Notes on nonviolence

Our dear planet Earth is a "global village" that, thanks to technology is more interconnected than ever, and thanks to human nature (and overpopulation?) is riddled with violent crime at the local, national and international levels. With the insane information overload coming at us via the media, it is easy to become overwhelmed and shut down. To follow the "no news is good news," line of thinking. Human beings just aren't built to consume as much stressful imagery and sinister information as is available in the 21st century. Watchers of 24 hour news channels like CNN are bombarded with it nonstop. It overstresses us, gives us headaches, tight backs, ulcers, and sadness. Yet we cannot turn away.

What to do? Yoga and meditation, of course. But we must go beyond the basics, past the downward dogs and backbends, into the realm of integrating the ancient yoga teachings into our daily lives. Ahimsa, the Sanskrit term for non-violence, is one of the main tenets of the ethical/moral teachings of yoga. Peaceful revolutionaries like Jesus, Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. understood it and courageously taught it to their followers. Every major religion contains some principle against violence. But it is more than just, "Thou shalt not kill," in the literal sense. A lot of us would not kill or do serious bodily harm to another person. But, if properly provoked, we would hurt them psychologically or emotionally, oftentimes intentionally.

It's essential to remember that violence -- and non-violence -- begins at the individual level. It begins, as all human enterprises do, inside the mind. However, one cannot instantly eliminate all negative and violent thoughts at their root simply by wishing to do so. The next best thing is to start eliminating violent actions. At the gross level, this would mean ceasing with physical aggression, angry shouting, gratuitous road rage. At a more subtle level? Cut down on arguments, mean-spirited gossip, use of profanity, and condescending glares.

In the wise words of Indian philosopher J. Krishnamurti, "When you call yourself an Indian or a Muslim, or a Christian, or a European, or anything else, you are being violent. Do you see why? Because you are separating yourself from the rest of mankind. When you separate yourself by belief, by nationality, by tradition it breeds violence. He who seeks to understand violence belongs to no country, no religion, no political party, no particular system. What matters to him is the complete understanding of humanity."

We in America are typically quite proud of being American (aside from the evils spawned by our presidential administrations, current and historic) -- to say nothing of the pride many Texans feel to hold residency in our state. We are often asked about our religion. What religion are you? I used to be Catholic. Then I was nothing. Then I became Buddhist. And Unitarian Universalist. For a while I even called myself a Buddhist Christian, which, is actually not an oxymoron (not to Buddhists at least). But now, I'm just a yogi. A fan of many religions, but a subscriber to none. Just another member of the human race.