This article first appeared in Forum, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on August 14, 2023 – August 20, 2023

“To thy happy children of the future, those of the past send greetings.” — Traditional Illini greeting, Alma Mater — The University of Illinois (1929–present)

I belong to the Illini Nation — which is to say that I once read at the University of Illinois, US, and am an alumnus. While studying at the twin cities of Urbana-Champaign in the early 1980s, I was introduced to this uniquely American campus culture of herding the student population into a tribe, according to the university’s sporting moniker — hoodies, T-shirts, caps and all.

We were the Fighting Illini — a “tribe” we were introduced to right from the get-go, because all across campus town, the university’s logo, emblems and motto were prominently emblazoned in front of shops, cafés and of course our beautiful auditorium, Student Union building and our majestic sports stadium. All around us, the student body was draped in orange and blue, the university’s colours of choice.

This “herding” or “tribing” had its advantages — especially when rival sports teams visited our campus. We were united in our derision of their sporting prowess, proven or otherwise. Loud shouts of “Osh Kee Wow Wow”, our battle cry, would engulf the twin cities as our teams battled the visitors in the Memorial Stadium. But it was always in good fun. In the end, win or lose, good sportsmanship always triumphed.

I was reminded of this strangely exciting spectacle when I recently found myself at a nomination centre for candidates ahead of the upcoming state elections. To say that the atmosphere there was electric is to state the obvious. Party candidates and their supporters gathered early, hours before the centre opened its doors. Heckling the opposition was the game of the morning and the raucous repartee took me back to the old Fighting Illini Memorial Stadium, at tailgate parties ahead of the games ages ago. I now pray that in the end, when all the ruckus has died down, good sportsmanship continues to triumph and we will unite as never before, to heal and build this nation. After all, we are of one tribe — Malaysian!

Back to the Fighting Illini. The original people of the state of Illinois were a grouping of 13 native American tribes, collectively called the Illiniwek. Their encounters with European settlers in the late 15th century have become the stuff of legend, and characters such as Pocahontas, Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse and Geronimo have been immortalised in literature and history.

What many may not know is these tribes have a religion and they believe in one god (Kitchesmanetoa). He manifests himself in the forces of nature, bringing forth generation, degeneration and regeneration of the world as they knew it.

They were largely peaceful communities that were pastoral and tended to their cattle and horses. They grew maize and potatoes and were far from the barbaric or uncivilised people the white settlers painted them to be. I remember being told by a classmate then, a native American who said wistfully, “When a white army battles our ancestors and wins, it is called a great victory, but if they lose, it is called a massacre.” Winston Churchill was right when he observed all those years ago that “History is written by the victors”.

In recent years, a more accurate portrait of the native American has emerged: noble, brave, disciplined, selfless, honourable, resourceful, spiritual and deeply philosophical.

What many may still not know is that these tragically diminished tribes had an oral tradition that delivered wisdom from one generation to the other. Archaic yes, but their words still ring true even to this day.

Take for instance this advice from Chief White Buffalo of the Lakota Sioux tribe: “Friends, do it this way — that is, whatever you do in life, do the very best you can, with both your heart and mind. And if you do it that way, the power of the universe will come to your assistance. If you truly join your heart and mind as one — whatever you ask for, that is the way it’s going to be.” Five centuries on, his words still hold currency.

I learnt a lot from that old college classmate of mine. While reviewing the theories of accounting after class, we would get into deep discussions that I found fascinating. And as I write, my mind remembers some of the wisdom he shared in his quiet, unassuming way. For instance, as I looked at our present, ill-cobbled-together government, his quote, “A starving man will eat with the wolf”, sounds particularly appropriate.

While his wisdom might have come from the wild prairies of mid-America, the truths they convey are universal. How else can you explain the currency of Cheyenne adages like “To speak wisely, one must listen humbly” or the Pawnee saying empowering the weak: “Even a small mouse has anger”?

We have our own proverbs and wise sayings too. These pearls of wisdom, handed down from one generation to another are often derived from age-old observations. The Malay saying, “Melepaskan batuk di tangga, (to cough at your doorstep, with no intention to visit)”, came from watching too many people who say they will act, when in actual fact they did not intend to. Sound very familiar? Electoral promises fall into this category.

The Chinese have a great proverb: “Talk does not cook rice.” How very apt, when listening to pronouncements of committees being set up to discuss what to do next.

Or the Indian saying, “Where the needle goes, the thread follows”, an admonition to choose the right leader for the right course of action.

I could go on, as every nation, every tribe has its own mores and norms.

I cry for the diminished tribes of America as I lived among some of them in the early 1980s. Their tribes had common languages, customs, rituals, social organisations and religious beliefs now gone. The bartering beads they made by hand are nowadays made in Vietnam!

We must not let our nation, our tribe go the native American way. We do not want our children to reminisce as my native American friend did, blaming the palefaces for their woes. We must fight to preserve our traditional culture, our norms, our mores. We must beat the forces that threaten our way of life, and stay united as a collective community. Argue if we must, disagree if we must, but we must do it agreeably. Only then can we sing our victory song (a local rendition of Osh Kee Wow Wow perhaps) and enjoy our tailgate party till twilight’s end.