The enmities re-erupting in Yugoslavia are tribal enmities going back thousands of years, similar to the conflicts in the Middle East. I do find hope in Jesus' message, that we must give up our little group identities, and see the human family as one. I find the Eastern scriptures just as troubling. One of the major scriptures of the East is the Mahabharata, an epic poem, the longest poem in the world. Most of it is a description of a great battle.
Many scholars believe it reflects an actual battle of ancient India.
But like all such poems, it is to be taken on a symbolic level even more than on a literal or physical level. For it is about the battle which goes on in our souls, a battle between good and evil. It opens as two armies are amassed on opposite sides of a valley. The armies are led by sons of brothers. A great rivalry has arisen between the two brothers, about who should rightly ascend to kingship.