Silent Warriors: The Dagger within Ahimsa*

Note: You need to read my previous entry on "The Eropagnis" in order to understand the characters of this entry.

*Ahimsa refers to non-violence

The High Priest preaches his faith to the villagers. The richness and grandeur that emanates from his church, while the rest of the villages looked murky and as if bowing down to the church, is in itself a strong testament of the power and ability of his God.

But the High Priest welcomes all villagers to the church still, just like how God welcomes all to his kingdom. All forms of aid was given to the villagers and if anything, that would only make his God seems more powerful as he successfully won believers over. And even if some villagers refused to believe in the faith which he subscribed to, he will still not deny these villagers aid for his generosity and the villagers’ insensibility will over time benefit the prestige of the High Priest and his church - making them seem more noble than before.

However these insensible villagers soon became a heavy burden to the High Priest. The Council Members representing these villagers are often seen appearing at the Church for confession - pleading guilty for the people’s licentiousness and begging for more and more and more aid. Too many problems. Too much time consumed. Too much resources in jeopardy. This time the High Priest contemplated longer and deeper. Should he continue his relationship (superficial though right from the very start) with the villagers as a noble benefactor, or will this relationship be the source where his very own church crumbles? Will this lead to great tension next, inciting a bloody war with each side insulting each other’s faith, beliefs and custom?

_________________

The ‘parable’ above tells a story of how the presence of ‘the other’ (i.e. the enemy) is necessary to justify one’s own existence. The High Priest needs the villagers to flatter his ego while the villagers need the High Priest for resources and sustenance. Indeed as the saying goes, ‘good’ will not exist without the presence of ‘evil’.

What then happens in a war between the High Priest and the villagers? Who shall be portrayed as the ‘aggressor’ and who the ‘victim’? Who’s the ‘bad guy’ and who’s the ‘good guy’? The answer is simple. Each side will always see themselves as the ‘victim’ and the ‘good guy’ while the opponent is viewed as everything negative. Each side will argue that their faith is nobler than the faith of the ‘other’. But ultimately both sides will win some and lose some. Though sometimes one question who will win more and who will lose more...

Indeed as much as I despised the arrogance and condescending attitude of the High Priest, I sensed that the villagers could lose more in this war. To begin with most were dependent on the High Priest for sustenance. Could they go on fighting the bloody war, relying merely on their loyalty to their faith and ideology alone? Is this a ploy by the High Priest to relinquish the existence of the villagers for good? Or is there a better strategy to resist the High Priest - no, not by aggressive confrontation but perhaps by being a Silent Warrior? Do what Gandhi did: Keep strictly to his faith and endure. For I believe that as long as I persevere to keep the existence of my faith alive, that in itself will constantly be an attack to the power of the High Priest. As long as the human being is alive, breathing and fed, Hope becomes apparent. And with Hope, the battle continues for long...