World in turmoil

Reading the newspaper these days can be quite overwhelming. Some days I hear myself sighing while turning every other page.

Raging forest fires, floods and landslides, poor harvest and extreme weather brought about by global warming sets my mind thinking about eventual apocalypse. The Syrian crisis and the plight of  refugees and illegal immigrants can be heart wrenching. Polarization in more and more aspects; political, religion, gender, racial, culture, class and increasingly inter-generation makes you feel that  everywhere one half of the people finds it impossible to comprehend and tolerate the other half. Statistics about mental illnesses on the rise especially among young people and prevalence of substance abuse challenges the definition of progress. The increasing number of animals facing extinction questions the rights the human specie has over others.

Of course there are news that makes me laugh like the cartoon on Trump's impeachment and reports on his brash dramatic rhetoric. A snigger or 2 lets out when I sense the bias and lack of objectivity in our local press. At most these news just draw light hearted cynicism. The truth is it is rare to find news that makes you feel happy or hopeful other than perhaps medical breakthroughs, for even AI and new innovations may not really promise a better life and may exacerbate greater social inequality. To top it all we must now decipher which is fake and true news.

In short reading the news makes you feel as if the world is in turmoil.

Currently I am watching a historical drama 楚汉传奇 about the final years of the Qin dynasty in 200BC China. The TV serial is very detailed in bringing out the calamity and tribulation faced by people in that era. The English subtitles repeatedly used the phrase "country in turmoil" as described by the characters of the show.

Such then is the world from time in memorial. For generations during certain time pockets people have felt as if the world is in turmoil. Our era is certainly no exception. If for generations people have lived through them so will we. The important thing is to maintain an internal balance in observing the turmoil. 于诸 境上，心不染