A Way Out of a War Against China- The FIlipino Way. (Part 3) by Gian Carlo Luna This 3-part essay is an attempt to peel off the different levels of the Philippine-China conflict and an unusual possible way out. 6. A Way Out: Moving towards a New Philippines! “ A Healthy Social Life can be found when in the mirror of each Human soul the whole community finds its reflection and when in the community, the virtue of each one is living” The quote above by Rudolf Steiner rises above two (2) other thought forms that come from the right-wing and left-wing political forces that has worked since the 18th century until the present. The Right wing thought says that: “It is vain to talk of the interest of the community without understanding what is the interest of the individual”. This quote by Jeremy Bentham (18th century philosopher) emphasizes the individual in a self-centered way. This thought pervades those that vanguard the spread of Capitalism and the Free markets. On its polar opposite is the Left-wing thought that says: “The life history of the individual is first and foremost an accommodation to the patterns and standards traditionally handed down in his community” In this quote by Ruth Benedict (20th century anthropologist) is an emphasis of the control of the community over the individual. This is the thought form of that which we know as communism. A middle path was carved out for us by Rudolf Steiner in his quote in 1905. For Steiner, he emphasized that each Individual must be conscious with the community in all that he does and in the community respects the uniqueness of each individual. Furthermore, Rudolf Steiner points out to a characteristic of a society that is to be born if Humanity is to fulfill its purpose in the world. In the early 21st Century Rudolf Steiner gave an indication of what he calls the “Three-fold Social Order” where three spheres of Polity, Economy, and the rather marginalized and often the sufferer of the excesses of the two previous spheres, Culture. Steiner further indicated how these social systems must both work independently AND collaboratively, to answer the need of the Human Being. The central focus is the Human Being. Interestingly, the idea of a Three-fold Society has already been introduced to the Philippines. Unbeknownst to many Filipinos, it is in our country that the most detailed guiding framework for Social Three-folding called the Philippine Agenda 21 (PA21) was first made by Nicanor Perlas and signed by former president Ramos into law. However, a lack of political will in government has, at least and hopefully, only for now, banished this framework to some governmental black hole. In 1919 after the First World War Rudolf Steiner said “ The Anglo-American element may well achieve world dominion but without the three-folding of society, this dominion will flood the world with the death of culture and the sickness of culture.” It is not difficult to see how this is already true in Philippine society and how we are bringing ourselves further and further killing and destroying what is left of our culture , if it is not yet as of now, terminally diseased. We even speak of a “cancer” that is growing in the Philippines in the same way this disease is becoming a prevalent cause of deaths among our people. We can begin to sense that this “manifestation” in Philippines society reflects our individual “unconsciousness”. 7. Where to Start? Bleak though it may be, it is not without hope. For, there within the Filipino soul lies the greatest potential for transformation… if it so wills it. The Transformation that the Filipino nation must undertake is not an easy one. It is colossal and requires training his faculties to a much higher degree than the level by which he employs them now. Just as light is found in his soul, deep within lies also his shadow. This shadow likes to stay and wallow in the dark. It convinces itself that there is no way out. It might well be that, too. The Filipino will further be tempted to think that this idea of a New Philippines is too Utopian but when he meditates upon it himself, he finds that it is the only course he must take. It is the only road to redemption, if the country were to wrest herself out of the China-conflict and from all that he suffers now. The Filipino, when contemplating on this China question, will also be led to realize that sacrifices have to be made on a level never once-imagined, and may prove yet to be the MOST POSSIBLE to do. For, after all, the Filipino is not known to be Resilient for nothing. The Solution also requires that we now think as if the OTHER is US, there is no other. When we recognize this Truth, the details of the solution reveals itself in the souls eyes. 8. A Possible Picture Let us, for a moment, place in our souls mind a different image of our country. Let us imagine the Philippines revisiting the ideas embodied in the Philippine Agenda 21. Our leaders along with each citizen commits to a promulgation of a Three-folding society and the implementation of its principles to developing the different dimensions of its social life, where it serves to protect its sovereign interest while respecting each citizens individual and unique gifts and interest while upholding the integrity of nature and an ability to create partnerships in the international community solely on the premise of sustainability and as an expression of the highest aspirations of its people. Given our unique geographical location and natural resources it is more than possible for us to develop more sustainable and alternative sources of energy especially from both solar, geothermal, and wind sources. It is more than possible for us to develop our own sustainable agriculture that provides work for millions of Filipinos. It is more than possible to generate work opportunities for every Filipino respecting their interests and gifts. Many things, if not everything, is more than possible for the Philippines. Imagine a Philippines where its political leaders strive to put the welfare of the people first than a smokescreen of “democratic and legal processes” that only serves to fatten their pockets. When our leaders truly have their hearts for the people and create policies on education, medicine, economics, and in all areas of social life based on a real knowledge of the human being. Imagine when our business leaders invest in enterprise that is for the well being of the Filipino rather than mere profit while both the Filipino and its natural environment suffers greatly. Imagine when they have a deeper understanding of the spiritual task of money and how this money can truly be used for the good of everyone instead of just a few. Imagine when they finally strive to find solutions that emancipates the human beings labor value as pure commodity as the value of vegetables and objects. Imagine when our brothers and sisters in culture finally chooses to take on their life missions as well. When our doctors expand their views of the human being from a simple bio-mechanical one into a being of physical body-life body-soul-spirit and apply these demonstrable concepts in medicine. Imagine when our religious leaders transcends their theology of control, fear, and sectarianism into a more renewed form where a real understanding of the human being as a spiritual entity and co-creator of the future is taught and even encouraged. Imagine when our teachers commit to developing our children into real thinking-feeling-willing beings rather than make them ready merely for mechanistic work. When we become such a Philippines we have a better command and position in the world. No wolf-in-sheepskin tyrannical and oppressive empires can force their secret agenda upon us. Their “free-market/trade” treatises that kill our local producers will not be attractive to us. We become conscious and all the works of this Being will be exposed in the Sun to be burned by the light of our consciousness. Despite these though, the western powers controlled by elitist societies hiding behind the smokescreen of “democracy” will force their monopolistic and hegemonic aims upon us. They will do all they can to accuse, persecute, and even discredit what we achieve through conscious and real tri-partisan cooperation. They will isolate and try all means to make life hard for us. This theory is not without merit. The US and its Allies have already done such atrocities to countries that do not kneel to them. We can only look at the examples of Iraq, Afghanistan, Eastern Europe and many more. From economic sabotage to chemical and disease warfare, technology and the like. In the end, the Anglo-American power will not approve of our disengagement from their imperialistic aims. This is one picture. An Opportunity for China. In 1921, years before the World War II, Rudolf Steiner, in one of his lectures talked about a direction that Japan could have considered and preventing itself from getting into. We now know that this was not heeded by Japan. Let us for a moment take note of what Steiner said. “Japan is in the vanguard of Asian life in a sense; it has taken up outer European (western) forms the most. One can deal with Japan in terms of treaties, alliances in the west the West is used to do. But in in its concept of the folk soul Japan remains bound up with the general life of Asia. Asia inherited an ancient spiritual life which is more important to it than anything. This spiritual life will explode in mighty flames if relationships are not created by the West which can satisfy it. Yet it is thought in the West that such relationships can be grounded merely in economics. This attitude will only result in the creation of the preconditions for more terrible catastrophe than the European War (WWW 1) was. The circumstances of social life which span the world today cannot be conducted without the input of a spiritual impulse. The people of Asia will go in sympathy with the West when the latter brings to it ideas of a general human character that speak of the human being in relation to the world and how social life should be organized appropriately in relation to these world relationships. When the East can see how in the west new ideas about things exist that the ancient culture knows of but for which there is a vague striving for renewal, the East will come to a sympathetic cooperation with the West. But when the Wests input in public affairs is seen in the East as the fantastical idea of impractical people, then the East will make war upon the West.” Interestingly, Japan was in this position of resisting the “fallen” side of what the West was trying to force upon the East (Our forefathers was also resisting this fallen part). However, Japan could not take hold of the spiritual impulse that was behind its “resistance” against the west. Instead, Japan succumbed and behaved like the West which caused the destruction of its neighbors including the Philippines. Japan, by its name “Nihon” which means “sun-root” or rooted in the sun. Could this name be just random? While at the present time we have lost a deep feeling for words (name), in the past was present this relationship to what lives in the name. Such is the word “Nihon”. But through its embrace of the fallen aspects of Western culture, Japan, has lost this connection with the sun. Ironically and despite its experience of the atomic bomb it move into the 21st century developing the same technology. This Nuclear Technology, we can say, is the “false” sun. In the present time, Japan has already allied with the West and has lost this opportunity to lead the East in safeguarding the values inherent in these parts. China now is in the same position that Japan was before WWWII but it still has that room to change the course of history. She still has in her soul life a feeling for the teachings of Confucius. She has the power in herself to have a different meaning for “Super Power”. If she can resist the urge to behaving like the West, although all signs seem to point to that, China can be truly a Great Dragon, one that is carried by the unified strength of its people as the world saw when China built the Olympic Stadium in Beijing. If she, like Japan, succumbs to the temptation that only Material success is important then we very well expect that she will compete against the West and will do all she can to insure her victory. A bittersweet picture comes before our soul. If we are able to be truly “free” as a nation and by our labors as a three-fold society achieve a real state of “Civil Society”, peace cannot elude us. By the same token, our independence can be viewed as being “uncooperative” that our fate will have to be decided by either America or China. If either of them decides to bomb the Philippines the devastation will be utterly unimaginable. If that is our fate, it is one Supreme Sacrifice, the one that will ring through eternity in the memory of all humanity. We become finally, worthy of the name “Pearl of the Orient”. Credits to Rudolf Steiner, Nicanor Perlas, Terry Boardman, Maria Theresa Mora
Posted on: Mon, 18 Aug 2014 11:59:32 +0000
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