Burqa, hijab, niqab, whatever... right or wrong?

This subject has been real hard issue for myself to handle. On the other hand it is the question of freedom of choice. The other side of subject is women's position in society and inequality of people and sexes. All the institutional, systematically reinforced and upheld religions, no matter where from, what are the origins and what's the dogma, has caused a lot of problems to the people outside them by these kind of rules. And also to insiders who were there unwillingly and denied the freedom of choice.

I think religions can have any practices, however weird or incomprehensible. The freedom to choose one's spiritual grounds shouldn't be limited too much. But today we have this one big problem. Living space is very much limited due to overpopulation and because of the modern functions of our society. And we all have to pay taxes and pay our living to a "god" that requires us to get along with each other - to the state. However different our spiritual beliefs. But I don't say that in a negative tone.

I think that religions that aim to depriving, segregation, isolation and splitting us into smaller groups are not religions. They are mere a tools of power made by man. Man is not made to live alone. Man is made to live with each other and in harmony with the earth. If some religion has any elements of forcing people to manifest their beliefs unwillingly - clothes, crucifixes, paints, house decorations, anything - it reveals the true intention of the "spiritual" system. Which is not surely divine. I don't say that the whole religion is false, I claim that the segregating rules are the invention of man to help the rulers in their job.

I just hope that when we in Finland begin the discussion about denying these, we also will talk about crucifixes, kippahs and different variations of caste signs. All the religions should be in equal position from the government's point of view. Whatever the decision, it has to be equal and just.

Civilized ways...

1868 Fort Laramie peace treaty included a part of Native American’s civilizing. The original people’s ways were considered uncivilized and savage. Especially the hunting was considered a sign of barbarian ways when farming and agriculture were signs of civilized men according to Europeans.

Now when 9 billion’s population limit is closing with increasing famine, pollution, scarcity of clear water sources and lack of livings space one begins to wonder the civilizations definition. By exploiting the nature’s resources and maximizing the production, we’re heading faster and faster towards the dead-end.

Now some of you might want to remind me all the good we’ve achieved – technology, medicine, wellbeing and all the trendy words. Well, you will not be reminding me of the fact that all the good things comes to 20% of population to the detriment of 80%. Our wellbeing in western world is based on the fact that there’s always somewhere someone who don’t have a choice but to put their minor kids to factory and work on fields without summer holidays or health insurance 20 hours a day. Our well-being is based on abusing and exploiting other people.

We blamed the Native American’s of laziness when they we’re not obsessed with economic growth. However, they had maintained their ways 11 000 years before white men came. We’ve had this growth based system about a 10% of that time and we’re already on the run towards the destruction of whole planet. Civilized, huh? 

Time heals? - About change...

We all know the old saying “Time heals all wounds”. We also should remember it is a bunch of crap. Time heals nothing. It is the change - that usually comes with time - which is the healing ingredient. Whether it be psychological, biological or anything. With time come the regeneration, learning and understanding. The change is what heals.

Change is a strange game. It does not come to those who just let the time pass. Change comes only to those who are willing to change themselves. When you contribute to it, destroy the old and build new, the change will come and it will regenerate, rejuvenate and make you new. Both spiritual and biological healing needs space, intention and time. And when given those, it will come and it will reward you thousand times.

Healing is nowadays seen as a “fix for the broken one” but sometimes the development goes to dead end. To get the development of something back on the right track will need change. Not the time. Most are just hanging desperately on the time but without intention and contribution it is just "time". I have seen people with a will to change, but without contribution and intention they are just the leaves on the winds of change. I’ve also seen people with strong intention and contribution, but who lack the ability or the will to change. They will be the prisoners of their own reality. But having all the three, you will heal and you will change, but you will also inflict the change.

What is nature?

Usually the talk about nature includes only the woods, forests, deserts and oceans. Vegetation, wild animals and places without the man’s interference area easy to understand as nature. Also the talk about “returning to nature” is seen as isolation from modern society, seclusion to some distant corner of the man-built infrastructure to live as a hermit.

This definition brings us only to halfway to a concept of nature. This definition sees only the physical, visible side of the world, leaving outside a lot. Biggest mistake is to leave outside the worlds most widespread and know species – human. In my point of view human is also the part of the very same creation. And when I state that, I also state that modern society, our financial system, our states and behavior are also the part of the very same nature we live in. If man as a part of nature-creation creates, let’s say a car, isn’t that car the part of the very same nature? To state otherwise, is to state that man is an independent god-force with the ability to bring something new into our creation.  

Role of the modern shamanism should be to understand and take this wider definition of nature into account. Shaman’s role has always been to be the guide, the mediator, the pathfinder, the warrior and the intellect of the tribe. To understand what man creates is to understand the man. To study the societies, religions, social systems and different trends is important to learn from these and archetypal forces they represent. For they all are the windows, points of view, to the same creation we all are part of. Without this, there will be no guidance for those who ask for it, nor the shamanism of modern world.

Walls of our souls

Most of people work very hard to make their lives safe, secure and comfortable. Those things mean various things to various people but I’ve been repeatedly bumped into one group. Sometimes even crashed against the walls of their fortresses.

Those are the kind of people that use all their life to create safe and comfortable area around themselves. They fight back the vortex of creation and use all their wealth and resources to have a nice little unchanging space around themselves. For some reason the change, the life and its development is the enemy for these people. They build the walls to keep the ever-changing creation outside their worlds. More the wealth, thicker the walls, but eventually they will come down. What amazes me is the dead-end these people are driving themselves. The change outside their own little world won’t stop. The longer they can hide behind those walls, the harder is the change when the walls come down. And this has nature shown us – no walls in this universe will hold forever.

I have found one path: To learn to live in harmony with the change, to find the courage to fly with the wings of time and to feel the unity with the universe. To live, to change and to develop. It sounded like a nice path, but it made me to yearn for the walls around my ego. But I feel good with it anyway since you can’t break what you can’t see.