Kashmir is the Jewel of World Peace

When I was in Kashmir last year the sign said ‘Welcome to Paradise’, of course Kashmir is the Jewel of South Asia. However, that jewel is tarnished by the Indian military presence and it renders Kashmir the number 1 nuclear flashpoint of the world.

I saw clearly the hardship of curfew and the deaths of children and adults by Indian soldiers. It was strange to walk with my friend and break curfew to find the soldiers smiling at us, as we are women. I felt maybe being a westerner may offer some protection for my friend. I found it so foreign and strange to see a whole people under house arrest and the lack of compassion to how that affects men, women and children psychologically.

The societal detachment that militaries the world over reflect reveal a psychology where they are just following orders yet ignoring their basic human instinct. In truth they are working against their own humanity which is indeed humanity itself. Until all people start to question governments and militaries and ask themselves ‘what is the outcome?’, ‘do we ever find peace?’ ‘does this build trust and enhance relations between countries?’, ‘does this solve problems?’ etc.

I find it incredible in the 21st century that still fear and violent force are tools used to control populations rather than a united nations of countries with higher agendas reflected in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Moreover, agenda’s decoupled from trade would definitely remove wheeling and dealing from diplomacy. To move from diplomacy to representation would be effective at the UN. It would be illuminating to witness a United Nations with a strong focus on the cultivation of a wiser civilisation where rather than competing we cooperate within a paradigm of win win. Yes, this indeed would require a rethink of economics, education and how we interact with the planet in a balanced way, hence mirroring homeostasis. We do not have high councils on this planet yet, but in the future I am sure we will as the current modus operandi doesn’t work and it is evident the system is collapsing.

The reality is we are alive and we have choices about the quality of life we create not only for ourselves but other species and organisms in the ecosystem. We have choices about how evolved we are in respect of education, sharing resources and development of emotional intelligence. There were ancient cultures far more advanced then we are today that have been lost due to planetary changes and conflict.

Peace of course is the key and it is not a motherhood or pie in the sky statement. However, I would state that motherhood is an honoured role and if done with great love and combined with equal and compassionate fatherhood, we have a good chance of changing the world into a stable and more enlightened community.

Until we connect to others like our own families we will live in a separation that serves no-one and keeps us all in bondage. I saw the soldiers as imprisoned just as much as the Kashmiri people. Many were bored and wanted to go home. Their slavery was to orders and unquestioned thinking, had they a real choice they would never have been there. Young men are often doing what their families want or finding ways out of unemployment.

In the world today I believe movements are rising and change is here. We are moving from a fear based model of control to a liberation model of compassion and higher awareness, where we see the other as ourselves. This new type of perceiving is here now and like the hundred monkey concept, change is rapidly spreading. We are on the cusp of real change I feel. It is time for individuals and governments to face mistakes fearlessly and without retribution and to help each other to find new ways to move forward where we all win. The time for that compassionate courage is now.

WELCOME TO PARADISE

Welcome to Paradise,
I read the signs,
I see the soldiers,
Every corner is a check point,
I ask what is the point?
As my taxi weaves, swerves and toots,
I realise this is no magic carpet ride,
Tension and anger fill streets of pain,
As public protesting is labeled dissent,
Yet there are no alms for freedom of speech,
As curfew descends its heavy arms,
In the name of law and order,
But what of democracy?

Peace is not a concept,
It is not the cessation of violence,
It lives when the soldier smiles at the child as his own,
It lives when the mother smiles at the soldier as her son,
It lives when the father prays in the mosque with unshakable faith,
For he sees god as freedom from his own fear.

I see Gandhi as the mirror of your struggle,
I see nonviolence as the true middle path,
I see the steps that lead up to the holy shrine,
For each step towards peace takes us all to shared perspectives,
And division leads us down roads of separation to lower levels of distrust,
And it is ignorance, greed and fear that turns your paradise into hell,
For the bell tolls that heaven is on earth,
When we choose to see it.

The military are trained to fight an enemy,
The police are trained to enforce the law,
Why is there a war in civilian areas?
What is the war within?
What is the war without?
For to fight dons the mask of fear,
To intimidate is the task of control,
To remove the mask makes fear visible,

For visibility is the 1st step of problem solving.

Therefore the wise say: what you resist persists,
What you look at disappears …

To solve the problem and not hate the people transforms tyranny into solutions,

As clarity is the 2nd step that sees the root problem clearly.

To see the divine plan in hardship reveals your life purpose,
To see the higher path transmutes an energy crisis into renew-able energy,
As we see ourselves in the ‘other’ we can do no harm,
As the oppressor becomes a simple man following orders as he too is controlled by the State.

In the background the mountains watch silently,
Their power is in the stillness as grandeur,
For they are unchanging from who they are,
No matter the conditions,
No matter the civilizations,
All may rest,
For all may pass,
For when we are true to our nature,
We naturally return to peace,
As love is the centre-peace of all god’s creations.

I have experienced your curfew in peace,
I have listened to your pain in peace,
I have passed the soldiers in peace,
I have smiled at all in peace,
For you must be the change you wish to see.

All are learning around the world that true power is peace within not control over,
True law and order is justice for all,
For this is the practice of Satyagraha,
True faith in god is trust and laughter,
For to love our neighbour as ourselves
is to know we all make mistakes and fall into confusion,

As empathy is the 3rd step in a peace accord.

For it is the truth that sets you free,
To be the change you wish to see,
And freedom is every moment you choose to live in love and truthfulness over fear,
To choose to live in paradise over hell,
For fear and control creates all violence,
To work together is to see all as one family and this is the face of harmony in the world,

And this is the final step of peace on earth.

For this test is the final journey home.