Moral Traditions Within An Individual Context

   Let us start off by saying that not everyone is moral or ethical.  There are plenty of immoral, unethical and unscrupulous characters out there--enough to go around.  This is why I stressed, in the previous article, to always quiz anyone you mob around with.  You must know the policies of everyone around you.  Good or bad (as with common sense) is relative to the upbringing and the culture(s) which produced it.  Those of us who are ego centered, seldom use words like "our people" or "community"--because their talk is all about themselves--yet their very existence relies on the benevolence, mercy, and humanity of others.  How ironic and tragic!  For those who have ideas to see and ears to hear...  These group of articles on culture are about the things that will help us to unify--like education, awareness, faith in ourselves, and culture.  Without any unity, there is no community.  Without cultural contributions by the members of our society, our growth as a people will be greatly arrested.  It is very important for us to learn the things discussed here, for these things can make us feel good about our ancestors, our people and ourselves--which in turn will encourage and enthuse... which secures our heart in the struggle because it is enthusiasm which gives us the wherewithal to handle the heavy load.  This particular article is about the type of behavior that promotes unity: morals and morality. 

   Morality is a system of virtues, which are values and standards that a person lives by.  Values are qualities that a person holds sacred.  Not only are values qualities that are considered worthwhile or desirable, but they represent the standard by which you measure everything else. . .  We conduct ourselves according to our morals, which is another word for being in accord with our values.  Values also represent the things you want-- as in being worth something to you.  This being so, morality are standards, and standards are principles--laws that revolve around love, protecting, and upholding the things you care for--simply because they are so important to me and you.  Many consider morals, values, and standards as sacred or things which are cherished.  For once again, to quote "Smokey" William Robinson, "If you can want, you can need-- if you can need you can care.  If you can care-- you can love [because the things you do, you do in behalf of that concern]."

    Morality is so important to one's everyday existence, because the  morale of a person is greatly compromised whenever enough of those sacred values are not upheld.  By morale, I mean the confidence and self esteem of a person which is associated with the execution of such ideas.  Even one's willingness to perform tasks is drastically effected, when the Western world before our folks, deny these values their proper outlet.  That is, because the things one cares about, has all been diminished in importance by American and Western society--which in turn, solicits sadness from each Black person because of the lost of integrity.  There are some who take kindness for weakness--which I say is just bad policy:  In life, you know you're going to need somebody, so why not make good on that investment.  After all, they invested in you--they believed in you, and now you are teaching them that you weren't worth it.  Once you burn him/her--that's it for the investment:  In this world, cooperation helps us get through--but who would invest in someone who's ways and actions show the compassionate one, that he/she who speaks bleeds worthlessness?  Good news travel fast--but bad news travels ten times faster (so I've seen).  Burning hope and salvation, is like cutting off your nose to spite your face.  Taking advantage of a kind person, is like burning your bridges while you're still constructing them. . .

  Morals (on a simplistic level) represent your basic sense of right and wrong. And of the ones who posses them, morals are the obligatory attempt to do things in accord with such values.  There is, however, one thing wrong with this premise: Right and wrong are not basic, or commonly understood.  As a matter of fact, most people struggle with proper judgment  of things everyday.  The basic sense of right and wrong are greatly effected by the environment we grew up in.  For example, if your father was a "John" and your mother was a prostitute, your sense of right and wrong concerning sexuality is bound to be a little dysfunctional...  After all, that's mostly what you saw and heard.  Society itself, imposes its standards of right and wrong upon it's "citizens" through laws and ordinances (and the corrupt elements it produces)--such as, indecent exposure, laws against drinking alcoholic beverages out on the street (without concealment)--as well as lewd behavior.  Not to mention,  your own personal assessment which rises out of what you see and hear within the course of a lifetime, which also plays a part as well--trying to make sense out of the other points of view within the society you live in, concerning right and wrong.  Many of our adult psychological issues and/or conflicts can be directly linked back to our parental guidance, and the standards of our childhood social environment, versus our sense of our own politics/policies and/or feelings.

  On a higher level, morals are developed from a sense of how your own acts impact on others, based upon previous acts and experiences or the wisdom thereof passed on by family or loved ones.  Once the love is there, it is each member's personal obligation to maintain group harmony within their society--and this goes for those who are benefitting from that love, whether they see themselves as a member or not: Having morals plays a major part in maintaining a peaceful environment.  This is the major reason why morality is one of the mentioned categories in being civilized or as a part of civilization.  When one looks at the word "Civilization," you can see the root word "civil."  Civil is a word associated with being considerate of others.  This implies a community, in which you want to remain a member of.  Consideration means that one ponders about how your acts are affecting others...  Civilized behavior means behaving in a polite or reasonable manner--as opposed to wild, unruly and savage.  Sort of a "Do unto others, as you would have done unto you," type of thing.  In the broader sense, civil has to do with people and governmental office, as opposed to military or religion.  This is because military and religion are specialized units or selective services within a society.  Civilized behavior addresses the world as a whole.  Civilized behavior utilizes diplomacy and tact.  This includes etiquette, ethics, and social graces.  Civilization is derived from the Latin root word "civils."   From that word, comes the word "civis" or citizen.  This word has its Proto-Indo-European relationship to key words like "home, family, beloved and love."  So says the Internet Wiktionary...

    This is indicative of what I said in earlier articles:  The root of culture and civilization starts with a relationship between man, woman, and child within a society.  Morality then, is viewed as respect for each other and obedience to the rules of right conduct (that is stuff one finds in loving relationships). That is, behavior intended to produce better social harmony.  If we are going to stay together as a group--cooperate and function in harmony with each other--we are going to have to be conscious of how we treat each other:  We should know each other's politics and act in relationship to that knowledge.  Without the consideration which morals brings, the relationship, the society, or the group will disintegrate into chaos.  Morals incorporates a recognition and distinction between good and evil.

   When we were taught to pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, we were taught that America believed itself to be, "One Nation Under God" (whatever that word "under" meant)...  In that illustration, God is thought of as a force which integrates the entire country through God the Ultimate or Supreme Being (which is good).  Integration then, is the process through which things form into one whole (as in nation); to make entire things; to complete; to renew; to restore; or to make perfect.  This is the proper use of the term integration--but the integration of American society is not what the United States did to reconcile its' differences with integrating Black population into White society--as America's response to the Black population's push for Civil Rights and equality...  The meaning of Integration implies that there are two (or more) complimentary (or opposing) forces being reconciled through the action or actions reflected in the harmony that this deed of unification brings--that is, showing  proper consideration and respect for both parties.  Integration is when you can "do your thing" and  "I can do my thing," and yet we can find an equal place for both of them--a place where each being or quality is equally respected.  When integration is done properly, neither has to change too much--but both will receive what it takes to live in harmony with each other.

  This did not happen in America.  America's ruling class made some modifications to its' policies from the past up to the 50's (like Affirmative Action), but Blacks had to make far more concessions to conform to America's status quo, when it was the Blacks who were the ones who were demanding and petitioning--needless to say, the adjustments by both parties were not equal.  As Malik Al Hajj Shabazz stated repeatedly in the sixties: 'The difficulty was never approached from a human right perspective, therefore a lot of our human rights issues were never addressed (the right to be looked at and  treated as a fellow human), therefore the civil rights proposition never gave us equal respect within American society.'  The "deck" was uneven right from the start.  Whites had the economic provisions and the land basically--while our negotiation chip was the stolen, unpaid labor from which our ancestor's toil created, in conjunction with the inhumane treatment from America's  previous policies--which we were condemning, as a violation of civil and not human rights.  First of all, White America has to see us all as equal human beings, before they could negotiate permitting us into their society in a fair and just manner (no doubt after being given our monetary equivalence of forty acres and a mule).  But as we Blacks all know, that did not happen (pass the tokenism of a handful of  so-called "special N-words").  

   Even to this day, there are two separate societies implied within America, one for the majority and one for the minority-- and if you don't live amongst the majority (as in ethnic and religious communities) the disparity is very, very noticeable.  Number one on that list, is how quickly issues and difficulties get responded to within the minority and majority communities--like pot-hole repair (for example), fiber optic cable, re-paving of area streets, new department stores within the communities.  Now if I were in a relationship with you, and you had children (from a previous relationship), but I always took care of my needs first--only looking after you and your children's needs, after I took care of my own first. . .  If I addressed the collective needs afterwards: that is, after my own were satisfied and only if finances allowed; If I would buy you things like shoes, clothing, recreation or personal items only on occasion. . .   I am sure you would soon leave me, while citing me for being totally unfair!  Now travel around the U.S., and tell me what you see, in terms of ethnic, mixed, and White communities.  And if then you don't believe what I say is true, then I am willing to trade places with any Whites in the so-called "equal communities."

I guess right and wrong is in the eye of the beholder--but these folks are not beholden unto us.  Blame that on the way their European ancestors raised them.  They are gifted with a special sense of sight concerning what's right: One that cannot look upon itself with an unbias third eye.  They believe we are inferior and are supposed to be a menial class to them.  And yet, we are relying on a sense of fairness, on the part of those who don't have the same interests (like the rich senators on Capital Hill who master mind Medicare or Welfare reform).  We are still waiting for others outside of our communities to do something for us (even though you know what happened, you think the "White" or majority community should), because Blacks and other communities also have seats in the "White House."  Well, as far as the "White House Government" is concerned, there are majority and minority issues.  Black interests are classified as one of the many minority concerns...  That means, it's not that important as those of the "majority."  Now if we Blacks had a broader economic base catering to, and/or providing economic provision to several Black or ethnic areas--that type of impetus would put a different spin on things--especially within a capitalistic society where Money talks. 

  Right now, the "Alternative parties" seem to be getting much more of their rights satisfied--which I think is more of a product of the gender issue going far beyond across racial and economic lines--Alternative lifestyles are within all facets of American society:  There are some who are very affluent financially, some "middle class" (working class), some poor-- as well as amongst the majority and minority groups as well.  Gender and Alternate life-style issues within the West, can be traced back to their Teutonic and Viking roots within Europe, for example.  So indirectly, even though it is a minority issue (which means not all Americans are involved with this), it has the attention of Americans who have European roots (especially those with substantial money and influence)--whereas our interests as Blacks are an isolated issue within American society on many different levels.  The majority issue and interests within American society  is not something we can control--but working on repairing the ills that Western society placed upon us as people--is something we can. 

  In a society which is formed through the uniting of families and clans, one of the most important issues is that each of these family members get equal respect, regardless of color, creed, sex, or class.  The behavior between its members should always be civil; if that society is going to last.  Morality then, should bring respect for each and everyone, as well as, guarantee its citizens obligatory behavior to the rules of right conduct:  Attitudes as such, are the basis behind civil codes, and many parts of legislation in society; i.e. producing laws to protect societal rights and behavior intended to produce good results or social harmony between its citizens.  In other words--difficulty plus program (moral codes, etc.) equals solution.  This is how the society shows love for its' citizens and families-- by considering its' members within its' legislation and protecting their rights as one united people.  Societies of this type are bonded by this care and respect for its citizens.

  As said previously, America claims itself to be "One Nation Under God."   The lyrics of a lot of songs are running through my head right now: Such as, "Don't go and talk about my father--God is my friend; He made this world for us to live in, and gave us everything.  And all He asks of us--is that we give each other love," that's a good one by Marvin Gaye:  It's called, "God is Love."  I use this poetic context to get into the meaning of the words "moral traditions."  Civilization is part of a group of terms (civil, civic, civilized), used to describe a group of people and their overall behavior towards each other--as well as humanity in general.  Moral traditions then, within the context of civilization, are the beliefs and/or philosophies, ideologies that make this possible.  Above is a picture of a Central Asian (so-called African or Pan-Afrikan) group, pouring libation as homage or a tribute to the Supreme Being and the various agents (ancestry, kin, angels, etc.)--our central point of unification that make it possible for all of us to be where we are today.  Heavy concept!  As you well know--even though this is a tradition society depicted-- I am not an advocate of organized religion or belief over-top of the world of the known; but still science (the known) can many times be behind the basis of a lot of what is ritual: 

   I (my consciousness) was brought into the physical realm--the gender result of the DNA of my father--overlapping with the instructional codes of my mother's egg.  I am a member of a family and I am the awareness which dwells in this form.  There were two family lines which were meshed through my persons and all my siblings through my parents' genetics--which I am the conglomerate and unifying factor of.  In the lyrics "God is Love," Marvin is calling God his Father--which makes the Creator the head of the household or unifying factor.  It is God through which all things find their unity, since God made all from Self.  In this symbolism, the human family then becomes his children--whereas God represents both the love between each member, and as archetype of love itself.  This is a very good metaphor for morality, as it represents the laws of love expressed through proper conduct--because we are all related as the human family!  The word "friend" then, is the symbol of friendliness or amiability between those which were created for a meaningful purpose, the comradery between each, and the One Who Creates to express the power of Love.  This action is like it says on the back of membership cards: "I am a member in good standing! 

   It is sort of like a corporation, wherein the corporation is a created third party--which represents far more ability than its members and absorbs the liability of all who are its' members.  In this analogy, Love is the corporation, being incorporated--you must follow certain guidelines, by-laws and rules to maintain the harmony and integrity of that business.  Morals represents this connection--ethical is how you apply your degree of moral development and civilization to the business, professional, and outside world: "It becomes immoral or unethical to steal, because it damages or jeopardizes our harmony or amiability as a business, consortium, membership or trade group.  Without moral and ethical codes, the first to suffer in such societies are the elderly, the young and the women within that society.  Civilized behavior ensures their considerations.  The reason I took a more scientific philosophical approach because it is a more non-partisan and more principally applied to the subject at hand.  Beliefs do not have to be proven, but calling something knowledge does.  If someone does something questionable, you question them and they say it is part of my belief--you know that whether it is true or not has little merit since the response will usually be, "Well, that is just my belief."  But on the other hand, if you call it fact--you must substantiate it, otherwise it is not believed.  Within religion, there is religious prejudice, but the truth of knowledge and science is universal. 

NEXT: THE ARTS AND ITS IMPACT WITHIN THE INDIVIDUAL.  

  As always, thank you for your consideration of these words.

Peace, Love, and Blessings,

C. Be'erla Hai-roi Myers

Above Artwork: "The Libation"     by C. Be'erla Hai-roi Myers