Pono. Anthropology 9/8/11

Thursday, 9/8/11

First of all, I would like to thank Lynette Cruz for bringing food to the class.  This meant a lot to me because it was comforting and welcoming and since I didn't have dinner tonight. I find myself skipping meals as food prices have really gone up in the last three years...too bad the state hasn't done much to promote local agriculture.  I say that we should get students more involved with developing HPU's organic/GMO-free garden right on the beautiful windward campus!

Pono

"When something feels right, it is pono." ~Lynette Cruz, HPU Anthropology Lecture

I believe that human beings are born decent with intuitive capabilities.  Apart from their surroundings, a baby child is in a state of harmony and balance.  Children are innocent, and for the most part, they spend the first years of their childhood being taught virtuous qualities and strong moral values.  Even though they may sometimes be rebellious, they naturally seek what is good, go where they feel safe and comfortable, and rarely intend to inflict emotional or physical pain on themselves or other human beings.  

When and how do children start to loose this innocence and morality?  Surely, in our Western culture, the media and the family institution are greatest influences on young vulnerable minds.  Unfortunately, it is this vulnerability that makes it difficult for children to decipher right from wrong.  It may feel completely comfortable for a young girl to dress up scandalously on the TV show, Toddlers in Tiaras, even though it isn't pono because of the potentially harmful consequences and the tainted reactions of the people who view the innocent little girl as something she is not.  An innocent child may feel completely as ease mindlessly partaking in violent video games, rapping along to a sadistic song, or pretending to be a killer.  They see their parents and celebrity role models doing similar things, so it must be ok.  Perhaps this is one reason why there is often a great sense of denial and ignorance when it comes to living an ethical lifestyle in our modern world.

But when these adolescents grow and learn to distinguish and know why certain things and actions are immoral and out of touch with nature, it makes less sense why people continue to act in certain ways that do not benefit the true well-being of themselves, their family, or society.  When people have just the smallest amount of knowledge of the repercussions of their actions is when they can be able to choose pono.  

Pono is a gift from God.  It is a gut-feeling that offers great protection from danger.  It is the slightest amount of shame or the greatest amount guilt one feels when they do something that may hurt someone or something in anyway.  The more we utilize this gift, the happier we can be in our lives. Unfortunately, people do indeed have the ability to ignore this gift, and the more that it is ignored, the less able a person is to distinguish what is, essentially, right from wrong.  This is one of the reasons why we have, ruthless dictators, domestic violence, and billion dollar corporations that pollute the land and carryout unfair labor practices.

I believe that it is time for our society to make it a greater priority to do what feels right rather than what will make a person rich or powerful.   Wealth and power really don’t bring happiness to a person.  It almost sounds overly optimistic and too simple.  But there is much power in feeling.  Our society must redefine success.  Great triumphs really can only be attained through ethical choices that feel right.  This needs to be taught.  People need to see how unhappy and miserable our world’s richest and most powerful people are.  Society needs to see the damage many of these people have done to the environment and communities rather than idolizing their wealth and glamour.