Nepal, My Nepal

Arun Shrivastava, South Asia Correspondent (Salem-News.com)

(Hscindia) The Mahabodhi International Meditation Centre (MIMC) is a great example of one person's vision: Ven. Sanghasena established the MIMC in 1986 to offer both spiritual instructions as well as desperately needed humanitarian services to impoverished people in the remote Buddhist land of Ladakh, India, which neighbors Nepal in the Himalayas. A dedicated team of social workers, teachers, doctors, monks, nuns, community leaders, and care-providers have created an integrated community at Devachan, Ladakh. More

Nepal Privatized and Sororized

...The Communists, led by two closet-Christians, Prachanda and Bhattrai, perhaps supported by the Catholic Queen in Delhi, declared that Nepal is a "secular state." The Vatican declared its secular credentials too, long ago, so long as one was Christian and paid rent to the Pope.

  

The Mafia is slightly different: they guarantee respectable jobs; modern day Marxists and the Vatican do not, not even to their diehard slaves. Nepal’s so called NGO brigade should learn this unpalatable truth.

During the ten year long armed rebellion against the monarchy (1996-2006), the majority of the rural population and many in urban areas supported the Maoists. However, when the Maoists captured nearly 40% of the 602-member Constituent Assembly, they wanted democratic centralism akin to the former Soviet Union. 

  

The other 60% opposed it for all sorts of reasons. The State Restructuring Commission came up with two options. But they seem to be unacceptable to various ethnic groups for various reasons... 

  

The Maoists received foreign support, funds as well as arms such as M56 assault rifles and Heckler and Koch G3. Rebels were caught by the army and released again. The legitimate government’s forces received M249 light machine-guns, widely used by US armed forces. The death toll from the peaceniks’ arms was 4,500 [government side] and 8,200 [rebel side]. This was much less than the relatively young Madeleine Albright’s “price-worth-it” 500,000 Iraqi infants, and later 1.5 million Iraqi dead, and over 100,000 Libyans killed.

Nepalese civil society

Who cares that civil society is out there to defend people’s rights when the price is always worth it? Dead folks do not complain. NGOs, modern-day vultures, complain only when their folks are dead or done in, in every sense -- culturally, socially, economically, politically.

During classical imperialist forays mercenaries went in to kill. But after WW II, empire was built by economic hit men (EHM). Post-1990 has been the golden period of sociocultural hit men (SHM) spearheaded by cash-rich INGOs and floor-sweeper local NGOs and Christian fundamentalists.

  

These are ably supported by the insidious, drug peddling, racist, “indoctrination centers [of] the Chabad cult that teaches children that the Chabad Rebbe is the Moshiach and that they have to do what the Rebbe tells them to do.” [4] Young Israelis are as much ensnared into cocaine snorting as the young Nepalese. That’s modern-day civil society. Hard drugs, sex, cult following, music, and democratic free-thinking are the opiates of the masses.

  

Behind this façade lies the globalist-corporatist agenda of enslavement and that is beyond the comprehension of the civil society morons. Nepal’s youth is done in. More

• Are Jewish "Chabad" schools funded by drug money?

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May Thailand Know Peace and Reconciliation.

The political situation in Thailand of late (the past two months) has been intense to watch unfold and tensions seems wound tighter than a stretched and fraying rope. There have been protests of the elitists in Thailand (The government, military, entrenched business interests, and some claim the monarchy) by the poor and working classes called, "The Red Shirts" over a perceived lack of say in affairs of the state. In the past the King has intervened during protests to calm the situation but some say that the monarchy has been too politicized this time. In part because the royalist/elitist faction claims the red-shirt goal is nothing short of tearing down the monarchy itself. Irregardless the King has not done much anyway to tamp down the conflict.

So, in that vacuum of leadership there was no one to keep things from escalating into full-blown rage, which we Buddhists know can easily ignite a bigger emotional fire that involves the spilling of blood. Just so, violence has erupted and is now dangerously close to evolving into full civil war. As it is the military has called the demonstration areas, "live-fire zones," and so far, 37 people have been killed. This is a risky option given the issues in Sri Lanka of monks being (perhaps) too politicized, but is the only institution capable of bringing Thailand back from the brink the great Sangha?

Is it possible they could mediate as the Great Buddha once did during his time walking this Earth? It would be the hope of this humble member of the Greater World Sangha that they could without directly undertaking a political role in the long-term governance of that beautiful, Buddhist, Southeast-Asian country. That all said, however, some wheels once set into motion gather enough speed to be unstoppable. Sometimes violence is what develops from a long string of less than helpful actions by groups and/or whole countries. This collective "karma" of a mass of people has a lot of force behind it and sometimes the only way a person can respond is to do the best in living as mindfully in that storm as possible. It's during massive turmoil such as these where one's practice becomes very helpful.

Perhaps that message is germinating amongst the two parties. A representative of the government who spoke today hoped the countries Buddhist culture would be nourished in this time of need. He claims that because of this culture the Thai people people aren't predisposed to violence. “Between 80 and 90 per cent of Thai people are Buddhists,” he said. “Buddhists are taught that to kill — even animals — is just wrong.” Still, even Buddhists aren't immune from anger and violence. As well as being manipulated to fit a political ideology.

To prove the point, Buddhism was called upon, even while protesters vowed to keep up the fighting, "As night fell, defiant Red Shirt leaders led followers in Buddhist prayers." This is still the realm of samsara after all. May Thailand soon know a greater peace and achieve recalibration upon the middle-path through political reconciliation. I wish my brothers and sisters in Thailand well, and please know that you are all in my thoughts.

PHOTO CREDIT: Thai monks join red-shirted anti-government protesters before donating their blood during a mass demonstration.

~Peace to all beings~

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