Walking for Human Values
Nothing is more stirring than a large group of committed people walking unitedly for a common cause, and willing to lead by example. In addition to individual and group commitment to values, the importance of values and their practice will be conveyed in several ways: individual and group commitment; the carrying of banners with quotations about values, ethics, morality and service; and through value songs and music.
A Changing Social Context
Our country, as well as every other country on this planet, is confronted with various challenges not experienced before in history. More people suffer from wars, famine, earthquakes and other natural disasters as these confront humanity with increasing regularity. Global warming, as a consequence of environmental degradation, is now generally accepted as a reality we need to deal with. Changes impacting on economies and on the nature of employment, together with mass migration, racial tension and terrorism confront humanity, including us in Australia
On the personal and social front, we see changing dynamics at home and in the workplace. Various social and health problems challenge families and individuals with alienation and disconnection from society being the personal reality of many. Social and technological changes in society also challenge our institutions. For example, our health systems have difficulty coping with the demand for services, whilst our correctional institutions have to deal with ever increasing numbers of individuals being incarcerated for criminal behaviour.
Why We Need Values
The social circumstances of childhood and youth are creating a values void, particularly personal and spiritual values. Models of education based on economic, industrial, public or therapeutic values appear to be insufficient. Advances in many disciplines demand an informed values education in order to develop appropriate skills to discriminate between 'right' and 'wrong'. Technology and the modern electronic information apparatus thrust many competing values at children. Virtue and making informed choices is often not presented; instead, satisfaction of wants and lack of responsibility for choices appear to have created the current reality which we live in. We are faced with a moral challenge that needs to be met
Which Values Do We Need?
Our nation, our schools and our children need the ‘five basic human values’ of Truth, Right Conduct, Peace, Love and Non-Violence. They are called basic because they are pursued by people of all cultures and religions and they are timeless. These values include the profound moral insights of the great civilisations; and they are derived from the universal order which upholds harmony in society. The values are called human because their practice makes one ‘human ’in the true sense of the word.
Truth
Truth is ultimately the repository of all human values, the basis of life lived with integrity, and the basis of life itself. Truth is not a temporal activity or phase; truth is not what is seen, heard, or done by others; truth is a composite of inner qualities and capacities which are discovered, excavated by reflection and self-enquiry. Truth is timeless, changeless, and reveals the inner character and qualities of the human being. People who act with truth act with integrity; they think and live with love and peace, and their lives are filled with non-violence, self-control, self-respect, and self satisfaction.
Right Conduct
Right conduct is activity ranging from personal conduct, thought, right action, duty, and applying morality as a way of life and action, generally. For simplicity, we include all notions of this uniquely human state into the term right conduct.
Right conduct is known through time by many different words expressing activity, and essential character of persons, deeds, and duty. It is unbound action, truth in action, love in action, peace in action, non violence in action. It is both personal and social at the same time. It is revealed in conduct, daily behaviour, attitude towards others and human integrity. This display of good character is social morality in action. In all compartments of human and social life, right conduct leads to productivity, progress, and prosperity.
Peace
Peace is innate in all human beings; it is within each person simply waiting to be uncovered. Peace is best described as inner mental calm, mental equipoise or equal-mindedness. Equanimity is achieved when a person is able to switch from outward vision to inward vision and is consequently able to minimise his or her desires and achieve a greater degree of contentment.
Love
Love is a form of energy which each person transmits and receives every moment. It is said that love "flows from the depths of our soul". It is more than mercy or gentleness; it flows all the time and not just to persons to whom we are attached. It is for everyone, for the whole of creation. It affects all forms of life. The more it is shared, the more it grows.
Love is the natural state and all other contrary emotions are unnatural. Therefore, when you send a wave of spontaneous Love to a person, it is bound to strike some chord in him or her. When you go on showering Love, it will slowly begin to cleanse and purify and ultimately the undesirable traits will be weeded out and goodness will shine through. The happiness that can be derived from unselfish scattering of Love is a rare elevating experience.
"A human being is a part of a whole, called by us ‘universe’, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest... a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."
Albert Einstein
Non Violence
Non-violence is the sum of all the other values and our legacy to future generations. Non-violence may be defined as ‘universal love’. It fosters the understanding that human beings have an obligation towards every component part of this universe and that they should try to expand this love to all. Non-violence goes beyond a person's relationship with their fellow-beings, it embraces all non-living things. With regard to human beings, it means not causing harm in thought, word or deed. Non-violence represents the fruition of all human values. If one practises Truth, Right Conduct, Love and Peace, one is non-violent in one's actions. Non-violence is described as the zenith of human achievement and perfection and present when one recognises the oneness and unity of all creation.
Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time; the need for mankind to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to oppression and violence. Mankind must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression, and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.
Martin Luther King Jr.
©National Walk for Values. This site last updated 8 April 2009
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