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Presentation in Toronto on the Global Wisdom Project
Written by Qamrul A. Khanson, UPF-Canada
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Toronto, Canada - Global wisdom was the theme of the March meeting of the Universal Peace Federation in the Central District of Canada.
Mr. David Walton presented his thoughts about wisdom by discussing traditional aspects of wisdom which are based on cultures and religions. He expressed his thoughts and talked about how countering the trends that separate people from their fellow human. What has been practiced so far has been recorded in history, and it is a pivotal part of history.
We are in the 21st century; we should be able to present innovative thoughts that encourage people confined to their traditional segregated identities come out of their boxes and become the kind of people who transcend boundaries.
He expressed his regret that it is difficult for many people to come out of their inherited boxes, because what has been fed and programmed in our infancy and youth resists change. In the changing world of today, geographic distances are shrinking and people of all cultures, religions, traditions, and ethnicities are intermingling, trading, and learning from one another.
We need a different approach in order to integrate humanity. He encouraged people to discuss new avenues of wisdom, develop social cohesion, and build on wisdom.
He gave the example of traditional stories of a dragon that unleashes terror upon a community. People wait for the dragon to appear and then they take steps to defend against it. He asked why such a delayed approach. Instead, we should learn to slay a dragon at its origin; then, the community would be saved from the evils of it forever.
People in the present and the past have faced anger, hunger, wrath, jealousy, brutal conflicts, global warming etc., that inflict evils around the world. It would be good to develop new wisdom in order to deal with disagreements, discrimination, and intolerance so that we can become more sharing, trusting, aware, and abounding in human values.
What is needed is to start our campaign of wisdom right from the cradle of motherhood through primary schooling where children can be grounded in the most up-to-date wisdom. There have been news reports of teenage girls cutting their wrists as a sign of emotional distress. This is a result of their not being grounded in wisdom. We need to inculcate emotional management, increase our cognitive capabilities, beware of our subconscious mind, and seek to eliminate prejudice within ourselves.
After his stimulating presentation, participants engaged in conversation about how people change, how much change is required, and the roles of religious wisdom and cultural wisdom.
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