Are Assyrians a Source of Negative Energy?
By: Ashur Sada. August 10th, 2006


 

A young Assyrian entrepreneur is putting the last touches on his new invention, which he hopes to commercialize soon. The first people he turns to, to help him with testing and feedback, are his very own Assyrian people. Having met the first few people, he realizes that there is no word of encouragement or support from them. In fact, pretty much everyone dismissed the idea as a ‘failure’. The young Assyrian doesn’t give up. He decides to turn to non-Assyrian, in hopes of getting a better feedback on his new invention. The results were much better this time around. While the new people who helped with the testing didn’t just give him straight marks on his invention, they showed him that he was on the right track, and what he needed to work on. In the end, there was a big and clear difference between what the young man got from his Assyrian fellows and what he got from the strangers: negative vs. positive energy!

Stories and encounters like these happen everywhere in our Assyrian society. They are the stories which make Assyrians declare, and with no regret “I am fed up working with Assyrians, they are so discouraging and put you down a lot…” But why is it so? Why are Assyrians not supportive of each other? Is it jealousy? Is it just the way they have traditionally been brought up to behave? Or is all due to a lack of education and the loving spirit? The fact is, all of these factors contribute to Assyrians in general being negative and pessimists. Moreover, the fact that Assyrians have been roaming the planet for thousands of year, with no state to call their own, has left a bitter taste in their mouth; envying those with something more than what they have. Not all Assyrians are the same of course, but what applies to some, is enough to be made into a stereotype.

It could be negative energy or it could well be just pure jealousy, but at the end of the day, the consequences are almost the same. As demonstrated from our opening example, Assyrians don’t have to be jealous in order to be negative. Nor do they have to be pessimists to show their negativity. It can all come natural most of the time. In fact, Assyrians can be so negative at times, they can kill off or neutralize any positive energy no matter how big. When I mention the two opposite sides of energy here, positive and negative, I mean them in not just a symbolic way, but in a literal way too. Science tells us that the more positive we are, our bodies release the certain chemical which are essentially good for our survival and flourishing. On the other hand, being pessimist and negative cause our bodies to release all sort of harmful chemicals, which in the long term can mean the difference between a long happy life vs. a short and miserable life.
 

While it does help to explore the physiological and psychological roots of the problem, it is more helpful for us to explore the social roots of it. Having explored the social roots of this negativity, we can then go ahead and look for possible solutions. The social causes can vary from person to person, region to region and so on. But in most cases, education or lack there of, can be a big causing factor. An educated person, unlike someone who is not, has developed a better personality with a more subtle attitude. This helps them deal with others in a better and more positive way, giving them the feedback and proper help they need. You can actually sense it by simply observing the way in which a person talks.

Other possible social explanation include the problem of instability, where Assyrians have been moving from one place to another, never settling in one place enough to shape their personality and attitude. For instance, consider the case of an Assyrian, who was born in Baghdad amongst Arabs, moved to the North living with the Kurds, traveled to Iran and stayed there amongst Persians, and by the time he was 27, was feeling a whole new society and culture, living in Europe, before finally settling in the United States. This fictional Assyrian man, used only as an example here but found often in our society, is a great example of someone whose personality has gone through different and varying stages, and never experiencing any lasting stability. Unfortunately, this is the case with most Assyrians and for thousands of years now. Now pool all of these conditions of instability and varying environment, and the result is our modern Assyrian social being.

Of course, it is also a problem of self-enforcing cycle. I envy this person and discourage him, because he does the same to me, and the cycle goes on and on. Consider the case of an Assyrian family who moved to a new house. Their relatives, upon hearing of this news, were never happy about it. In fact, they never showed any sign that they were happy for their relatives. It is not even a case of a historical feud or hate between the two. It is just a matter of showing no support or sharing the joy for the new house which the other family has moved to. This apparent lack of support could manifest itself in the form of, as mentioned earlier, negative energy, again.

Others may argue that the picture is not so oblique, and that Assyrians are not much different from other people. Every people and nation has their own pessimists and negative attitudes, and that Assyrians are just the same, but they have just been unfortunate enough to have been associated with such negative attributes and stereotypes. Whichever version you believe in, is a matter of personal experience and what you have gone through. Others argue that, while Assyrians could be a source of negative energy at times, they are also good source of hope for others. This source of hope flows as a result of their relatively good faith and belief, as well as their history with suffering and endurance. Suffering and endurance throughout history, some people argue, has made Assyrians synonymous with great patience, something that is the source of positive rather than negative energy.

If Assyrians are truly pessimists and a source of negative energy, they are not only hurting themselves, but those around them as well. By being a source of negative energy, Assyrians are becoming more like ‘psychic vampires’ who suck the energy and life out of those around them. On the other hand, if Assyrians are to prove others wrong, they have to start changing their attitude, personalities and values. Hope, optimism and a great show of genuine support for others, are good things to start with. Over time, and as more and more Assyrians start to feel and emit more positive than negative energy, this whole article could be a thing of the past. After all, we are looking at an almost complete shift of the social and psychological paradigms for Assyrians. Having read all of this, do you feel more positive or more negative by now?

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