6
OPINiON/EDITORIAL
Nagaland Post Vol. XXIV NO. 301 Dimapur, tuesday, october 7, 2014
W
Frozen pleas
ith the by election to the 11 Northern Angami-II assembly constituency scheduled on October 15, the two main parties-NPF and BJP- and their respective candidates will be vying for the constituency’s 19,041 electorate. The seat was declared vacant after the constituency’s sixtime MLA and former chief minister Neiphiu Rio won the Lok Sabha election in May this year. Whether general elections or by elections, nothing changes much. It is no longer an open secret that elections in Nagaland are among the most expensive in the country. Election campaigns in Nagaland used to be more personality-based than issue-based but that appears to be changing with every election. Today, elections are totally money-based where any candidate with tons of money to spend can expect to reap quintals of votes. There have been the continuing and almost helpless appeals made by the church and various organizations against use of money, proxy voting or booth capturing through muscle power but these appear to have fallen on deaf ears. Even in the run up to the 2013 general election, the church launched its clean election campaign – in short, to convince voters against all forms of electoral malpractices. The list of electoral malpractices is long- selling votes for notes, issuing community diktat to vote for a particular candidate, threats and ultimatum to favour a candidate, booth capturing etc. All these are wilful violations of the principles of democratic elections. Not only being among the most expensive in the country, Nagaland’s elections also have the highest turnout of 90% while the average in India is around 55% to 60%. Elections in Nagaland are in essence, ‘note- for- a- vote’ elections, largely amplified by note-seekers queuing the homes of vote-buyers. It is not known as to which way each note-seeker would vote and whether the final decision would be made inside the polling booth when the last instalment is paid. Since the NBCC had taken up the issue by launching its clean election, the campaign should not start or end with elections. The impact of blatant violation of election laws has come at a very high price. The virus of easy money has seriously affected not only the youth but even the underage who have been casting their votes under assumed names as bogus voters. The constituency where the by election on October 15 is to be held is not far away from the NBCC headquarters at Kohima. It is therefore expected, that the clean election campaign should have been conducted at the constituency; not because money would fall like rain from heaven but that the issue is alive and the church needs to be seen as being committed. The way elections are conducted in Nagaland is not only a negation of democratic values but also promotes asociality’ or acceptance of wrongdoing, which has become the biggest destructive force against the immediate future. The social problems evident today are the consequences of people unwilling to take moral responsibility for electing those who rightly believe, have the mandate to do as they please for the next five years, since they have people’s mandate after buying their votes. As for the NBCC, it has to regain lost ground and do more than issuing mere declarations as with the way with which it has been dealing with liquor prohibition act.
DailyDevotion The Nature of Regeneration When it pleased God . . . to reveal His Son in me . . . —Galatians 1:15-16 If Jesus Christ is going to regenerate me, what is the problem He faces? It is simply this— I have a heredity in which I had no say or decision; I am not holy, nor am I likely to be; and if all Jesus Christ can do is tell me that I must be holy, His teaching only causes me to despair. But if Jesus Christ is truly a regenerator, someone who can put His own heredity of holiness into me, then I can begin to see what He means when He says that I have to be holy. Redemption means that Jesus Christ can put into anyone the hereditary nature that was in Himself, and all the standards He gives us are based on that nature— His teaching is meant to be applied to the life which He puts within us. The proper action on my part is simply to agree with God’s verdict on sin as judged on the Cross of Christ. The New Testament teaching about regeneration is that when a person is hit by his own sense of need, God will put the Holy Spirit into his spirit, and his personal spirit will be energized by the Spirit of the Son of God— “. . . until Christ is formed in you” (Galatians 4:19). The moral miracle of redemption is that God can put a new nature into me through which I can live a totally new life. When I finally reach the edge of my need and know my own limitations, then Jesus says, “Blessed are you . . .” (Matthew 5:11). But I must get to that point. God cannot put into me, the responsible moral person that I am, the nature that was in Jesus Christ unless I am aware of my need for it. Just as the nature of sin entered into the human race through one man, the Holy Spirit entered into the human race through another Man (see Romans 5:1219). And redemption means that I can be delivered from the heredity of sin, and that through Jesus Christ I can receive a pure and spotless heredity, namely, the Holy Spirit.
Quotes
Only in grammar can you be more than perfect. ~ William Safire
I
became a grandmother last month - Anasuyaa which means without envy- and that introduced me to yet another Hindu avatar Dattatreya, the son of Anasuyaa and Sage Atri. Dattatreya is regarded as an incarnation of all threeVishnu, Shiva and Brahma. While his birthplace is regarded as Mahur, Maharashtra some sources claim that he was born in Kashmir jungles near Amarnath. Guru Gobind Singh writes in the Dasam Granth that Dattatreya was an incarnation of Rudra. Dattatreya is the subject of the Dattatreya Purana. Dattatreya interests me most because of his attachment to all the elements of nature. He is always depicted with four dogs and a cow. Pre-Vedic Indian dogs were regarded as auspicious symbols, and later deities assumed dog forms and were linked with glory, devotion and fidelity. The four dogs are supposed to represent the four Vedas. . They follow the Lord as “hounds of heaven, watchdogs of the ultimate Truth”. They help the Lord in “hunting” and finding pure souls. The cow represents Kamadhenu the wish fulfilling cow or Mother Earth. He stands in front of the Audumbara, the celestial wish -yielding tree. All his temples emphasise his closeness to nature and the ultimate unity of everything. Dattatreya, in the eleventh book of Srimad Bhagavatha, lists his 24 Gurus: From the Earth, Dattatreya learned the qualities of forgiveness, unselfishness and the strength to bear burdens. The Air to Dattatreya was a symbol of pure conscious-
ness. Pervading everywhere, yet uncontaminated, carrying fragrance, but not being the fragrance, it teaches detachment, never staying in any one place, always moving. The Sky was his third guru. The deeper mind is like the sky: vast and unseen, holding thoughts and feelings like clouds, seeming limited but really limitless in its possibilities. His fourth was Water. In its very ordinariness water is extraordinary. It supports all life, shapes the face of the earth, and nourishes the soil so that mighty forests can grow. It cleanses, purifies, refreshes. To Dattatreya it was symbolic of the compassion of a yogi that unobtrusively flows to the world, nourishing and strengthening. His fifth was Fire, which destroys all that is material, reducing everything to its essence. The Moon seems to wax and wane, yet there is no intrinsic change in it. Likewise the moods and changes in man are qualities of body and mind, not part of the atman. The Sun’s omnipresent light is reflected in gutters, rivers, streams, puddles, and looks different according to the contents and qualities of the water, but in itself it is the same. The atman in different bodies seems to take on the qualities of the body, but in reality it is the same one everywhere. Also who can forget the life-giving Light which came from the sun which gives to all. Dattatreya saw a pigeon whose little fledglings were caught in a net by a hunter. They cried piteously, luring the mother and other birds to
Nagaland Post, Dimapur TUESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2014
Dattatreya’s attachment to all the elements of nature their death. He realised that attachment was responsible for our destruction. Our prejudices, desires, passions destroy the spirituality within us. The ninth guru was a Python. Seeing it eat only what came to it, Dattatreya learned the value of surrender and a belief in the generosity of the earth. The Ocean receives all rivers, all the waters of the earth, some clean, some polluted, yet it remains the same, calm and undisturbed. Seeing a Firefly drawn to destruction by its infatuation with the flame, he realised how desire can lead to destruction. The twelfth was the Butterfly. Flying from flower to flower, leaving them unbruised, taking what was given voluntarily and offering goodwill in return. The thirteenth came in the form of an Elephant caught in a trap while maddened with desire for a wooden female elephant. Dattatreya points out the distractions and delusions of sensual desire. The Bee speeds his time making honey which the honey-gatherer enjoys. Most people waste their time, energy and emotional investment gathering possessions enjoyed by other people. Precious time should
be spent in reaching the inner self. One remains peaceful so long as one has about enough for the time being. Once he begins to collect, he invites upon himself misery. The yogi watched a Deer. Nimble and swift of foot, it was on guard. A hunter realised that the animal was distracted by music. He played and when the stag advanced towards him, he caught it in a trap. The lesson this incident conveyed was: Let no attraction have such hold on you as to make you lose your balance of mind. The Fish is caught because the bait with the worm is a temptation. One should be wary of the sense-organs and desires associated with them. A courtesan called Pingala waited for her lover with anguish and dejection. Disgusted with herself she thought, ‘It is because of my expectation that I suffer.’ She turned her awareness within and a transformation took place. ‘Had I but sought the divine beloved with the same ardour, I would not be in this plight now.’ Leaving her desires aside, she took to the spiritual path. Dattatreya was inspired by the lessons Pingala learned from her suffering, the ease with which she dropped her ignorance and the heights to which her
consciousness soared, free of desire. He exhorts us to profit from dejection. What should be the attitude of a devoted soul to worldly possessions? A piece of meat, which the Kuru Bird was carrying in its beak, set dozens of birds after it. The other birds were closing in on the Kuru Bird when it opened its beak and dropped the meat. Immediately the birds left it alone. Dattatreya concluded that collection turned one uneasy, fearful and persecuted, leaving one with hardly any time for quiet contemplation or even sleep. A little child lives from moment to moment. He does not remember the pain of a moment ago, nor does he dream of the future. All of him is present at every moment. There is no tension in play and no competition, just sheer joy and celebration. The spiritual path too can be light and full of celebration. Contentment is one of the qualities of a disciple. To reach God one has to be child-like. How much of peace and serenity would one experience when no time is wasted on worrying? The twentieth guru was a young girl. Preparing food for her guests in another room, her glass bangles jingled loudly as she pounded her paddy with the pole, distracting her and her guests. She took them off till she had just one on each wrist and there was restful silence for all. Dattatreya understood that one should walk alone on the spiritual path. Even a close, silent companion can create mental noise that prevents inner silence. From the archer Dattatreya learned the importance of
one pointed concentration. The snake taught him two things. One was to abandon crowds. The second was not to create attachment. A snake never prepares a hole for itself to live in. It stays in any hole for a night, and the next day it moves to another hole. Do not hold on to anything, whether a thought, or emotion. This will help the sadhak keep his awareness totally in every moment, unconditioned by yesterdays. The spider weaves its web with its saliva and when it is done with it, takes it back into itself. This reminded him of the divinity that creates and brings back into itself. The other lesson was that the spider wove a web and waited in the centre for flies to be caught. But a hungry crow swooped down and the spider could not save itself, being too involved in the vast web. Let not a man’s ambitions be so as to turn him into a prisoner in one’s own palace. Use the power of concentration wisely in order to make one free of bondage: used carelessly it will make one a slave of one’s schemes. The twenty-fourth guru was the wasp. The wasp is said to take an insect to its nest. The insect becomes one-pointed with fear, almost meditating on the wasp in its terror, until it takes on the characteristic of its tormentor and becomes one with the wasp. “Brahma vidya brahmeva bhavati,” (“To know Brahman is to become Brahman.”). A mind that is open to all species and forms of nature learns all the time, sees beyond forms into essence. A mind that simply sees other species as food or usables, suffers as much as the species he devours.
Post-mortem Exhaustive dialogue on sovereignty (ii) NTC issues rejoinder on ‘Nagas:
T
he ACAUT members are conscientious, sensible and responsible class of people and i believe they are also patriots like any NPG, it is therefore obligatory on their part to properly visualise the term “Sovereignty Tax” from the political perspective and not merely denigrate “Sovereignty” as “Taxation” issue. They need to know that the fruit of Nagaland state has been purchased by sacrifices of thousands of Naga patriots and the struggle continues. Had there been no sovereignty struggle the Nagas would still be partly backward hill and NHTA under Assam under-represented and neglected. Mr.Khekiye Sema knows well of the predicament since his respected father late Khelhoshe Sema were few enlightened Nagas who represented the Nagas in Assam Assembly. They should also understand why Nagas are still exempted from paying income tax to GOI. While the rest of the Nagas were being hunted and haunted like beasts in the jungles under India’s military onslaught during 1950-1980s, i believe Mr.Khekiye Sema and the likes in the ACAUT were peacefully dreaming and scheming to barter away the
T
blood soaked Naga struggle to GOI in the form of present Nagaland state. The effort of ACAUT to zealously protect Nagaland state is highly laudable, they however without regret ignores the genesis of Nagaland state, the price that has been paid in the blood of thousands Naga patriots and the political ramifications that has direct bearings on the destiny of the Nagas. Although, Nagaland state is just one legacy of NPG, the ACAUT intends to superimpose Nagaland state on NPGs and their struggle. The ACAUT needs to be reminded of their primary objectives- to protest, expose and abolish market monopoly i ,e mafia type organised control of wholesales and dealerships by certain NPG in Dimapur, multiple taxations by NPGs and resultant excessive inflations. This movement had not only garnered the support of masses but even NPG like NSCN(khaplang). The enthusiastic support of the people perhaps overwhelmed them and they started diluting sovereignty and taxation beyond reasonable limit. The ACAUT with or without intention became anti-sovereignty and anti-Naga
struggle by collaborating with the business class and Indian security agents leading to arrests of many genuine NPGs members citing extortion. The ACAUT campaign against multiple- taxation should not have assumed negative political contours against NPGs. That will be the testimony of ACAUT in the political history of the Nagas and our struggle for sovereignty. The ACAUT also should have avoided branding the entire NPGs as mere wealth seeking agencies as the NSCN/GPRN with or without taxation shall continue the struggle for sovereignty no matter how disdainful it may appear before ACAUT. It is now for ACAUT to investigate and understand as to who are more corrupt, either NPGs, market monopolisers, political and bureaucratic echelons or themselves. No entity should escape from the prying eyes. Finally, the ACAUT shall be credited with the term “sovereignty tax” much to the grinning of common Naga’s adversary and aggressor. (To be continued) Col. Isak Sumi, PRO Nagaland NSCN/GPRN.
T
Are we anti or pro-development’
he NTC is astonished to read the opinion posted in the local dailies on October 5 & 6, 2014 in the person of Moa Longkumer, a concerned youth on the caption “Nagas: Are we anti or pro-development” Our simple answerer to your naïve question is “The Nagas including the retired and frustrated leaders and politicians and a youthful Moa Longkumer are all for development” In regards to your allegation that NTC “been funded by some vested interested groups to meet their whims and fancies” and your serious concerns raise on the individuals and “unscrupulous people writing in print media criticizing every step of the government and other civil societies without realizing that we are the pillars of the government” If you are indeed a pillar of the Government, then you are equally responsible for all the mess you have collectively created against the will and wishes of the Nagas of Nagaland. The NTC would be obliged to have open and fair discussion with you along with the identity of those vested interested groups or individuals to clear the cloud spread by you, please don’t shy away. The NTC parse is not necessarily trying to position ourselves for the sake of being an entity or recognition from anyone but represents the will and wishes of the Nagas of Nagaland and to protect our inherent rights and privileges. We are equally concern about our slow pace of developmental activities in the State of Nagaland which is contaminated by manipulations, mismanagements and corruptions at all levels paralyzing the whole developmental activities and most of the projects are either
The Church and Naga women
he Church has a pivotal role and a significant voice among the Nagas. As a religious institution, it generally enjoys a respected authority and a recognised platform, so much so that any social, cultural and even political gathering among the Nagas begins and ends with a pastor’s prayer! In some villages, the pastor of the church often serves as the unofficial advisor/consultant to many a village councils’ deliberations. The term Church is used here advisedly, that represent the visible, structural organisation of the followers of Christianity among the Naga people. Christianity is a religion that the Naga people embraced as a response to the work of missionaries from America beginning the last quarter of the nineteenth century. In the recent years, there is a myriad of volumes available on the critical analyses of conversion to Christianity and the ensuing changes and transformations it initiated. Conversion to Christianity also established the Church as a powerful institution in the Naga society. Modernization and its defining feature, i.e., professionalization are the most immediate and visible changes Christianity ushered into Naga society. Putting it in a simplified way, Christianity introduced modern education, which led to their participation in the socio-economic and political structures set-up by the British colonial power. Naga women
acquired modern education and participated in modern professions in the newly initiated socio-economic structures without much systemic resistance. Modern education particularly was provided for both men and women around the same time, with the establishment of mission and government schools. This is evident in the national census, wherein literacy percentage between male and female among Nagas is almost in equal numbers. Hence, the paradox in Naga society, Christian mission and the church opened the doors to modern education and professions for Naga women, at the same time, this same church today helps maintain a society that excludes women and resists women’s equal participation in Naga society. Right from the days of the American Baptist mission, Naga women were employed as bible women, Naga women were organised into structured associations (according to records, the missionary C.E. Hunter played a role). It can be said that when American missionaries brought the discourse of women’s empowerment as prevailing during their days in America, it was not resisted by the locals, but once the missionaries left, the church has remain frozen in time in its attitude towards women. On our own we have done very little, we have not gone beyond what the missionaries established: women leaders of women department in the churches, education for women
but have not taken up with seriousness the systemic discrimination, patriarchal mind-set and practices, the sexual violence against women. (Interestingly, the American Baptist churches, which is the historic source of Naga Christianity is one of the most socially progressive churches in the world, for e.g. women are full-fledged pastors etc, etc.) Acquiring an education and having women departments in the churches are quite different from equal respect and equal participation of women in the society and in the church. The Baptist missionaries as children of their times, initiated education and limited participation of women in the church, I hope the Naga church of today will take up the cause of women’s empowerment and equal acceptance in society as urgent need of contemporary times. The church among the Naga people should lead the advocacy movement for women’s equal participation in the society and the church. The church should demonstrate an inclusive community. The church should provide resources and leadership in the movement against gender discrimination, violence, bias and prejudice against women. I write this advisedly because the church has a prominent voice and role among the Nagas. However, there is also the flipside, where the church (religion) can be interpreted as the source of all rigid orthodoxy.
Consequently, such interpretation result in the fundamentalist approach to religion and its role in society. And one hopes that Naga Christians do not understand religion, in our case Christianity, as fundamentalists do, because religious fundamentalists are causing enough misery and violence in different parts of the world. The church that is prophetic and committed to establishing a just society leads in challenging structures and practices that exclude half of the population from equal participation, respect and recognition. Today, many churches in different parts of the world are leading reforms in economic, environmental justice, and gender justice. One hopes that the Naga Church, will awaken its reformist spirit and lead in ushering a just society. We read of decreasing influence and importance of the Church in many traditional Christian nations, perhaps, one reason is its rigidity with traditions which are not inclusive that repulses the younger generations. Christianity has been among the Naga people almost 150 years, I hope young Naga people will continue to find relevance and meaning in the Church, that provides a vision and practice of equality and respect for every member of the society. “Renew your church, Lord, your people in this Land; save us from cheap words and self-deception in your service” John de Gruchy Dr. Atola Longkumer, Kothanur, Bengaluru.
incomplete or hold for an indefinite period of time waiting for conscious citizens to break their silence. However, the developmental activities are in continuous trend, and how suddenly the government discovers that developmental activities cannot proceed without relaxing the protective laws of the land. Mr. Moa may kindly educate the citizens of Nagaland on the importance of crucial protective laws of the land and how important it is to relax those fundamental laws to give permanent settlement to outsiders who will become legitimate citizens of the state with equal political rights and privileges at par with the sons of the soil in the state of Nagaland. While sharing your concern on the need to develop the state, the NTC may like to know what necessitate the state to relax or dilute our basic and protective laws. Why do we have to voluntarily infringe Article 371(A)? Why relax BEFR (ILP), 1873 Act? Why violate Nagaland Land and Revenue Regulation Act, 1978 which protect the citizens from outsiders’ intrusions. Why the custodian of our laws turn hostile and take position against the interest of the citizens? What is development, if indigenous people are reduced to landless in our own soil? Indigenous people without land have nothing left. Please answer these few questions before attacking the voice of the people. The NTC would be more satisfied to have debate in person with a learned and large hearted mercenary in the person of Moa Longkumer for clarity on the issues which is in public domain. Issued by : Media Cell, NTC.
Reader’s Post
Open letter to E.E. (PWD), Baghty div, SDO (C) Sanis, EAC
Sir,
Jungle clearance on both sides of the Sanis-Moilan PWD road and uprooting of shrubs from the surface of the road is required to be rendered immediately. Otherwise, there are chances of vehicles collided head on, as the visibility of the road is being obstructed by the outgrown tangle vegetations at several locations and turnings on the said road. There are good numbers of PWD work charged employees and labourers against Sanis-Moilan PWD road, doing nothing but waiting for their pending salaries. Perhaps, State Government may release their salaries before Christmas as has been the practiced hitherto. Therefore, the Executive Engineer, PWD, Baghty Division must engage those work-charged employees/labourers to clear the road and intern, the work charged employees may also justify that they have at least done something, supporting their claims of pending salaries. The Sub Divisional Officer (Civil), Sanis and the Extra Asstt. Commissioner, Lotsu must give administrative advisory to the respective village council of the villages located along Sanis-Moilan PWD road for giving guidance and supervision. Where have the voices of the Student bodies, NonGovernmental Organisations (NGOs), Workers of different Political parties of the area gone, when needed most by the area Publics? These bodies could have formed “Watchmen Team” and intervene in the ongoing Sanis-Moilan PWD Road improvement works, wherever needed, for quality workmanship and execution of the works as per the specifications given in the Work Orders including black topping. But regret to say that, up till now, they are found nowhere. Are these organisations only exists just before and during any kind of election. Lastly, I suggest to the above mentioned officers to spare a part of their precious time and go for joy ride on the said road to see the road condition by themselves. I travelled this road on 4th October 2014, while visiting my native Village and it was a pleasure to drive under bushes. Ayamo Jami, IAS, Commissioner & Secretary (Rtd), Blue Hill Colony, Wokha Town.
Reader’s note: Articles or letters published in any of the columns do not reflect the view of this newspaper nor that of the Editor in any manner.