Pluralistic Solutions
The milieu of pervasive social
diversity requires that serious persons of faith deeply examine the bases of
their personal commitment as they try to develop positive awareness of the
pluralistic reality of cultural interactions in the world of today and
tomorrow. Mike Ghouse will share his perspective.
Metroplex Breakfast Meetings at Canyon Creek Club house, Richardson
Friday, October 11, 2013
print to religion bud
Build cohesive societies
Trust – is the driver for safe
and secure communities and a panacea for suspicion and fear.
The goal of all religions and Civil societies
Dialogue critical to Suspicion- the monster
among us
Fear – the right wing fears phobia MUSLIM take over
Mulberry entry-
Unity day Sikh and Zoroastrian example – reversing the alphabetical
order
belt. If you live in America, and don’t wear the seat belt in the car while you
drive, not only you feel guilty, but certainly uncomfortable. It was not the
case before the seat belt was made mandatory for the driver and the front seat
passenger. It is indeed a consciously learned behavior. I feel the same sense
of discomfort, when I get to the podium and not mention or include different
religions in the speech. My only fear is excluding others in the public square
even by mistake. To allay that fear; I have learned to start my speeches
with Pluralism greetings and prayers that are inclusive of every one including
my Atheist friends (Pluralism Speaker).
lives as an example inculcating Islamic pluralism in my brothers and the
sister, like millions of Muslim parents whom you may have not met. In my
talks, I share small examples and incidents where small things do matter. We
learned the Islamic version of Vasudhaiva Kutumbukum; the whole world is one
family.
the otherness of others and accepting the God-given uniqueness of each one of
the 7 billion of us.
HISTORY
My father was a Mayor of the town of Yelahanka in the fifties, and we always
had construction work at our apartments or remodeling at our historic house,
originally owned by the founder of Bangalore, Hon. Kempe Gowda in the 16th
century. My father was a maverick, and dared challenging the abusive but
prevalent norms of the society, he had the Dalits (shameful word: Untouchables)
work at our place, my mother would make them tea or give them food in the
plates and cups we used, it was a big no-no in the society at that time, you
‘kept them’ away from your house, just as it was for the Blacks in America
then. I am proud of my father, and my mother for supporting him in breaking the
uncouth norms. He was constantly called on to quit, and at times threatened,
but the dare devil held on to his ground firmly and the town loved him dearly
and gradually followed his example.
I saw humiliation in the eyes of men, women and children, who came to collect
water from the public tap on each corner of the street, the upper caste person
would wash the tap three times before he or she collected the water. It was
difficult for me, and I played out my share of the drama and mumbling in
protest. Despite the significant progress made, we have a long way to go in the
housing discrimination, indeed, even in America we have ways to go, but we are
all going forward.
As I am writing this, I grudgingly acknowledge that I have learned nothing new;
my father did everything that I am doing now, Gee, a drop of tear rolls down my
cheek in reverence to Mahatma Gandhi for becoming a catalyst in uplifting the
down trodden and restoring their God-given dignity to them. I just have to pray
for the Mahatma for saving the Indian souls by getting rid of guilt from our
minds, by having us open our hearts and minds toward the fellow beings, just as
MLK did in America.
My father is my hero and opened the doors of wisdom to us. Pluralism indeed
runs in my family. He taught us one of the biggest lessons of my life in social
cohesiveness and dealing with extremism that I continue to reflect in my talks,
acts and write ups.
During the communal riots in Jabalpur (India) in the early sixties, both
Muslims and Hindus were killed in the mayhem, as it happens every time. I wish
every father in India, America and elsewhere teaches this lesson to his kids.
He was crystal clear on his take; He told us the “individuals” are
responsible for the bloodshed and not the religions. If we get the guy who
started the conflict and punish him for disturbing peace, rather than calling
it a religious issue for the communities to jump in and aggravate it further,
we would have saved many lives. He would emphasize that you cannot blame the
intangible religion and expect justice; we must blame the individuals who
caused it and punish them accordingly for disturbing the peace and thus bring a
resolution to the conflict by serving justice. He said you cannot annihilate,
kill, hang or beat the religion, then why bark at it?
Simply put, it is respecting the otherness of the other and accepting the
uniqueness of each one of us. In cultural terms, it is recognizing your culture
as a beautiful expression of life to you, as my own is to me. When it comes to
food, it is appreciating the Rice you enjoy over the Naan I delight, or
vice-versa. For Americans, it is medium rare stake versus the well done. In
religious terms, it is learning to honor the way your worship or bow to the
creator in gratitude, is as divine as my own.
OUR FUTURE IS PLURALISM
By the end of 2020, there will not be a major work place America or India and
other places, where you will not find people of different faiths, cultures,
ethnicities, races, nationalities and social backgrounds working, eating,
playing, marrying, and doing things together.
We need to prepare ourselves for those eventualities to prevent possible
conflicts and lay a good foundation for nurturing goodwill and effective
functioning of the societies. Exclusive communities will become a thing
of the past. (Foundation for Pluralism, Pluralism Center)
Being a Muslim, I am deeply committed to nurturing the pluralistic values
embedded in Islam (World Muslim congress). The role of a Muslim is to mitigate
conflicts and nurture goodwill, most people get that, a few don’t, just as with
any other religious group.
Pluralism is our future, and as a futurist, based on the trends, I foresee,
that two generations from now, we would be comfortable in saying, my religion,
culture or life style is one of the many choices, and further down the road, a
significant number will proclaim that my way of life is not superior or
inferior to any.
They will consider ‘claiming superiority’ would be sheer arrogance and religion
(a major part of life to many) is believed to imbue humility that builds
societies, communities and nations in creating that elusive kingdom of heaven
where all of us can live without apprehension or fear of the other.
WE ARE ONE NATION
We are one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. We
are represented by every race, nationality, ethnicity, language, culture and
religion. We see God as one, none and many and in every form; male, female,
genderless and non-existent, being and non-being, nameless and with innumerable
names. Indeed, we must preserve the pluralistic heritage of America.
writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work
place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers
pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. He believes in
Standing up for others
and has done that throughout his life as an activist. Mike has a presence on
national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on
Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to
the Texas Faith Column at Dallas
Morning News; fortnightly at Huffington post; and
several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes all his work
through many links.