From the 4th to the 13th century, central Vietnam was the cradle of Cham civilization, marked by Hindu spiritual influences from India. After centuries of prosperity, the kingdom declined, mainly due to its central role in the spice and silk trade between China, India, the Indonesian islands and the Abassid empire of Baghdad, which attracted the covetousness of its neighbors who eventually defeated it. In 1968, the remains of these fallen emperors were almost buried under the "poisoned gifts" dropped by the B-52s of "civilization".

This story evokes that of the Mayans, Aztecs, Aborigines and other so-called primitive peoples. Yet in 2014, when Daech destroyed cultural sites, they were branded cultural genocidaires. Today, our "civilized" leaders turn a blind eye when the "cousin with the Star of David" destroys hospitals, schools and other places where its oppressed neighbor gathers.

Have we really progressed since the barbarian hordes of Genghis Khan?

When I walk among these ruins of Cham power, I feel sad. I'm not proud to come from a rich, industrialized society, capable of manufacturing napalm shells and financing distant wars with billions.

A dull anger weighs down my heart. Sadness prevails. My energy is heavy. I look to the Vietnamese for signs of their anger.

Anger is the energy of the warrior, the energy that enables us to confront conflicts and defend our space and our values. But do we use it for the right cause, to confront our fears, prejudices and inner wounds, or do we let it overwhelm us to oppress those who are weaker or different from us?

All too often, this unloved emotion finds another outlet: here, it's the age-old oppressor, the neighbor to the north who has always sought to dominate, just as the Viets dominated minority ethnic groups. In the Holy Land, it's the indigenous neighbor, victim of the arbitrary decisions of the imperialist victors, who pays the price of ancestral rejection. At home, it's our loved ones who suffer the frustrations accumulated at work or with our partner.

How do you use anger, and does it use you?