiting the page for the first time now at home, I’m confronted with an extremely slick presentation of short video PSA’s illustrating the key concepts of this new “moral code.”

Here’s the dilemma.

The PSA’s are very good. The messages contained therein, as far as I can tell, are timely and important.

I have nothing personally against Scientology. I even took their guided tour while in LA last year. But the method of distribution for these booklets, under the facade of being “non-religious”, feels shady.

Then again, like anyone outside the Scientology, I’ve been jaded by Tom Cruise’s antics and Hubbard’s rumoured quote “The way to make a million dollars is to start a religion.”

So what’s more important: the message or the messenger?

Us Versus Them

February 1, 2009 by Ian MacKenzie

We. A film based on the words of Arundhati Roy

The defining conflict of the 20th century tends to be characterized as Democracy versus Totalitarianism. First, the Fascist dictatorships of Hitler and Stalin, then the spectre of Communist Russia.

By the turn of the century, it appeared that Democracy had won. Then suddenly, a new threat emerged to fill the hole: Islamic fundamentalists.

It’s tempting to see this struggle as something new and far different than previously fought. After all, nations can be reasoned with, truces negotiated, cease-fires declared. But terrorists (theoretically) want nothing less than to destroy or convert the infidels.

Bush Jr. made it clear when he stated, “You’re either with us or with the terrorists.” There is no middle ground in this war.

And so the 21st century’s defining conflict has become Religious Fundamentalists versus Freedom. Or has it?

The real issue is revealed when you look closely enough.

Distilled even further: Good versus Evil.

Finally, you arrive at: Us versus Them.

The current struggle is simply another incarnation of the previous wars. The enemy changes, but the position remains the same.

Rather than continue to replace one external threat with another, I believe the real challenge of the 21st century will be whether we can transcend the destructive mental illusion that we are separate from others.

We must go beyond Us versus Them.

The Myth Of The Hero (And Why Small Things Matter)

January 27, 2009 by Ian MacKenzie

A jug fills drop by drop.
- Buddha

Chesley Sullenberger miraculously landed US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River, saving the lives of every passenger on board. On his hometown return to Danville, California, he appropriately received a hero’s welcome.

In the tv series Heroes, one of the main characters Hiro Nakamura believes he is on a quest to save New York City from nuclear desctruction. All his energy is focused toward preparing himself for this act of greatness.

So what is a hero?

It’s generally accepted that someone is a hero after performing a heroic act: saving a life, landing a plane, winning the Cup, and other “grand” moments.

But here lies the fundamental misperception of the hero myth.

The Continuum

There are no such thing as singular grand actions. There is no place to point to and say “This is the beginning, and this is the ending.”

The pilot of Flight 1549 was able to perform because of the thousands of actions and decisions he made before the day in question. All the people he met along the way, all the moments he experienced, and all the skills he aquired contributed to his “heroic” act.

Perhaps through his Eastern culture, Hiro Nakamura understands this truth.

He conquers the various trials on his way to New York City not by pushing them aside, but by choosing to act “like a hero” no matter the circumstance.

He understands each seemingly mundane act is just as important as the heroic moment.

All The Small Things

This matters because so many of us operate day to day on auto-pilot. We’re wrapped in our own work, our own issues, and lost in our own thoughts.

We interact with others through thousands of decisions that appear mundane on the surface. We cut someone off in traffic. We dismiss a chat with a friend. We spead gossip at work.

We stick to the belief that small actions don’t matter. Were a “heroic” moment to present itself, we believe we would rise to the challenge.

In the brilliant tv drama The Wire, there’s an iconic scene in Season 4 that speaks volumes.

Herc, a police officer, is charged with delivering a young witness to another lead investigator on a murder. Instead of completing this seemingly simple task, Herc shirks his duty and sets off a chain of events that result in catastrophic damage to the witness.

Herc defends his actions, stating it wasn’t a big deal. His captain, Carver, who had originally promised protection to the witness, now realizes the effect of such thoughtlessness.

“It matters,” Carver tells Herc. “Everything matters.”

Yes, Meditation Should Be Taught In Public School

November 23, 2008 by Ian MacKenzie


Photo by Mre770

A recent article in the local paper “Breathing or Buddhism, parents ask” highlights a few parents who are upset their children are being taught “religion” in school.

“We’re concerned that mindful education is a Buddhist practice masquerading as science at the school,” Rebecca Kavanagh said yesterday. She and her husband believe the program contravenes the B.C. School Act, which prohibits the teachings of religious dogmas or creeds in public schools [...]

I’ll admit, I like Buddhism. Since I first began studying it over 4 years ago, it stuck a chord that just feels right. But while its iconography is not for everyone, the technique of insight meditation is invaluable to all.

Unfortunately, many people wrongly classify the technique as a religion, even though it’s much closer to a practical philosophy.

That said, the controversial school program doesn’t even touch on the cosmology of Buddhism. Rather, it stresses the technique of mindfulness.

In the program, students are asked to pay attention to their thoughts, feelings and sensations, practise deep breathing, and do affirmations and visualizations.

The benefits of mediation are well documented. At a time when most kids are brainwashed to worship senseless violence and socialites, mindfulness is a critical tool that offers massive potential, especially being offered a young age.

One woman commented on the article, saying:

Breathing deeply and learning to relax are excellent skills for children to learn as a stress reduction technique and for concentrating.

I work as a mental health counsellor and many of my adult clients with anxiety and high stress would have benefitted from learning some of these coping techniques earlier in life. This isn’t religion, it’s another tool in managing emotions and being able to think more clearly.

With the proper education, I believe most parents would understand the value (and non-religious nature) of meditation, and these types of programs will become standard in classrooms all over the world.

What do you think? Should meditation be taught in public school?

Does Your Path Have Heart?

August 20, 2008 by Ian MacKenzie

Does the path have heart?

I’m a believer that everything happens for a reason. But not in the way most people tend to use the phrase.

Traditionally, I find optimistic people say “everything happens for a reason” when they’re trying to console a friend after a painful event. Or to convince themselves that a poor decision or consequence is the result of God (or the universe) testing them.

Will their faith or resolve carry them through the event to find the silver lining?

But I like to think of it under a different perspective. I believe each moment in our lives is not the result of divine intervention, rather, it is an opportunity to learn something new. To shift our perspective. To challenge us to see things in a new light.

The “reason” for everything is to raise our awareness enough to perceive a more enlightened reality.

Read More »

Perfection Of Wisdom #02

July 21, 2008 by Ian MacKenzie

Adam falling

“All my life I believed I knew something. But then one strange day came when I realized that I knew nothing, yes, I knew nothing. And so words became void of meaning. I have arrived too late at ultimate uncertainty.” — Ezra Pound

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