The Burden of a Gift

It is often said that giving is better than receiving. But does this mean that we must refuse a gift—especially one that comes to us as the result of what we have done in the past?

As a country blessed with natural endowments as one of the world’s largest oil reserves, Venezuela was among the wealthiest oil-producing nations from the 1970s until the late 1990s. One source notes that Venezuela once recorded gross revenues of up to USD 10 trillion over a two-year period (1973–1975), largely due to oil exports.

As has occurred in many parts of the world, enormous income is often not accompanied by prudent financial management. It is easy to point out corruption as the primary cause of Venezuela’s current economic decline, or to the oil sanctions imposed by the United States since 2019. However, it is worth tracing the country’s historical timeline to gain a clearer understanding of the deeper roots of the problems it faces.

Oil was first discovered in Venezuela in 1922, thanks to the efforts of geologists from Royal Dutch Shell. With growing investments from oil companies in Europe and the United States beginning in the 1930s, Venezuela rose to become the world’s third-largest oil producer, after the United States and the Soviet Union.

Through the 1943 Hydrocarbons Law, Venezuelan authorities required foreign oil companies operating within their territory to allocate half of their oil sales profits to the state treasury. This regulation was a key driver of Venezuela’s rise as an oil-rich nation. The tax revenue was also used as capital to establish a state-owned oil company.

The global recession of the 1980s marked the beginning of the decline of South America’s most prosperous oil state, triggered by a sharp drop in oil prices that severely affected national income. Hugo Chávez’s decision to nationalize several foreign oil companies operating in Venezuela did not lead to economic recovery; instead, it pushed the country deeper into crisis.

More Than Identity

Identity-based sentiment is one of the factors that can strengthen nationalism within a community, which may ultimately lead to the nationalization of foreign-owned assets. Identity cannot be rejected, as it is the first “gift” given by parents and the state to children on the day they are born. A clear identity facilitates administrative processes, yet real life does not always unfold as neatly as the identities held by most people on this planet. 

Illustration: private collection

Despite an awareness of identity, various native faiths in different parts of the world place greater emphasis on the relationship between adherents and the surrounding natural environment—their interactions with it, and the actions required as acknowledgment of nature’s existence itself. Maausk (literally meaning “earth faith”) is one such indigenous belief system in Estonia, founded and practiced according to these principles.

For its adherents, nature itself is sacred: forests, rivers, hills, mountains, and stones have been recognized as sacred sites and have been protected by the government since the Soviet era. Offerings are placed as expressions of gratitude for nature’s abundance, accompanied by the rule that an adherent must not be in a negative psychological state (such as sadness or anger) when visiting a sacred site. This rule, in turn, trains Maausk followers to exercise self-control amid life’s fluctuations.

At certain times, Maausk adherents bring offerings in the form of food they have cooked themselves at home. These dishes are taken to sacred places and offered to ancestors as an expression of respect and affection for those who first opened the land on which people now live, along with the foundations of values and norms they established. Afterward, the food is shared and eaten together, much like a family picnic.

Fate as a “Gift”

The various misfortunes that befall a nation do not occur suddenly; there is always a long process behind them. Regardless of the rhetoric surrounding the nationalization of foreign companies, self-awareness is required to acknowledge that such actions violate international law, whatever the motivations may be. Because we live in a world governed by rules, violations inevitably carry consequences.

History records numerous cases of countries nationalizing the assets of one or more foreign companies operating within their borders—countries that later came to regret the “gift” of life in the form of punishment or remorse. Regulations are not the only guide as to why we should refrain from violating agreements we have made with others. Material losses resulting from unilateral actions will prompt the aggrieved parties to seek compensation through various means, including those that may harm us in the long term, for an indefinite period.

Upholding cultural values and indigenous belief systems is one way we can learn to enhance awareness of our own patterns of thought and psychological states. This awareness is the foundation we need before moving on to the next stage—one that may help us avoid regret arising from our decisions and actions. (dswas)