MEANINGLESS WORDS?
In our daily dealings, we are surrounded by colloquial
religious and cultural language that, for the majority of people on both sides
of the conversation, is meaningless. Phrases like “Oh my God,” “It’s God’s
plan,” “May God bless you,” “May God repay you,” “Peace be upon you,” “Peace,” and
many, many other idioms, expressions, and slang like these are continuously
thrown into our conversations for all types of reasons. My question to you is: Is
this language colloquial language, the result of religion spreading into our
normal lives, or both?
It seems that there is no activity in our daily personal,
and sometimes even professional, life where we are not faced with some of these
expressions. They are prevalent in some people’s commonly used language and, definitely,
in some cultures. These expressions are just part of their everyday jargon and
are used mainly to express surprise, shock, alarm, anger, dismay, annoyance,
disbelief, frustration, and/or desperation. They are also used to express gratitude,
love, and/or appreciation; to explain something that they cannot explain by
themselves; or for many other reasons.
For a few, the ones committed fully to the spiritual or religious
path, using this type of language may be fine because, at least, they tend to mean
what they say, especially when it comes to God or a supreme being. Even in this
case, these expressions should not be misused. For the rest of the people, the
ones who are not religious or spiritual or see religion and spirituality only as
a part of their lives but not their lives completely, using these expressions
does not really reflect any belief, experience, or sentiment, and, therefore,
are meaningless in most cases.
The fact is that we have been using God and God’s name throughout
history for many reasons. In addition to being at the center of many of the
world’s religions, we have been using God primarily to explain what we cannot
at the time, to justify certain actions, to act in a certain way, to express
emotions and feelings, and for many other reasons. But in today’s world, with
the exception of the fully committed spiritual or religious people, most
everyone else uses these expressions as colloquial language or as a way to
justify themselves, their actions, or what’s happening.
Even if the sender means what he/she is saying, for most
people at the other end of the conversation, the receivers, these expressions
definitely do not mean anything in most cases. In fact, they can be annoying
and send a message about the sender him/herself instead of the message that the
sender was truly trying to convey. Have we really become so insignificant
that even our own doing or saying is not meaningful enough to the point that we
have to invoke a superior being to reinforce what we are saying or doing?
Let’s go through some examples to make a point such as when
someone does something for us. Isn’t it enough to say “thank you,” “thank you
so much,” “thank you from the bottom of my heart,” “it is greatly appreciated,”
or something meaningful of this nature? Expressing a deep emotion of gratitude
is better than invoking some religious or cultural idiom, expression, or slang to
accomplish the same. In fact, I strongly believe that the personal expression
of emotion is much stronger than the latter. There is nothing more powerful
than being you, being vulnerable, being different...really meaning what you say
or do.
What about when someone says, “It’s in God’s plan.” Have you
noticed that this expression is used mostly to justify failure, tardiness,
negligence, lack of caring, sickness, death, etc.? I don’t think I have ever heard
this expression used when people are healthy, when they are successful, when
they are on time, when they care, etc. Simply, it is mostly used when something
is not working out, is out of control, has gone wrong, or cannot be explained.
When it is perceived to be under our control, God’s plan does not seem to count
in these people’s mind, or at least, language.
Now what about when someone says, “Peace” or “Peace be with or upon you.” Some
of these expressions are used in cultures and countries that have had a long
history of violence and war. What is interesting in this case is that countries
with this type of history see the opposition as enemies, are always preparing
for more conflict, and their leaders are usually not talking about peace, reconciliation,
and/or diplomacy. To the contrary, they are always talking about their enemies,
about getting rid of them, about the imminence of conflict. Violence and
conflict are at the center of their history and their identities, which are
used to subjugate their subjects, to create fear, to make people identify with
their cause, and to use them in their campaigns and agendas.
So, yes, these expressions are infiltrations of religious
and/or cultural expressions into our everyday language and life. Yes, they are
used to try to mean something more profound, but in reality, they send a very
different message than the one intended because they take away the attention
from the message and place it on the sender and the meaninglessness of his/her
words. And, yes, somehow culture and education have robbed us from our
significance and value and the only way to do so is by invoking something
superior than us even if we do not mean it at all.
Let me to remind you that what you think, say, and do can
make a difference, and, in some cases, a huge difference. So, stop being so
folkloric; stop just believing, acting and saying what your parents, educators
and culture have ingrained in you; and stop drinking the Kool-Aid. We are not
sponges that absorb everything given to us. To the contrary, we must have a
very thick filter that rejects everything that is not in our experience. To do
so, we must question everything in our lives, reject everything that is not in
our experience and start dancing to our own rhythm. You are more than
sufficient and very valuable. In fact, you are divine in nature. So, start
acting accordingly.
If you
think, speak and act sincerely, your words and actions can be very meaningful
and have a long reaching significance in the lives of others regardless of how
small or large they are. Your true nature is perfection and divinity, so NEVER
allow the clouds of culture and folklore to cover the unique sunray that you
are, the light you genuinely are. If you are truthful, if you are vulnerable,
if you are conscious and mean what you say and do, then you are the sun on a
rainy day, a light in the darkness, a shoulder for the despaired, and a hand for
the needy. Never settle for anything less! Just find your own light and use it to
brighten your life and the lives of all others around you, of humanity. And to
do so, your thoughts and words MUST match your intent and actions; otherwise,
they are simply meaningless!
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Author: Maurice Correa
Website: pathtoone.com
Blog: p2oblog.blogspot.com
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