Czeslaw Milosz, lawyer, poet, acclaimed author, Nobel Prize winner for Literature 1980, and central figure in the Polish resistance during the Nazi occupation 1940-45, wrote this: ‘This book was written in 1951/2 in Paris when the majority of French intellectuals resented their country’s dependence on American help…Its subject is the vulnerability of the twentieth century mind to seduction by socio-political doctrines and its readiness to accept totalitarian terror for the sake of a hypothetical future. As such the book transcends limitations of place and of moment as it explores the deeper causes of today’s longing for any, even the most illusory, certainty’. (The Captive Mind).
Eighty years later we could replace “French”’ with “Australian” (and other nationalities), and affirm both the resentment of American “help” and the remainder of the quote. Today in the 21st century, these words — resentment of American involvement, mind seduction, accepting totalitarian terror, illusory certainty — say we’ve learnt nothing from history.
What are the “deeper causes” of today’s longing for any, even if the most illusory, certainty?
To this point in history, we’ve only ever looked at the deeper causes from the socio-political, economic perspective. In Australia, the focus has increasingly been on wealth created from resource extraction, alliances, trade, political gamesmanship, partisan interests – values other than adequate provision for the peaceful well-being of all citizens. For many decades, public resources have been privatised and public debt socialised resulting in the few enjoying obscene wealth and the many existing close to or in poverty. Something is wrong with our systems of governance.
A radical shift in the way we look at the deeper causes must take place. That way is to look first at the immaterial essence of our nature; we are far more than physical. Most of us only employ our senses, mind and reason. We individuals — including those in government — fail spectacularly to access and employ the deepest cause of everything we are and do. Sensible religion (yes, there is such a thing) and philosophy wisely see spirit or soul as the only sound foundation on which to build the rest of our lives and interactions with others in our communities and nations.
All sensible expressions of the major religions have at their core the “oneness of all that is”. ‘There is no longer Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female, but all are one in Christ’ (Galatians 3: 28). Islam asserts that “Allah is one and indivisible…there is no god but Allah”. To the Israelites (Jews) Moses said, “Hear, Oh Israel, The Lord our God, the Lord is One. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength”. (Deuteronomy 6:4) In Genesis 1:26 we read God saying through Moses, “Let us make man in our image”. If God is “one”, and we are made in the image of God, it follows that we, also, are “one”; undivided within ourselves, and undivided from other selves.
But we and the peoples of the world are divided. Although each of us is created one, and our original design was for us to be together harmoniously, somehow (there are lots of theories) we became torn by two opposing, inner motivations; wisdom traditionally calls them good and evil. Our beloved Michael Leunig and every other wise person in all of history call it love and fear. We also discovered that we have choice. If we choose to follow the good motivation, we are led into what works for all; generosity, co-operation, kindness, equity, peace, love. If we allow the evil to motivate us, we are led into the opposite; me, alienation, greed, violence, fear and death. Following the evil in us — thinking of it in terms of the lower self or ego — is responsible for what we see playing out in Netanyahu’s annihilation of Gaza: mendacity, apartheid, illegal occupation, devastation, murder of tens of thousands of mostly-innocent lives, displacement of the rightful inhabitants – the Palestinian people.
This diabolic ego is also driving the inexcusable complicity of the nations who materially support the violence – primarily the soulless US and their partners-in-genocide, the pathetic, sycophantic Australian Labor and LNP. Equally complicit and pathetic are all who watch and do nothing to resist the atrocity, the media who refuse to impartially report the truth, citizens who choose to remain ignorant and apathetic, and the immoral, unethical systems that put politics, economics and partisan interests before humanity. It is ego, our lower self, that is responsible for racism, sexism, antisemitism, vilification, oppression, partisanship and every evil flowing therefrom.
The unqualified ego is the deeper cause and needs to be removed from its usurped role as master, and relegated to its correct role as servant. The higher part of our nature, that we variously call spirit or soul, is the only rightful, qualified executive of the human being. The litany of horrors characterising our world will remain unchanged unless and until we wake up and become aware of the deeper causes of our behaviour, choose to be motivated by love rather than by fear, and realise there is but one human race to which we all belong. To think otherwise is to be ignorant, racist, divisive and contributors to the ongoing disasters destroying life on earth.
John White
John White was raised in Mount Barker, Western Australia, in a traditional working family, and attended the local state school. He worked as a farmer, singer and radio broadcaster before training and working as a secondary school teacher. Later John retrained, and has worked and taught for the past forty years in psychotherapy, counselling, group dynamics, restorative justice, spiritual direction and clinical supervision. John is the author of three books – No Bars Hold (Xlibris, 2010), Uncommon Sense: Reclaiming Humanity (Coventry Press, Melbourne (2019) and Making Australia Fair: Challenging Privilege, Wealth and power (Coventry Press, 2021).
John is married to Jennifer. They have two adult children and four grandsons. John and Jennifer live in Toodyay, WA, and are active advocates for truth and justice.