Source: Home School YouTube still image
Peace and Love can defeat darkness! We can either choose to follow our desires and submit to the bowels of hell, or we can choose to strive for a more utopian paradise.
Because as the article ” What you want isn’t always good for you” States:
Each day is a new opportunity to start over, to choose to be smarter, and wiser. So let go of the desire of want, and give into a peace that comes with contentment and acceptance.
demiwordsmith
What are your darkest thoughts? What modifications could you make to feel more at peace?
The Drama “Home School” shows how Peace and Love can emerge from the darkest of situations. Through an examination of this Thai drama, we can see how peace and love can flip inequalities and tragedy into something more desirable.
21st-century media provides us with a plethora of information regarding all the tragedies around the world. Although there is a sense, that it can be hard to distinguish between what is fact and fiction. That being said we often find ourselves asking:
How is it that people can commit such evil acts, without having a conscience?
What went through Adolf Hitler’s head when he ordered the mass murder of Jews, Slavs, and Romanies in Germany? and what were his subordinates thinking when they followed his orders.
As weird as it may sound, horrible actions are often justified by a multitude of reasons. Although, we may not agree with their justification.
The important lessons Home School drama teaches
I watched a drama recently, which helped me to understand the need for Peace and Love. It was also helpful in allowing me to make the connection between the actions of some of the characters, to real-life situations.
Fon Kanitha directed this Thai drama called “Home School”, which focused on a boarding school that took in 13 students who had been abandoned by their parents. The school is situated at an unknown location, deep in a secluded part of a forest. Only a select few people know the whereabouts of the school.
Wealthy students make up the majority of the student intake.
Their families frequently donated to the school, to help keep it running. Students are kept in the school for three years and are not allowed to go home unless under special circumstances. Comradery is encouraged through a set of weird curriculums.
Teachers use malign manipulation and coercion to control students.
Students fight back, in Home School, when they realise that the punishments given out to them are too harsh. There are certain behaviours happening in the school that appear very suspicious. The students become super-sleuths and realise an ex-student is being kept captive in the school. Also, the students are being manipulated. Their anger toward their families was used as a ploy to kill them.
An unexplained death occurs in the school.
“Home School” scenes, very much shone a mirror on issues in today’s society.
Connecting Home School to real life
To begin with, the inequalities in society are touched upon through the challenges that particular characters in the drama face.
Master Amin and Phinya are compelled to serve Bodin, a rich spoilt heir, in order to survive. Phinya is basically sold to Bodin, to be his wife, in exchange for money from her parent. Amin tolerates Bodin and serves him loyally, even though he does not see eye to eye with him.
Master Amin comes to believe, during the course of the drama, that everything in life is just handed to Bodin. This is despite his character being questionable.
The school started off as an orphanage for children. There is a stark contrast between the lives of the children, who were in the orphanage, and the latter students of Home School from wealthy homes.
No matter how smart or beautiful or kind-hearted a person is, society always draws a line between people, based on wealth or class.
Unfortunately, people who are closer to the axis of power or wealth are those who get the first pass to privileges and comfort.
In real life, the inequalities between people are as clear as day and night. The further away a person is from the axis of power, wealth, or class, the more the person’s life is deemed insignificant. The world jumps at the death of celebrities, world leaders, and wealthy families. Yet, the unjust deaths of ordinary people are not really talked about. We are all classified differently in society and this did not start today.
The best we can do is to live life as it comes while trying hard to climb the ladder of success.
The inevitability of death
Another important factor was the inevitability of death. Reminding us how Peace and Love can defeat darkness, through our salvation.
Throughout this drama, audiences can see that just because someone has good intentions – it does not mean the person gets a free pass to eternal life.
Phinya, who had good intentions for the children in the orphanage, died early in her life. Master Amin, who carried on Phinya’s dreams at the house, who had educated the abandoned children, got diagnosed with a fatal illness. This gave him a shorter life span than Bodin, who did not have good intentions.
Bodin’s only aim was monetary profit.
Later on, Master Phraephorn is killed by Master Prasat. Phraephorn had put her life on the line to save the students from murdering their parents or being murdered themselves. Yet she had succumbed to the evil actions of her teacher.
Even Master Amin, who had good intentions, became vengeful and manipulated the death of Bodin when he was hypnotised and his subconscious mind was accessed. The students also almost killed their parents because of the anger that they felt towards them, which was fueled by Master Prasat. Being vengeful did not suddenly happen to these characters and it is easy to wonder if other tragic actions by people started from a place of pain. Master Prasat acted like that because he was physically abused by his father and Master Champ acted in that manner because he was discriminated against due to the fact that his family was not wealthy nor powerful enough, even though he worked hard to be the best he could.
Suffering disappointment
During this drama, it is clear that every human being has a dark side to them, and when pushed they tend to commit horrible deeds. The drama turns very dark when the unfair situations that Master Champ and Master Prasat both dealt with earlier in their lives. This turned them into vengeful beings who were capable of doing anything, no matter how horrendous it was. Two teachers were killed and a student almost died after being shot by Master Champ. Master Champ and Master Prasat misdirected the anger they felt toward the world toward innocent people. Unfortunately, these people had done nothing to deserve their wrath.
Phinya gets very upset when she realises that she will not be there to take care of the children in the orphanage. Sadly she is unable to accomplish her dream of creating a place for abandoned children. After Master Amin is diagnosed with a fatal illness, he is also seen in pain. He looks to God, asking the heavens why he had to die when he had done so much good.
As with the characters in Home School, there are a number of people around the world who die unjustly. Sudden unexplained deaths from fatal illnesses, disasters, or even those who are murdered.
We often ask ourselves- why did they have to go through this when they were good people?
Yet, maybe death is like that, it has no respect for people.
In the beginning, I asked what was the darkest thought you have ever had and at what moment you felt the most at peace. Now can you see how Peace and Love can defeat darkness?
Final thoughts
The students almost committed horrendous actions because their families decided to abandon them and did not act in the way that they expected adults to act.
Despite the unrefutable fact that we are capable of such horrible acts, at the same time we are also capable of beautiful actions. Even when faced with pain and discrimination. The students almost killed their parents, which means they did not. They stopped and did not allow themselves to turn into monsters, but people who could move past the pain and share love in order to be better than the people who caused the pain in the first place, even if it was their families.
With this said, the Thai drama, Home School brought to the fore a number of relisations.
Firstly, despite the painful realities of life: societal inequalities, and the suddenness of death, coupled with the pain that we might face from the actions of other people. We can become beautiful people who share love with one another so that the cycle does not repeat itself.
Secondly, it is true that Peace and Love can defeat darkness. Yes, we have seen the negative effects of the darkness which includes wars and strife. However, we can choose the light, so we can share peace and love despite our pain.