Gajalakshmi Paramasivam – 23 March  2015

Death of County and Birth of Nation

On Saturday, 21 March 2015, we remembered and celebrated again the lives of members of the New South Wales Tamil Senior Citizens Benevolent Society who are no longer physically with us. https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/110322649806300167994/albums/6128544211784708129

The celebration commenced with the Australian National Anthem followed by the Tamil National Anthem. The latter is by Poet Subramaniya Bharathiyar who was quoted by Indian Prime Minister the Hon Narendra Modi during his recent speech in Sri Lankan Parliament.  I felt moved through both Anthems. I felt the Experience.  To me that was confirmation of Nationalism. I have many times had the Experience with the Sri Lankan National Anthem also. The Tamil Anthem was sung by Mr. Thirunavukarsu – and I felt the power of the Experience as if I was the singer as well as the listener. This is the value of Experience.  When we experience a country  - it becomes a nation to us. A nation does not have borders

During his speech, Mr. Gunaratnam also highlighted this through his perception of what happens once we were dead. Mr. Gunaratnam shared his personal experience with a friend – Dr. Eshwaralingam.  Mr. Gunaratnam shared with us his admiration and appreciation of how the death of their son was received by Dr. Eshwaralingam and his wife at the higher level. According to Mr. Gunaratnam, they  said that they fully  believed that their son was with Lord Murugan and hence they did not feel anxious. This state of mind is very difficult to achieve and yet there are good souls who have reached that level.

This morning I spoke to my cousin Vathanee in Canada – whose husband Sri Premakumar passed away on Saturday. Vathanee cried not in anxiety but in sadness. Yet Vathanee felt deeply touched by her husband who had expressed his appreciation for her service to him and his regrets that he could not do more for her. To me it was such beautiful sharing that not many life partners Experience.  I myself sent the following message:

Farewell to Dearest Sri – One of our  best relatives

You were an example of Courage and Compassion

Most of all you valued your wife as part of yourself

Our family is blessed to have you as part of us

We believe that you will continue to enrich our lives

And guide our young ones whenever they need Courage and Compassion

The end of relative is family. In terms of nation – we relate as country and become nation. When the relationship is completed – we lose consciousness of the body of the relationship and hence it is like death. Those who complete relationships achieve this identify with the Wholesome/Universal Power – and are therefore free of fear of death. They realize more and more that the soul is eternal. To me this means – our true experiences are Eternal. Nationalism is Eternal. It knows no borders of time or place.

The names used are to denote the relationships/pathways through which we got there. Hence where the two sides identify themselves as Australians – we become Australian Nationals at the completion of that relationship. Where the two sides identify themselves as Tamils – we become Tamil Nationalists at the completion of that relationship. Likewise when the two identify themselves as Sri Lankans. One must feel free to choose any pathway or just her/his own Truth. Then the relationship is between one’s own past. Where relatives fail to complete relationships but exercise authority as per their original position – one needs to distance oneself from such relatives – so the real contributors would take those places. We must do likewise with those over  whom we keep exerting authority as per the positions at the start of a relationship. Minorities who keep claiming ‘rights’ with the same strength as they did many decades ago are hurting themselves.   To become Equal they need to stop making the majority their Opposition and distance themselves.   To the extent they keep finding wrongs – they are continuing with the relationship.

Most cultures have Systems in place to determine the duties of relations. At Country level – they are the laws of the Country. Whether we have them or not – true relationships are formed as per our real conduct. These form the basis of de-facto relationships. Where the contribution to the relationship by one party or the other is less than the benefits that party  draws from that relationship we call them wrongs. Contributions include Respect by the junior and Blessings by the senior. Hence where money becomes part of the calculations – the strength of the relationship is diluted. Then one needs Visible Effects based calculations of rights and wrongs – where majority is taken as more ‘right’ than ‘minority’. Where there is no relationship at all – outcomes confirmed by objectively measurable evidence – are taken as the Right outcomes. Majority vote is based on more Right outcomes. The other outcomes are also right but they do not enough motivating power.

Where there is a Wrong in a relationship – there is an equal and opposite – Right in that relationship. This Equal and Opposite  is what confirms whether the measures used are ‘common’ and reliable. Hence when someone says s/he is Right – s/he must also ensure that the other side is placed at Equal status as her/himself at the starting point of the count. Hence Equal Opportunity Laws in countries that invest in immigration. To assume a higher position – one ought to have had a common structure that both parties are part of either through birth or specific agreement.

At workplaces also we have relationships. Where there is a status difference – a position is taken. The end of that relationship is ownership in that system that the positions are part of. Recently when disciplining a grandchild of ours – her aunty – our  daughter came to her rescue and asked me why I was finding fault with my grandchild.  I said simply ‘this is between my grandchildren and I’ . I do take ‘position’ with my grandchildren for the simple reason that I believe it is an express pathway to becoming family – even though one side or both sides may not be conscious of it. I was actually bringing the child into my circle of belief  - so I could bless her. One who finds fault has the duty to bless. Where it is family of many relationships – one is entitled to use credits in one activity to offset debits in another. Hence discipline through one activity entitles the child who accepts the discipline - to blessing through another.

Likewise in a Country of multicultural communities – we could use credits in say Education to offset debits in Military activities. The other alternative is to separate physically and take the one-way footpath to realizing Nationalism over many life times.