Dalan from the Ampisario to all Earthlings and fellow Fluvians.

The Seven Enzas

• All life has oma.

  "Oma" cannot be translated literally into English. Perhaps the best translation might be "All life is sacred." Oma suggests an implicit value, or worthiness. It suggests something to be treasured, and not squandered or taken for granted.

• The oma of the whole is greater than the oma of the parts.

  The Fluvian view of the world revolves around organisms, or communities. Indeed, from a Fluvian point of view, these are the same concept. A body is made up of organs that are made up of tissues that are made up of cells. A nation is made up of communities that are made up of families that are made up of individuals. The oma of the community is greater than the oma of a single family, the oma of the tissue is greater than the oma of an individual cell, and the oma of the family is greater than the oma of a single individual. In fact, the concept of an individual is an arbitrary one, no more meaningful than that of an organ, a community, or a nation.

• The good of the whole is the good of the parts.

  Another translation might be "the good of the whole equals the good of the parts." What this suggests is that whatever benefits an individual also benefits the community. It also means the contrary. That which benifits the community also benefits each of it's members. By the same token, whatever hurts a member of the community also hurts the community.

• All thinkers are my brothers.

  "Thinker" might also be tranlated "learner" or "one who has intelligence." It suggests a familial tie to all others that are capable of reasoning. It does not matter whether the other comes from a different tribe, a different nation or a different planet. All are equal. That is, they have the same oma. Fluvians also feel a kinship to lower life forms, animals and plants, for example. But it is understood that these have less oma.

• I am here to help my brother.

  This is an extension of the concept that the oma of the group is greater than the oma of the individual. This takes it one step further and says that my responsibility is to help my fellow individual. His responsibility, in turn, is to help me. In this way, all are benefited, and the whole is benefited. The idea of selfishness is foreign to the Fluvian.

• My gifts are my responsibilities.

  All of the things we receive, whether they be material things like houses or tools, or intangible things like aptitudes and talents, or even children, are gifts. But with each gift comes a responsibility, a stewardship. We are to take care of the gift, and not take it for granted. And we are also to use the gift to benefit the whole, and not keep it to ourselves.

• I must leave each place better than when I arrived.

  This is in some ways the simplest of the Enzas, and at the same time the most diverse. It has many shades of meaning and a myriad applications. It means that if we visit a brother, then when we leave our brother should have gained something from our visit. As a society, it means that our environment should be improved by our living here. It suggests a stewardship for our home, our surroundings, and the worlds we live on.