In certain
times, questions increase and debates erupt over the issues of identity..
character and a third issue related; that is building humans. I was invited
more than once in many places by different entities to participate in
discussions over the identity.. character and building the human. I found out
that we need to “define the terms” like Fiqh people say; as there is a
misunderstanding between identity and character… also, there is an unfair
separation between them both and the process of building the human.
I recently discovered
–that was a few days ago –that some, due to ignorance and inattention, speak
about identity in social occasions as if they are chewing a gum. And if you
tried to correct them, they keep reiterating the same meaningless words. It
happened that we were in a Ramadan social gathering attended by some Arab
brothers of different nationalities, when an Egyptian employee working in a
branch of one of the Arab banks went on saying that Egypt crisis started by
July, 1952 revolution and that before that time –as per his own words– we had
an identity, however, later, we had no identity. This person, unconsciously,
was insulting his Arab hosts. When I asked him about the definition of identity
and the criteria proving the veracity of what he said, he uttered no word!
Such questions
asking about the identity “Who are we?!” and the character “What are our
characteristics?!” erupt in times of defeat and difficulties. One can hear such
question frequently in times of change, and also in times of developing and
facing challenges… as to the times of stability and going on building and
achieving success in responding to challenges, such question resides back in
mind, until there is a reason to push it to the front!
Tracking the
history of such question throughout our modern and contemporary history proves
my point. Moreover, January 25, 2011 revolution and what followed it prove that
this question erupted, and answers for it were many and diverse that they
stirred conflict among opinions. It is also still discussed and debated in most
of the seminars and gatherings held, especially in what is called “cultural
saloons”.
It was already
announced that the coming presidential term will focus on building the human,
whom we can imagine as a construction with foundation base, brick courses,
mortar, painting, façade and decors. In such case, the foundation base is the
components of identity, while brick courses along with mortar are the relation
among those components including historic, ethnic and geographic ones.
As to the
character; meaning the characteristics, this is the painting, façade and decors
that appear to the eye and mind. Thus, I do believe that the first step in
doing a true building of the human –away from propaganda and pointless
objection– is to focus on strengthening the foundation base and do whatever
needed to bolster it, also to restore the brick courses and fill the gaps among
such courses; those gaps resulting from mortar erosion. Otherwise, any painting
or décor will fall no matter how shiny or neat it is, also regardless of how
much money was spent on it, as it only needs a little groundwater saturated in
salts and impurities to climb over the foundation and brick courses to smear
the painting and demolish the décor.
Such
interaction among geography elements “the river.. valley.. delta.. desert.. and
sea” and the history-long-accumulated demographic composition elements that
varied between ancient migrations coming from southern and northern the Arabian
Peninsula and mixing with other African races, and other migrations coming from
the west and Tepetsi Plateau, and all that carries cultural and civilized
characteristics… in addition to the interaction among all those components and the
events witnessed by the relation between “the sea” –meaning those coming from
outside our beloved country– and “the river”; meaning the Egyptian people
residing along the Nile… such creative interaction enabled Egypt to achieve
cohesion, stability, strength and then influencing its surrounding circles, just
like the Lotus flower that opens towards its surrounding area.
Due to many
reasons, the foundation base and brick courses in building the Egyptian human
used to get damaged or break, causing the decors and painting to fall as well.
The most prominent of those reasons was to have a conflict that leads to a
separation between elements composing the identity and those elements of the
character’s features.
There were
times when there was a focus on the ancient Egyptian element called “Pharaonic”
–which is a wrong coining for the term– and considering it the only element,
and the one who prevailed the world, invented the after-life concept and taught
humanity… to the end of the description exaggerated by those opposing the rest
of composition elements like the Hellenistic, Christian, Islamic Arab, modern
and contemporary ones! On the other side, some were focusing on the Christian
Coptic component, while there were others focusing on the Arab and Islamic
Coptic component, a third party focusing on the necessity to have the
western-euro character features connecting back to the Hellenistic or
“Greco-Roman” roots! And whenever there is someone with proper understanding seeks
to put all these elements in the Egyptian melting-pot to have one beautiful
solid alloy, he is being told that this is not true and we have to take sides
with this or that point of view… then examples of negative incidences and
events are given by those who want to negate any element of those main
components.. then they start giving examples for very bad situations that took
place in Egypt’s ancient history… and in the invasion coming from the Arab
desert carrying bedouinism, desert life, non-civilized lifestyle and shallow
culture… and in the Greek and Roman colonization that was an old phase of the
modern British and French colonization… etc. and so, at the end, we lose all
our roots of whatever kind!
Finally, I
would like to say that building the human in our current situation has to do
with strengthening the foundation base and brick courses. Otherwise, it is
nothing but an outer painting and décor that will collapse at the first rain
shower.
Translated into
English by: Dalia Elnaggar
This article was published in Al Ahram newspaper on May 16, 2019.
To see the original article, go to:
#ahmed_ahmad_elgammal #Egypt #identity #character
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