Part Two. Suffering of Israel. Four Religions and War
A growing mental health crisis that could run for years
Headings
Reflection on Part One
Introduction to Part Two
On a Personal Note
Suffering of Israeli civilians
Suffering of Army Reservists in Gaza
Suffering of the Families of the Hostages
Response of Four Religions to War
Judaism
Islam
Christianity
Buddhism
Final Word
Further Reading on Websites
Reflection on Part One. The Nightmare of Gaza Goes on
Jewish Voices for Peace in the USA. JVP is the world's largest Jewish organization standing in solidarity with Palestine.
In Part One, I highlighted the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, the names of the international organisations involved in collecting evidence of a range of war crimes, and the results of the investigations.
In Part Two, I highlight the suffering of Israelis and the core teachings of four religions.
You can find all this information online. I have not included a list of website citations because of their length. Readers can type a relevant line from my text into an AI search engine to find the citation.
Any statistics or information require an element of trust in facts and figures. Where I found two or three different figures, such as the Palestinian death toll, I use the lower figure.
The level of destruction in Gaza, the documentaries we watch, interviews with Gazans and photographs we see in the media tend to make the level of mass suffering in Gaza believable.
I have also given brief summaries of personal stories related to the war on Gaza since 7 October 2023. Those of us who live in Western countries have probably never been exposed to stories of such suffering. Sometimes, we read a single personal story about the circumstances of an individual that speaks to us more than all the facts and figures.
Neither of the two parts of this text offer comfortable reading. How could it? This report is about war, the worst kind of widespread suffering that human beings can inflict on each other.
War confirms defeat for all involved because war defeats communication
War replaces communication/negotiation/aid/diplomacy with killing, torture, terror and the infliction of mental suffering – widespread nervous breakdowns, depression and intense grief.
This two-part article aims to encourage readers to renounce war. Sections in both parts deal with the consequences of supporting one side at the expense of the other.
Introduction to Part Two
This section looks at the suffering of Israelis, a religious response to war - Judaism, Islam, Christianity and Buddhism. These four major religions share deep values revealed in their original texts. Such values include the meaning and relevance of the Ten Statements (Ten Commandments in Christianity) in Judaism, living in peace in Islam, non-violence/love in Christianity, and compassion/wisdom in the Buddhist tradition.
If these religions stay close to their roots, then representatives of these and other faiths can help to prevent or end war. Far too often theology and Buddhology waters down the original teachings.
I have referred to essential features of these religious texts to stay close to the roots, in relation to war. We do not have to be Jews, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists or any other faith to appreciate and learn from these texts. An open-minded secularist/atheist or agnostic can find meaningful statements that remind us to know mindfulness and respectful lives, free from the desire to hurt and harm.
On a Personal Note
I researched and drafted an article highlighting the suffering of people in a war zone. Certain readers will jump to the conclusion that the writer takes sides. They believe any compassion or concern for one side means they oppose the other side. Dharma teachings give priority to the arising of suffering and its resolution through the ethics of non-violence, dialogue and wise action.
My intention in writing these articles is to support the resolution of suffering on both sides. Some comments I receive after publishing such texts show a few readers misunderstand my intent. To state again, I strongly oppose all wars, including all violent actions of Hamas and the IDF, past, present and into the future.
Here are rough extracts from readers/listeners in the form of emails, texts, online voices, person-to-person reactions in recent years.
Israel is a pariah state and you support them.
How can you possibly equate Israel’s suffering with the suffering in Gaza and the West Bank?
I never expected to read an article from a Buddhist who supports Hamas.
You use the Buddha’s teachings to justify your prejudiced teachings.
I am a practising Buddhist for 20 years. Donald Trump is the greatest president we ever had.
I read what you wrote in your post about Israel. Unsubscribe me.
Suffering of Israelis
While world attention has focused on the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, the world's media seem to have ignored the ongoing suffering in Israel.
An Israeli government report (State Comptroller: Inspects, Reviews and Audits Israeli Government’s policies) warn of a ‘looming national mental health crisis,’ estimating that up to three million Israelis may develop symptoms of depression, anxiety, and PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) as a result of the war.
Israelis experience deep psychological wounds. This widespread unhappiness affects children’s emotional life and cognitive development.
One of the Dharma teachers living near Jerusalem put out an invitation to offer mindfulness practices online to help Israelis reduce their levels of stress. Within a few days, more than 20,000 Israelis signed up, to join the course. Before the war on Gaza, a few dozen may have registered.
Citizens struggle with depression, anxiety and fear, experiencing chronic doubts about their self-worth. They cannot find their value as a human being with their family, with work and the negative consequences of people’s views of them. The worry about members of their family and friends engaged in the war weighs heavily on the mind. The mind starves for calm and happiness.
Rich countries, including Israel, do not offer training in ethics, empathy, development of the heart-mind and wise action to resolve conflict – personal, domestic, social or in relationship to another country. Only a tiny percentage of citizens have the tools, skills and practises to deal with mental/emotional suffering. Small situations will trigger an anxiety attack – a sudden noise, waking up in a dark room and bedwetting shows symptoms of stress.
In many cases, Israeli citizens might have access to a psychologist, but it takes time to come back to a deep sense of wellbeing and inner peace. An increasing number of Israelis find themselves desperate for renewal, for the dissolution of their daily torment, obsessive thoughts and sleepless nights. Regular sessions of wise counsel and daily practices can heal the tortured psyche.
I hear Israelis experience intense insecurity about the present and a whirlwind of doubt and uncertainty about the future. The citizens of Israel face the painful truth that life in Israel has changed since 7 October. The country can no longer rely upon itself, nor upon the support of the rest of the world, unless Israel undergoes a momentous change in its relationship with the Arab world. That means the good citizens of Israel need to engage in sharing ways for hearts and minds to meet with the hearts and minds in the Arab world. Enough is enough in terms of the suffering and sorrow since 1948.
We ask too much of Israelis if we expect them at this time to feel concern for the impact of their war on Gaza. With up to three million Israelis developing symptoms of depression, anxiety, PTSD or experiencing already, thoughtful Israelis cannot reach out due to the state of affairs around them.
Israel needs a new kind of army - psychiatrists, psychologists, mental health workers, psychotherapists, counsellors, social workers, mindfulness teachers, facilitators, skilful communicators and more to deal with the intensity of stress and its variations. The same situation applies to Palestine. Those in Israel and Palestine relatively free from the burden of mental health issues have a major task of supporting their troubled family members, friends and colleagues struggling from one day to the next.
Tell me. Where do the children play?
Suffering of Army Reservists in Gaza
The war in Gaza has claimed the lives of an increasing number of IDF soldiers, with some 846 killed and a further 15,000 wounded. Most of the casualties have not been among active-duty soldiers, but among reservists, who also account for 66% of the wounded.
Some 300,000 in number, these reservists were called up on 7 October, with many sent directly to Gaza. More than half are aged 18 to 29 with little or no experience of war before entering the hell realm of Gaza. The deaths and wounded bring immense stress, anxiety and depression for numerous members of the family.
In some cases, the reservists, as well as regular soldiers, were sent back to Gaza before their treatment for PTSD had come to completion. The return to Gaza increases their mental health issues with intensification of fears and anxieties, especially in a combat zone or coming across men, women and children screaming, dying or dead after bombing and shelling.
Deaths, wounds and trauma of fellow soldiers and military offices further added to the unresolved issues. Armies often express a macho culture where men, regardless of age, find themselves put down if they speak up about their mental health issues, Commanders of soldiers often expect their men to remain strong, aggressive and hardened to the realities of a battle. Soldiers react with vomiting, diarrhoea, chronic stomach cramps and crying for their mother. These are typical reactions from those in touch with their feelings, their humanity, as well as fears.
Commanders and veterans of war may try to persuade vulnerable soldiers, who have no stomach for killing and wounding, to avoid seeking psychological treatment. They view such treatment as a weakness, a failure, an inability to live, suffer and die for their country. Officers will order their subordinates. “What I say you must do, you obey. “Orders from senior officers take priority. Soldiers do not have the privilege of a personal choice in the heat of conflict. In touch with their humanity, soldiers can experience immense guilt for blindly obeying orders to harm and kill the defenceless.
The wounded and damaged minds of combatants, notably reservists, return to their family in Israel as deeply troubled human beings, which intensifies the stress of loved ones, who find it hard to handle a changed personality of a loved one.
Combat units find themselves witnessing such horrific acts of violence and cruelty, as well as death and destruction. They dare not share their experiences with family and friends. It remains bottled up inside. This leaves an intensity of anguish for everybody. Those who suffer from chronic anxiety, depression and PTSD can find no space in the mind, no safe place, no corner anywhere within themselves to take refuge. Some soldiers kill themselves or engage in acts of self-harm.
Research shows that about a third of the soldiers affected urgently need support from military mental health clinics or psychologists or to meet with psychologists accompanying the army. In the weeks after the 7 October massacre, records show around 1000 soldiers met with army psychologists. The primary mental health condition consisted of anxiety disorder, depression, and psychological disorder.
Such levels of unhappiness and despair block the capacity to experience empathy and clarity. Soldiers fear returning home in a coffin, a loss of limbs or eyesight or losing their mental faculties.
Reservists may go into a war zone not out of any conviction about the righteousness of the war, but they feel they must support and protect their friends. They believe they would let their friends down if they refused to go to Gaza or Lebanon or both.
The Israeli government provided 800 military mental health workers for reservists after much protest about the shortage of them in the army. Some soldiers avoid medication and counselling because they have to wait weeks for treatment, an unbearably long time for treatment of a personal crisis.
Typical thoughts might arise for a soldier. “In a few weeks, I will feel better. My mental health problems are minor compared to the emotional breakdown of other soldiers. They have become violent, exhibit crazy behaviour, plus they have to deal with thoughts of self-harm, eating disorders or chronic insomnia. “I just feel sick, unhappy and anxious.” Such soldiers and civilians may undermine their deeply distressing experiences, not realising they are symptons of a major mental health crisis.
A 24/7 helpline and the establishment of centres for well-being can make an important contribution to the beginning of a lengthy process for recovery and renewal. Predictions from research show that the war on Gaza, even if it stops, will continue to increase for years the number of mental health problems in Israel, both for Jews and Arabs (Palestinians) living in the country.
IDF has established suicide prevention programmes to reduce the growing number of suicides and acts of self-harm.
Suffering of Families of the Hostages
The suffering of families in Israel continues in the long wait for the release of hostages. The long waiting affects their emotional and mental lives in a different way from the soldiers and other Israeli Jews. Palestinians waiting for the release of their loved ones taken hostage by the IDF experience the same toll on their emotions and mental life. Despair and emotional turmoil or total numbness may hit the family with a missing member or two with full force. There is the horror/trauma in the initial period of finding out Hamas has kidnapped loved ones. Family members left in Israel will know the horror of what Hamas operatives are capable of.
The lives of families of the hostage were changed from one day to the next. It is not surprising that thousands upon thousands of Israelis made a superhuman effort to get their government to act differently to enable the hostages to come home. Did the Israeli government listen? The government continued the bombing and shelling, which ensured the opposite of the heartfelt wishes of the families.
Hamas kidnapped the hostages, knowing full well this would cause a pervasive daily fear in Israel. The hostages themselves never know whether they will survive the day, as they hear the bombs dropping, sometimes exceptionally close. They know their survival depends on the willingness of the Israeli government and Hamas to come to an agreement with the hostages becoming pawns in power politics.
Those trapped in Gaza, probably in some underground tunnel or windowless room, have to deal with the nightmares of their bare bones existence. They have to find a purposeful relationship with the entrapment and accommodate any demons in the mind due to the relentless pressure and insecurity their captors have inflicted upon them.
The family of a hostage(s) manifests itself as a chronic state of uncertainty and a psychological condition called ambiguous loss. Ambiguous Loss, a significant concept in Israeli psychology, refers to a type of loss lacking clarity or resolution. This loss leaves individuals in a state of uncertainty and emotional limbo, such as not knowing the fate of a family member including being put to death, a health issue or from bombing.
In a compassionate light, the world needs to recognise, acknowledge and understand the pervasive suffering within Israel and the unhappiness and anguish for the Jewish community worldwide
Response of Four Religions to War
Judaism, Islam, Christianity and the Buddhist tradition
There are people of religious faith who abhor war and speak up to end war. Religious organisations, groups and individuals can campaign for peace and justice as an expression of their faith.
Tribute needs to be paid to people of faith, who often have to face hostility and rejection from the politicians, media, society, family and friends. To their credit, they keep alive a principle of love and respect for humanity, transcending the destructive aims of the nation state.
Those working for peace, justice and resolution of violent conflict have the task of arousing public opinion. Activists work to wake up those who sleepwalk through serious issues facing humanity and encourage those who do to keep voicing their values for a negotiated resolution. Such a resolution becomes the first step towards a humanitarian approach to ending differences between nations.
Experienced activists are aware that their campaigns, demonstrations, critiques and posters will likely not change the mind of those entrenched in identification of us against them. Nonetheless, non-violent activists recognize the importance of staying true to their values and taking wise and caring action accordingly to end war.
Despite much research including online media, I do not find the major religions showing a widespread and dedicated support to stop the war on Gaza. Religions often seem to give a lukewarm response lacking passion and clarity to instil change in society.
I experience much gratitude to people of faith for their non-violent devotion, as a vehicle for change. I feel religions in general have acquiesced to domestic political and social opinion. I would love the situation to be otherwise.
One does not have to become a member of any of these four religions, nor believe in a theistic God to know the depth of value of the core teachings in Judaism, Islam, Christianity and the Buddhist tradition.
Jewish Community and the Ten Statements
Revealed to Moses on Mount Sinai in the Sinai Desert
You can see the Ten Statements/Utterances* (Aseret ha-Dibrot) found in the Book of Exodus and the Book of Deuteronomy of the Torah.
Ten Statements are called the Ten Commandments in Christianity.
Authentic Judaism recognises God as a Transcendent Principle with significance for human co-existence. The language of faith and the power of love reveal a common religious denominator of a moral to develop a relationship with God (Transcendence) and humanity. These values transcend the desires and prejudices of individuals, authorities and violent aims of the nation state.
Ten Statements form the foundation of Jewish ethics, behaviour and responsibility with an enduring and universal significance.
Statements 1-4 points to the relationship to God.
Statements 5 – 10 points to the relationship to people.
Authentic Judaism reminds humanity we are all God’s children. Application of these Ten Statements encourages wise, thoughtful and meaningful use to connect with God and for the welfare of one and all.
First Statement/Commandment stipulates 'You shall have no other gods before me.” This principal guides individuals in their daily lives. When the Almighty is marginalised, false gods take over consciousness. The most extreme example of false gods expresses as political leaders committing war crimes and genocide, which rejects ethics, compassion and intelligence.
Third Statement. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. The belief that God supports one faith against another, such as Jews against Muslims, serves as an example of religious vanity.
Sixth Statement. 'You shall not kill.’ Certain Jewish rabbis have interpreted this statement to mean 'You shall not murder another Jew.’ The Torah does not say that. The sixth statement reminds humanity of the sacred nature of everybody’s regardless of their faith, religious, secular or both.
Eighth Statement. ‘Thou shall not steal.’ The State of Israel consists of the land the United Nations Partition provided for the Jewish community in November 1948. 1967 land grab and subsequent landgrabs by the Israeli government and settlers, to develop a Greater Israel, reveals a violation of this statement.
Ninth Statement. ‘You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.’ A government, religious or secular authority who spreads lies, false claims, indulges in propaganda and inflammatory campaigns in the media violate the Ninth Statement.
Tenth Statement. ‘You shall not covet your neighbour’s house…’ During my first visits to Israel from the early 1990s, I heard first hand stories from Israelis in the early years of their new nation state. The fledgling Israeli army displaced 700,000 Palestinians, who had to flee their homes. Thousands of Palestinians fled to Gaza to take refuge leaving their homes behind.
Tell me. Where do the children play?
I Recall
I heard firsthand stories of Israelis moving into abandoned Palestinian homes when they fled the Israeli army in the time of the formation of Israel. One woman recalled her father telling her the teapot was still warm when they moved into the Palestinian home after that family fled.
I Recall
Last year, I spoke with an Israeli businessman, married, a parent, living nearby in Devon, England. I asked him if he had been recently back to Israel.
He said to me: “I am never going back to my homeland until there is a major change with Israel electing a government worthy of respect. I am proud to be a Jew. I am ashamed to be an Israeli.”
Heart of Islamic teachings.
Peace. Peace. Peace
Islam means Peace and Submission to God.
The sacred book of Muslims, The Quran, reveals the statements of Allah, the Supreme. Readers will find in the book regular references to Peace.
The Quran names Peace (as-salam) as one of God's names and refers to Paradise as "the Home of Peace"
The book also recognises the prominent place of steadfastness and patience (sabra) to overcome reactive violent patterns in domestic, social and political issues. This reveals sabra as an expression of non-violence.
Quran exhorts giving priority to reconciliation, forgiveness and compassion to resolve conflicts.
Probably, the most commonly used Muslim greeting "As-salamu alaikum" (Peace Be Upon You) serves as a daily reminder to all Muslims of the significance of peace.
Western media and Muslims prone to violence have given a violent meaning to the word Jihad stating it means Holy War. This definition stands far removed from the original Arabic meaning of ‘Struggle.’
‘Struggle’ refers to working with unhealthy, unwholesome patterns that can dominate consciousness.
People devoted to living with integrity and respect for others can face a spiritual struggle in the commitment to stay true to moral principles.
Imams in mosques need to remind the faithful of the beautiful principles of Islam and stay true to the core body of teachings on reconciliation, hospitality and peace. Frequent reminders would help to prevent violence carried out in the name of Islam from happening in the future, as has happened in the past and present.
Tell me. Where do the children play?
I Recall
A man in his early 20s went on a spiritual/religious search. He looked in depth into four religions – Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Islam. With a lengthy list of questions, he met an Imam in the north of England. He told the Imam that he engaged in amateur boxing and asked, “What was the Islamic view on boxing?”
The Imam said a true Muslim does not engage in any activity to hurt, harm, or injure another person. The young man said he had changed contact sports to ju-jitsu. Imam replied. “Ju-jitsu does not have the intention to hurt, harm or injure the opponent. It fits in with the teachings of Islam. At the end of the session, the young man had found a religion that completed his search.
An Indispensable Teaching in Christianity
“Love your Enemies” – Jesus
Jesus taught unwaveringly the practice of non-violence,
"Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you" in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:44).
"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbours and hate your enemies.' But I tell you to love your enemies and pray for anyone who mistreats you."
"You have heard: 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, do not resist an evil person”
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is, "Love your neighbour as yourself."
Christianity has adopted the theological argument of the Four Principles of a Just War put forward by Augustine, a 4th century Roman Catholic monk, who the Church canonised (made a saint).
Augustine introduced a punitive concept of framing the just war as a means to punish sinners and restore peace. Here are his four justifications to wage war.
War should only be waged to establish peace.
Just wars are fought to punish sinners and restore peace.
Wars should be waged out of love (caritas) for the enemy and for God.
Divine authority: God's authority can make seemingly immoral acts just.
The justification for war by this Christian monk ignores the core messsage of Jesus, who gave teachings to bring an end to inflicting violence on others. Jesus stayed true to his profound and challenging ethic, despite the savage torture and crucifixion he endured. Pontius Pilate, the Governor of Judaea, ordered the torture and execution of Jesus in the time when Judaea was under Roman occupation.
Teachings of the Buddha
Non-Violence, Ethics, Mindfulness, Compassion and a Liberating Wisdom
The Buddha provides unambiguous teachings on applying a non-violent response to situations, personal, social and political.
The core of the teachings state suffering exists, conditions cause the suffering, suffering can be resolved and there are ways to resolve. You cannot find a single word of support for war in the Buddha’s teachings.
Teachings usually start with the taking of the first ethic.
The first precept is:
I undertake the training not to engage in killing.
This training also includes not to give support to others to kill, such as providing arms or words of support to kill. The Buddha rejects any kind of complicity in killing.
Certain Dharma teachers have failed to insist on the intrinsic importance of the first ethical guideline.
The Buddha referred to such views as adharma – against the Dharma, anti-Dharma, not Dharma. Questioning of authority constitutes an essential feature in Dharma teachings. Dharma students can question their teacher(s) about their view on the first precept.
Resolution of suffering states the hub of the teachings.
Does the teacher fully respect the first ethical training?
Does the teacher condone one side in a war?.
Does the teacher respect the ethical training or turn their back on it?
Let us develop a collective view to end conflict whether personal, social or political and stay true to this dedication.
I Recall
An Israeli psychotherapist and a non-violent Palestinian activist, awarded a European peace prize, invited me to facilitate a meeting in Nablus, Palestine in 1993. Around 20 Israelis from various walks of life came – Buddhists, lawyers, teachers, therapists, ex IDF soldiers, professors and a man shot twice in the back while having coffee in Jerusalem by a Palestinian randomly shooting Israelis.
They came to listen and to speak. Israelis argued with each other, not with the Palestinians. Palestinian teenagers were among those who attended the meeting. They articulated life under occupation with heart touching stories. Arabic, Hebrew and English added to the dynamic.
On the Sunday morning, Nablus council organised a peaceful walk to the hospital outside Nablus, which the Israeli army converted into a political prison. The Israeli group was invited to join the walk with the Mayor of Nablus at the front and many women and children among the walkers.
To their credit, all but four Israelis agreed to join the pilgrims. The silent walk to the prison did not happen. Hiding in an olive grove, Israeli soldiers fired into the crowd, killing and wounding a two or three people. Later that day, we arrived back in Israel. People were going about their daily business. They experienced a lovely summer’s evening with drinking and eating, chatting and laughing together at tables outside the restaurants on the pavement.
In the space of a 30-minute drive, we experienced two different worlds. Each world at the expense of the other. That was 1993. Nothing has changed.
Tell me. Where do the children play?
I Recall
During those years of dialogues of Israelis and Palestinians, a young Israeli woman and a young Palestinian man fell in love with each other. They stayed connected, later married and had children. True love is more powerful than identification with the nation state. From time to time, the wife and I would talk on the mobile.
In one of my phone calls, I ask her about the noise I could hear. She said Palestinian women, and herself, were standing in front of a house stopping the huge tractors and tanks from demolishing somebody’s home. (Palestinian men face the risk of being arrested, beaten up or being shot).
Women step in but still take risks.
“What’s all the shouting about?” I asked.
“That’s the media here,” she said. “They are shouting at us to get closer to these huge vehicles so they can get a better picture and film footage. We refuse to budge.”
We need to develop a groundswell of mutual support and respect for one and all and their habitats.
Acts of peace and reconciliation take priority over nationality and religion.
The resolution of suffering summarises the noble undertaking of thoughtful people.
I Recall
I had a meeting with a prominent Israeli activist in a coffee shop during the second intifada. He used two crutches as he slowly walked into the coffee shop. I asked him what happened. He said he and friends/supporters of his small organisation raised money, rented a heavy truck, and filled the truck up with goods and food to support the Palestinians.
At the checkpoint into Palestine, the border guards pulled him and his companion out of the truck and confiscated the vehicle. One of soldiers upturned his rifle and swung it hard down on both his knees. Hence, the crutches.
“Did the soldiers scare you off?” I asked.
“No. We are raising funds to load up another truck.”
The thought arose in my mind. “There are no borders to compassion.”
Final Word
Let us place our trust in a humane way of existence and never compromise.
For Further Reading on Websites
Senior Buddhist Monk, Bhikkhu Bodhi of Jewish ethnicity writes on Israel’s military action
Pilgrimages to end the war in Gaza
Building of a mass movement for social change, justice in Israel
Jewish Voice for Peace. Based in the USA.
Amnesty International. (296-page document). On Genocide in Gaza.
https://www.amnesty.org/en/petition/end-israels-genocide-against-palestinians-in-gaza/
Medicines Sans Frontieres. Focus on the Gaza war.
Jews for Justice for Palestinians. (Based in the UK)
Artists for Palestine, UK
https://artistsforpalestine.org.uk/
If Not Now Movement. Jews for Shared Safety
Compass of Mourning. An Essay by Professor Judith Butler of University of California
Compass of Mourning
https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v45/n20/judith-butler/the-compass-of-mourning
New Synogogue Project, USA. For Social Justice values and ending occupation of Gaza
Tell Me. Where do the children play?
May All Beings live in Peace
May All Beings live in Harmony
May All Beings live in Peace and Harmony
www.mindfulnesstrainingcourse.org
Heart of Islamic teachings - peace, peace peace.
Tell me, where in the Arab Islamic world do people live in peace? Most of the Islamic world are united outwardly to eliminate the state of Israel, and are inwardly either devastated by civil wars and terror, or devastated by lack of human rights. The few exceptions to that are actually at peace with Israel.
I recommend the novel "In Praise of Hatred" by Syrian writer Khaled Khalifa. I read it because I had to understand the phsychology of how someone becomes radicalized, wanting to kill "infidels," to be a martyr.
An example are the terrorists Europe is facing even more recently.
An entire generation of Gazans were indoctrinated to hate Jews and kill Jews and used the religious teachings to justify rape of Jews, not to mention studying Mein Kampf.
In Syria just as in Gaza, is hatred the value we wish to promote?
A genocidal war aiming to eliminate Israel started from Gaza, accompanied by Hezbollah and the Houthies, backed by Iran who all want to wipe Israel out, and the only conclusion of this write up is that Israel must undergo a momentous change in its relationship with the Arab world?
The moral problem of such writings does not arise from discussing the sufferrings of this or that side more or less. The problem is where do we put the responsibility. If we can't seem to recognize that the Arabs around Israel have genocidal intentions, that must be changed, then we have a serious problem. And we do, have a serious problem.
Anthony Blinken, who is not a great fan of Israel, said on an interview he gave to the nyt on Jan 4th: "One of the things that I found little astounding throughout is that for all of the understandable criticism of the way Israel conducted itself in Gaza, you hear virtually nothing, from anyone, since October 7th, about Hamas. Why there hasn't been a unanimous chorus around the world for Hamas to put down its weapons, to give up the Hostages, to surrender. I don't know what the answer is to that" (timestamp 37:52)
This is a great question. Many people in the West, either consciously or unconsciously, blame Israel for October 7th.
The answer lies with Carl Jung.
War, from the perspective of depth phsychology, which I find to be not less profound than any institutionalized religion:
"Dionysus is the abyss of impassioned dissolution, where all human distinctions are merged in the animal divinity of the primordial psyche - a blissful and terrible experience. Humanity, huddling behind the walls of its culture, believes it has escaped this experience, until it succeeds in letting loose another orgy of bloodshed. All well-meaning people are amazed when this happens and blame high finance, the armament industry, the Jews, or the Freemasons" (Psychology and Alchemy, 12%). In the footnote he added that he wrote this in spring 1935.
I wonder, if all the well meaning people are so concerned with activisim for human rights and human dignity, where are they now writing about hundreds of women raped and burned to death after Goma prison set on fire? Or all the other horrible atrocities in the world? Where are all the activists against occupation writing about free Tibet? Well, if there are no Israelis there, it is not that interesting. Honestly, are we pro human, or are we anti Israel?
And it will not make a single difference to exchange "Jews" for "Israel". We are the same people, and antisemitism is as archetypal and as deep as Christ himself.
Shalom
I love you, Christopher, my teacher, my friend, Captain oh Captain of Dharma sailling through storms....
Thank you from the bottom of my crying heart.