From Einstein to Rumi
I
n an article in the New York Times on June 23,
1946 Albert Einstein wrote, “Past thinking and
methods did not prevent world wars. Future
thinking must prevent wars.” The context was
Einstein’s well-founded fear that the atomic age
he had helped launch contained the seeds of global
destruction, and a totally new kind of thinking was
necessary to wage peace rather than war in order to
prevent the mutual annihilation of which we were now
capable.
In the same article Einstein said, “The old type of
thinking can raise a thousand objections of ‘realism’
against this simplicity. But such thought ignores the
psychological realities.” It is precisely the psychological realities behind the sociopathic brutality of the
likes of ISIS that I have been contemplating. When a
group like that doesn’t “play by the rules,” we are at a
loss as to how to deal with them. Do we fight brutality
with brutality, or do we try to understand the “psychological reality” with which we’re dealing, and develop
a set of responses that not only deals with the outcome
of jihad, but also with the social, political and religious
climate that enabled ISIS to attract tens of thousands
of fighters to its ranks in the first place.
and forth across social media. It should be based on
an honest attempt to both understand and address
the underlying spiritual vacuum that is being filled by
these jihadist organizations. Their genius is in stepping into a moral and political vacuum and providing
an overarching mission that seems to give its adherents a sense of spiritual purpose.
So how do we even begin to understand the roots of
this new psychological reality? I am put in mind of Don
Miguel and Don Jose Ruiz’ book, The Fifth Agreement,
which simply calls for us to listen – yes, be skeptical,
but listen. Listen deeply with both your mind and your
internal BS detector – your gut. Try to discern between
the political posturing – on all sides - and what people
are feeling inside. Try to imagine the anger and frustration that leads people to volunteer for suicide missions. Try to see them as people…
What can we do as individuals? We need to engage
with our own religious, political and business leaders, and demand a higher level of integrity and truth
in addressing the root cause of these issues. There is
no easy fix. What we are talking about here is building
a new global society that addresses the aspirations of
all. That acknowledges that everyone is doing the best
that they can, given their level of understanding and
the options available to them.
There are no easy answers here, but what we need
is for statesmen, religious and community leaders to
stand up and be counted. We need them to speak with
integrity. We need them to address the fundamental
issues of economic inequality and social unrest that
lead to radicalization in the first place. We need new
approaches to dealing with terrorism and terrorists.
Putting troublemakers in prison where they become
radicalized extremists does not seem to be working
out for us.
A new kind of war on terror is called for here. It is one
that does not just to try to manipulate the propaganda messages and play on the passions flying back
6 | NEW CONSCIOUSNESS REVIEW
In the New Thought communities, we speak about the
deep human need for a sense of purpose and connection. If it cannot be provided in those societies by local
communities and spiritual authorities with a positive
agenda, we should not be surprised when the vacuum
is filled by the likes of ISIS.
It is up to societies like ours to ensure that there are
positive options, rather
than only a Hobson’s
choice between capitulation and annihilation. As the poet Rumi
said, “Out beyond all
notions of right and
wrong there is a field.
I will meet you there.”
This is the new consciousness.
Miriam Knight
Editor & Publisher