| In search of a new Malay mind |  |  |  |
| Posted by admin | |
| Tuesday, 07 October 2008 10:00 | |
| How do we create this new Malay mind – out of the ruins of a dying ultra-nationalist Malay ideology no longer in sync with the principles and progress of neuroscience in the age of deconstructionism brought about by high-speed Internet access and nano-technology? Azly Rahman In an age wherein the neuroscientist and bio-semioticians talk about "brain gain", "the global mind", "brain power industries", and "the need for renaissance thinking" must the Malays emulate the thinking of the Arabs, the Jews, the Chinese, the Japanese, the European, the French, or the American? Or should they go back to the drawing board of conjuring what is good, progressive, rationalistic, and ethical from all these "peoples" and turn this new model of the "Malay mind" so that it will become a powerful synthesis of outlooks that will help the Malays evolve gracefully for a thousand years to come? How might this model be fluid enough to help the Malays work together with other ethnic groups in Malaysia in a peaceful and collaborative manner so that the wealth of this nation can be shared equitably? The Malays must not continue to be known as a people whose only tool of social change is the keris and amuck. They have never wanted to be known as such a people.The Malay mind has more exciting, stimulating, and positive neurons that are eager to developed and to be made into neural connections that would make the Malays become known as a nation of philosopher-rulers rather than the "hulubalang class of gung-ho soldiers of fortune" proud to be "yes men and women" and always ready to follow orders however questionable and unethical they are. The Malays have been for centuries colonised by the mental model created out of the feudal mode of production; a mode that continues to perfect itself from the age of the Malay rulers to this age of neo-feudalism characterised by the cybernetic frame of consciousness. In all the stages of growth, the interplay between culture and technology has shaped the kind of thinking that either enables or disables the creativity of the Malays. Top down reform and "mental revolutions" versus "bottom up" grassroots movement in the revolution of consciousness has characterised the push and pull factor and the thesis/anti-thesis character of the evolution of the Malay mind. Much of the evolution has been dictated by the political-economic elites over successive generations; the evolution facilitated by institutions of power relations that shaped ideology and inscriptions of the Malay psyche. Mental model The Malays need to find a mental model of how they should think and be able to ride the wave of globalisation. They must become the subject of this new mental revolution and not merely become objects of consciousness to be manipulated and indoctrinated by those who own the means to control others. They must evolve gracefully and synthesise the elements of "best practices" in formulating a worldview that is going to take them to newer heights. Even Arjuna, an embodiment of the Kshatriya gets to ask questions to Krishna on the battlefield of Kuruksetra. The dialogue on whether to go to battle against one's family members in the name of dharma or higher goals attest to the need even for the warrior or "hulubalang" to think hard on the issues of ethics and pragmatics in the face of possible destruction. There is a need for a pragmatic-philosopher class to be created among the Malays. The class can be created out of a bricolage of multiculturalist thinking. The Malays need to create the "gentleman class" of thinkers able to not only become guardians of culture and deconstructionists of their worldview as well. They need to create radical, world-wise multiculturalists amongst their best and brightest; a class that is less ultra-nationalistic and parochial but more cosmopolitan and universalistic and socialistic in outlook. In Confucionist thought, the scholars or the "jen" or the gentlemen class sits at the pedestal of Chinese society. The Malays can learn from the need to train the mind in the rigours of the Classics as in The Analects or the Taoist text of I Ching and to reflect upon the fate of society and on good ethical governace. Again, there is no need to create a "hulubalang" class. The ethos of "Hang Tuah" is no longer suitable to be embodied by the Malays nor the "spirit of Hang Tuah" to be further refined to be used as a mental construction of the neo-feudalistic Malay mind. How do we create this new Malay mind – out of the ruins of a dying ultra-nationalist Malay ideology no longer in sync with the principles and progress of neuroscience in the age of deconstructionism brought about by high-speed Internet access and nano-technology? We need to go back to the drawing board or possibly rewrite the history of the Malays. But first, we must banish our Official Historians. _______________________________________________ I APPEAL TO THE MALAYSIAN GOVERNMENT TO RELEASE RAJA PETRA KAMARUDIN IMMEDIATELY AND UNCONDITIONALLY AND RELEASE ALL THE ISA DETAINEES AS WELL AND CONSEQUENTLY REPEAL THE ISA AND ALL OTHER INTOLERABLE ACTS REPLACE THE ISA with the INTELLECTUAL SUSTAINABILITY ACT INSTEAD ______________________________________________ PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION ---> HERE <---
Comments (17)  ... written by ahmadneil, October 07, 2008 10:19:04 Zaid Ibrahim is fully qualified to be the first candidate for a new malay mind. report abuse disagree 2 agree 79 ... written by cheekhiaw, October 07, 2008 10:29:18 Recover it from those thieves, liars and murderers and the Malay mind will do just fine... xxx report abuse disagree 1 agree 9 ... written by Rainbowseahorse, October 07, 2008 10:41:10 I see that the writer of the article highlighted in "Fellow Malaysians, this is what we are up against, hired writers/apologist for a discredited regime" has a point. I went through the "Petition" above (after signing it, of course) and see many signatories with dubious names. Is this really a reflection of bloggers in this blog? Which is all mouth and no guts hiding behind the faceless and nameless blogsphere spewing out curses and names calling. report abuse disagree 2 agree 6 ... written by ahmadneil, October 07, 2008 10:49:21 ahmadneil have found another new malay mind and that's RPK. report abuse disagree 1 agree 45 ... written by ahmadneil, October 07, 2008 12:24:52 And another one with new malay mind is Anwar Ibrahim. report abuse disagree 1 agree 23 ... written by SocratesI, October 07, 2008 12:26:15 My answer to Rainbowseahorse on MT readers:- Raja Petra Kamarudin A FEARLESS PATRIOT IN OUR MIDST After reading at length Haris Ibrahim’s take on whether we, the readers & commentators of Malaysia Today, have misrepresented ourselves to our beloved RPK, and having done much soul searching, my conclusion is spelt out below. Raja Petra Kamarudin being Raja Petra Kamarudin would have continued with his crusade against Injustice, Inequality, Corruption, Abuse of Power, and Cover-Ups by the Powers-that-be, and his fight for Free Speech, Civil Rights, the Poor, the Down-Trodden, and those too weak to defend themselves, whether or not anyone encouraged or “egged” him on or not. That is the power of FAITH of a True Muslim who holds fast to his Islamic Principles, and a MAN who fears nothing, and answers to no one, but God. That describes Pete’s character in a nutshell pretty succinctly. He speaks out against the people in power fearlessly, knowing full well these unprincipled beasts dressed in human clothing would retaliate using all the arsenal at their disposal, including the Devil’s own invention, the Internal Security Act, which has no place in a Democratic country and in Civil Society, as it gives Dictatorial Power to these unprincipled animals to Abuse and incarcerate without trial, Upright and Outstanding Citizens like Raja Petra Kamaruddin who poses no security threat to anyone, let alone the country. This travesty of Justice as used by Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar and his Ministry’s minions, the Police Special Branch, called the ISA, must be repealed IMMEDIATELY and ALL detainees under the ISA should be either freed, or charged in court under due legal process. No one in a democratic country like what Malaysia professes to be, should be subjected to abuse under the ISA where any citizen can be detained without charges just by the police, or some dictatorial Minister or even Prime Minister, at their mercy. This is a blatant travesty of Justice. Enough digression on the ISA issue. This is about our FOLK HERO, Raja Petra, after all. It is people like Pete, who is the conscience of Malaysia and Malaysian society, who keep our faith in humanity intact. No doubt, he must have experienced some disappointment at not achieving the number of petitioners for both the Agong’s petition and the Free RPK and other ISA detainees’ petition, but that would not have stopped him in his Noble Quest of walking the straight and narrow path of TRUTH, and the expression of it. In Pakistan, the people would have come out in droves, on the streets, to defend their democratic rights to freedom and an independent Judiciary, but these are people who dared to secede from a country based on their religious beliefs, and form their own country. Not so Malaysians who are mainly immigrants from Indonesia, China, and India, who either ran away from hardship at home, or from despotic governments. Malaysians are not built the same way as Pakistanis or Bangladeshis, Filipinos, Thais, or others who have stayed and fought for their rights. These Malaysians are peace-loving middle class types who just want to make a decent enough living for their families and don’t like suffering any type of hardships. Recently, this has been threatened by the massive corruption that is going on in Malaysia and the huge increase in the cost of living. Suddenly, their middle-class world came crashing down like a house of cards, and that is when the Tsunami of March 8th 2008 happened, and the Permatang Pauh by-election underlined the feelings of the common Malaysian. Voting anonymously and having no fear of direct repercussions emboldens even cowards to come forward and be counted, literally, and this was reflected in the two polls, at the GE and at the PP by-election. report abuse disagree 0 agree 22 ... written by SocratesI, October 07, 2008 12:27:02 Cont'd But to get these same people to come out with their names and IC numbers, or even their names and email addresses, to back these most worthy petitions was probably too much to expect. These same people would bypass Govt. blocks to read Malaysia Today, and to comment under pseudonyms, but would not jeopardize their “rice bowl” of their families by risking being identified by the authorities and the government of the day, and put out to pasture prematurely. These same people who vociferously support Raja Petra and Malaysia Today cannot be trusted upon to stand forth and be counted when the chips are down. As statistics show, only 39,000 or so have the guts to put their signatures and names where their mouths were and are, out of 1,000,000 plus Malaysia Today readers, and that is the sorry state of Malaysia and Malaysians, today ! As the Law Minister who resigned in protest over the use of the ISA on Malaysian citizens, Zaid Ibrahim pointed out at the court house on the 23rd Sept. at Pete’s transfer to Kamunting when our sorry excuse of a Home Minister signed those papers for the transfer, Malaysia sorely needs more people like Raja Petra, who dare to speak up and speak out. However, these same people who have done nothing to jeopardize their rice bowls, will be more than willing to be heard and make their presence felt at the next GE. They just have no stomachs for suffering or even the possibility of suffering for themselves and their families, by disclosing their identities and standing proudly for what they secretly believe in, in petitions, or demonstrations. We have to live with this Malaysian psyche, like it or not, though the younger generation has shown much more guts, and become more vocal in Malaysian society. The future looks much brighter with the enlightened youth of today, and much of the thanks have to go to Raja Petra, and people like him, who have stood Unwaveringly for their principles and the TRUTH, to enlighten all Malaysians and foreigners to what is actually happening in Malaysia. Raja Petra is a True Son of Malaysia and a Malaysian Patriot that all Malaysians can be proud of, whether or not they agree with his views. He stands for what he believes in, and is willing to go to jail under the Draconian ISA for what he stands for. A Towering Malaysian for our younger generation to emulate, and aye, even for the older generation, too, and especially those who only find their guts when the elections come round. If I were part of Raja Petra’s family, I would hold my head up HIGH and be the proudest person in the world to have a patriarch like Raja Petra, and to have the opportunity to support him through all his challenges. We are in a way Raja Petra’s extended family and I would ask that we do what we can to help free Raja Petra from the clutches of the Devil, the ISA, by proactively signing the petition to free him. Throw your caution to the winds and sign. Whatever your religion, do you believe that we are here on Earth just to live for four score years and die for nothing?? Let us do something that is Right and Good, so that at the end of our four score years on Earth, we have something to show our Maker. Here is the petition address http://www.petitiononline.com/...ition.html Just SIGN IT ! Only your email address is needed. Go and register a new one for this if you must, but sign it, and get your family members to sign it as well as your friends. For the sake of our Patriot & Towering Malaysian, Raja Petra Kamaruddin, let him be FREE and walk in our midst once more. report abuse disagree 0 agree 26 ... written by SocratesI, October 07, 2008 12:35:31 A new Malay mind or a new Malay outlook, Dr. Azly ?? Although the former sounds more provoking, it is essentially the latter that we are talking about. It is time for the Malay outlook to go beyond communal politics and communal issues and encompass a more "worldview" view of issues and things that should be seen in a new light. Ahmadneil is correct to state 2 outstanding individuals who have left others, Malays, and non-Malays, floundering to catch up, and I would include Ahmadneil as one of the Enlightened new Malay minds too. Certainly, I would like to re-invent myself and stay relevant in this day and age, and it would be only in my interest to keep reviewing and learning from all perpectives. Perhaps ALL of us need to keep looking at things and issues with an expanded mind. Philosophy, religion, and science is headed for convergence soon with the latest Large Hadron Collider, and more to follow, and we should open our minds in search of TRUE knowledge, in this day and age. report abuse disagree 0 agree 7 ... written by cheekhiaw, October 07, 2008 13:11:18 No such thing as new minds or old minds. The problem is many Malaysians allowed their minds to be held ransom by a bunch of thieves, liars and murderers... xxx report abuse disagree 1 agree 6 ... written by asguard, October 07, 2008 14:25:14 UMNO makes the malays looks stupid... and hope there will more changes to come... if in order to succeed.. report abuse disagree 0 agree 8 ... written by densemy, October 07, 2008 15:09:46 Many delusions survive and prosper in the Malaysia of today. The worst of them is that Malaysians have a mind that they can use to think for themselves Simply put, they dont, so how can they possibly Search for a New Mind The Malays willingly sacrifice the raising of their children to a system which abhors the thinking mind. Muslims will teach them to learn by rote chapter after chapter of outdated nonsense, they are not allowed to question anything unless its in the presence of the 'already indoctrinated'. And Muslims use fear at every opportunity to reinforce their message. The concept of sensitive issues( thou shall not question...) is so entrenched in your society thats its set in concrete in your Constitution. Muslims regard Morals as a subject you learn at school Chinese and Indians with their obsession with discipline and respect follow a similar path using different techniques. Over protection, total obedience to total control are the tools of their domination The end result... non thinking children unable to think logically and analytically, children who lack conviction, creativity, courage and adventurousness. Children who are afraid to have opinions of their own let alone being able to voice those opinions Even for those children sent to study overseas its too late ... the die is already cast. The best Malaysia will ever produce are clever technocrats, the worst they will produce are mediocre egos Someone once said that conservative societies remain conservative because they lack the courage to be look to the future. Never was a truer word spoken about Malaysia For the sake of Malaysia, Step back and take a long hard look at yourselves report abuse disagree 3 agree 12 ... written by Rainbowseahorse, October 07, 2008 15:45:49 Once again....Whooooh Socratesl, that’s almost exactly what was in my mind! Well done bro! Now, if they come for you & I and we find ourselves in the same place as bro Pete, well, at least we have plenty to discuss, and argue of course, to while away the time. Yes, it saddens and angers me that many of our fellow bloggers are AFRAID to sign the petition. This sad fact has been picked up and capitalized upon by our foes. Come on fellow Malaysians, please make that little effort and sign the petition. Can’t you make that small gesture to show that you have an inner fire within you which is desirous of better Malaysia? report abuse disagree 1 agree 4 ... written by greenarrow, October 07, 2008 16:55:57 BARISAN NASIONAL is inviting Bigger Defeat in next General Election 2013 report abuse disagree 0 agree 2 ... written by cheemengwong, October 07, 2008 19:44:59 The malays already have a perfect mind actually! The problem lies in the nurturing of that mind. I remembered a very popular malay saying... "melentur buluh biar dari rebungnya" meaning shaping a bamboo from the shoot. The government of the day and past 50 years is to be blamed for this lacklustre minds of the malays. They told them that they are a special class with special privileges. Don't need to study hard but yet can obtain a 100 % scholarship overseas with allowances thrown in. Businessmen are given permits, licenses, soft loans, incubators etc. etc.. and the list is endless. House buyers are given endlots and hefty discount of 15 %. Low cost flats are handed out literally free. All this breeds incompetence, weak spined, tidak apa attitude, selfishness at the expense of other race, intolerance and not willing to share. Who do we blame? Malays? I think we should blame the goverment. report abuse disagree 1 agree 7 ... written by azlanm03, October 07, 2008 19:50:15 Dear Dr Azly Rahman, Your comment of Malay Mind sheds lights to me to look back to the history of Malays since the time say , our civilisation started with Kesultanan Melayu Melaka. In the feudal age, the royalties have what we said 'Daulat' (I think the meaning in Arab Daulah means establishment, please clarify me?). The Malays hold steadfast to this shouting Daulat Tuanku as word of motivation for being the protector of the Country. I think the British knew this especially and make full manipulation out of this until the British runs high and dry exhausted from the World War I and II. Post WWII, where Malays noblemen took over the controls over the royalties via now we know as UMNO (Tunku Abdul Rahman, Onn Jaafar, Tun Razak and so and so) the Malays thus turns to UMNO for what they perceived as protector of Malay at that time. The struggles were pure, where it has more populist reach among the Malay. Nevertheless, we thank Tunku for being pragmatic and noble and thus the Alliance was formed. At that time the Malay still see the Chinese and the Indians as immigrants. And so, the Malays have to thank the earlier immigrants for assisting the Malays in building the nation. For, if they (the immigrants) were politically forced to return, it would be only left to Malays and the indigenous people of Malaya to build the country on its own.. Whether Malays succeed or not.. history will never tells. The famous struggles from the Malays are that fighting Colonial British from the likes of Tok Janggut, Mat Kilau, Dato’ Naning, Ngah Ibrahim (Perak) which involve communal struggles but not a populist struggles often in skirmishes. Later we have like Burhanuddin Helmi, Pak Sako, Pak Samad Ismail (later imprisoned by the British ISA law, just like Raja Petra nowadays, how ironic). It did arouse Malay patriotism but then the Malays chose to sided the moderate UMNO and the people mentioned above are deemed radicals. (probably the use of propaganda, perhaps) Basically, I would find that the Malays seldom or reluctant to fight the establishment out and out as like other people’s struggles across the globe such as the Muhammad Rasullullah SAW struggles to establish Medina, Independence War (USA), the Celts (immortalized in Braveheart), and so and so… Of countless time reading History of Malays, I must have made my conclusion that the Malay mind, in general, they always prefer the status quo regardless of the wrongdoing of the establishment and reluctant to take radical views on the ruling establishment. Note: I would like somebody from the academicians to research on the mind, biography and contemporaries of Panglima Awang @ Enrique the Black, Personal Assistant to Ferdinand Magelland.. the first man to circumnavigate the Globe via the South Westerly Route in circa 1540s. I think to understand what’s in the mind of him during the challenging period together with Magellan will surely sheds some light of one of the achievers in the history of the world but unequal to Magellan’s credit. report abuse disagree 0 agree 2 ... written by ssathia, October 07, 2008 23:05:32 The question is flawed. Is there such a thing as a Malay mind or Chinese mind or European mind? When are people going to think without racial compartments? In search of thinkers.... report abuse disagree 5 agree 5 ... written by merlin2001, October 10, 2008 14:26:13 Dear Dr. Azly Rahman, You have written most intelligently in many of your articles. My I ask please " Kindly define who is a Malay to day ". Look at umno the outfit is contaminated with Malay celup and these are the goons who concoct the most damages to our nation. Be they black, yellow or white celup most do not lose anything as they have accumulated enough to run. Won't the true Malays worry about the day when these celup finish with all the forests they will then go at the Malay reserve land. As it stands by marriage they already own large parcels of Malay reserve. Is it not time to come out with a clear redefinition of who is a true Malay? I think you can guess what I am aiming at. Thank you. report abuse disagree 0 agree 3 Write comment This content has been locked. You can no longer post any comment. You must be logged in to a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet. |
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