Revolution

As I watched CNN last night there was a quote that has stuck with me. A number of analysts were discussing what the US should do about the situation in Libya. Benjamin Barber, author of Jihad versus McWorld, was explaining why Libyans didn't want the US to become too involved. In his explanation Barber said, "In the end, people have to make their own revolutions". They were a people fighting for something better, but this movement had to be for their country and not anyone else.

This quote again came to mind today as I was reading about Buddha, hopefully I can explain why. When I think about Siddhartha (Buddha's original name), I picture him beginning as a curious man. I don't think he forsook his old life in order to create the world's next major religion, I just think he wanted to understand his world better. He questioned and searched, and by so doing he did "make [his] own revolution". His revolution ended up effecting millions of people, but that's not always how revolutions turn out. In my mind revolutions are a determination to act, and to act in a way that will change one's circumstance or mentality. In this sense, a revolution can be as large as Siddhartha's or as small as changing one's habits. 

Now you may wonder what this has to do with a field study. That's a fair question which I can only answer for myself. I will be interacting with incoming Tibetan refugees and in many ways I consider these refugees to be in the midsts of their own "revolutions". They come from China, Nepal, Bhutan, and other parts of India, and I assume they come with the desire to change their lives for the better. I will be asking many of them what they feel they need most. In essence, what do they need to finish their revolution? I'm excited to learn the answers because I imagine they will add some "enlightenment" to the revolutions that happen everyday.