Patriarchy & Patriotism, a reflection...
I dedicate this to our mothers and sisters.. You are appreciated
I have never been much of a patriot in any sense or form. As a young child I just couldn't figure it out and spent all my adult life trying to find out why so as to try and curb the guilt i felt of not loving my country, religion or culture. I came to the realisation then already that it had the potential to lead blindly, by passion without foresight. Culture, religion and standing for a country meant you believed and trusted in its values and subscribing to them blindly was the only way, never to ask questions.
After having tried that a few times growing up I learnt quickly that such sacred honor meant something very different depending in whose hands power was, our fathers, leaders and teachers. Teaching was always done through fear based tactics and asking questions meant that you were against them, not even what was being taught.
The result was patriarchy, cultural and religious indoctrination not to mention a way of life that led us to where we are now, degraded educational, financial and social systems, a world starving for food and water. My view on this is that we have given our power away, to the governments and corporations, begging constantly for what was our right in the first place. What did we expect to happen next if not Monsanto and bottled water in a world of abundance.
To make it worse over the centuries women were degraded and the minute that started so did hell descend. Women were seen as maids to men to cater for their every desire while not really accepting them in the same light as men, human beings.
This was true in so many cultures I explored while trying to find the one I felt would accept me, for me, a young boy who was filled with questions based on simple logic, this simple child like thinking is what now the world is starting to accept as solutions to the bigger problems. Einstein said " if you cant explain things simply, you don't understand it well enough."
This observation about women I came to understand as the curse we brought down on ourselves and now we sit here wondering how it came to this. You want change? love our mothers and sisters for they are the soil from which life comes.... And it's the job of every man husband or son to care for them all, "yours" or "theirs", so that the light may shine through the cracks and turn this reality into the kingdom of heaven on earth...
I found an interesting parallel between patriarchy and patriotism, using the structures of family, culture and religion to turn us into women loving haters, one that sent shivers up my spine, never again will i align myself with anything that is not in my comprehension. On behalf of all caring and compassionate men out there, i would like to extend my sincere apologies for all that was done by our kind, may we be forgiven.
I found out in all this what causes my frequency... In me and in all there is a warrior, deep and strong in its certainty of it all, inside and out... There is a fear associated in the mind with being a warrior and getting angry... Anger against injustice is the spark, the battery that drives our engines.... All we ever needed was an expression, personal and unique aligned with our feelings and tell our story... I'm comin out without the fear that it's too loud or not... Just time for Be-ing...
Your in truth,
Simply Shad
A truthful expression of my collective experiences... Here i am!
Thank you so much for this beautiful article. I see it was written two years ago and so I hope you are still on Steemit to get this reply. I searched the term patriarchy out of a sad and crushing feeling welling up in me at the political situation in our country. I hoped someone could offer some emlightenment on this phenomenon, some secret understanding that might help me fight, as a woman, what feels like a violent revulsion in our country of all the gains women and minorities have fought so long to overcome. I fear this government whose open embrace and disgusting support of misogyny and its demand for patriotism, loyal obedience to its patriarchy may send us to dark times. Your article, although very enlightening tells me we must rely on men to come to this epiphany of the value of women. But you seemed to have been born with this grace. Your article gives me renewed faith that men like you are out there and will stand beside us in our fight against the subordination of patriarchy. You are a warrior and your strength is a 1000x that of the misogynist because he sees women as a threat.