Community Prosperity Through Shared Effort

“United we stand, divided we fall” is a phrase that sounds pleasant to the ear because reality is often just as beautiful as the saying itself. A football team may fail to secure victory when a striker refuses to pass the ball to a teammate simply because he wants his own name on the scoresheet. As a result, one opportunity after another is wasted because personal ambition refuses to compromise for the sake of a common goal.

The spirit of mutual cooperation is equally inspiring. Helping others is not particularly difficult when everything is going well. It is easier when our jobs are secure and our income is steady, or when inflation is not driving up the cost of living. When spending our own money for the benefit of many does not feel burdensome, or when we do not sigh at the prospect of contributing to a community initiative as a donor.

Yet sacrifice for the community is not limited to material contributions such as money, livestock, food supplies, or anything else that can be seen and touched. Some forms of sacrifice require us to set aside personal ambitions and desires, even when we genuinely believe those ambitions would benefit the common good. In an era where personal image has become a tool for enhancing one's public standing, much like the football example above, this kind of sacrifice can be especially difficult. 

Illustration: a football field in Malang.

Balance Through the Bear

Despite their fierce and intimidating appearance, the sustainability of a forest ecosystem can be threatened if its native wildlife disappears, including bears. Through their feeding habits, bears contribute to the health of forest ecosystems by returning nutrients through the remains of their prey. By hunting certain herbivore species, bears also help prevent population explosions that could rapidly deplete the grasses and plants on which those animals depend, a challenge not unlike those faced by human societies today.

This helps explain why followers of the Indigenous Karelian Faith regard bears as sacred animals that should not be hunted carelessly, let alone eaten. Karelian ancestors viewed bears as equals to human beings, making the consumption of bear meat a form of cannibalism. It is a perspective that remains understandable even today, especially when we consider how the habit of “devouring” one another eventually leads to regret, sooner or later.

Followers of the Indigenous Karelian Faith also practice various customs designed to preserve the balance of the forest ecosystem for all living beings, including bears. For example, before building a home, a family traditionally plants a number of young trees corresponding to the number of family members.

The logic is straightforward. A healthy forest ecosystem supports thriving herbivore populations, which in turn provide food for bears. When bears can find sufficient food in the forest, the likelihood of attacks on human settlements or livestock is greatly reduced. This awareness has become a guiding principle in the daily lives of Indigenous Karelian Faith practitioners because their ancestors taught them never to look down on natural world around them.

Sacrifice and Masochism

Sacrificing for the community is not as easy in practice as it sounds in theory, especially during times of global economic uncertainty such as today. Donating material resources or setting aside personal ego inevitably comes with emotional and financial costs. After all, doesn't 4 minus 2 always equal 2? Doesn't giving mean having less? What if, someday, others take advantage of our generosity for their own interests?

Drawing from the practices of Indigenous Karelian Faith communities, we can see that resources and relationships can be managed in ways that continue generating benefits over the long term. This kind of stewardship is not typically taught in schools or universities. Rather, it develops naturally when there is a sincere commitment to sustaining both human and natural resources. It begins with the awareness to distinguish between a mindset rooted in unhealthy self-sacrifice and one that is truly grounded in genuine love and care for others. (dswas).