Ahimsa

Ahimsa Events

2010 Discussion Series  --  Special Offering

  Sunday April 18, 2010: 

AHIMSA is pleased to present Huston Smith speaking on

FUNDAMENTALISM IN AMERICA TODAY
   

“Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendant, fanaticism have possessed long this beautiful earth. It has filled the earth with violence drenched it often with human blood, destroyed civilization and sent whole nations to despair. Had it not been for this horrible demon, human society would be far more advanced than it is now.”      

History shows that not much has changed in the world since the Swami - the first Hindu missionary from India to visit America - made the above comment in his address.  On September 11, 2001, exactly 108 years after Swami Vivekananda’s address to the 1893 Chicago Parliament of Religions, Al-Qaida fundamentalists hijacked and crashed planes into the twin towers of the WTC Building in New York city, killing more than 3000 people.  All around the world, such ideologically justified violence occurs across cultures, races, and faiths.  Millions of people are victimized by others inspired by fundamentalism.

What is fundamentalism, and what is the state of fundamentalism in American society today?   Professor Huston Smith, an internationally renowned author and teacher in the field of world religions, will express his views on the subject .

AHIMSA events are open and free to public.

 
  = = = =  = = ALSO

Now available:

Conference Talks from our 2008 Conference on the Human Capacity for Peace. Go to "Audio Talks" on web page "Voices of Ahimsa"

From the 2008 Conference Program: AHIMSA, The Institute for World Religions, and the International House UC Berkeley, a special day of talks and practices
Meeting Each Other with Compassion and Respect: In Individual and Global Settings
Hosted by the Pacific School of Religion of the Graduate Theological Union
Saturday April 5th,  9:30 AM - 4:30 PM at the Badè Museum ,Pacific School of Religion

1798 Scenic Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94709
For directions http://Bade.psr.edu/bade/info.html : Parking is free in the PSR lot on Saturdays

ABOUT THE CONFERENCE

May my tongue be innocent of malice and my lips free from lies. When confronted by enemies may my soul stay calm, truly humble to all.

 
                    
     Today we live in heightening awareness of the power of language to empower violence in all its forms and at all scales. We see the blatant ability of language to divide people and exasperate global tensions. And we also see its balancing power – the ways in which language and action can mitigate violence and nurture peace.  
     In this conference we consider this dynamic, and are privileged to have contributors whose backgrounds offer a great breadth of experiences representing many dimensions of this dynamic – from the scale of the individual to that of global settings, and from issues of social mores to spiritual teachings.
     Many questions come naturally, and expand from the individual to social and global issues. We start with the individual. How is daily language rooted in metaphors of war? What are the changes in inner and outer attention which we need in affecting change in us? What voice do I hear in myself? How do I greet threat? When is an enemy not an enemy? In what is rooted transformation and healing? How do nonviolence and peace compare and differ? What is a nonviolent community? What is a peaceful community?
     The pertinence of these questions will be addressed as the morning and afternoon unfold. The day will include both talks and shared experiences and practices. We welcome you to a day on the power of nonviolent language and action.
 

Morning 9:30 – 12:30 am GIVING VOICE TO NON-VIOLENCE

Chair: Liliane C. Koziol, Program Director, I-House, UC Berkeley
 
Sharon Ellison, THE ART OF POWERFUL NONDEFENSIVE COMMUNICATION: Taking the War out of Our Words.
Sharon Ellison will share with us her studies on the rooting of violence in language, defensiveness and habitual modes of communication, and will introduce us to ways of transforming habits of thought through attention and practice.
Herb Behrstock, SPEAKING PEACE: Finding Understanding, Attaining the Common Good – Global Perspectives
Herb Behrstock will draw on more than thirty years working as a United Nations senior officer and Resident Representative in several developing countries.
Huston Smith THE SPIRITUAL AS NOT DIFFERENT FROM THE PRACTICAL
In the context of the world’s wisdom traditions, Huston Smith will reflect on the qualities of nonviolence and the shift of attention met in spiritual transformation as it informs outer action.
Sr. Elizabeth Padilla, THE POWER OF MUSIC
Sr. Elizabeth Padilla will perform and speak about the quality of music which directly reaches the heart and spirit.
 

Afternoon 1:30 – 4:30 pm MAKING IT REAL: GREETING THREAT IN OUR LIVES

Roundtable moderated by: Ruth Richards, Professor of Psychology, SaybrookUniversity
 
Each contributor brings an unique area of experience to this discussion.
Sharon Ellison on non-defensive communication (continue from morning)
Mitch Hall on education, family and social nonviolence
Emmy Irobi on international conflict resolution
Michelle Moore on the Global Oneness Project
Ken Preston-Pile, Pace e Bene, on nonviolent social action