By Ebissa Ragassa, freelance writer
What Lays Beneath
“A child that is born in prison fears the free world”
Thus far the appearance of Ethiopia has been perpetuated rather than the nature of Ethiopia as it really is. Each successive government continues to affix its own veil rather than shade some light on the causes of Ethiopian’s dysfunction. Massive energy, vital resources are spent by ruling groups in indoctrinating, creating a hypnotic state among its varying citizens and imposing flowed model of thinking, rather than encouraging mutual reality. All different Ethiopian citizens or people of that land are contending based on their own individual or group’s appearance of what the state of Ethiopia is, or what it should be. Henceforth the fundamental nature of Ethiopia has not changed since its inception. For some Ethiopia is a step-mother for other it is their biological parent. For some it is source of empowerment for other it is causes of agony. For some Ethiopia is ancient country for others it is a two century old in the process of becoming. The clash of these competing ideas is the present day drama of Ethiopia. Whether the drama will unfold in tragic end or in a new beginning remains in our determination to look beyond the appearance, unwrapping the veil of Ethiopia and hoping over the propaganda and the bias of ourselves entering the domain of the truth.
We must recognize that Ethiopia is just an idea that exists in our mind a not a nature’s phenomenal like the sun set and sun rise that continues independent of our thought. Ethiopia is not a fixed entity despite the common perceptions. Although some group do entertain that Ethiopia is a natural phenomena that can only be transformed by divine intervention, but rather I contend that Ethiopia is thought that can be altered to transcend us, elastic enough to stretch us. Since Ethiopia is an idea, it does not belong to no one, no ethic group has patent over Ethiopia, while Ethiopia’s past history is contrary to this idea. Note Ethiopia is not a static entity that confines our existence to narrow field, restrict our freedom of thought, the power to redesign her lays within us, so it can keep up with the needs of its people and the rest of he developing world. Its in realizing these truths that the veil of appearance can be broken and prosperous future can be forged.
Ethiopia’s defects exist within our own mind not in some external location or physical entity, but rather Ethiopia is fluid mental state dependent on our own mental imagination. This is a comforting thought for it builds the correct framework necessary to over come our self-imposed challenges. But to do that we must understand what makes up Ethiopia is our collective thought, experience, our triumph our failure, happiness and sorrow not an individual wish, or group’s influence as it has been in the past. Our failures to recognize and to integrate these different ethnic experiences are the core problem of Ethiopia that manifest in different form such as liberation struggle, indifference, secession, lack of greater vision and inefficient collective participations.
Secession and lack of vision are symptoms that something fundamental is wrong with Ethiopia, just like a headache is warning single that vital things are in jeopardy that requires a solution on the level beyond the veil of appearance, at the same time liberation movements are warning single that requires our immediate attention to remedy the source of the problem. It is also erroneous to conclude the problems with Ethiopia are liberation movements and different groups seeking secession, therefore any energy, resources spent on countering these problems will only produce a temporary relief that will soon return unless the fundamental causes of conflicts are not rectified. Fundamental change will only come in recognizing this important distinctions that liberation struggle are not the problem but rather a call to look beyond the apparent problem seek the sources of the problem.
These competing forces have been able to super-impose selective history and experience upon others alternatively, there by creating a dire reality for the people of that land, exposing its citizens to unnecessary migrations, poverty, regression. But the key to overcoming these problems still lays in deeply scrutinizing our own thought and looking beyond ourselves, opening our spectrum of thought to the aspirations emanating from other as well. A perception based on sole individual experiences and thought that is based on appearance is destined for demise. The first step in overcoming superficial existences are to examine the bias we harbor.
The bias we harbor creates a perception and perception is our door to the outside world. We act based on our past, present perceptions, what we think the world appear to us. Whether we choose to or not we are the product of our parents, grandparent’s perception, and past history. That is way relying on history, lineage, emotional ties will not produce an authentic result. That is why our thought must be active and strong enough to be free of these influences. It’s the collections of individual’s perception that molds the national directions. If defect lays with our perception, so is in Ethiopia, it is critical to notice the dominant individual bias dictates the Ethiopia’s overall agenda. As ironic this may appear the eye can’t see itself, except what is outside of it, also our thought can not perceive itself as separate from perception, with out genuine self-examining, without holding ourselves to higher ideas.
At this point it is important to know what appearance is and what lay beyond the appearance. Appearance is a reflection, as what we look like has nothing to do with who we are, and has no bearing on our spirit. Appearance can be thought of as headache, headache is not an illness it is just symptom of something major. We can temporally relief headache with painkillers but if we don’t seek the source and remedy it the headache is guaranteed to return. The people of Ethiopia are the cause, its collective history are the apparent. An important concept we must grasp is the appearance rarely leads to the sources, the source is the vital truth we are after.
A progress of man is measures by his ability to discern these appearances from the cause while doing so may cause a temporary discomfort, but the results are lifetime of freedom. Also Ethiopia’s progresses are measured by degree of her citizens to discriminate between myth and reality, fact from opinion, symptom from cause and information from propaganda. This also the phenomena that distinguish a baby from an adult that babies are fooled and base their worldview on appearance on the other hand as the baby gradually grows he overcome appearance steadily enter the reality of his own domain and takes control of his/her own destiny. Age is not a gap that measures adulthood that must be filled with passing of time but rather how quickly one discriminates appearance from reality. Hence some individual easily mature, while others struggle. This is because age is a superficial, rather than a title to enter adulthood. This is the case of Ethiopia we are fooled by appearance, cycling through false reality with government that chants different slogan, yet sinking back into the pervious appearance. Manipulating appearance does not yield change to reality; it is only the truth of reality that changes appearance, liberating the mind of people.
The reason such superficial appearance are continued into 21st century and maintained is that when the appearance favors us we guard the appearance despite the harm it creates to other, until of course we lose control than fight to restore the pervious circumstance that favored us. This cycle of changing appearance for another appearance must end. This cycle has created modern day stoned age country and egotistic political governance, which mistakes peace for the appearance of peace, mistakes freedom with subjugation and failed to deploy liberated self-sufficient citizens that invents, explores, discovers and able to enjoy the natural resource endowed to him by god.
Once the veils of appearance are broken the problem of Ethiopia are not a dire situation at all but a natural beauty. Ethnicity, which is the apparent cause of conflict in Ethiopia, we must recognize it as symptoms rather then cause as most people considered including the author. On the surface indeed ethnicity is an apparent problems, but this is the outer layer of the problem what lays beneath should be our first for most interest, including the coming generations. Since ethnicity is the cloth Ethiopia wears it must be dealt with outermost care, ignoring will in fact widen the apparent reality we hold creating separate mindset.
One of the most difficult aspect of reality is that it is hidden deep beneath the many layer of appearance, thereby requires strong will consciousness, scientific mind, authentic approach to solving Ethiopians problem. History is the mask of appearance; it is an effect of our mental processes. Change, rearranging history does not change the outcome, but what will bring authentic change is changing our mental attitude of what Ethiopia is. Appearance rarely leads to progressive outcome, but the cause that triggers’ events of history are the real idea we must investigate. The reason many years has passed to notice the chain of appearance place up us is that appearance exists as multi-dimensional layers. Only diligent investigation, consistent endeavor can uncover the veil of appearance and requires a combined effort of many generation to leap through appearance and enter plane where our thought is cause of our existence not a subjugation of appearance. The western world is in the last phase what I call the age of appearance, and its beginning to embarked on the next plane that alter appearance with technology. While it is at the last phase of this apparent-age, it has yet to embark on spiritualism
Because our society is infested with apparent reality no national visionary leaders have emerged to tackle these problems. Now and then ethnocentric leader may emerge to address Ethiopians issues but yet to provide lasting fundamental solutions. There are times also when a local leader have emerged to tackle Ethiopia’s problems yet failed to succeed because failed to incorporated the whole Ethiopian citizens because the solution focused on narrow view of what Ethiopia is. Ethiopia’s exists in apparent reality because no leader or organizations have been able to introduce its people to the nature of the truth; therefore “The true nature of Ethiopia has not been conceived.” While many people may contest this idea the truth lays in deeply examining the condition Ethiopia is in at this time. A country that possess a glorious past, long history, that had the advantage over other countries, yet unable to capitalize, transform herself into a cutting edge country, rather next to last in poverty and sustainability list of world record. Does the problem lays in lack of resources? Does the problem lays in her people? Or the solution could just as simple as paradigm shift to wakes-up us from out disarray. Could the solution be as simple as mental switch that turns on truth rather than apparent reality?
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Ebissa Ragassa can be reached at [email protected]