Worldviews
 SEA 2012

Multicultural Malaysia
I may have talked about the multicultural society of Malaysia before however, I wanted to go a little it more into depth on the topic. The word Multicultural can mean many things-- the ethnic makeup of the country, the different religious beliefs and I think you could even throw in politics, developments and history. Because all of these things play a role to why Malaysia is so multicultural-- the Chinese migration in the 19th century, British expansion in SEA, Indian traders, the Japanese Occupation and the formation of Federation of Malaya Knowing the history of a country can help you to better understand and identify the people... Religion and race are very important features to the people of Malaysia:

• half the Christians in Malaysia are Catholics; for a total of 1,761,000 Christians.
• half of the ethnicity are indigenous (east Malaysia) and the other half are descendants of immigrants. 

The different ethnic groups in Kuala Lumpur really stuck out to me: Malay, Chinese, Indian... Most of these ethnic groups have a distinct identity and culture of their own. The title: "Malaysia is truly Asia," is given because of the diverse ethnic groups. Each of these groups also have different languages however, English is quite spoken as it is the language used for between the different groups to communicate with one another. Therefore, you could easily find it easy to communicate and have conversations with the local people-- not always though. 
Malaysia is a country that I would love to go back to and spend some more time there, particularly focusing on the tribes, agriculture and sustainable development... 

What is Poverty?
I found myself asking this question: "What is poverty?" After spending 2 1/2 weeks living and studying in the Philippines I began to understand a different concept of the words meaning. I often think our worldviews can become obscured because of the culture and societies we live in. This is not necessarily our fault-- I mean I can not blame my western culture on how I perceive the world and make assumptions and judgement's on other cultures because that was the culture I was brought up in and I do not know any different. However, I can change this. By being open minded, having compassion towards others and trying to understand others worldviews I can learn-- I can grow. I can travel to discover new places, people and cultures. I can build relationships. I can step outside what I know, all the little comforts I like to surround myself in and try something different... something new. Like how I look at poverty. 
There were nine people living in the home where I lived in the Philippines. The mother/ grandmother, her two daughters and their four children between them and her two sons... plus there was Carly and I. We shared a bed, the children shared a bed with their mothers. We had water for bathing, water for drinking and always delicious food to eat at meals times. There was so much love in this home-- I can not imagine nine members from my family living in the same home. I found myself falling in love with this lifestyle the simplicity of it all. But, I stopped myself as I began to think this... Was this a simpler way of life? The home was not yet finished because in order to finish constructing your home you need money. Many Filipinos have to leave the Philippines to go abroad and work because the wages are so low there. Where is the simplicity in that? I could not imagine how it simple it would be to have to leave your family and  children to go abroad and work-- only to send money home for the construction of my home. Is this poverty? Having to share a bed with your children? I didn't see it like that. My family seemed happy, they were educated (90 percent of the people in the Philippines are literate). Does the way we see poverty reflect on our standard of living? I am beginning to think so. Many Filipinos want to come to Canada? Why?? To make better money and provide better lives for their children? Ok, that makes sense. I can understand. Yet, why would anyone want to move to a country that is suffering spiritual poverty. I don't mean God necessarily. I mean our disconnection to what is really important in life. I saw a bond in the families in the Philippines. In Canada we are so disconnected. We are more focused on our material possessions and so caught up in technology-- mobiles phones, facebook etc. It isn't always a horrible way to communicate, in many ways its amazing however, there is a limit to not abuse and I feel as though our culture has gone far beyond abusing it. Broken families, friendships, relationships and so on. Where has our culture disappeared too? Our traditional dances and songs... our history? The lack of values and morals in the younger generations. Our beliefs-- they have all seemed to go into hiding-- slowly fading away. In the Philippines I could find them easily but, again I wonder if this how my world view see's it all? Much of the Philippines culture has been taken from them. Many Filipino people do not know the sad history of their country. This all defines the word poverty. It does not have to be physical like starvation or being homeless it also entitles the voiceless the people who have no hope. Poverty is a word with many meanings. Open your eyes and your heart of your worldview will forever be obscured... and that will be truly sad. It will be poverty of the soul. 

Nuclear Families
The term "Nuclear families" is what describes the contemporary family today-- the mother, father and children living in the home. "Extended family" would be how many of families in the Philippines lived-- the mother, father, children plus grandparents, aunts and uncles etc. Here in Thailand this is also quite common however, Nuclear families have become more popular in character here. Many causes of this have been: the high divorce rate, capitalism (moving into the city from the countryside to make more money) and transformation from an agriculture society to an industrial one (farmers selling their land so they can afford to buy more 'modern' things). Characteristics of this family include; parents have less time to raise their children because of their busy work schedule so children are substituted to institutions such as nurseries causing children to grow up physically but not emotionally or psychologically. The "Post-modern family" are more individual however, we tend to often feel lonely, we seem to judge more and praise people of their social status, fame and wealth. The Thai family I live with is Nuclear, it is only the mother, father and daughter who live in the house. But, although their family structure, home living is more modern or contemporary you still see a lot of Thai culture within and among the family and their home. Like their Buddhist faith, food, language, roles of the family members and the family hierarchy.  

Sustainable Development Program in Northern Thailand: The Karen Village
On Wednesday October 31st my classmates and I (13 in total plus 5 leaders) and our translators ventured in to the green lush hills of northern Thailand. Destination... The Karen Village-- 20 houses and a population of 102 people.There are 14 students from kindergarten to grade 6 in the village school-- the children speak Karen the village language however, they learn Thai, English and a few other languages in school. Most of the adults speak Thai as a second language as well-- Our translators spoke to them in Thai as they could not speak or understand Karen. 
On our way to the village on Wednesday we stopped at an Organic farm where they grew many different kinds of fruits, macadamia nuts, coffee, tea and they also made their own organic fertilizer and  bio-fuel which was really interesting to learn how to make. They were very passionate about what they were doing here and how they can help towards limiting climate change. We had a very tasty lunch there and I bought some tea. I thought what they were doing was great and inspiring. However, from what I have been look at in terms or organic farming, the use of bio fuel etc. is that it is a bit different when you are comparing small scale farming to larger. Ideally, small scale agriculture or what Walden Bello called "peasant farming" in his book " The Food Wars'--" which highlights some of the most essential flaws in the modern world trade system which is a severe threat to the stability of food production both regional and internationally. He calls large scale farming: Capitalist agriculture which may have been one of the biggest contributors to the 2006 to 2008 food crisis. I don't even necessarily believe it is because of the increase of the global population-- with the decreasing birth rate you would think we would be able to figure our more sustainable methods of producing food. I have to come think that it is the cause of increasing production, a high level of unnecessary consumption and greed (but that is just a personal observation at the moment from what I have been reading and learning). It seems as though capitalism has not only been part of destroying traditional cultures but it has also played a part to why there are so many starving children and people in the world. May I just add that if we all turned to organic agriculture and the use of bio-fuels we would probably add to the number of starving children and people in the world... unless we all go back to small scale farming and self-sufficient living I don't actually know if the theory of it all is realistic (as much as I would love to think it was). Just keep in mind when you think about living the way they did "back in the olden days," you wouldn't have time to sit down and read your favorite book for enjoyment and you probably won't be able to go on holiday for a week... most of your time would be dedicated to surviving-- cutting down and chopping wood, hunting, making clothes etc. Think about it. 
Anyway's, back to the Karen village which was where we went after visiting the organic farm. We arrived and were greeted very warmly spending the next few hours playing with the children (who are all just sooooo beautiful!!!). We met our home-stay families and had sometime to just relax until dinner. Most of the food was from the village and the cooking was very delicious - I spent most meals helping the women bring out and prepare some of the food. Even though we could barley communicate other then maybe one word or by using hand motions, sounds or body language there was something truly amazing about the time I spent sitting them them chopping up fruit. Even though we all come from a completely different culture, speak a different language making communication very limited we all hold with in us the essence of womanhood. This was what I felt and I almost found it less frustrating in communicating because it was equal on both parties. Here in Chiang Mai with our Thai family we understand very little Thai and our family understands more English so, you could be having a conversation and then all of a sudden you are stuck or don't know what is going on anymore... and it becomes a frustrating experience-- I feel like I have more expectations or something. That evening they prepared and presetned some traditional dances for us.
On Thursday we spent the day hiking through the hills. One of our translators was a biologist so the hike was very educational. I was also able to ask lots of questions which he translated to the Karen leader. Me: "What are the challenges here in the village?" Karen leader Tok: "Materialism (greed), the government, land rights and the education system because the school system does not support their type of learning. Building leadership and passing it along-- balance and maintaining identity (knowledge of the world), agreement with the neighboring villages and the approval of others, natural resources, teaching the children and sustainability." On the topic of sustainability we often think about the environment and lessening our ecological impact however, we also need to realize that sustainability also means sustaining our culture and our identity. I think that is one of the saddest things about my culture... many of us do not know our history or our identity. I am probably one of these people and I hope to learn more about my history and identity when I come home from this trip. It was something I observed in this village and in South East Asia. As I mentioned on my writings and thoughts about poverty western society lacks a spiritual poverty and I feel as though it is the cause of not sustaining our culture throughout history. The leader Tok explained that once capitalism gets into your community without you even knowing it can rape you of your identity - I can't help but agree. SEA and these traditional cultures have somehow continued to sustain their identity and I hope the next time a big forest destructing company wants to go cut down trees in the northern hills of Thailand for the use of some sustainable bio-fuel product they will realize that there are villages there who are already living sustainable lives and if they are not careful they will destroy them. 
The issue of Land Rights is a very major one because the Karen people have not rights to the land and therefore, if the government wanted to come in tomorrow and tell them to leave they would have too. Could you imagine? 
Thursday night we had another delicious meal and spent the evening sitting around a fire with a bunch of the villagers singing songs and sharing there meanings. It got dark fairly early so we were often in bed around 8 or 9pm. We slept on these woven mats on the floor in wooden houses that were up on stilts. The homes are built on stilts for flooding and also the wind is able to pass through and help keep the house cool. I also observed that it was used widely for storage and a place to keep stock such as pigs and chooks. Usually when we went to bed it was quite however around 2/3am the roosters started to crow-- and there were a lot of roosters... then they would stop but by 5am everything began to come alive-- the dogs, the pigs, the chooks, the roosters and the people! It was a very noisy place!!!! But I loved every moment and I was sad to leave-- I wish I could have stayed longer. I made some good connections with the translators so there is a possibility if I want to go back in the future I can-- the village people are very careful of who they allow to come in to the community. Now I am back in this huge city and I can't help but find it slightly hard to breathe... I am just not a city person. Especially when you do not have your own home to go home too but you are a guest in someone else's home...
Friday I got up and helped the woman prepare breakfast, we said our goodbyes and journeyed back down the hills-- many of use felt very very sick as we were in songtows (look them up if you don't know what they are... my spelling may be wrong). Most of the students went on an elephant ride but there were a few of us who did not feel comfortable doing this for principle reasons. So we spent the afternoon with the translators observing elephants, going on a walk and enjoying some wonderful conversations. We got back to Chiang Mai around 4pm. This experience was the highlight of our Thailand stay so far. 

A Western Life inside a Thai Culture
In my writings on Nuclear Families I talked about how they have become more of the norm here in Thailand. Therefore, I want to touch on my experience here living with a Thai family in Chiang Mai, Thailand. We live in a small village or developmental area-- security 24/7. More or a less a small subdivision. Our home is quite a modern architecture. Khun ma, Khun pa and their daughter Tanya live in the home. There are two bedrooms, we stay in one and the family stays in the other. Here I touch on the first few observations of Western life in a Thai culture: the subdivision and the modern style of the home however, there is still no bathtub, no oven but there is a spirit house-- Hindu influence of their Buddhist belief. The structure of the family living in the home: Nuclear family-- not extended and finally the fact that the daughter slept in the same room as the parents. Even when their nephew was visiting he also stayed with them in their room. This seems a bit odd for us because it is very different to how we live. During the week however, Khun pa worked away. Therefore, during the week it was just Khun ma and Tanya. I felt as though we were always rushing... having to go there to here because Tanya was in so many things. I found it very stressful and overwhelming, especially driving in this big SUV around the city. I didn't like the way they really lived at all to be honest... other then going to yoga on the weekends. They ate out a lot but, it is much cheaper to eat out then buying food at the grocery store. I asked Khun ma is she liked living in the city-- she said she didn't really but she was happy. I don't know I was not brought up in a big city therefore, I really do not like the city. I would have no desire to live in one that's for sure. I just couldn't help but feel that they were living this western life, always busy and on the go. Never any time to do anything. It was contradicting because part of the Buddhist philosophy is being in the present and not worrying about time. I always felt that we were watching the clock and having to rush (although I was always ready and on time).

Finding similarities in Buddhism & Christianity
Siddhartha Gautama was a saint of the Sakya family-- Gautama Buddha. He was born in the Buddhist year 2555 (7th century) in northern India. There came a time when Siddhartha decided to leave home and began his journey-- a journey which led him to finding the Buddhist philosophy. Today there many different forms of the Buddhist religion for example, Buddhists in China do not use spirit houses to make offerings. However, in Thai Buddhism spirit houses are very common because of the Hindu influence in the past. But, is Buddhism a religion? I feel as though it has been transformed over time into a religion however, it is more simply a philosophy about life. There are is no God or Gods in Buddhism-- the focus is more about the "Four Noble Truths:" 
*Truth of suffering.
*Truth of origin of suffering.
*Truth of the cessation of suffering.
*Truth of the path that leads to cessation (The Eight Fold Path). 
Siddhartha who became known as Buddha explained the four truths by separating them in two-- "the cause and result of samsara and the cause and result of nirvana" (Lecture 6, CMU). Suffering does not necessarily just mean suffering death or pain it is more about being  unsatisfied in life. There are three opinions that often block the truth: "our truth, my truth and the truth" (Lecture 6, CMU). Living in this world means we will experience suffering-- humans are not perfect beings nor is the world we live in. Christians would belief this is the cause of sin and living in a broken world. Suffering comes in many different forms... sickness, older age, pain, injury and death. But, there is also the suffering of bring attached to material or physical objects. The bible passage that comes to mind when I read this is found in Matthew chapter 6:19-21-- "19 Lay not up for yourselves treasure upon earth where neither moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal. 20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor dust corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."To stop suffering we need to reach nirodha which "literally refers to the absence or extinction of a given entity" (Wikipedia.org). Getting rid of suffering in our lives means need to take the journey of self-improvement... The Eight Fold Path. 
There are eight rights in The Eight Fold Path: "Right view, Right Intention, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration" (Lecture 6, CMU). There are then "The Precepts," which are similar to the 10 Commandments: "refrain from killing, stealing, lying, gossiping, slandering, spreading rumors,sexual misconduct and taking intoxicants" (Lecture 6, CMU). The difference to not here however, the bible tells says you shall NOT break the 10 Commandments whereas The Precepts tell you only to refrain yourself. Sacraments do not exist such as marriage. 
I really enjoyed learning about Buddhism. Although I am a Christian there are a lot of things that I would like to adopt and adapt to how I practice my faith and spiritually. I often can suffer from anxiety, and getting stressed about things that I have no control over. Therefore, I would like to learn how to meditate and learn how to live more in the present instead of focusing to much on the past or future. We live in a culture which focuses a lot on the tenses... Jesus said, "Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself" (Matthew 6:34). An important part of Buddhism is not to focus on the tenses because part of the philosophy is all about living in the present moment. I believe that I can maintain my Christian beliefs and incorporating some of the Buddhist philosophies-- but, I must do this with caution and remember that my relationship with God is of most importance. A difference I would like to highlight between Buddhism and Christianity is this... Buddhism tends to believe in universal truths. Buddha did not claim to be God but a teacher. In Christianity the relationship his between God and man-- we often pray to God for guidance and help.  In Buddhist religion there is a teacher therefore, Buddha can not help you because he is only a teacher. Buddha did not claim to know everything only what he could see that which was true. Do not believe what others or books tell you. The Christian belief is about having faith, "To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see" (Hebrew 11:1). Maybe the meaning of faith is different between the two-- Christian faith means heavenly and Buddhist faith earthly? We can see the earth so we know it is true but we can not see heaven therefore, we must hope and have faith that it exists. My Thai family prayed for very similar things-- I was praying to God and they were praying to Buddha. There faith was in the teachings of the Buddha but my faith was in God. No matter what people belief I belief that we are all Gods children and there is place in his heart for each and everyone of us.  We choose who we love therefore we must choose to love God. But, it is important to remember that loving God may be expressed in a thousand different ways through a thousand different religions. Maybe the Buddhist religion does not believe in God the same way I do but, their belief was powerful, real and true. It is possible for God to exist in another form...

Asian Film Interviews
On our day trip to Vigan in the Philippines I spent the afternoon with a couple of the Filipino girls who were with us. We decided to go to a cafe and sit for while enjoying a delicious iced drink. We began to talk about different things and somehow I ended up asking them if I could interview them on their thoughts of Hollywood influencing Asian film. One of the girls who's name was Selina was the same age as me, 25. I can not remember the other girls age. 
Both girls agreed that the pattern of many main stream Filipino movies are copied from America especially the romantic comedies. Because of the history between the Philippines and the United states, what the Americans did for them the copying of Hollywood movies is common-- American culture is viewed as superior. There is a lot of negative attitude in the Philippines toward Filipino movies. However, both of these girls preferred watching Filipino films instead of Hollywood. 
The girls expressed how tv, Hollywood movies, media, internet, etc has been very influential in the Philippines-- sex, image and young girls (looking at celebrities as role models). The values of young girls are distorted, they have this idea of wanting to be sexy-- very conscious of what people think of them. Shows have changed there is more sex and violence. 
I could not help but agree more-- especially being a girl and young woman growing up in our media society today. Today everything seems to be based around SEX. I don't just mean the physical act of sex but, the way we dress, behave etc.-- sex sells. Advertising, marketing, the media everything is focused on this obscured image of what beautiful supposedly is. One of the reasons so many people in SEA are using whitening soap to make their skin appear white instead of black. This was also very common in Thailand. 
In Thailand I interviewed Yai and his wife who were about in their 40's. They explained; since the 1950's American classical romantic stories have been popular in Thailand. Many of the Thai movies have been remade, they have become more modernized. They mentioned a contemporary Thai film, a coming of age story. It culture was Thai but they way it was done was in a more western style. There are more foreign films however, Thai history films are getting better. 
We then moved on to the same topic in which I had discussed with the girls from the interview in the Philippines. Again they mentioned how advertising, the media, internet and movies is resulting in girl dressing and acting in a more sexual way. This is interesting to note in Thailand because it is a Buddhist country which is very present in lifestyle and culture. The topic of whitening soap was brought up again-- if your white your a rock star, your beautiful etc. Many of these people are of mixed race. The other point brought up was why English is the universal language? In Jakarta, Indonesia their language has been lost. 
Discussing these topics was really interesting and I am glad I took the time and had the opportunity to interview the people I did. Most of our thoughts about the issue were the same. Its a question I kept asking myself when I was in SEA-- "Why do these people want to look and be white like us, like me? Why do they want to live in Canada and the United States?" Because stereotypes exist a result of globalization through the media. If I watch a movie or music video with some beautiful girls on it my ideas and thoughts of beauty can get pretty distorted as well. But, who would advertise that beauty exists on the inside? Its not your heat that sells... its your body.