Afghanistan: A new mindset is needed for change

 

The humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is a blot on humanity. 20 years of armed intervention has gone in vain. Muscle and money power alone cannot bring change.

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In light of the recent humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, Gurudev reiterated the importance of a shift in the mindset in order to bring about sustainable change in the country.

The best way to prevent fanaticism is through an education that emphasizes non-violence, and is broad-based, multicultural, & multi-religious.

He shared an article he wrote in 2011 on the crisis in Afghanistan which remains relevant even today.

20 years of armed conflict has gone in vain. The humanitarian crisis in #Afghanistan is a blot on humanity. Muscle and money power alone cannot bring change. Mindset has to be addressed. I had written this article 10 years back. You may want to read it.https://t.co/s90ezYDve7

— Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (@SriSri) August 16, 2021

An excerpt from the article –

Often violence comes with noise. Non-violence happens in silence. People who are violent make huge noise; they make it known. People who are non-violent are quiet. But the time has come for people who are non-violent to make noise so that the violence will quieten down. The message of non-violence has to come loud and clear so that it can be heard from a young age. The way to get rid of fanaticism in Afghanistan and elsewhere is through an education that emphases non-violence and is broad-based, multicultural and multi-religious so that as a child grows up, he or she does not think that only the Bible or the Koran hold the truth. Religious and spiritual leaders in particular need to have a broader understanding of cultures and religions. We have to teach children to embrace non-violence and value human life more than any particular religion or culture.

When we learn to broaden our vision and deepen our roots in this way, people will not fall into a narrow and rigid idea of the will of God; they will not act in aggressive and intolerant ways to defend it. We should encourage the people of Afghanistan to study their own history and to see the value of this broader perspective. Afghanistan thrived for centuries as a centre of learning, commerce and culture. For Afghanistan to survive as both a culture and a country in the present, and to flourish into the future, its youth need to take a look at the wealth of their ancestral history and honour the diversity of their culture.

Read the full article here – https://www.huffpost.com/entry/afghanistan-the-land-of-t_b_636512

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