Â鶹Éç

Good morning. Over the past week, I’ve been hearing from friends in the US concerned that the protests, following the death of George Floyd, have taken on a darker mood on account of the unique set of current social circumstances and political interests. No wonder, the worst unrest since the murder of Martin Luther King. King, himself, referred to public protest as the ‘voice of the unheard’; and was inspired by Gandhi’s satyagraha movement – the force of truth.

Ahimsa, non-violence, has a long history within Hindu texts. The Atharvaveda defines it as: ‘not causing pain to any living being at any time through the actions of one’s mind, speech and body.’

For Gandhi, the principle of absolute non-violence was essential to retain moral authority. He recognised that during protest. the ‘voice of the unheard’ is vulnerable – it might be drowned out under the tumult of the establishment as it decries the civil disruption to justify crushing dissent. But, it’s nigh impossible for the Black Lives Matter cause to curb the criminal actions of a few – or to distance itself from the role played by outside agitators. Looting or damaging property is an act of violence, according to the Vedas, but not as bad as using excessive brutality against the perpetrators.

Words matter. And many worry that President Trump’s threat to deploy the military to ‘quickly solve the problem’ may fuel further division and aggression. Fortunately, many other voices in the US – including George Floyd’s brother - plead for demonstrators and the police to ease the antagonism.

Hariharananda, a 19th century theologian extended nonviolence to mean never causing fear in another person’s mind. Unfortunately, many incidents during these protests do just that – whether it’s the hostility of certain police forces or the dangerous destruction by some activists. But others have taken a different approach. In Flint, Michigan, police walked with demonstrators to acknowledge solidarity against the wrongful killing by one of their own.

The sage, Patanjali, asserted that nonviolence must be supported by truthfulness. Violence is perpetrated when the truth of an injustice is denied, ignored or covered up. But, perhaps, the most difficult truth to face is that racism and inequality remain as ‘structural violence’ within US society – and indeed within our own.

In the words of the Vedic prayer: Let us have concord amongst all our communities; may we unite in our purposes and not cause pain to the divine spirit within any of us. Then perhaps, as former President Obama has written: “this moment can be a turning point in our… long journey to live up to our highest ideals

Show less