The 8th of March is celebrated worldwide as Women's Day.

The meaning attributed to this day might change from country to country, region to region, but what is actually emphasized is the sanctity of human dignity. 

For human dignity is a whole. Both men and women are equally present in this dignity. A woman's dignity is just as important and sacred as a man's. 

This basic truth is the essence of creation. It is the unadulterated version of existence.

What matters is attaining this essence and preserving this purity.

But when a person prioritizes his desires and cravings over this basic truth, he is locking up his essence. And this feeds the person's ego/selfishness. It hardens the tender human heart as well as their words and actions. In that hardening, all good values and virtues that bring about the truth and spirit of life, particularly the dignity of men and women is lost. In this context, if individual and social consciousness does not develop, if ignorance prevails, the intellectual roots of the negativity prejudice grow stronger and social conflicts are stoked. At this rate, the humanity of the human born of man and woman is impaired. The main factors that ensure human progress and cleanse the human spirit are harmed. 

In the context of healing, the methods that turn this situation into a positive must be of such pure intent that people can escape from any sense of conflict. The people should draw nearer to the essence. Because intent and action are like body and soul. Just as a lifeless body decomposes into soil, every action that is not borne of good intent ends in misery. Good intent renders the few many, the small great, and the worthless valuable. It keeps the person from being self-centered. For self-centered thoughts/actions make one conceited. It adds to existing conceit and eliminates humility. It upsets the balance of the spirit. When life's balance is disturbed, the resulting instability reflects on people's actions, relationships, and practice. Unfortunately, imbalances materializing in behavior lead to problems and undesirable results.

The perspectives developed in the human mind are of vital importance here. So much so that these perspectives are like windows to life. This can be a window to a dark tunnel filled with negative judgements. It can also be a window to beautiful garden filled with the wonders of human dignity that one cannot get enough of watching. This is absolutely related to the perspective on life and one's upbringing. In other words, our lives will take shape according to our perspective. Our perspective on life turns into attitudes/behaviors, which chart out our lives. 

It should not be forgotten that the privilege of being human is attained by approaching justice and truth with honesty, and treating men, women, and all living beings morally. This is how one becomes human and takes more enjoyment from life. 

Bardaysan ( + 222), a famous expert in Syriac philosophy, says the following in this regard: "Good is part of human nature. Evil is an anomaly." 

The essence and truth of goodness is unchanging. What changes is human perception and comprehension. The more the perception of life and self in a human turns positive and develops, the more that person's perspective on life changes, and the more it will evolve.

When we learn to view women as persons instead of objects, many things will change. Yes, talents, skills, and roles may vary but life is a whole. "Human dignity" represents the essence of this wholeness. There is no exploitation or supremacy here, equality is fundamental. There is no gender discrimination in this equality. Sacred human dignity belongs to women just as much as it does to men. In other words, gender discrimination is an anomaly. It is not part of the essence.

The important thing is to uplift and appreciate human dignity, which is part of the essence, showing love and respect. The important thing is that this dignity is not disregarded and exploited through inhumane attitudes like gender discrimination.

One of the foremost reasons that cause problems in people's lives is trivializing what's valuable. No one should belittle others and making them feel less than they are worth. Just as in all relationships, men should honor women, and women men....

What matters is breaking free of the sense of conflict and taking custody of this dignity which belongs to the essence. To put aside relative attitudes and value oneself and others. What matters is being able to complete others with servile motives as much as one can, in order to be completed oneself. Because LOVE, which cannot be contained by the intellect and by rules, is the secret of creation. Love creates, love sustains. Because God is love. Thus, love is the antidote against the moral evil and all evils.

Any person, whether man or woman, who discovers this secret accepts seen and unseen differences as they are. And the more they accept, the stronger they grow. The stronger they grow, the lighter they become. The lighter they become, the heavier they become. The heavier they become, the more they mature. The more the mature, the more they come to realize the boundaries and fallacies that limit them. The more they realize, the better they understand that life would be unbearable without a sense of responsibility.

Happy Women's Day.

Best regards,

Malfono Yusuf Beğtaş

President of the Syriac Association of Language, Culture and Literature