To Listen Is Not Easy(a note of political-psychological inspiration)
The reformation struggle of Indonesian were truly tested through numerous issues and even tragedies occurs until these day. The Indonesian was challenged to keep struggling to actualized the new Indonesia. It was started on legislation and president election on 2004 directly which is the first even in Indonesia.
Actually, Indonesia was a rich nation, both their resource of nature (SDA) and human (SDM). To actualize Indonesia as the big, developed and future prospected country, which surpass the other nations in the world, was not a difficult task. The main key was on the available human resources, especially what is our human resources mentality?
If we dare to look backward for a while on the time before the reformation until today, there have already many smart people who spokes in all of the aspect in life, thus the democratic atmosphere of our nation filled with many circulation of statements from all party, bringing their thought and interest. Nevertheless the democratic atmosphere of our nation had become battle of statements which sometimes chaotic because everyone would hold to their own ego.
Furthermore, they use every mean necessary in order to fight for their own opinion so the other would accept their opinion. As a consequence everyone too much enjoy with their own opinion and keep pushing it, thus the opinion of the other seem just like the wind or worse, they considered it like the statement of the enemy which must be reject at all cost. People were so much fun in producing words from their lips, and never try to understand any words from the others.
Perhaps it now the resurrection of Rhetoric Sofis that once become trend at the late 5 BC, with their famous philosopher including Gorgias, Lysias, Phidias, Protagoras and Isocrates. This Sofis has concept that speaking skill was achieved when one could brought down the other in every conversations or cases, in the other word, victory was the main purpose. The follower would always, at all cost to win every discussion or cases for their will was debate, thus the Sofis known for people who love to beat about the bush.
If we saw the dynamic of this reformation era we can feel some resemblance with that era mentioned. Everyone or every party always be ready to fight for their own principle or argument neglecting the principle or argument from the other. With any mean necessary, thus many of them were only able to talk but incapable of action. Thus, while many people argue, spokes, criticize, expressing statement, they themselves incapable of learn from their own argument, criticism or statement. In the other word, they could only talk and expecting someone else to do what he himself incapable of doing. Ironic is it not? But that would be the fact.
Thus, this Retorik Sofis phenomenon had entered democratic atmosphere of our nation lately. While one easily state that someone guilty and must be punished, he/ she would runaway when accused to be guilty and must be punished, or worse, one would look for someone else to put the blame on to cover his/her guilt or crime. One would easily suspicious, blame and stated that someone was coward and traitor while one was no better than his/her own statement, or perhaps worse. One would easily cry out that someone was bad and should be put to trial, while the same happen to him/her, one would completely out of guts.
Actually the history had given us answer for our circumstances lately, which by the arising of Traditional Rhetoric pioneered by Plato and continued by Aristoteless as the form of match to the Sofis Rhetoric. This traditional ideology has preference of sought of real truth instead of merely victory for the one who follow this Sofis ideology could drawn to the mutable circumstances. One would easily changes his/her mind or statement in order to reach his/her desired goal and protect oneself or one’s group. It was the description that occurs in Indonesia lately.
Furthermore, Plato in his book entitled Phaedrus explain that Sofis Rhetoric could lead people to neglect the truth, or even thread the truth for winning the main purpose. Plato states that Truth would eventually win, soon or later for the truth was not easily covered by the untruth.
Based on the traditional ideoloty pioneered by Plato and Aristoteles, then it was high importance to us to find the real truth in all aspect of our life, especially to achieved new Indonesia. It was said to find not to look the real truth. To find mean that the real truth was already there somewhere, but to look could be mean that the real truth was nowhere to be found. The question was how to find the real truth?
Actually, since we were child we already trained with four language skill, that were listening, speaking, reading and writing. The skill of speaking was mostly coupled with the skill or listening for both of them relate to the spoken language, while the skill of writing mostly coupled with the skill of reading for both of them related with written language. Those couples were meant that there are close connection between those skills in achieving the language skill.
As we grow up normally we already had those four language skills. As the time goes, often there were some defects in those language skills. It is what become the phenomenon in Indonesia, where most people are to much enjoy with their own opinion without any action. Based on those phenomenon, it was clear that most people could only capable of speaks causing the imbalance that arising negative image to that person, like arogan, selfish, liar, mutable and tend to force his/her will to the other etc.
This is actually avoidable as long as we would balance our skill of speaking with out skill of listening, not hearing. It is the weakness occurs in the reformation era until today, which was lack of will to listen to the given element. Mostly one would keep talking and talking which lessen their will to understand and give thought about argument from the other.
Whereas the will to listen to what other people wants was meant to have two way understanding to deal with the issue dealt that everyone would not be so busy with them selves or their group. With this two-way understanding, then the real truth would be found.
This give rise to our consciousness that everything has its time, there was the time for us to speaks, and there was the time for us to listen that we would not merely spoke or listen. Silent is golden was not always the proper measure for there was a time that we must speaks our mind.
It was indeed to rise some consequences while there was a time that we stand as the one giving claim, become a witness and express the truth but there were also times that we would be claimed, to become the accused, and must confessed our guilt or crime. Thus we were not merely spokes and claim but we must also dare to listen to the other or even be accused by the other for our mistakes.
If we wanted to build democracy in our lovely nation, then it would never be achieved as long as we would not learn to listen to the other people or environment or even to our own consciousness. Just speaking was not enough that we must learn to listen. To listen to the other persons, environment even to our consciousness was not easy as long as we hold to our selfishness. While we dare to speak then we must dare to listen, that we must ready to all the consequences. The role of psychological point of view in this political field was so important. In this circumstances it was important to apply the “psychology of listening” in the context of broad society. Let us listen for the sake of our lovely Indonesia. A leader of the nation must have a proper listening ability.