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Discussions Between Akha Elders and Jewish Elders
Discussion Number One:
A Dialogue Between Akha Elders and the Jewish Orthodox Community
Message to an Akha Elder
Wed, 14 Jul 1999
Dear Elder of the Akha People:
(Note to the translator: Please add the appropriate titles of
respect, and send me an explanation by e-mail if possible, so
that I will know how an Elder is traditionally addressed in the
Akha language),
Greetings and good afternoon from the Land of Israel!
My name is Avi Gold. I have been corresponding with Matthew for
several years, and have heard from him (by e-mail) about the Akha
People and the difficulties that you face in attempting to preserve
your traditions and customs from outside influences. I would like
to send you this message in the Akha language, but unfortunately,
I do not know how to speak in your language. I would like to learn
Akha, so that in the future I can speak to Akha people directly,
but for now, I must rely on other languages. I will write this
letter in English, and I hope that someone there can help by translating
my words into Akha. I know a little bit of the Thai language,
but my knowledge of this is limited, so for now, the best way
for me to write is in English. I apologize for this fact, and
I hope that in the future it will be possible to converse in Akha.
Many thanks to the translator for translating my words into Akha
and translating the Elder's reply into English!
I have thought about your people's situation for a long time and
wondered how I might be able to help. Now I think I can help in
this way: I would like to have a conversation with you through
the computer. In this conversation, I would like to ask specific
questions so that I can understand Akha tradition better, and
so that I might be able to give some advice from my own people.
I am a Jewish man, and my people have been following an ancient
tradition for thousands of years. Over the centuries, we have
faced many difficulties, and many times outsiders tried to destroy
our tradition and customs. However, we have survived these many
centuries, and we continue to remember our traditions and follow
them. So, we have much experience in methods of preserving tradition.
We too face the problem of Christian missionaries, even today,
so I understand your problem very well. Often I have arguments
with Christian missionaries who try to convince me that my tradition
is wrong. But actually, I know that they are wrong, and I can
show them from their own books that they are wrong. Unlike the
Christian and Muslim religions, my tradition teaches that each
nation has its own customs and traditions, and that these customs
and traditions are not to be disturbed. In fact, if someone comes
to me and says "I want to be Jewish", I reply "Why do you want
to do this? It is better for you to follow the traditions of your
ancestors, and to follow the good path that they taught you."
As I said, I am Jewish, and my tradition is very important to
me. For this reason, I understand why your tradition is important
to you. I would like to help you preserve your tradition, and
although I am far from where you live, and we must communicate
through a translator, I hope that our conversation will be helpful
for preservation of the Akha traditions.
I would like to begin by saying that two things are VERY, VERY
important in preserving tradition: One is children, and the other
is writing. If Akha children understand the importance of their
traditions, then they will continue these traditions when they
are adults. If the children lose the traditions, then the tradition
is lost! We recognized this fact many centuries ago, and for this
reason, education is central to Jewish tradition. From an early
age, a father teaches his children about the traditions. Indeed,
in Jewish tradition, this is one of the father's important responsibilities
towards his children. The mother also is very focused on teaching
the children about traditions and customs from an early age, so
that even children of a few years of age know something about
the holidays and about different traditions and customs.
In a similar way, the key to continuity for Akha tradition is
with the Akha children. They are the key to the future of Akha
tradition, and so they should be taught well about the traditions
of their ancestors. This leads me to the second point: writing.
One of the most important ways that tradition is taught to the
older children and the more advanced adult students is through
writing. Over the centuries, our teachers (called "rabbis") wrote
down what they taught in books, so that today, I can read the
words and teachings of rabbis from 2000 years ago! This is very
helpful for preserving tradition. Actually, originally, much of
our traditions were not written, and were only taught by spoken
words, but then the Romans invaded our land. When the rabbis saw
the danger of the Roman invasion, they said "If we don't write
down our traditions, then they might disappear as a result of
Roman oppression, and Roman attempts to impose their own culture
on us". So, Rabbi Yehuda Hanassi began a big project and collected
the words of many rabbis, and organized their teachings in a set
of 60 books, called the Mishna. Each book is arranged according
to topic, so that the reader can locate sources on a particular
topic and see what was taught on this topic. The Mishna has remained
in full form for 1800 years, and today it is still possible for
us to read from the Mishna and learn about these ancient rabbis
and what they taught. The study of Mishna is standard in Jewish
schools, because it is important that Jewish children know about
this.
I think that a similar project would be very helpful for the Akha
people, to arrange the teachings of Akha traditions in the form
of books. Then to develop a method of teaching Akha tradition
to Akha children, so that the Akha can preserve tradition even
under the pressure of foreign cultures. If the Akha people know
their traditions and feel that they are a part of them, outsiders
will not be successful in erasing tradition.
I hope that now my intention of this letter is clear, and I would
like to ask some questions about Akha beliefs and teachings, both
for my own understanding, and in order to suggest how books of
Akha tradition might be arranged.
So, I begin my question with the beginning:
1) How did the world begin, according to Akha tradition?
2) How was the world created?
3) What does Akha tradition teach about the first human beings
in the world?
4) When is the beginning of the year in Akha tradition?
5) What festival or special day is celebrated then? How is it
celebrated?
This letter is already somewhat long, so I will continue with
another letter soon. If you have any questions about what I wrote,
or any comments, opinions, ideas on it, please tell me. And if
you would like to ask me anything about the history or traditions
of my people, I would be happy to reply. I wish you success in
the preservation of your traditions and culture.
Good health to you and your family and to the Akha People!
Be well, and as we say in my language: Shalom uvraxa! (That is:
Peace and blessing!)
I look forward to your reply,
Sincerely,
Avi Gold |
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