South Asian Teen Identity: Non-Violent and Proud

by Varun Soni

posted March 24, 2005

South Asian teens identify with language, religion, customs, cuisine, or even Bollywood! However, there is a more profound, transformative and unifying principle that transcends the underlying cultural differences between South Asians. This is the collective consciousness of non-violence. In a world that is increasingly violent, non-violence is the only avenue that can ensure peace and prosperity for all of humanity, and South Asia has provided the blueprint.

The most famous modern apostle of non-violence was Mohandas “Mahatma” Gandhi, credited as being the father of modern India and the leader of the Indian nationalist movement against British colonial rule in India. Gandhi was a product of his cultural upbringing, and he consciously fused together many elements of different religions in order to articulate his patchwork philosophy of non-violence. Gandhi relied on the paramount Jain philosophy of ahimsa, or non-violence, as the cornerstone to his nationalist movement. He was also influenced by the Hindu philosophy of karma yoga, or right action, which he interpreted as non-violent action. He admired the Muslim tenet of zakat, the practice of charitable donations, and he lived his life by the Christian teachings in the Sermon on the Mount. Furthermore, he praised the mystical and devotional poetry of the Sikhs and Sufis, which extolled the virtues of spiritual love and divine surrender.

Gandhi’s philosophy evidences a pan-South Asian non-violent consciousness that permeates throughout South Asia’s diverse religious and cultural traditions. Non-violence is not a passive endeavor, but rather it is a proactive challenge. Non-violence is not just the absence of violence, but it is also the presence of peace. Non-violence is not only a social doctrine establishing a just society, but it is also an individual philosophy creating a just citizen. It is this non-violent consciousness that recognizes the fundamental truth of interconnectedness, where violence is not only destructive to others, but it is self-destructive as well. Because the process is as important as the result, any violent action, regardless of the outcome, is wholly destructive and becomes the very cycle of oppression and injustice it seeks to eliminate.

That is not to say that South Asia is a completely non-violent region while the United States is a completely violent country. South Asia has struggled for thousands of years with devastating violence manifest through the caste system, religious communalism, patriarchal law, and economic injustice. Conversely, the United States has a notable history of non-violent social change, epitomized by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s non-violent Civil Rights movement and represented today by the national peace movement against the invasion and occupation of Iraq.
Nevertheless, today the United States is perhaps the most violent nation on the planet. It has the highest homicide, prison incarceration, and death penalty rates in the industrialized world. Its military possesses more WMDs and its citizens possess more firearms than any other country. Gang warfare is decimating urban America while white militia groups dominate rural America. American state sponsored wars continue to kill not only citizens of other countries, but also American citizens caught in the converging crossfire of the War on Crime, the War on Drugs, and the War on Terror.

In this context, South Asian-American teenagers are uniquely situated to challenge institutionalized violence in American society by applying non-violent thought and action in their daily lives and interactions. South Asian-American teenagers can plant the seeds of a new non-violent consciousness in American soil and begin to combat the enveloping darkness and despair with light and life. For in this age of ongoing outsourcing, South Asian-American teenagers can remind the world that non-violence remains South Asia’s greatest export.

Varun Soni is an attorney residing in Los Angeles. He currently teaches in the Law and Society Program at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Photo courtesy of Varun Soni.