Unite in a Partnership For Lasting Peace
Sixty years have passed since the end of World War II. Many of the young men of my generation were incited by Japan's militarist government to march proudly into the battle and give their lives. War impressed itself on every aspect of our lives. One incident, still vivid in my mind, happened in the spring of 1945, when I was 17. It was a sleepless night, taking cover from the air raids that were a regular occur- rence. About a hundred B-29s were heading into the eastern horizon. I watched them until they were tiny dots in the sky. Just then someone shouted, "Hey! What's that?" It was a parachute. A plane must have been hit, and now an American soldier was falling to earth. From what I heard later, a group of people ran up to him and began hitting him. Beaten nearly senseless, he was eventually led away by military police When I got back and told my mother what had happened, her response was: "How awful! His mother must be so worried about him". My mother was an ordinary woman, but looking back, I am struck by her ability, as a mother, to empathise with the sufferings of a fellow mother -an 'enemy' mother separated by thousands of kilometres and by political ideology. Women are natural peacemakers. As givers and nurturers of life, through their focus on human relationships and their engagement with the demanding work of raising children and protecting family life, they develop a deep sense of empathy that cuts through to underlying human realities. With the end of war, there was a widespread sense that the inevitable had finally happened. And there was sense of relief. a My mother had often ex pressed her disgust for the wan Her hopes now were focused or the safe return of her four sons, my elder brothers, al sent to the front in China and South East Asia. Over the next two years my brothers returned home, one by one. In their tattered uniforms, the were a pathetic sight. All but my eldest brothe Kiichi. We hadn't heard a wor from him since he left Chine for South East Asia. Eventually on May 30, 1947, w received the news c Kiichi's deathi the form of a lette brought by an elderl local official. M mother bowed politel and accepted th letter. She turned he back to us, shudder ing with grief. On brother went to pick u Kiichi's cremated remain The sight of my mother class ing the small white box tha held all that was left of he eldest child was unbearable. Surely no era can rival th number of mothers through out the world forced to she bitter tears of pain and sorrow - victims of wars starte without exception by men. All who know the brut reality of war, who know ho war strips people of the humanity, must unite in a ne global partnership for peace. By building solidarity root in an empathetic recognition our shared humanity I belie we can make the 21st centu an era of genuine reverence the sanctity of life. In such era, the prayers for peace of mothers, the earnest yearni of all humankind, will final be answered?
DISCLAIMER:
The views expressed in the Article above are DAISAKU IKED and kashmiribhatta.in is not in any way responsible for the opinions expressed in the above article. The article belongs to its respective owner or owners and this site does not claim any right over it.
Courtesy: DAISAKU IKEDА and Speaking Tree , Times of India
Unite in a Partnership For Lasting Peace
Sixty years have passed since the end of World War II. Many of the young men of my generation were incited by Japan's militarist government to march proudly into the battle and give their lives. War impressed itself on every aspect of our lives. One incident, still vivid in my mind, happened in the spring of 1945, when I was 17. It was a sleepless night, taking cover from the air raids that were a regular occur- rence. About a hundred B-29s were heading into the eastern horizon. I watched them until they were tiny dots in the sky. Just then someone shouted, "Hey! What's that?" It was a parachute. A plane must have been hit, and now an American soldier was falling to earth. From what I heard later, a group of people ran up to him and began hitting him. Beaten nearly senseless, he was eventually led away by military police When I got back and told my mother what had happened, her response was: "How awful! His mother must be so worried about him". My mother was an ordinary woman, but looking back, I am struck by her ability, as a mother, to empathise with the sufferings of a fellow mother -an 'enemy' mother separated by thousands of kilometres and by political ideology. Women are natural peacemakers. As givers and nurturers of life, through their focus on human relationships and their engagement with the demanding work of raising children and protecting family life, they develop a deep sense of empathy that cuts through to underlying human realities. With the end of war, there was a widespread sense that the inevitable had finally happened. And there was sense of relief. a My mother had often ex pressed her disgust for the wan Her hopes now were focused or the safe return of her four sons, my elder brothers, al sent to the front in China and South East Asia. Over the next two years my brothers returned home, one by one. In their tattered uniforms, the were a pathetic sight. All but my eldest brothe Kiichi. We hadn't heard a wor from him since he left Chine for South East Asia. Eventually on May 30, 1947, w received the news c Kiichi's deathi the form of a lette brought by an elderl local official. M mother bowed politel and accepted th letter. She turned he back to us, shudder ing with grief. On brother went to pick u Kiichi's cremated remain The sight of my mother class ing the small white box tha held all that was left of he eldest child was unbearable. Surely no era can rival th number of mothers through out the world forced to she bitter tears of pain and sorrow - victims of wars starte without exception by men. All who know the brut reality of war, who know ho war strips people of the humanity, must unite in a ne global partnership for peace. By building solidarity root in an empathetic recognition our shared humanity I belie we can make the 21st centu an era of genuine reverence the sanctity of life. In such era, the prayers for peace of mothers, the earnest yearni of all humankind, will final be answered?
DISCLAIMER:
The views expressed in the Article above are DAISAKU IKED and kashmiribhatta.in is not in any way responsible for the opinions expressed in the above article. The article belongs to its respective owner or owners and this site does not claim any right over it.
Courtesy: DAISAKU IKEDА and Speaking Tree , Times of India