“Evolve or die.”
Cautionary words from Eckhart Tolle. Along with science and technological change, will we also manage a shift in the human narrative? Economist Jeremy Rifkin spent 6 years studying how our consciousness changes in history, and sheds an incredibly bright light on the shape of things in this video.
“Empathy is the opposite of utopia.”
It is our understanding of suffering, and the precarious state of being that binds us into a global family. “To empathize is to civilize, to civilize is to empathize” - our empathic distress fosters our empathic development. It is the invisible hand that rocks the biospheric cradle. Our human nature is to experience another creature’s plight as if we are experiencing it ourselves. It is NOT aggression, violence, narcissism and materialism. They are secondary drives, born when our childhood development is stifled, and our awareness becomes limited to our own self interest. Consider it in your adult life. On a grand scale – what brings us to war? On a smaller scale – what about your martial art school, and the teachers you study with? Is it limited to fighting? What you do in your practice? How you live your life? Ours is a big, broad, interdependent world. We each have one, only one, life.
As Evolving Martial Artists we ask: Where are we in our development?
Where are you?
Toni Josephson
Tags: aggression, empathic civilization, empathy, evolution, evolving martial artiist, jeremy rifkin, lawrence tan, Martial Arts, narcissism, tandao, toni josephson
The martial arts have been a bridge to understanding the “other guy” in my experience. Back in the seventies I trained at a dojo run by a Filipino 5th Dan. The class consisted mostly of black guys–I stood out with shoulder-length blond hair, a snow-white “tan,” looking like I fell out of Scandinavia. Yet we all got along, mainly from the respect one develops from full-contact sparring: giving one’s all, delivering blows and taking them, and not quitting. You realize afterwards in talking that we’re all after the same things: good homes, good jobs, good schools and safe streets. Though I never agreed with those tough black cats about music: they were into funk, I was a metalhead (nothing’s perfect).
I felt the same way training in Dr. Yang’s organization: people of every race, ethnicity and religion. You want respect? Earn it by discipline, commitment and practice. That’s a great leveller.
I object to his generalizations. Christian humanism is universalistic, it’s not reserved for Christians. That’s the point of the story of the good Samaritan, in Biblical times and Mother Theresa tending to the poorest of the poor in Hindu India. If he even knows what he means when he talks about brain wiring how does he know we are wired differently than people in other ages, and to what sort of evolution does he attribute these purported changes? And what exactly does he mean by compassion anyway? Lots of horrible things have been done and contemplated in the name of compassion, the Nazi extermination of “lives not worth living” our own budding eugenic movements, and social programs enacted in the name of compassion that have done more harm than good to the supposed beneficiaries… Besides compassion among other things also needed is a well considered system of objective ethics;feelings are important and it’s important to cultivate and inculcate fine humane feelings, but by themselves they are too subjective to be relied upon. And do our feelings compassionate or otherwise comprehend the full situation or enough of it to make sound judgements? …Lastly, what does he mean when he says various social groupings are “fictions” In what sense are they fictions?— he doesn’t explain. PS: this not the first time in history evolutionists have posited a more humane view of evolution and human nature, For a contrary, more coopertive view of both I refer Tan Dao to a book available on line by the 19th century Russian, Peter Kropotkin; “Mutual Aid: A Factor in Evolution”…Ha,and he came to his views without benefit of the “latest research” gleaned by brain scans.Impossible! Peter Kropotkin | libcom.org
LOL – It might serve you better to contact Rifkin directly. However, we are interested in the topic (reading Dan Pink now). There is both an emotional and a cognitive component to empathy, much more than just “feelings”. Rifkin’s asking if we can transcend our group focus and embrace the larger sweet old world. It’s interesting that you object to the generalizations on behalf of your religion. It seems to highlight Rifkin’s point — can we break out of the confines of our own system and go beyond it? And what does Rifkin mean by “fiction”? Would assume it’s similar to Lennon saying – “imagine there are no countries…” – a group claims a space, creates a border and gives it a name. There’s been a lot of bloodshed over imaginary lines and in the name of God. Things do not seem to be getting any better. Can say this for certain: the way we are doing things isn’t working. Our awareness and understanding has to change. Thanks for the Kropotkin link. /tj