I
remember that Tuesday quite well, not only because it changed the course of
history, but because it altered my own trajectory in a very literal way. En
route from Chicago to Hartford to visit a recently-relocated,
soon-to-be-ex-girlfriend, I landed in Detroit for my connecting flight, only to
be notified that the second leg of my journey had been amputated by terrorists.
That was the new buzzword, intoned mantra-like by the talking heads on the TV
monitors around which many a confounded traveler had gathered, staring in dumb
disbelief as the planes slammed into the towers, again and again. Everyone else
was talking nervously on their cell phones, trying to arrange a way to get back
home, or else forge ahead, overland, to their original destination.
In
any case, there would be no returning to business as usual. As the twin towers
and Pentagon walls crumbled, so too did America's illusions of safety,
security, and separateness. These acts of violence ("attacks," as
they are officially called, amidst much controversy and confusion) were the
deadliest ever on US continental soil, and they introduced an unfamiliar sense
of vulnerability and uncertainty to the relatively insulated American psyche.
To many folks, the world suddenly seemed larger and more mysterious, populated
perhaps by shadowy and sinister enemies but also filled with the prayers,
support, and shared anguish of millions of allies across the globe. Beneath the
grief, or perhaps because of its uniting influence, there arose a brief,
hopeful sense of national and international kinship in the days after the
tragedy.
Due in part to the overbearing response of the Bush administration, who
immediately began speaking in Manichean absolutes of good vs.
evil, the national mood quickly changed into one of fear and
indignation. America's pride had been damaged, and the country needed
to reassert
its global superiority in a dramatic display of aggression. It would
not rely on international courts of law, nor would it politely petition
the world community for assistance. Instead its president would demand
allegiance to the "war on terror" by threatening, "You're either with
us or against us." Least of all would America seek to understand the
root
causes of terrorism or take seriously the complaints put forth by Bin
Laden in the videotapes that surfaced after 9-11. All of these
responses would have required a kind of humility
and introspection with which America, the world's strongest ego
structure, is largely unfamiliar.
Colors and Shadows
Indeed
the earth-shaking events of nine years ago can best be understood, I believe,
by thinking of the US in terms of its unique psychological profile, and by
distilling the tri-colored essence of the American mindset. Some might point to
"life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" as the three beacons
that have guided our nation from its inception, and these unalienable rights
would hardly be a bad place to start (or end, for that matter). But one the big
lessons of 9-11 is that bright lights cast dark shadows (I speak not of
clandestine groups intent on gaining and/or maintaining power, as this topic
has been explored elsewhere in detail. My interest and emphasis lie with
America's collective psyche and its psychological shadow, which likewise needs to
be confronted if healing is to occur).
If
we take a moment to peer behind the veil of Life, we see its grim
counterpart
in the deadliest arsenal of all time, fed by a national military budget
nearly
as large as that of all other countries combined. Of course, US
weaponry is
used less for "defense" than for offensively procuring the so-called
resources needed to support the American way of life, which is centered
largely
around consumption. This conspicuous activity has become virtually
synonymous
with the Pursuit of Happiness, however noble the intention of Thomas
Jefferson
in using this enigmatic phrase. Its object remains elusive, as
indicated by
America's record rates of violent crime and incarceration, rampant use
and
abuse of prescription drugs and painkillers, widespread heart disease
and other stress-related illnesses, epidemic obesity… As for Liberty,
there is a sad
irony in the fact that, partly because of their material pursuits,
millions of
Americans are so figuratively burdened with debt that literal
imprisonment
looms as a possibility.
This
is to say nothing so far of the rest of the Earth community, both human and
non-human, that is aversely affected by America's complexes. With this double
entendre
I refer not only to the military and industry, but to the media,
which empower the other two through advertising and various forms of
propaganda. Considering, as an example, defense contractor GE's
ownership of
NBC, CNBC, msnbc.com, Telemundo, and Bravo, we can safely speak of the
military-industrial-media
complex. While each of these on its own is unrivaled in terms of power
and influence, together they have enabled the US to become the most
dominant, defining force in human, if not geologic, history.
One would be hard pressed to find a place on Earth not affected by at
least one branch of this mighty American triumvirate.
The Three Poisons
Such
sociopolitical analysis, heavy-handed if accurate, can only take us so
far. To
discern the deeper dimensions of the American psyche and its wounds, we
must
look through a more powerful, psychospiritual lens at the three main
driving forces of the American enterprise.
By doing so, we discover what the Buddha called the "three poisons" of
greed, hatred, and delusion. Alternatively translated as desire,
aversion, and ignorance, these poisons are said to be the root causes
of suffering. Although interrelated, primary emphasis is placed on
delusion, which gives rise to selfish desire and aversion. In the
American
model, desire manifests as consumerism and unbridled capitalism, hatred
finds expression in militarism and violence, and delusion is
represented by the omnipresent media.
In
light of all this, it seems at least symbolically significant that the
targets of September 2001 were the World Trade Center (representing
greed) and the Pentagon (hatred),
and that shortly thereafter, deadly anthrax spores were sent to various
East Coast media outlets (delusion). This is certainly not to suggest
that the perpetrators of these horrific acts, whatever their
affiliations,
were trying to teach America a hard lesson in dharma. Rather, I gesture
toward a mysterious kind of logic in the universe that operates beneath the
level of conscious awareness. The collective unconscious, as Jung called it,
has a great deal to teach those who can interpret its archetypal and symbolic
language. How else are we to extract anything of spiritual value from a tragedy
that by all accounts was designed to keep the poisons pumping ever more
strongly?
Between
the official story (terrorist coup) and the counter-argument (global
conspiracy), lies is a Middle Way that allows each of us to take some degree of
responsibility for the events of 9-11, and to avoid projecting the whole of our
shadow onto the evil Other. If indeed the three poisons have a firm grip on
America's collective psyche, the question becomes: to what degree do they
control our individual minds? Can we rid our own hearts of greed, hatred, and
delusion? We can certainly try, and in our efforts, however humble or
faltering, we honor both the living and the dead.
Image by The Marque, courtesy of Creative Commons license.
