Forgiveness is not a one way street, just like love, forgiveness is an act of between two; the forgiver is the giver, the forgiven is the receiver to-be-given.
No matter how much willing the forgiver might be to forgive, his/her gift cannot be felt, sensed or received if the forgiven-to-be is not ready to receive.
Readiness to receive comes in three-folds, encompassing past, present and future. Readiness to receive means acknowledging the wrong done (in the past), the willingness to correct it (in the present) and the intention not to do again (in the future).
Only with applying these heart-purifying, soul-healing thoughts and deeds that a wrong-doer can taste the sweetness of forgiveness (being forgiven).
The forgiver may be always ready to for-give but without the willingness and the active participation of the forgiven-to-be, the receiver cannot and will not benefit from the act of forgiveness.
Teaching people to forgive is good and well but it is not sufficient to cleanse society of its ills. It only creates a lopsided society with predators and bullies who always get away with everything on the one hand, and of the meek and the subdued who always succumb and surrender, on the other.
People who are taught to forgive are the abused, those who are wronged in the first place, they are generally the passive, meek and good-natured.
Much more in need of teaching are the abusers, those who are wronging others, they are the active predators and aggressors, they are the ones in need to be taught how to cease their wrong-doing and how to seek forgiveness.
When only the meek, good and vulnerable are taught to forgive and turn the other cheek, while completely ignoring to teach or coerce the bully and powerful to cease his aggression and to seek forgiveness, the scale of justice in a society would fall heavily on one side, no doubt favouring the aggressor and the powerful, thus creating total imbalance which inevitably means perpetual loss of peace and harmony.
Talking to the abused about forgiveness before protecting his life and rights, and while he is still under the boot of the abuser is nothing but complicity in the crime.
After stopping the criminal from committing more crimes, then and only then may the abused feel liberated and free to explore the avenues of forgiveness.
Defending and protecting the weak, meek, oppressed and abused by stopping the aggressors from his aggression is the foundation to creating a peaceful and harmonious society.
Justice ====> peace ===> forgiveness
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Poetry for Palestine 