Johannes Tan, Indonesian Translator & Conference Interpreter
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Part 59

7/25/2016

 

Between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome
Part 59: Conclusion - the Difference Between a Physician and a Clergyman

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To acquire understanding at the hands of others is to close the gates of self-enlightenment.
-THE MASTER (as told by Wei Wu Wei)
 
As defined by Oxford Dictionary, personality cult means "(e)xcessive public admiration for or devotion to a famous person, especially a political leader." Of course personality cult is not limited to the political domain. It's also a widespread phenomenon in religion, sports, and pop culture.
 
In religion, as discussed in Part 50 (A Self-perpetuating Pyramid Scheme Trickled Down Straight from Heaven), thanks to personality cult, pastors Kenneth Copeland in Texas and Edir Macedo in Brazil, as well as Bishop David Oyedepo in Nigeria (to mention just a few) are able to afford lavish and opulent lifestyles in spite of extreme poverty surrounding them. Hallelujah. If there is any doubt about the financial objectives of modern-day saviors, L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Church of Scientology revealed it a long time ago: "You don't get rich writing science fiction. If you want to get rich, you start a religion." (All organized religions started as small and unconventional cults.)
 
From a psychological perspective, the hidden objective does make sense. Scottish writer Iain M. Banks (1954-2013) explained: "Cults and sects and religions tend to be set up by men because they are a power trip. Look at David Koresh of Waco fame. He tried to be a rock star and failed. As a prophet though, he got the rock star life, the sex and drugs and worship, without having to be one." Who wants to be the next Prophet?
 
In sports and pop culture, personality cult satisfies those who are irrationally addicted to it—be they fans, groupies, even hooligans. In addition to their own fan clubs, almost all well known athletes, sport teams and celebrities have their dedicated websites, Facebook pages, Instagram followers, Twitter feeds and whatnots.
 
Let's face and admit it: the majority of the human race prefer to be bound to something, anything, rather than nothing. They prefer to be attached to something,  rather than nothing. Even worse, they prefer to be exploited and oppressed by something, rather than nothing. While their lips scream for freedom, their souls yearn for handcuffs and shackles.
 
"Freedom aggravates at least as much as it alleviates frustration," wrote Eric Hoffer in The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements (1951). "Freedom of choice places the whole blame of failure on the shoulders of the individual." Then, Hoffer added: "Unless a man has the talents to make something of himself, freedom is an irksome burden… We join a mass movement to escape individual responsibility, or, in the words of the ardent young Nazi, "to be free from freedom.""
 
Humans being humans; they secretly prefer attachment over detachment, bondage over freedom, the Stockholm Syndrome over the Lima Syndrome. To put everything into context and perspective, let's revisit Anglican-priest-turned-to-Eastern-philosopher Alan Watts (1915-1973). In one of his essays, The Relevance of Oriental Philosophy, he invited us to consider the difference between a physician and a clergyman. "The physician wants to get rid of his patients, so he gives them medicine and hopes they will not get hooked on it; the clergyman, on the other hand, is usually forced to make his patients become addicts so that they will continue to pay their dues."
 
True spirituality should liberate us, and not keep us as hostages. The choice between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome is entirely up to us, because we are both captors and hostages. The Buddha famously encouraged independence, because Buddha's aim was not to save us (then take credit for it); instead, to help us save ourselves. "Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others," he said. The 14th Dalai Lama went even further: "We must conduct research and then accept the results. If they don’t stand up to experimentation, Buddha’s own words must be rejected."
 
Talking about salvation, even the ultimate savior in the Western world, Jesus of Nazareth, once told Mary Magdalene: "Do not cling to me." (John 20:17). So why do we keep clinging tenaciously on to someone or something?
 
Since the idea of liberation sounds so appealing to me, this post concludes the 59-part Between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome.
 
Johannes Tan, Indonesian Translator & Conference Interpreter 

Part 58

7/18/2016

 

Between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome
Part 58: Recognizing the Many Biases in our Belief Systems

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Every man takes the limits of his own field of vision for the limits of the world.
-Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860)
 
When the far mountains are invisible, the near ones look the higher.
-Henry Thoreau (1817-1862)
 
As defined in the Oxford Dictionary, to believe means "to accept (something) as true; to feel sure of the truth of." Thus even in the most absolute sense of the word, there seems to be an element of subjectivity in the verb.
 
Nevertheless, in many corners of the world, men would kill each other on a daily basis merely for what they believe. Last week, for example, the Associated Press reported that nearly a year after a mob in Lucknow, northern India, killed Mohammad Akhlaq, a Muslim man, over rumors that he had slaughtered a cow, his family faces prosecution for alleged cow slaughter following a neighbor's complaint. In other words, slaughtering a cow seems to be a problem, but slaughtering a man is not. As Bertrand Russell once stated: "The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts."
 
And doubt we do, because what we believe should be a work in progress thanks to our many biases. Researchers, scientists, sociologists and psychologists have identified dozens of biases which should be considered to critically self-evaluate our own beliefs: from confirmation bias to group consensus bias, from self-serving bias to false-memory bias. Needless to say, men are motivated only by their self-interest.
 
Even with the best intentions, how we perceive reality is constrained by our biases and limitations. If there is an illustration that underlines these biases, it must be Rashomon (1950), a Japanese film directed by Akira Kurosawa. Available on YouTube (or for streaming through Amazon Video for a small fee), Rashomon has always been considered a classic. Winner of an Honorary Oscar in Foreign Language Film category in 1952, it is based on "In a Grove" (1922), a short story by Ryunosuke Akutagawa (1892-1927). Such is the influence of the film, that the word 'Rashomon' has become a catchphrase to describe a situation in which the truth cannot be certainly known.
 
Rashomon aptly shows how humans—being humans—never fail to provide alternative, self-serving and even contradictory narratives of the very same incident. The bandit's story is different than the samurai's story, which is different than the wife's story, which in turn is also different than the woodcutter's story. Who is telling the truth? What really happened, factually speaking? Clearly, each character perceived the same event from their respective perceptions which are clouded by their own biases. Human perception is limited, relative, and even conveniently selective.
 
Which brings us to the second chapter of Chi Wu Lun (The Equality of All Things) of The Inner Chapters written by Chuang Tzu about 2,400 years ago. Chuang Tzu wrote that the truth can never be proved and only be suggested (as translated by Lin Yutang in My Country and My People):
 
In an argument between you and me, you think you have got the better of me, and I will not admit your superiority. Then are you really right, and I really wrong? I think I have got the better of you and you will not admit my superiority—then am I really right and you really wrong? Or perhaps we are both right, or perhaps we are both wrong? This you and I cannot know. Thus we are encircled in darkness and who is going to establish the truth?  If we let a man who agrees with you establish it, then he already agrees with you, so how could he establish it? If we let one who agrees with me establish it, then he already agrees with me, so how could he establish it? If we let one who disagrees with both of us establish the truth, that he already disagrees with both of us, so how could he establish it? If we let one who agrees with both of us establish the truth, then he already agrees with both of us, so how could he establish it? Thus you and I and other people cannot know the truth, and how can we wait for the other one?
 
[To be continued.]

 Johannes Tan, Indonesian Translator & Conference Interpreter 

Part 57.5

7/4/2016

 

Between Stockholm Syndrome and Lima Syndrome
Part 57.5: Intermission

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To commemorate Independence Day this July 4th, I am going to take a break. The next part will be posted next Monday as usual. Thank you.
 
Johannes Tan, Indonesian Translator & Conference Interpreter 

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