To Die to Peace … ( 01 / 23 / 2014 )
To Die to Peace … ( 01 / 23 / 2014 )
“ In the first stage , man & sword become one and each other . Here even a blade of grass can be used as a lethal weapon .
In the next stage , the sword resides not in the hand but in the heart . Even without a weapon , the warrior can slay his enemy from a hundred paces .
But the ultimate ideal is when the sword disappears altogether . The warrior embraces all around him … Only peace remains .”
~ Zhang Yimou
( from the ethical genius that is the movie “ Hero ”)
It is our fear that is the source of all our anger ... It is our fear and our fear alone that stokes the subtle-yet-raging blaze within us that is so very hard to quench ; an inferno of " self-defense " & " constructive criticism " & " healthy boundaries " & " deserved gossip " & " justice " -- all those justified & " reasonable " forms of hatred & condemnation & judgment that have us teetering on the brink of our collective extinction … And it is this very fear that might indeed succeed in extinguishing us completely ; that might very well succeed in having our species crumble and collapse in a smoldering heap of violence & callousness & savagery .
It is true that this fear is eons-old ... It is true that this fear is stronger than steel ... And it is true that this fear might indeed be our ultimate demise . And , if we as a species are to succumb to this most insidious of enemies , then at the very least let us choose to LIVE while we still can -- and let us thereby choose to die with arms open wide and Hearts filled with LOVE .
Amen ... Let it be so .
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