At the turn of the millennium, a delegation from Iraq comes to the World Trade Center in New York to strike a deal with their American partners for an emergency relief organization for the famine in Africa. On the itinerary is paying a courtesy visit to the President in return for his celebrating the new coalition government in Iraq after the recent elections. They will also attend an interfaith gathering to pray with members of different religions for lasting peace and prosperity for the entire world.

It did not happen like that. And we have been doomed to reflect over and over again for a decade on why and how the 9/11 attacks happened. Before the year 2000, Y2K seemed like a would-be doomsday; thankfully it was not, but it was regretfully replaced by terrorism and war.

As many contractions of anger, pain, and revenge as we have suffered, the past decade also laid before us opportunities to learn about the ‘other.’ No less intense than the destructive plots and crimes breathlessly aspiring for a ‘clash of civilizations’ have been the efforts for peaceful coexistence in dialogue. Perhaps unprecedented at this scale in the history of humankind, many devotees of dialogue from different cultures and religions have dared to commit themselves to overcome all prejudices and psychological boundaries in order to sit around the same table and respect one another.

This edition brings to your desk special coverage of the decade after 9/11. You will read striking memories and analyses from Branning and Kurucan, whose words help us find our own perspectives. Bishop Chane of America and Bishop Guntar of Norway—the most recent victim of brutal terrorism—are emphasizing the fact that religions were hijacked at 9/11 and in Norway ten years later. Tatari and Wilson explore Islam, the most defamed and misrepresented religion, vis-a-vis terrorism and war, which are often wrongfully attributed to it. Does the Qur’an sanction war, and how should we interpret certain verses that sound as if it does? What is the truth about jihad, is it really holy war?

The Fountain also features in this issue contributions expressing our need to promote dialogue for peaceful coexistence. Dr. Leap shares with us her positive engagement in dialogue with other religions. Bishop Demetrios reminds us of the good example of reconciliation between the Turkish and Greek communities in the U.S. Dr. Carroll is rightfully bringing in questions to ponder over: Can we revive historical incidents of dialogue, and how can we adapt them today? Are religions tolerant enough to respect other religions? Are we personally ready to embrace others as they are? Tosun and Angelone reveal a sincere friendship in poetry that cuts across wide distances and differences. Can America inspire peace and freedom after 9/11? Fatma Yilmaz believes it can, and explains why she is hopeful.

The darkest phase of the night is followed by the dawn.

I only care about myself. Whether the rest of the world collapses or not does not concern me, is the idea reflected by such events. This attitude of indifferent haughtiness leads to the following result: A world in which I have no welfare must be destroyed or If I am not loved, no one else can be loved. Our welfare level today has been unable to stop other peoples suffering, for we have not noticed what they experienced in the past. Such people were as glad at this tragedy as if they had taken revenge themselves, in the true sense of the word, while watching the tears and shock of the rich. We have just realized that the world is small, and that violence impacts everyone.

Terrorism is an absolute threat to all civilizations. As there is still no commonly accepted definition of terrorism, any state’s reaction to it will not lessen the threat it poses; on the contrary, it actually might strengthen it. The future of the world rests upon reaching a just response to this horrible tragedy and discussing the matter comprehensively. The fact that politics has gone clerical and that religion has become politicized makes some global events of the modern world more global.

The September 11th tragedy shows that terrorism is able to span regional and continental borders. This obliges the entire world to unify itself in order to face this challenge. To this end, we need to deal primarily with social problems and poverty, close the economic gap, and prevent strong countries from oppressing weaker ones. In the face of our world’s real contradictions, there is no second alternative to stopping terrorism, which constantly produces the most cruel incidents. In order to benefit from Earth’s riches, we must channel human consciousness, science, and technology properly so that they may serve good instead of evil; so that they may serve humanity’s collective development instead of destruction. Globalization can absolve itself only if it solves our world’s global problems.

We can only speculate as to when the original man and woman appeared on Earth, which is equated with the Heavens due to the divine art it exhibits, its ontological meaning, and its value largely coming from its chief inhabitant: humanity. According to the calendar we use today, we are at the threshold of the third millennium after the birth of Jesus, upon him be peace. However, since time revolves and advances in a helicoidal relativity, there are different measures of time in the world. For example, according to the measure of time that currently enjoys global acceptance, the world is about to cross the threshold of a new thousand-year period. According to the Jewish calendar, we are already in the second half of the eighth millennium. Within the Hindu timeframe, we are living in the Kali Yuga era. If we follow the Muslim calendar, we are approaching the end of the first half of the second millennium.

We should remember, however, the fact that each measure of time is nothing more than a relative measurement. While a 100-year period is assumed to be the measure for a century, the idea of a 60-year century, based on the life span of an average person, is also worth mentioning. From this point of view, we are already in the fourth millennium after the birth of Jesus, upon him be peace, and third millennium after the hijrah, which is the starting point of the Muslim calendar. I bring up this issue due to the spiritual discomfort engendered by the terrifying auguries believed to be associated with the upcoming millennium, especially in the West.

People live in perpetual hope, and thus are children of hope. At the instant they lose their hope, they also lose their “fire” of life, no matter if their physical existence continues. Hope is directly proportional to having faith. Just as winter constitutes one-fourth of a year, so the periods in a person’s or a society’s life corresponding to winter are also small. The gears of Divine acts revolve around such comprehensive wisdom and merciful purposes that just as the circulation of night and day builds one’s hope and revivifies one’s spirit, and every new year comes with expectations of spring, and summer, so too the disastrous periods are short and followed by happy times in both an individual’s life and a nation’s history.

This circulation of the “Days of God,” which is centered in Divine Wisdom, is neither a fear nor pessimism for those with faith, insight, and genuine perceptive faculties. Rather, it is a source of continuous reflection, remembrance, and thanksgiving for those having an apprehensive heart, inner perception, and the ability to hear. Just as a day develops in the heart of night, and just as winter furnishes the womb in which spring grows, so one’s life is purified, matures, and bears its expected fruits within this circulation. Also in this circulation, God-given human abilities become aptitudes and talents, sciences blossom like roses and weave technology in the workbench of time, and humanity gradually approaches its predestined end.

Having stated this general view, which is neither personal nor subjective but rather an objective fact of human history, it should not be thought that we welcome either winter or winter-like events that correspond to sorrow, disease, and disaster. Despite the general fact that disease eventually increases the body’s resistance, strengthens the immune system, and drives medical progress, it is pathological and harmful. It is the same with terrestrial and celestial disasters. From a theological and moral point of view, they result from our sins and oppression, which are enough to shake the Earth and the Heavens, and from engaging in deeds that have been declared forbidden and despised by law and ethics (whether religious or secular). Even though they awaken people to their mistakes and negligence and provoke developments in geology, architecture, engineering, and related safety measures; even though they elevate the demolished belongings of believers to the level of charity, and the believers themselves to the level of martyrdom, these disasters cause much destruction and harm humanity.

In the same way, we read in the Qur’an: Unless God hampered some (of you) with some other (of you), the mosques, monasteries, and synagogues in which God is worshipped would have fallen into ruins (22:40). In other words, God would be so little known that men and women, who are inclined not to recognize anything superior to them and believe that their deeds will not be questioned in the Hereafter, would completely go astray, thereby making Earth unsuitable for human life. There is also the divine decree: You consider something as evil although it is good for you; you also consider something else as good although it is bad for you (2:126). For example, war is permissible. Although wars based on specific principles and with the intention of improving the existing situation may have benefits, they should not be demanded, since they bring harm; they leave behind ruined houses, destroyed families, and weeping orphans and widows.

Anyway, realities of life cannot be neglected, nor should they be ignored. Human beings are mirrors for God’s Names and Attributes, and therefore are distinguished from the rest of creation with the honor of being responsible for making Earth prosperous in His name. If they cannot grasp the wisdom and purposes behind any good or evil that is sent their way by their Creator, they cannot escape despair and pessimism. For them, as is seen in the Existentialist literature, life turns into a meaningless process, existence into a purposeless vacuity, nonsense into the only criteria, suicide into a meritorious act, and death becomes the only inevitable reality.

The Basic Nature of Humanity

After presenting the issues that constitute the basis of this subject as an introduction, we can switch to our considerations regarding the third millennium.

Human history began with two people who constituted the essence of humanity and complemented each other. People lived a tranquil life during this time of the original mother and father and the families that descended from them. They were a united society that had the same views and shared the same environment and lives.

From that day on, the essence of humanity has remained unchanged, and it will remain so. The realities surrounding their lives, their physical structure, main characteristics, basic needs, place and time of birth and death, selection of parents and physique, innate characteristics, as well as the surrounding natural environment, have not changed. All of these require some essential and vital invariable realities and values. Thus, the development and alteration of life’s secondary realities should be based on the axis of these primary realities and values, so that life will continue as a worldly paradise under the shadow of Heaven.

We mentioned above some issues that seem to be harmful and unpleasant. Similarly, there are human traits that seem to be evil at first glance, such as hatred, jealousy, enmity, the desire to dominate others, greed, rage, and egoism. A human being also has other innate drives and needs that allow the continuation of his or her worldly life, such as the need to eat and drink and the drives of lust and anger. All human drives, needs, and desires should be guided and trained in the direction of the eternal, universal, and invariable values that address the fundamental aspects of humanity. In this respect, the need to eat and drink, and the desire associated with lust and rage, can be tamed and transformed into means of absolute or relative good.

Likewise, egoism and hatred can become sources of fine attributes and goodness. Jealousy and rivalry can be transformed into competition in charitable and good deeds. The feeling of enmity can be transformed into enmity against Satan, the greatest enemy of humanity, and against the feeling of enmity itself and hatred. Greed and rage can force one to perform good deeds without tiredness. Egoism can point out the evil aspects of the carnal soul (nafs), thereby seeking to train and purify the soul by not excusing its evil actions.

All negative feelings can be transformed into sources of good by training and struggle. This is how one reaches the level of “the best of Creation,” by traveling the way of transformation from a potential human being to a real and perfected human being, to becoming the best symbol, model, and personal representative of creation and existence.

Despite this fact, the realities of human life do not always follow these guidelines. Negative feelings and attributes often defeat people, pulling them under their domination to such an extent that even the religions that guide people to goodness and kindness are abused, as well as the feelings and attributes that are sources of absolute good. Human life, at the level of the individual and of humanity as a whole, is merely the summation of internal, personal struggles and their external manifestations. These tides make the personal world of the individual, society, and history an arena of battle, struggle, war, oppression, and tyranny. As a result, it is usually human beings themselves who suffer the consequences.

Men and women always receive the fruits of their deeds. In the first period of its history, humanity lived a happy life as a single society whose members shared their joys and sorrows. But, later on they bound their necks and feet with a rusty yoke composed of chains of oppression as a result of jealousy, greed, and coveting other’s rights and properties. The consequence was Cain’s murder of Abel. As a result of this, humanity entered the path of disunity. Despite the millenniums coming one after the other like days, seasons and years, this “cycle” still continues.

The Second Millennium

The second millennium started with the Crusades and then the Mongol invasions of the Muslim world, which was like the heart of Earth and history at that time. Despite the wars and destruction, and despite the crimes committed sometimes in the name of religion and sometimes in the name of economic, political, and military supremacy, this millennium has seen the apex of the East’s civilizations, based on spirituality, metaphysical, universal, and eternal values, and the West’s civilizations, based on the physical sciences. Many significant geographical discoveries and scientific inventions have occurred.

However, the East’s and West’s civilizations existed separated from each other. This separation, which should not have occurred, was based on the former’s retiring from the intellect and science, while the latter retired from spirituality, metaphysics, and eternal and invariable values. As a result, the last centuries of this millennium have witnessed disasters that are hard to believe. Due to humanity’s growing arrogance and egoism, arising from its accomplishments, men and women have had to live through worldwide colonialism, immense massacres, revolutions that cost millions of lives, unimaginably bloody and destructive wars, racial discrimination, immense social and economic injustice, and iron curtains built by regimes whose ideology and philosophy sought to deny the essence, freedom, merit, and honor of humanity. It is partly because of this and partly because of some auguries from the Bible that many people in the West fear that the world will again be soaked by floods of blood, pus, and destruction. They are quite pessimistic and worried about the new millennium.

Our Expectations

Modern means of communication and transportation have transformed the world into a large, global village. So, those who expect that any radical changes in a country will be determined by that country alone and remain limited to it are unaware of current realities. This time is a period of interactive relations. Nations and peoples are more in need of and dependent on each other, which causes closeness in mutual relations.

This network of relations, which has surpassed the period of brute colonialism and exists on the basis of mutual interest, provides some benefits to the weaker side. Moreover, owing to the advances in technology, especially digital electronic technology, the acquisition and exchange of information grows gradually. As a result, the individual comes to the fore, making it inevitable that democratic governments that respect personal rights will replace oppressive regimes.

As each individual is like a species with respect to other species, individual rights cannot be sacrificed for society, and social rights should depend on individual rights. This is why the basic human rights and freedoms found in the revealed religions came to be considered by a war-weary West. They will enjoy priority in all relations. At the head of these rights is the right to life, which is granted and can be taken only by God. To accentuate the importance of this right in Islam, a basic Qur’anic principle is that: If one person kills another unjustly, it is the same as if he or she has killed all of humanity; if one saves another, it is the same as if he or she has saved all of humanity (5:32).

Other rights are the freedom of religion and belief, thought and expression; the right to own property and the sanctity of one’s home; to marry and have children; to communicate and travel; and the right to and freedom of education. The principles of Islamic jurisprudence are based on these and other rights, all of which are accepted by modern legal systems, such as the protection of life, religion, property, reproduction, and intellect, as well as equality of people based on the fact that all people are human beings, and the rejection of all racial, color, and linguistic discrimination. All of these will be-and should be-indispensable essentials in the new millennium.

I believe and hope that the world of the new millennium will be a happier, more just, and more compassionate place, contrary to the fears of some people. Islam, Christianity, and Judaism all come from the same root, have almost the same essentials, and are nourished from the same source. Although they have lived as rival religions for centuries, the common points between them and their shared responsibility to build a happy world for all of the creatures of God make interfaith dialogue among them necessary. This dialogue has now expanded to include the religions of Asia and other areas. The results have been positive.

As mentioned above, this dialogue will develop as a necessary process, and the followers of all religions will find ways to get closer and assist each other.

Previous generations witnessed a bitter struggle that should never have taken place: science versus religion. This conflict gave rise to atheism and materialism, which influenced Christianity more than other religions. Science cannot contradict religion, for its purpose is to understand nature and humanity, which are each a composition of the manifestations of God’s Attributes of Will and Power. Religion has its source in the Divine Attribute of Speech, which was manifested in the course of human history as Divine Scriptures such as the Qur’an, the Gospels, the Torah and others. Thanks to the efforts of both Christian and Muslim theologians and scientists, it seems that the few-century-long religion-science conflict will come to an end, or at least its absurdity will be acknowledged.

The end of this conflict and a new style of education fusing religious and scientific knowledge with morality and spirituality will produce genuinely enlightened people with hearts illumined by religious sciences and spirituality, minds illuminated with positive sciences, characterized by all kinds of humane merits and moral values, and cognizant of the socioeconomic and political conditions of their time. Our old world will experience an excellent “springtime” before its demise. This springtime will see the gap between rich and poor narrow; the world’s riches distributed most justly according to one’s work, capital, and needs; the absence of discrimination based on race, color, language, and worldview; and basic human rights and freedoms protected. Individuals will come to the fore and, learning how to realize their potential, will ascend on the way to becoming “the most elevated human” with the wings of love, knowledge, and belief.

In this new springtime, when scientific and technological progress is taken into consideration, people will understand that the current level of science and technology resembles the stage when an infant is learning how to crawl. Humanity will organize trips into space as if traveling to another country. Travelers on the way to God, those self-immolators of love who have no time for hostility, will carry the inspirations in their spirits to other worlds.

Yes, this springtime will rise on the foundations of love, compassion, mercy, dialogue, acceptance of others, mutual respect, justice, and rights. It will be a time in which humanity will discover its real essence. Goodness and kindness, righteousness and virtue will form the basic essence of the world. No matter what happens, the world will come to this track sooner or later. Nobody can prevent this.

We pray and beg the Infinitely Compassionate One not to let our hopes and expectations come to nothing.

Unfortunately, the biggest millennial issue was the Y2K syndrome. Instead of focusing on this temporary problem, we should have been concentrating on evaluating the century we so recently left, and devising ways to improve people’s mental and spiritual capacity. However the focus was Y2K, which showed once more that advances in technology and science are not enough to make us happy. Now that this particular “crisis” has passed, to what issue should we turn our attention? In our opinion, we should focus on our need for a new philosophy to unite our hearts and minds.

Science and religion have been separated for centuries, and religion has been accused of being implausible and superfluous. But during the last years of the twentieth century, we saw some new approaches to understanding religion and reconsidering human beings as believers. Despite this positive development, some futurists still claim that the next century will be one of religious polarization. The strongest answer to this claim is to understand the meaning and purpose of-life: “Altruism, beauty, and sincerity are the essentials of the world. No matter what happens, the world will come to those essentials.”

The continued call for interfaith and intercivilizational dialogue are strong indications that the next century will be one of mutual understanding. This is the position taken by the author of our first article, who writes: “I believe and hope that the world of the new millennium will be a happier, more just, and more compassionate place, contrary to the fears of some people. Islam, Christianity, and Judaism all come from the same root, have almost the same essentials, and are nourished from the same source. Although they have lived as rival religions for centuries, the common points among them and their shared responsibility to build a happy world for all creatures of God make interfaith dialogue among them necessary. This dialogue has now expanded to include the religions of Asia and other areas. The results have been positive.”

The second coming of Jesus is another factor for hope. Perhaps he is the one who will unite our hearts and minds, and remind us of the reason behind creation. In this issue, one of our authors deals with this topic from an Islamic point of view.

We sincerely hope that the new millennium justifies our optimistic expectations…

Talha Sarac: Your Zen master used to call you “setu” which means, “bridge” in English. We all noticed that he was not wrong. You have been a bridge between East and West, “new” and “old,” people and nature. But what is your real purpose in doing your music?

Kitaro: People are losing their cultures day by day. The technology and this global village concept is and will be dominating the world. I want everybody to remember their origins and cultural heritage. This is not difficult. We only have to re-invent ourselves. My purpose is to help everybody in this process.

TS: What has changed since Albatross in your life?

Kitaro: A lot of things… right now, I am busy re-inventing my music and myself. This is a really strange situation, but I think it will help me get even better.

TS: How did you establish your own style, which you do not want people to categorize but is usually called “new age”?

Kitaro: The genre “new age” is roughly 20 years old. But, I want to tell you first, I think all this categorization should be reconsidered and organized again. For example, I do not want to put my style under any current category, because I do not believe there is one that suits…

TS: So you say we better have a category named after you…

Kitaro: That would be nice. (Laughs…)

TS: How do you decide to compose a new song and what influence you in that process?

Kitaro: Even a bird’s singing can be the influence for a new song. I love the nature and I am complete with it. Since, I live in the mountains, I have the chance to go out of the house and take a walk by the lake and listen to the nature’s original sounds. I cannot say that people can be helpful to me while composing, but the sunrises and sunsets are invaluable to me and to my music.

TS: What kind of circumstances should there be when you are composing your music, and does closing your eyes help you in any way when you are performing?

Kitaro: I have to be really alone when I am composing. I do not have many guests in my house in Colorado, but this does not mean I am reclusive. I have to be away from stress and be able to hear my heart. And this is only possible in my lakeside…

TS: You do not only use the latest technology in your music but you also use the oldest instruments which we do not know the names of. What are you trying to do?

Kitaro: People tend to forget what they were like, how they used to live and what their interests were. I am trying to bring the old and new together and blend the outcomes. It is not clever to ignore the richness and originality in the old instruments. And nobody can deny the practicality of the newest instruments. So I think I am lucky enough to be able to use all the instruments that could help my music get even better.

TS: There is a conception that the music Far Eastern musicians make is made to be enjoyed by Far Eastern people. But your music is widely accepted and appreciated in almost any part of the world. Is that conception is a misconception?

Kitaro: I believe in international music. Of course, every nation has its own traditional and cultural music perspectives. But, I am trying to make music beyond peoples. I see all the world nations as one big nation. The differences between those nations do not influence my music in a negative way.

TS: So that is the secret to your music then…

Kitaro: Keep your voice down… (laughs again…)

TS: You are also known the “peaceful” musician of the “peaceful” music. What are your thoughts about the ongoing struggles in Kosovo and in the other parts of world?

Kitaro: The world is coming to an end, and unfortunately we can not do anything to stop this. This war in Kosovo is a shameful war which we will regret to talk about in the future to our kids. I, of course, would like to participate in a concert that would be held in the war area, but I do not think those refugees are in a situation that they will enjoy a concert.

TS: Could you tell anything about your mysterious trip to Mt Fuji to perform the ritual drum ceremony?

Kitaro: I go there every year to play wadaikos. This year it will be performed in September fullmoon. This ceremony should be considered as my thanks to the nature which is the main influence on my music. There is no economic or politic reason to this ceremony.

TS: After this “New Millennium Tour” are there any other projects in or outside of the US?

Kitaro: As for the concert projects, no. But we have this new album coming out probably on September. The album is called “Thinking Of You.” I composed this song, which gave its name to the album, on the last Valentine’s Day. I hope everybody will enjoy listening to, as much as I did composing it. 

TS: We love to listen to Kitaro, but who does Kitaro listen to?

Kitaro: I like traditional music, and I try to listen to different nations’ traditional music. I want to say that, unfortunately, people tend to listen to their traditional music less and less…