Primordial = Prime Ordeal?

Once upon a sunny afternoon several years ago, I visited my cousin, a beautiful fair-skinned 24-year-old with six older brothers. We were planning to go to the movies with her boyfriend and some other guys. A nice fellow, her boyfriend was. And I particularly liked him for his good sense of humor and responsibility – not to mention his bright intelligence and wonderful personality.
But there he was, as I stepped into the house, sitting on the sofa all by himself, while her brothers and parents walked passed him without even trying to look, or simply notice his presence, as if he was but a phantom unseen.
When I brought it up, my cousin just gave a sigh and a faint smile, replying, “Oh, well. It’s just the ordeal we have to face. You know, he is not of our kind.

Sounds familiar?
Many people throughout the country seem to share the same experience, at least once in a lifetime. Yes. We try to deny it – in public, at the very least – or conceal it, or speak against it. But many of us, deep within, echo the same comment, “They are not of our kind.” They are not of our tribe. They are not of our color. “They” are not “us”.

Anthropology defines it as primordial behavior – a term we are not prompt to react against. Yet, put it to its popular terminology, and we will have screams of hypocritical denials from those who claim “not to be so”, but then again…

Racial discrimination!

Or, shall we call it Primordial Behavior in this essay?
After all, racism sprouts from the root of primordial behavior. “Primordial” derives from the Latin “primeval” (primus [first] + aevum [age]). It is the prime culture that exists from the birth of a primitive tribe and is preserved from generation to generation down to the modern era. It is the sign of our tribalism – or, in other words, the mask by which we represent our tribal identities.

Talking about tribes is talking about segregation.
We have the primordial point of view that says, “We are better than they.” It sounds so much like a refusal to stand on common ground. It places a tribe on higher ground than others – in the eye of that particular tribe. And, in this case, subjectivity is objectionable.

Every tribe, actually, has its own set of moral standards and norms, by which the members of that particular tribe organize the proper conducts acceptable by whole. And there is nothing wrong by setting moral standards and values of good and bad – as long as we attain the essence of the teaching. The teaching is always good. It keeps the balance in the community. It makes sure everything is in order.
Thus, every tribe is fine. Every culture is good.

But things turn unfortunate when people of one community comment against another community by claiming, “Our standard is better than theirs.” Do we have the right to say so? If we happen to have such point of view, let us be ready to hear other people – better, mightier, stronger people – say against us, “We are better than you.” They, in their sight, are standing on higher ground than we do.

When people are trapped in primordial behavior and claim to be higher in level compared to others, they are in fact never come to their root. They never grasp the essence – or ever will be. None of them stand on higher ground – for all are under-the-ground.
The aftermath is inevitable: segregation.

Let's face it: throughout the decades, our motto “unity in diversity” has never actually been manifested. Worse, it even comes closer than ever to separate autonomous territories. Prime ordeal! So long as the tribes within this country obstinately hold onto their primordial point of view, unity is but a dream away. (We might as well reconstruct the constitution and establish a new form of government: autonomous states, instead of united republic.)

Primordial behavior is continuously-denied yet ever-cherished, ever-preserved (otherwise, we won’t be talking about SARA [tribal, religious, racial, class] issues behind other people's back, will we?). Some prefer to call it latent. Some even find it tolerable. But in my opinion, it is all a sign of immaturity. And we all love our immaturity so much it makes us forget we are grown-ups. Our country is over six-decades old. And we have a prime ordeal to solve.

I am not a politician. Neither am I a journalist or member of a particular party. But when an ordinary woman plainly sees the invisible walls built within the society, I believe it is obvious to each and every one of us that we are living in separate flats. We are building walls, not bridges. And we ironically call ourselves a United Republic.

I find it so pitiful, yet satirical at the same time. Will we hold onto this primitive tribalism while the whole world is unanimously heading toward globalization? Are we ready to be a jest for the world to see? It’s high time we grow up!

[PS: This article was actually written several years ago, early in 2005. After giving it a little editing touch, I decided to post it here instead, rather than let it rot in my essay folder.]

Prayer -- Demand or Trust?

A study on theology had kept me occupied these last two months (which explains the reason behind the vacuum of posts in this blog). A long and laborious effort on translation indeed, but I have always loved the way translation projects broaden my insight on life -- and everything it has to offer.
Shall we continue with the story I have to offer, then?

Once upon a time, there lived a woman in the East, who was beautiful and much loved by her husband. Her name was Rachel.
Despite her beauty and graceful appearance, Rachel was barren. Even after years of marriage, she bore her husband, Jacob, no children. On the other hand, her unloved sister, Leah, had given birth to six sons!
In their community, children were considered as valuable heritage, and sons were greatly prized. There was nothing a woman could desire more than giving birth to many sons, to build the family's name.
Grieved by her unfortunate condition, Rachel prayed and prayed and prayed to God for a son, out of jealousy toward her elder sister.

Many centuries afterward, a woman from among her descendants suffered the same fate. Hannah was deeply troubled, for she could not bear children.
One day, she prayed to God, that if He granted her a son, she would dedicate her baby to the Lord's service for the rest of his life.
The Lord listened to Hannah's plea, and opened her womb.
Hannah gave birth to a son, and -- in great joy -- named him Samuel, "God grants."


Rachel, after struggling with her sterility for many years, was finally granted her wish. God remembered her, and in His time, gave her the son she asked for.
Rachel was overjoyed, and called her baby: Joseph, "may He add."
God gave her a son, and she asked for more sons, to rival her sister, Leah.
Well, she did give birth to another son -- Benjamin -- several years later.
But it cost her life, for she died in childbirth.

And Hannah?
After she weaned Samuel, she took him to the house of God and left him there under the high priest's care, to be trained in the way of the Lord -- never did it cross her mind that Samuel would grow up to become one of the greatest prophets Israel ever saw.
Hannah came home to the mountains of Ephraim, feeling content and at peace. She glorified the Lord for His goodness in granting her a son, and He was pleased with her thanksgiving. So, the Lord gave Hannah three more sons and two daughters!

Can we discern the difference between these two women?
Even though they faced the same problem, felt the same anguish, and fought the same struggle, but the outcome for each was not similar.

How come?
Here, we see the contrast between a demanding prayer and a trusting prayer.

A demanding prayer is the kind that forces God to bend to our will, our motives, our methods. Most of the time (if not always), this sort of prayer is founded on self-interest.
Rachel didn't submit her will to the will of God. She chose her own path and forced God to follow her down a steep road which she didn't know where it led. Eventually, she had to pay for it dearly.

Hannah, on the other hand, linked her plea with God's will.
She didn't ask for a son to fulfill her self-interest. By asking for a son, she was plainly asking God to take away her disgrace, and in return, she would return the boy to Him.
She believed that the blessing of children was God's to give, and understood completely that the son He would give her actually belonged to Him. As a parent, she was nothing more than a caretaker of God's blessing.
By trusting that everything came from God and should only be used for His glory, she conceived, gave birth, and dedicated her son for a lifetime of service. God was pleased with her humility, and granted her five more children she had never asked for!

Perhaps, it would be prudent if we reflect on the Lord's words: "If you remain in Me, and My Word remains in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you" (John 15:7).


Many people simply quote the last half of this verse: "Ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you."
They neglect the first half of it -- the requirement any prayer needs! Without it, there's no way our prayer will be heard: "If you remain in Me, and My Word remains in you."
Meaning: our will and prayer should be in harmony and concurrence with God's Word. If we are one with God, we shall understand His thoughts, and anything we ask from Him will not stray from His good and perfect will. Only then, will our prayer be heard and granted.

Somewhere between Jobs and Life

It's been two months since the last time I blogged.
Two consecutive translation jobs, a new proposal, and so many other things really kept me staying up late and taking two cups of coffee instead of one, every day.
Despite the fatigue, it truly does pay off.

It's the one thing I always love about translating.
You always learn new things, use your brain and skills, expand your knowledge, discover new worlds, and never grow old.

Never grow old?
Inwardly, yes.

Learning refreshes the mind. It always does.
I can't deny the newly emerging wrinkles on my forehead and outer corners of my eyes. But it's the enjoyment of life that counts the most, even as we realize time is flying and we are slipping toward aging.

It all begins and ends in the mind.
When we keep our mind fresh and healthy, so will our body.

Happy day to you all :-)

The Downside of Juice

Are you in post-surgery recuperation period or undergoing medication?
If you are, it is good to take caution in adjusting your diet during recovery, especially when you're the kind who always include fruit juice in your meals.

Recent studies in Canada show that several fruits tend to lower (if not deplete) the effectiveness of medication by blocking the body's capacity to absorb certain chemical substances. Grapefruit, orange, and apple are some among them.

David Bailey, professor of clinical pharmacology from University of Ontario, was first to discover the relation between the consumption of fruit juice with absorption of oral medicine. His experiments showed that grapefruit and several other fruits were responsible for the decrease in certain oral medications absorption, and/or depleting their healing potential.

The experiment was done by giving three groups of healthy people antihistamin to tackle allergic reaction, taken with either fresh water, water mixed with naringin, or grapefruit juice.
The result?

Those who took the medicine with grapefruit juice lost half the effectiveness of the antihistamin dose compared to the ones who took it with fresh water.
Moreover, those who took it with naringin showed a decrease of absorption, since naringin prevented the medicine's chemical substance from being released from intestinal track into blood.

For those who suffer from chronic illnesses and are undergoing medication therapy, drinking grapefruit juice is therefore not recommended.

Fresh Fruits: A Must for Healthy Living

An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
Eating fruits everyday keeps diseases at bay.

Any nutritionist would suggest the above advice to maintain health and vitality. Fruit is an essential part of a healthy diet. It contains the vitamins, minerals, and fibers we need to keep our digestion and physical metabolism in prime condition.
Fruit for human body is like lubricant to engine. The lack of its consumption in our diet causes indigestion and metabolic breakdown, the same way an engine undergoes rust and malfunction when the supply of lubricants doesn't balance the amount of work done.

Anyone would agree that fruit is vital for human health.
Even ancient tribes had been using fruit to prevent illnesses.
In this case, fruit is held as a natural preventive medication.

But, wait a second: which sort of fruit?

Nowadays, with the rush of the hustling civilization, people tend to find and choose a quicker, easier way to everything -- which, unfortunately, doesn't always come up with the best results.
Fruits are being harvested before they completely ripen, and are stored in jars or containers to ripen later. Many are sprayed with insecticides and preservatives to keep them "fresh" even after long export/import shipping periods.
Rarely do we find fruits that are ripe from the tree these days.

Yet, this is the best and most beneficial kind of fruit for our health.
Why?

Because, fruit absorbs the energy of the sun in order to ripen. It is the only food on the planet that receives the power of the sun first-hand. The more it changes color, the greater sun-power it absorbs and contains.
This solar energy is released into our body and physical metabolism once we eat it. Thus, by consuming tree-ripe fruits, we actually transfer the energy of the sun into our body. That is the reason why fruit is a key element to maintaining perfect health.

Want to stay healthy?
Do yourself a favor.
Stop buying preserved, insecticide-sprayed fruits to store in your refrigerators.
Pick fruits fresh from the trees and eat as soon as you pluck it from the branches -- and feel the difference it brings to your health.

The Truth About Belly Dance

A group of people from an event-organizer company were discussing on what show to come up with on the New Year's Party, when one of them stood up and excitedly suggested, "Belly dance, of course! What can be more attractive than sexy dancers in dazzling costumes? Men would feel like being ushered into the sultan's harem!"

Well, the above statement really does represent our modern society's conception of Mid-Eastern dance, which we nowadays know as Belly Dance.
And, ironically, it's a totally misleading conception.

Firstly, in the Middle-East, people don't recognize Belly Dance.
The real name of this exotic dance is Oriental Dance, and it doesn't only involve the movements of the hips and abdominal muscle, but the entire body as well.

Secondly, though this dance is performed in the harem, people (especially Westerners) have long misinterpreted the term "harem" itself.

It is best be noted that in Muslim countries, men and women don't mix -- even in the same house.
The mother and daughters have their own private ward, which is called the "harem."
After the mother has finished serving her husband and the rest of the family in the dining room, she would withdraw to the harem and perform her household duties.
It is only open for fellow females; and grandmothers, aunts, nieces, and female neighbors often gather in the harem to do female stuffs: sewing, gossiping, baking cakes, and even dancing.
It was from such female gatherings that the Oriental Dance of the Lebanese and Egyptians first emerged.
It was a social dance among women, done only in the private ward where no man was allowed to enter.
From observing the younger women dancing, mothers with bachelor sons waiting at home would choose future daughter-in-laws and proceed with the process of match-making.

You see, there is no such thing as performing this dance in the presence of a ruler. There is no courtesan-like role of Oriental dancers ever taking place in the Muslim land where it originated.

Oriental Dance is not entertainment.
It's a social dance, and there is nothing overly sensual about it.
The Belly Dance as we know it today has been much too spiced up and mixed with the modern and Western conception of exoticism.
Whether it is praised or disdained, accepted or rejected, it has become so only from the point of view of the culture that adopted it, that had severed it from the root of its origin.

The Choice

There was a lesson I learned yesterday from reading Mark 5:1-20.
Here's how the story goes:

One day, Jesus was sailing in a boat with His disciples. Arriving on the other side of the lake, He was met by a demon-possessed man dwelling in the graveyard.
The man was so infamous for his violent behavior, everyone in the village was afraid of him. But Jesus commanded the evil spirits to come out of him, and they did.
The demons went out from the man and went into a large herd of pigs. Instantly, they ran down the steep bank and were drown in the lake.
The men tending the pigs hurriedly ran into the village to tell:

1. What Jesus had done to heal the demon-possessed man.
2. What happened to the pigs after they got demon-possessed.

So, all the villagers went out to the site, and found:

1. The man was already dressed, sitting by the feet of Jesus, and in his right mind.
2. The pigs were really drown in the lake just as reported, two-thousands of them.

Their response?
They begged Jesus to immediately leave their region!
His act of miracle just caused them to lose a great deal of fortune!

Well, doesn't the above story quite typically represent our generation?
We don't mind accepting salvation as long as we don't need to pay for it.

Alright, Folks, here's the news:
To receive the new life, we need to let go of our old lives!

Salvation is offered for free.
True: there's no amount of gold or treasures in this world that we can give the Lord in exchange for eternity.
But there is something He demands that exceeds the value of money by far.
He desires our soul: one thing that is far more precious than any earthly treasures.

Once we accept God's all-precious redemption, He expects us to give up our former lives and follow Him in full devotion.
There is no way we can achieve eternal life without severing our ties to the vanity of the transient one.

The problem with the villagers in the above story is that they clung too desperately to the material world, their eyes were blinded to see the everlasting mercy of God.

One lost soul was saved from the Devil's clutch.
To God, it was invaluable beyond all matters.
To men, who would care if the man lived or perished?

Once again, they followed human standards, not God's.
And we know what humans are: mortal, vain, imperfect, and transient creatures.

For us, the story serves as a reminder.
Two roads diverge before us: either we choose to live by God's way, or the way of the perishing world.
Truly, we can't decide to travel on both.

May we learn to choose wisely.
Amen.