Tuesday, October 23rd, 2007
NGO Paper: The Poison of Fear vs. The Salve of Education, 10/15/07
I find myself agreeing with what I heard from Ueli Minder, CEO of the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition in Mongolia, that the most important development issue in today’s Mongolia is its crisis of identity. Much like the representatives we met from an Evangelical Christian, a Catholic and a Russian Orthodox church, Ueli spoke of the receding tide of communism leaving a people stripped of their inner strength and belief system, thus lacking an identity in a harsh new world. To make matters worse, Mongolians are now suddenly open to the barrage of culture and information from which the Iron Curtain had shielded them, “its not just the lifting of the pressure, it’s the moving of a completely different world, with all the television, with all the Western, European, American values and which come in a completely unrealistic way.” Eager to fill this newly created spiritual vacuum, missionaries from various Christian sects have descended upon Mongolia; according to Father Aleksei, head of the Russian Orthodox Church in Mongolia, some are actively destroying the Mongolian identity. He cited an example of the result such destruction brings: the suicide of several young Mongolians in the name of Jesus Christ.
The basis of the identity and moral crisis in Mongolia is in the psychological effects of a people under dictatorial rule. With the ever-present eye of the government dominating one’s life, it becomes easiest to simply yield ones thoughts and beliefs to control from above: “How fear can destroy the human mind: trust and communication, everything.” Ueli gave an example from a Christian friend of his who was holding discussion groups, and discovered trust no longer had any meaning to young Mongolians; in Ueli’s words: “They didn’t know what it means. Trust… that hinders so much people to grow internally. Because they even don’t trust themselves.” Moreover, Mongolia’s ability to navigate a path into the future is dependant on her relationship to this dark history, “Here in Mongolia… I think only with dealing with the reality, also admitting what went wrong, they can really find out again what they are, and what they want to be.” This theme was echoed in a modern context by Mr. Ganbaatar, head of the CMTU, who lamented the rise of “crazy capitalism”, and expressed his wish that Mongolians take ownership of their country, and thus of their own destiny. Instead, a growing number are turning to outsiders to shoulder this burden, blaming the country’s problems on foreign businesses.
Ueli, much like the representatives of the three other religions, sees his role in the solving of this problem as primarily educational. In addition to teaching about Mahayana Buddhism, Ueli has taken advantage of his background in teacher education to affect some real positive change in the education system. After holding a seminar with several other religious groups on the family, alcohol and values, several teachers approached him pleading, “Do this more with us! We need help with how to teach the kids values, what to do!” Not only is he teaching about values, but also how to teach values, a more sustainable, though skill-intensive approach.
Buddhism also has a role in both the reclamation of Mongolia’s history, as well as the laying of a foundation for the future. By learning about Buddhism, Mongolians are rediscovering a vital aspect of their culture, one virtually eliminated during the socialist era. With the Buddhist education comes also a moral and ethical structure, which with history are vital to the building of a robust Mongolian identity. Ueli has no problem with Mongolians converting to Christianity, if they feel it will help them, but he is distressed when this conversion prevents them from fully reclaiming their history, since Buddhism is perceived as a threat to their new Christian identity. Without truly coming to terms with their history, these Mongolians are building a new identity on a partial foundation, and this results in an identity that is fragile and incomplete.
The phenomenon of growing extreme Nationalism is related to this crisis in identity, and aided by the growth of widespread corruption. During her talk on Democratization, Ms. Undarya talked about the growing fascist movement, with its emphasis on history and a biologically purist, male-centric national identity. Perhaps these young Mongolians are reacting violently to outside encroachment, which they perceive as a threat. Their insecurity and emptiness is activated by the presence of foreigners, which inflames and catalyzes the creation of an über-nationalist identity; this nationalism feeds on the strength of Mongolia’s ancient history, creating a sense of invincibility that is even less compatible with the reclamation of a dark period in history.
For the FPMT and Buddhists in general, their efforts are limited by any stigma associated with the name Buddhism. Even Ueli levels some criticism at the historical status quo in both Tibetan and Mongolian Buddhism, and their disconnectedness from society. Especially the mixing of opportunistic capitalism with Buddhism, which he believes has alienated many from looking further. But he also sees Buddhism changing, learning from other religions such as the service-minded Christians. The ability of Buddhism to change with the times, under the guidance of the FPMT and Gandan Monastery (the closest thing to a central authority in Mongolian Buddhism), will determine the future of Buddhism in Mongolia, and the extent to which Christianity is able to fill Mongolians’ identity vacuum before people have a chance to rediscover their historical faith.
Thus, Mongolia faces many challenges on its quest for a new identity. Mongolia must learn about and come to terms with its past, whilst staying afloat in the flood of imagery and culture that has especially deluged its media-saturated youth. Likewise, the poisonous appeal of fascist nationalism threatens to further radicalize the most severely disaffected. Like Ueli Minder, and his colleagues from other organizations said, civic and historical education, whether from schools or religious institutions, is clearly important to the success of this transformation. While each organization has its own particular approach, they will also all gain from working together, as the successful collaboration of the FPMT with other religious organizations showed. This will also foster dialogue between religious groups on other issues, helping to avoid a further polarization of the religious climate. However, in the end, Mongolia’s future rests in the hands of its people, most notably its large demographic of young people; if they succeed in acquiring a stable and secure identity, Mongolia can turn its attention to more technical issues of development. Otherwise, no amount of development studies or technical reports can fix the torn psyche of this people, caught in a flux between multiple worlds.
