Deepak Chopra on the tragedy of Sept. 11

Subject: Namaste- The Deeper Wound

Many friends continue to call concerning Deepak's well being . The
Chopra family are all safe. In the midst of the world's tragedy,
Deepak has been barraged with questions from the media requesting his
perspective. Here's his response that he also wanted to share with
his Namaste friends.

P.S. Please join us at the prayer circle boards at
http://www.chopra.com/

------------------------------

The Deeper Wound

As fate would have it, I was leaving New York on a jet flight that
took off 45 minutes before the unthinkable happened. By the time we
landed in Detroit, chaos had broken out. When I grasped the fact that
American security had broken down so tragically, I couldn't respond
at first. My wife and son were also in the air on separate flights,
one to Los Angeles, one to San Diego. My body went absolutely rigid
with fear. All I could think about was their safety, and it took
several hours before I found out that their flights had been diverted
and both were safe.

Strangely, when the good news came, my body still felt that it had
been hit by a truck. Of its own accord it seemed to feel a far
greater trauma that reached out to the thousands who would not
survive and the tens of thousands who would survive only to live
through months and years of hell.

And I asked myself, Why didn't I feel this way last week? Why didn't
my body go stiff during the bombing of Iraq or Bosnia? Around the
world my horror and worry are experienced every day. Mothers weep
over horrendous loss, civilians are bombed mercilessly, refugees are
ripped from any sense of home or homeland. Why did I not feel their
anguish enough to call a halt to it?

As we hear the calls for tightened American security and a fierce
military response to terrorism, it is obvious that none of us has any
answers. However, we feel compelled to ask some questions.

Everything has a cause, so we have to ask, What was the root cause of
this evil? We must find out not superficially but at the deepest
level. There is no doubt that such evil is alive all around the world
and is even celebrated. Does this evil grow from the suffering and
anguish felt by people we don't know and therefore ignore? Have they
lived in this condition for a long time?

One assumes that whoever did this attack feels implacable hatred for
America. Why were we selected to be the focus of suffering around the
world?

All this hatred and anguish seems to have religion at its basis.
Isn't something terribly wrong when jihads and wars develop in the
name of God?

Isn't God invoked with hatred in Ireland, Sri Lanka, India,
Pakistan, Israel, Palestine, and even among the intolerant sects of
America?

Can any military response make the slightest difference in the
underlying cause? Is there not a deep wound at the heart of humanity?

If there is a deep wound, doesn't it affect everyone?

When generations of suffering respond with bombs, suicidal attacks,
and biological warfare, who first developed these weapons? Who sells
them?

Who gave birth to the satanic technologies now being turned against
us?

If all of us are wounded, will revenge work?

Will punishment in any form toward anyone solve the wound or
aggravate it?

Will an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and limb for a limb,
leave us all blind, toothless and crippled?

Tribal warfare has been going on for two thousand years and has now
been magnified globally. Can tribal warfare be brought to an end? Is
patriotism and nationalism even relevant anymore, or is this another
form of tribalism?

What are you and I as persons going to do about what is happening? Can
we afford to let the deeper wound fester any longer?

Everyone is calling this an attack on America, but is it not a rift in
our collective soul? Isn't this an attack on civilization from
without that is also from within?

When we have secured our safety once more and cared for the wounded,
after the period of shock and mourning is over, it will be time for
soul searching. I only hope that these questions are confronted with
the deepest spiritual intent. None of us will feel safe again behind
the shield of military might and stockpiled arsenals. There can be no
safety until the root cause is faced.

In this moment of shock I don't think anyone of us has the answers.
It is imperative that we pray and offer solace and help to each
other. But if you and I are having a single thought of violence or
hatred against anyone in the world at this moment, we are contributing
to the wounding of the world.

Love,

Deepak