THE ULTIMATE JOURNEY FOR PEACE.
If there exists a UN Peace Troops, it’s the most amazing
result of people who have become lost in their own language. Has the word
"war" simply been replaced by the word "peace"? Armed
conflict that continues in the name of civilization and development and all
that it entails, globalization included. What new term will be invented
tomorrow to justify war? It is a sorry state of affairs and somewhat amazing
that the only time we give attention to a situation is when its worst time has
come. We’ve been through colonization, been through apartheid, been through
poverty, and yes, we’ve also been through corruption.
We have all been through corrupt, fraudulent ideas at one time or another in
our own minds. Let us not wait for "tomorrow’s leaders" to lead us to
peace. There have never existed leaders of tomorrow. Today is all we have.
There is only today. Look around and be aware that today is a beautiful day. Be
your own leader. Don’t lead yourself into guilt. The reality is that every one
of us comes to a point when we must answer for the lives we have led. An
opportunity to confront the reality we face, and to do something about it,
Today.
The Maasai’s are getting out of their enclaves, out of their manyattas, trying
to plead for justice. Give the Maasai a chance, do what you feel is due. Let it
come from inside you. We cannot prescribe the exact way in which you alone can
help. This is up to you, to do the best that you can. Never be guilty. Don’t say,
"I don’t know". Live your life honestly. That’s what you have, just
as we have always had our cattle. That’s our driving force. The cow has to live
its life. It has to enjoy every day, and that makes us enjoy our lives. We
defend each other, and knowing each other’s moods, we support each other in
times of war with the lion. I will die for my cattle, and they will die for me.
That is, if death in fact exists.
The positive solution is not violence. How can we have Peace Troops? We have
now undergone terrorism, assassinations, and wild world wars. At the end of it
all, lives have become valueless. Mere statistics, peppering the evening news.
A soldier is a soldier, programmed for war. How can you have a Peace Soldier?
What exactly is he supposed to do if not fight, the exact opposite of peace?
How can peace be ushered in with a weapon?
We used to surrender to wars, sending messengers who would never be touched,
even though they carried no weapons. It was a recognized form of surrender. He
was the forerunner of peace to come. These were the basic conditions to re-establishing
peace. So how can we send soldiers with guns into a situation in the name of
peacekeeping? How do you expect those at war to put down their guns under such
conditions? How do you expect the Maasai to put down their weapons when faced
with the gun of a “Peace Keeper”?
For peace to prevail, we need to create the right conditions, and this starts
with the opposite of a gun or weapon. There’s never been a more important time
to get our communications right. To be aware of the messages we send out in the
name of peace. Let’s leave no room for misinterpretation. A loaded weapon sends
out all the wrong signals.
Let’s arm the armies of peace with ideas and a willingness to listen.
Let’s arm them with open minds. Let’s arm them with a yearning for peace.
Let’s arm them with the honor men and women deserve when they step into the
battlefield unarmed, saving for their dignity and a determination to bring an
end to confrontation. Look how civilized the other animals are, the other
members of the Natural Community. See how they manage to retain their dignity,
even with their inherent “primitiveness”.
They never fight to kill during territorial disputes. You’ll never hear that
fifty cattle died in fighting. On the other hand, those ten lions fought and
died. However, we hear reports of hundreds and thousands of people being killed
in civilized conflict. What has civilization truly come to mean? It seems to me
that the state of “primitiveness” may be more desirable. That is, if desire means
what I´ve always known it to be, wanting something from the depth within the
heart.
Before the arrival of guns and today’s sophisticated weaponry Africa’s
wars were deemed primitive. Let us at least return to those primitive days,
when we were free of mass slaughter, and a man had to really think about killing
before he did it. This civilized warfare destroys life too effectively and
leaves thousands maimed. It has become a video game played by generals in
far-away places who are guided only by statistics. They are probably not even
conscious of the suffering they are causing, and defend their actions with
lawyers and media advisers who base their advice on the latest opinion polls. Let’s
give the primitive way a chance.
That’s what the Maasai culture is. Commitments to living naturally, and letting
everything fall in its own place. He will still carry a spear, stick or a club.
Content inside with the actions he takes daily. That he might not find himself
in a state of guilt by his own judgment. It may be that by living according to Nature’s
laws, we are able to change the world around us. Peace begins in the heart.
Make peace with yourself, and it will spread naturally. Remain innocent.
Nurture a clear conscience. Never look for an excuse. Create peace. It’s up to
you.
What the Maasai are asking for is the chance to be left to mature in their
"primitive" culture they value above material money or title deeds or
the latest weapons. To mature consciously and continue trusting nature, as
their supreme commander in chief, forever. This is one relationship they will
never give up on, and it remains beautiful to this day. That’s our spiritual
belief.