Laughter Yoga and Prophets of Non-Violence
What is violence? Surprisingly, today, most would define violence solely as a physical action or force, which causes bodily harm to a person. We cannot ignore evidence, though, that violence is more than just brute force. Mental, emotional, and spiritual violence exist as counterparts to this physical expression. And if we devote more time understanding the complex layers of violence, it will ultimately lead to deeper discussions, which can be dedicated to the idea of non-violence. What is non-violence and how might we actually be able to practice it within our own lives?
I am a student at Northern Kentucky University where I recently finished an intense course entitled Prophets of Non-Violence, taught by Professor Patrick Murphy Welage. I have been a part-time student for many years and I truly feel that no other course has affected me as strongly as this one has. The content was gripping and the over all experience was life changing.
Professor Welage teaches Theology and Philosophy with an emphasis on social justice and non-violence. Students at both Xavier University and NKU have the opportunity to take one of his classes. He is also a Certified Laughter Yoga Teacher.
What is laughter yoga? We found out first hand when one of our classes was turned into a laughter-yoga-body-mind experience! It was definitely awkward at first, forcing ourselves to laugh without any prompting , without any comedy. It was a matter of faking the laughter until it finally became real and natural. By the end of the class, hilarity was echoing from person to person.
The lesson was to use laughter as a practice of non-violence. This is because laughter is non-political, non-religious, non-racial, and non-threatening. Like music and art, laughter is a universal language that can transcend many barriers; language, age, gender, race, and social class. It enhances our personal relationships and connections with one another. Laughter can suspend or remove divisions between people, showing a way to a more peaceful existence together.
Professor Welage is the type of teacher that makes things interesting and witty indeed, although his objective through it all is to have his students thoughtfully examine theories and practices associated with violence and non-violence. We accomplished this through various means. We read books, watched films, wrote reflections, and shared opinions in class discussions.
We spent a significant amount of time trying to understand the Apartheid in South Africa. We were inundated with facts about unjustified and unspeakable acts of oppression, torture, and violence perpetrated toward blacks at the hands of a white supremacist government. Many turned a blind eye to what was going on. Apathy, is an all too familiar response to horrendous violations against human freedoms.
We read the books, A Human Being Died That Night: A Story of Forgiveness (Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela), and Priest and Partisan (Michael Worsnip) hoping to gain some insight as to what were some of the root causes of this violence in South Africa and how the country would ever recover from it. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was formed so that the country could shift toward truth, reconciliation, and most importantly, forgiveness.
Forgiveness, faith, redemption, and spirituality were at the center of many of our class discussions. We each had our own unique frame of reference and life experiences to pull from. Our class was made up of Christians from many denominations, Muslims, Buddhists, Atheists, and Agnostics. It was also a sweet mixture of gender, age, race, and social class. It was an amazing little community our classroom had turned into.
Over the course of the semester we worked on writing a research-based Spiritual Autobiography. It was to be a deeply personal account of our own spiritual journey, sharing our own stories of joy, pain, growth, and revelation. Our autobiographies would also be based upon the writings and practices of one of the prophets of non-violence we had learned about. How had our life experience shaped our views on non-violence? Also, what changes could we make in our lives to soar from theory alone to a daily practice of being peacekeepers?
Each student would, in the end, make a presentation before the class. Nothing could have prepared us for what we were about to share and experience with one another. We each had a story to tell. Our initial reservations about opening up our lives to a roomful of strangers were gone. Something had occurred throughout the duration of the semester.
One by one we shared our stories and memories: drug addiction, rape, violence, domestic abuse, alcoholism, loss of loved ones, serious illnesses, child abuse, divorce, affairs, single parents, depression, suicidal thoughts and attempts. It was almost unbelievable, the gravity of what we were cathartically doing in this small class setting. Their pain became my pain, and my pain became their pain.
I am convinced that unless you face the truth, the truth cannot set you free. Facing ourselves takes courage, let alone facing others. Healing and recovery begins with dialogue. I was able to make the correlation between what the professor had been teaching us throughout the semester and what we were doing for one another as a class. In the very speaking of "unspeakable acts" a person, family, community or nation can begin to heal. Dialogue is purgative medicine for an ailing world.
Even if it takes a lifetime, we must encourage one another toward forgiveness when we have been emotionally, spiritually, or physically harmed. Pumla Gododo-Madikizela who wrote of her personal experience with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission post Apartheid, wrote about the effects of forgiveness she witnessed in others and stated that, "some societies are finding it more constructive to focus on discovering and nurturing the conditions that make forgiveness first conceivable, then ultimately possible." Forgiveness is a form of non-violence. We need to nurture it within our corner of the world.
The final moment of enlightenment came for me as I listened to a young male Muslim student comment on what this class on non-violence had meant to him. He was able to articulate what the majority of us also felt in our hearts. We were all proud of one another for having the bravery to share our stories. We put ourselves in a very vulnerable position and yet what we found was that no one judged us or rejected us. In fact, this notable observation was evident throughout the entire semester. We respected one another’s individuality and it was evident in our class discussions. No one’s faith, beliefs or race were attacked. We simply listened to one another and learned from one another. We accepted our differences, peacefully. One has to wonder how different the world might be if what was possible within the classroom could become possible outside the classroom. It would mean we were moving toward a non-violent world, would it not?
I am extremely grateful that I took Professor Patrick Murphy Welage’s class on Prophets of Non-Violence. I believe we all have the potential to be prophets – advocates for non-violence.