 |
| “Our fate as a nation can only be
determined when we hold through to the truth that is bigger and better than
that of our own race.” - Allahyarham Dato‘ Seri Onn Jaafar (1895 – 1962) |
Let us be Moderate: First, be critical of ourselves and
our own community
In
our Hari Raya Aidilfitri message, we elaborated the fourth point of the Ten
Principles for a Moderate Malaysian. In this advertisement, we are happy to
share the fifth principle. Do look forward to the upcoming five.
Principle Number Five.
I will first be critical of myself and my own
community. If
I am a Muslim, I will be critical of other Muslims’ wrongdoings first. If I am
a Christian, I will be critical of other Christians’ wrongdoings first, and so
on.
1. What is the basis of this principle?
It is THE SUCCESS FORMULA
recommended by all of our traditions and spiritual teachings. The Bhagavad-Gita
suggests for us to reshape ourselves through the power of will. Tao Te Ching observes
that to conquer others we need strength, but to conquer oneself is harder. Dhammapada
states that it is easier to conquer a million men in battle than to conquer
oneself. The Bible asks us to remove the plank in our eyes, in order to remove
the speck that is in our brother’s eye. The Quran decrees that God will never
change the fate or condition of a people until they change it themselves.
2. When to use this principle?
Whenever our own community commits
wrongdoings! Malaysian Buddhists should be the first to criticize the threats
of genocide in Myanmar. Malaysian Muslims should be the first to condemn the destruction
of the Buddhas of Bamiyan. Malaysian Christians should be the first to criticize
the desecration of the Quran by extremist Christians. Malaysian Hindus should
be the first to condemn the attack towards a Christian cathedral in New Delhi.
3. Why this principle?
When we are the first to correct
our own community’s mistake, we create strong bond between all, regardless of
race or religion. When we are the first to critique those from our own
community, we show clearly that what we are fighting for are shared values like
truth, love and justice. Such behaviour encourages fairness and helps create deep
Moments of Unity.
At
zubedy, our programs draw strength from shared values and traditions. We
believe that at heart, all Malaysians want good things for themselves and for
their brother and sister Malaysians, simply because our nation cannot prosper
as a whole if some of us are left behind.
You
and I, we must always be critical of ourselves and our own community first and
be Moderate Malaysians.
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