To Love Is To Live
Wisdom is the breath of the power of God, and in all ages entering into holy souls she maketh them friends of God and prophets
– Ralph Waldo Trine, ‘In Tune with the Infinite’
“Not to love is not to live, or it is to live a living death..
And in a sense love is everything. It is the key to life, and its influences are those that move the world. Live only in the thought of love for all and you will draw love to you from all. Live in the thought of malice or hatred, and malice and hatred will come back to you.
For evil poisons; malice shafts
Like boomerangs return,
Inflicting wounds that will not heal
While rage and anger burn.”
– Ralph Waldo Trine on The Secret, Power and Effects of Love
One day in the late 1980s, at about three in the afternoon, having finished all my domestic chores, taken a bath and, relaxed and refreshed, was just about to settle with my books to study for the Diploma in Management course I was then pursuing, the quiet of my home was shattered by noises from a sound system playing in the community across the river from my house. The noise – I could not consider it music – was so loud that although it must have been at least a mile or more away it could have been just outside my living room window. As if the volume and tone were not enough, the DJ talking over the dub plates was shouting a constant string of obscenities as he bashed homosexuals, informers and anyone else who did not meet his approval. I called the police and told them that the noise was bad enough but I was not prepared to spend my afternoon, which should have been a quiet one in my home, located in an isolated area, disturbed by this noisy string of obscenities. Sometime after, the volume of the music went down, only to go up again some time later, but at least the obscenities stopped. And then it dawned on me. This music is very violent! It promotes violence, intolerance and hate, and to what end, I wondered then? I know the answer now, given the growth of the crime industry in Jamaica.
Last weekend I saw an interview of ‘the Fiyaman’, Capleton on Anthony Miller’s Entertainment Report and I was again struck by the negativity of so much of our music. And it is not only our music. This negativity and consistent message of hate and confrontation on the one hand, or the attempts to belittle and ridicule and denigrate on the other hand is very much a part of our public discourse. It is having a very crippling effect on the development of both the individual and the nation.
Japanese entrepreneur, Kazuo Inamori tells us in his book, A Passion for Success, that if a person is steeped in jealousy, resentment, or hatred, his or her attitude will be negative – and so will the outcome of his or her life. In contrast, the more positive and determined a person is, the more successful his or her life will be. The outcomes of our lives are largely in our own hands, he says, and our philosophy greatly determines our personal and professional success.
A QUIET HEART
Meditation for your Quiet Time, those Quiet Moments in your Special Silent Place.
“And so love inspires love; hatred breeds hatred. Love and good will stimulate and build up the body; hatred and malice corrode and tear it down. Love is a savour of life unto life; hatred is a savour of death unto death.
There are loyal hearts, there are spirits brave,
There are souls that are pure and true;
Then give the world the best you have,
And the best will come back to you.
Give love, and love to your heart will flow,
A strength in your utmost need;
Have faith, and a score of hearts will show
Their faith in your word and deed”
– Ralph Waldo Trine, ‘In Tune with the Infinite’
Marjorie Stair is an agriculture and rural development specialist. She hosts the programme ‘Country Road’ on Power 106 Fridays at 6:30 am. Send questions or comments by e-mail to loyal@cwjamaica.com, fax to 968-2025, or call 511-2502 to leave a 30-second voicemail message.
