"RUSH TO RICHES: THE WAR ON CREATION": WELCOME SPEECH BY SAJU CHACKALACKAL

PAUL WIEGELMANN ANNUAL LECTURES ON ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES 2011-2012
RUSH TO RICHES: THE WAR ON CREATION
Prof. Rayappa A. Kasi
Friday, 26 August 2011

WELCOME ADDRESS
Dr. Saju Chackalackal

Prof. Dr. Fr. Francis Thonippara, our President, Respected Rev. Prof. Rayappa A. Kasi, an Eco-Warrior and a professional trainer of volunteers for the protection of nature, and the speaker of the second Paul Wiegelmann Annual Lectures on Environmental Studies 2011-2012, invited guests, superiors from various campus houses and seminaries, faculty members of Philosophy, Theology, Canon Law, and Vinayasadhana, fathers, sisters, brothers and dear friends,
Nature is bountiful. She has her being in letting herself to be shared by all elements that constitute her so much so that she exists and thrives in a symbiotic relationship established among everything created. Her ability to give without reserve is unmatched. Whoever reaches out to her will not go empty handed, as her bounty never gets drained or dried out.
Being essentially part of and having a distinctive position within the nature, human beings have to assume greater responsibilities to protect and care for the whole creation. As human beings are endowed with the faculties of intellect and will, they are uniquely capable of enhancing the course and content of nature through their ongoing creative involvement facilitated through better understanding and judicious choices.
The symbiotic relationship between the bountiful nature and creative human being is a fact that cannot be questioned or denied. The history of the universe, especially the history of human involvement in the spontaneous or agency-induced evolution of nature for millions of years, as they are gathered from different types of research carried out in recent years in different parts of the globe, attests to the fact that human presence was a blessing to the extent that they cared for the bountiful nature without adversely affecting her natural rhythm.
Dharmaram is not only a garden of virtues, as its name stands for; it is literally a garden filled with a lot of greenery, flowers, and fruits that the Mother Earth has blessed us with. In fact, having so much of green amidst the erstwhile “Garden City” of Bangalore is a big surprise to many who enter our campus. Let us thank God and all those who have been instrumental in maintaining the green in our campus, which in a way functions as an antidote to the increasing pollution level of the Bangalore City. Though our contribution may not completely resolve the issue, what we contribute in terms of the greenery and eco-friendly practices would definitely become a solace to the havoc that the metro-city of Bangalore does to the nature and the climate.
The great visionary who planned and started Dharmaram Campus, late Bishop Jonas Thaliath of happy memories, had a vision of harmony of life as the foundational source as well as the goal of Christian mission. In tune with this vision, he had masterminded Dharmaram in such a way that nature was nurtured all through her existence and mission. As the Faculty of Philosophy has evolved out of the pioneering vision of Bishop Jonas, during the celebration of the silver jubilee of the Faculty of Philosophy, as a memento, we instituted the Centre for Environmental Studies. Immediately after the establishment of the Centre, we had started offering academic programmes to our students; this year, as part of the regular programme, Fr. John Neelankavil, the director of the Centre for Environmental Studies will offer a course on “Environmental Threats” and I thank him for the same and a number of other nature-pro conscientization programmes that he has planned for the campus.
Two years ago, a very devout Christian family living in a remote village of Germany, the family of Wiegelmann, consisting of one sister and a brother, Ottilie and Paul, who are known to me for years, contacted me at the demise of the brother. His name is Paul Wiegelmann, in whose memory the annual lectures of the Centre for Environmental Studies are instituted. He was a committed farmer and an enthusiastic nature lover. He lived most of his life in a village called Bruchhausen am Steinen, near Olsberg in Germany. All through his life, he lived and worked with nature; he, in fact, loved the nature to such an extent that he was proud of it. Very vividly, I remember him taking me around, especially to his ranch house on the top of a mountain. He was always so close to nature to such an extent that he did not want to harm it unnecessarily and before his death he had shared with his sister and friends that he would not have flowers on his grave, but asked all his family and friends to spare the money for the cause of a Christian mission in India. It was the money that came from his funeral service that formed the foundational capital of the Centre for Environmental Studies at DVK. Hence, fittingly, we decided to name the annual lectures in his name and it is, therefore, christened as “Paul Wiegelmann Annual Lectures on Environmental Studies.” It is the second series of those lectures that are being held today. I gratefully remember and thank Ottilie Wiegelmann for instituting and facilitating these annual lectures.
It is said, passion for anything is contagious. Passion of one person can ignite the hearts of many others; a passionate person can become a catalyst in a society, initiating a number of positive actions, which would trigger an action-reaction chain whereby a lot of people would eventually share the same passion. I am extremely happy to have amidst us Prof. Rayappa A. Kasi, who is passionately involved in protecting and promoting nature. Through his research, studies, reflection, writing, and an innumerable number of training sessions across the globe, Fr. Rayappa is acutely aware of the inestimable problems that the entire creation faces today, especially due to human greed and carelessness. Being a very patient but persistent eco-warrior, Fr. Rayappa has initiated a process to counter the menace that affects our environment through positive action and conscientization programmes.
Rayappa A. Kasi, a native of A. Kattupadi, Vellore, a Catholic priest, a Cosmologist and a frog conservationist, works in the Diocese of Vellore and often travels around the world giving lectures on Global Warming and Climate Change to younger generations. He is a long time associate of Edward O. Wilson, a renowned evolutionary biologist of Harvard University, Boston, who is the champion of ant conservation.
Prof. Rayappa A. Kasi studied philosophy at St. Paul’s Seminary, Trichy (and Fr. Francis Vineeth was one of his teachers, which he recalls with a lot of fond memories and gratitude); later, he pursued his theological studies and research at Propaganda Fide, Rome. His publications include, apart from innumerable articles, 10 books on Ecology and Environment. His first book Earth: The Lost Paradise of Happiness was a best seller. The second book was on Global Warming: Everything You Want to Know. Then came Biosphere: The Fragility of Our Natural Heritage, Lithosphere: A Destructive Creator, Hydrosphere: The Giver of Life, Atmosphere: A Thin Line between Life and Death, Earth: Designed for Biodiversity – Life Will Find a Way, Youth: An Avatar of New Earth, Apes to Angels: Man Reaches His Omega Point, and the last in the series, his 10th baby, as Fr. Rayappa fondly looks at it, will be published today during our concluding session of today’s programme, and it is titled Rush to Riches: The War on Creation; (all the books are displayed at the backside of this auditorium, and most of them could also be downloaded from the official website of Fr. Rayappa A. Kasi).
Rayappa has given hundreds of lectures and workshops to students around the world on ecology and environment. He has lectured more than 145,000 students and his audience ranges somewhere between the age of 12 and 35. His website is one of the most visited websites around the world. He is residing at present in a small parish in the Vellore Diocese in Tamil Nadu, where he trains young environmentalists and forms them into small groups called “Eco Protection Force,” and “Eco-Warriors.”
After the Copenhagen Summit on Climate Change, in 2009, which unfortunately ended without any positive result, Prof. Rayappa has intensified his campaign on Environment, hoping to convince every individual of his or her ability and responsibility to make a difference. Hence, the lecture series that Prof. Rayappa offers would set in motion a mutiny against the “Rush to Riches,” against industrialization, modernization, consumption, and exploitation of the Earth. He proposes to argue that we must utilize religious and political power for the service to Earth instead of misusing it in ruthless battles on Creation. We must develop a spirit of compassion toward Earth – against land, water, air, and life. Rayappa believes that a New Green Era is already unfolding, if we believe in the power of religions. Religions can help usher in a Green Era that will revolve around the themes of sacrifice, sharing, rightsizing, sustainability, and carbon-footprint. Creation and Green Earth depend on harnessing the wisdom of religions, in order to bring about personal and global transformation.
I am indeed happy that we have Prof. Rayappa A. Kasi with us to deliver the second Paul Wiegelmann Annual Lectures on Environmental Studies for 2011-2012, under the auspices of the Centre for Environmental Studies in the Faculty of Philosophy. As you already know, today, he will speak on “Rush to Riches: The War on Creation.” As the nature is being excessively used by the vested interests, supported by the political powers and manipulated by the market and media, only conscientious deliberations and practices would pave the right way for conscious just action in favour of nature. As we experience the climatic changes, and the total unpredictability of nature as the years go by, the concerns are no more futuristic, but they are so existential that we have no time to wait and see whether something adverse would take place at all. In fact, all of us are on the verge of destruction, which may happen even today or tomorrow. It becomes all the more difficult that we do not see it as obviously as it should have been. However, I am sure that these lectures that Prof. Rayappa will offer a critical analysis of the present scenario and call for immediate and concerted action. Hence, in the name of the President of DVK, the staff and students of the Faculty of Philosophy, particularly in the name of Rev. Fr. John Neelankavil, the director of the Centre for Environmental Studies, and all those who have gathered here, I am happy and proud to extend a very warm and cordial welcome to Rev. Prof. Rayappa A. Kasi to deliver the “Paul Wiegelmann Annual Lectures on “Rush to Riches: The War on Creation.”
I am also glad to welcome Rev. Prof. Dr. Francis Thonippara CMI, the president of Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram to these annual lectures. In fact, I am happy to inform you that it was his encouragement and unrelenting support that made the establishment of this centre and its programmes. While thanking Prof. Francis Thonippara, our president, for all that he had been contributing to the cause of enhancing environmental consciousness the staff and students of DVK, I very cordially welcome him to this second Paul Wiegelmann Annual Lectures on Environmental Studies.
I am happy to see that there are many professors and students from the Faculty of Theology, Institute of Oriental Canon Law, the Institute of Spirituality and Counselling, and also from our neighbouring institutions who have come over here to participate in this annual lecture. Dear Friends, your presence is a testimony to the fact that the cause for which the Centre for Environmental Studies has been established is noble and that there are many who consider it to be of great importance. Therefore, I am very happy to have all of you with us for these lectures and may I extend to you a warm welcome.
Finally, I am very much encouraged by the presence of my colleagues and the students in the Faculty of Philosophy, who are the backbone of the faculty as well as the spirit behind the success of every programme that we conduct. I recall the hard work that my companions as well as my beloved students have put in to arrange the required things for this meeting. We have witnessed the thought-provoking street play “Wounded Nature… Bounded Human,” that our second year Bachelor of Philosophy students had put up at the beginning of the procession. The colourful procession and the message of being with the nature are the innovations of Fr. John, which are executed with the assistance of our students. The introduction of the bullock cart, I think, was a very novel and inspiring concept. We also await another mime from our students during the concluding session; it is thematically titled as “Save the Nature!” All in all, they have put in the best to make the whole event a memorable and successful one. I am grateful to all of them, very especially to Fr. John Neelankavil and all student volunteers who support the cause of the Centre for Environmental Studies. Although they need not be formally welcomed, let me cordially extend a very warm welcome to all my colleagues and students in the Faculty of Philosophy. Welcome, my dear friends!
I have a hopeful feeling that “all is not lost.” That is a consoling thought; however, this consoling thought has to initiate positive action to set the things right. The programmes of the Centre, especially these annual lectures offer us a special occasion to reset our priorities, and fine tune our preferences. We need to “think-pro-nature”, “speak-pro-nature”, and “act-pro-nature.”
Instead of grabbing every opportunity for selfish gains, the humanity has to tune in itself to a new philosophy of sharing, where one would not hold anything back to oneself, but would give away for the other, even to the extent of giving away all that one has and, hopefully, much more than what one has… Indeed, everything is not lost, as long as humanity has not lost itself!
Wishing you a wonderful and fruitful time with Prof. Rayappa, I remain. Thank you!

"Wounded Nature and Bounded Human" (Foreword) by Saju Chackalackal

Foreword
Wounded Nature
and Bounded Human

Nature is bountiful. She has her being in letting herself to be shared by all elements that constitute her so much so that she exists and thrives in a symbiotic relationship established among everything created. Her ability to give without reserve is unmatched. Whoever reaches out to her will not go empty handed, as her bounty never gets drained or dried out.
Being essentially part of and having a distinctive position within the nature, human beings have to assume greater responsibilities to protect and care for the whole creation. As human beings are endowed with the faculties of intellect and will, they are uniquely capable of enhancing the course and content of nature through their ongoing creative involvement facilitated through better understanding and judicious choices.
The symbiotic relationship between the bountiful nature and creative human being is a fact that cannot be questioned or denied. The history of the universe, especially the history of human involvement in the evolution (spontaneous or agency-induced) of nature for millions of years, as they are gathered from different types of research carried out in recent years in different parts of the globe, attests to the fact that human presence was a blessing to the extent that they cared for the bountiful nature without adversely affecting her natural rhythm.
This story, however, is found to have taken a different course in the recent past, especially from the era of agricultural and industrial revolutions. As it happens with any revolution, there were ruptures to the rhythm of nature both in deregulated and artificially augmented agricultural and industrial production, where the bounty of nature, instead of being handled with care and concern by human beings, began to be exploited without reserve, leading to catastrophic depletion of many resources, some of them being pushed even to a point of no return.
A self-destructive drive was set in motion in the human approach to nature, directly or indirectly under the auspices of religious divinity and/or the tutelage of statutory majesty. Unfortunately, however, human beings many a time did not realize the obvious fact that the destruction of nature – even if it was reflected only in a particular element – was at the same time a destruction of their own lives. The unfortunate alienation of all non-human elements of nature by human beings, though had the ‘blessing’ and ‘justification’ from some organized religions, had accentuated the exploitation of nature. For example, the biblical sources were (mis)interpreted by some belonging to the Semitic religious traditions to licence unbridled human plundering of the nature. Moreover, as the capitalist economic doctrine was found to be the most popular form of commerce, and as political powers leaned over to the capitalist free market economies for their advantage, the destruction of nature reached its climax. All the more, a misconceived alliance between the religious powers and economic powers, especially of western Christianity and economic capitalism as it was practised in Europe and North America, issued the death warrant to the whole nature, as they together could salvage any plan to exploit nature’s bounty. Further progression (or digression!), more powerful than ever in the recorded history, in this regard took place through the ideological and political facilitation of globalization, whereby the destructive strategies of production and distribution have not only been made to go global, but has triggered a tantalizing of the human want to its extreme so much so that the extortion of almost all the natural resources available all through the bountiful nature would not suffice to meet the ever-increasing need and boundless greed of the people. Industries thrive, economies aim at two-digit annual growth, and men and women aim at all possible goods and services which can be manufactured and distributed by availing the limited resources in nature, which otherwise should have been cautiously used in view of sharing them with the future generations as well.
Although most of us are happy with the availability of goods and services (as and when they are needed), and the advanced gadgets and facilities to make our lives comfortable and career efficient, seldom do we realize that the production and distribution of these are done at a high price, the adverse impacts of which would go well beyond our generation, as the damage done makes the vulnerable nature wounded to the core and further derailed and distanced from its own course. Despite the fact that most of the things of the consumerist culture is taken for granted and life would seem too difficult, or almost impossible, in their absence, even moderate assessment of experts indicates that the pace of life in the second half of the twentieth century and in the twenty-first century seems to have lost its natural dynamics and organic rhythm. The new globalized world of sheer business and hardcore exploitation has an almost exclusive focus on economic growth, which has thwarted all other areas and diverse dynamics of life so much so that materialistic overtones and consumerist concerns tend to rule everyone and everything.
Despite the ‘all is lost’ impression and the overarching doom that descends upon almost all areas of creation and life, it must be borne in mind that the unique status of human beings enables us to hope for the best by, first, realizing the widespread and long-lasting harm done and, then, understanding their causes and committing to the corrective measures to set the course right. We must learn from our mistakes and make provisions to protect and preserve the nature in a sustainable manner, which would necessarily include protection and judicious use of natural resources. It would be possible only if we realize that the ecosystems, which include the animate and inanimate realities, are essential to the support of life in all forms.
It is heartening to note that the world at large is becoming increasingly aware of the havoc that has beheld the entire creation; at least at the level of knowing, many are acutely aware of the devastating effects of certain modern practices adopted by the human beings, individually and collectively. Of course, despite the international treaties drawn up by different governmental and non-governmental bodies, there are certain influential political powers that are not ready to make any significant reduction in their nature-degrading production practices or lifestyle changes, which would not only benefit themselves but the entire creation. However, the enhancement of human consciousness that goes beyond the political divide and national affiliations has emerged more powerful, setting the trend to initiate more nature-friendly policies and practices. Even if the political might seems to succeed for a while with their anti-natural pro-economic drives, the intense awareness, firm conviction, and unwavering commitment of a minority initiate a catalyst effect upon the people at large, which seem to open the avenues of a symbiotic relationship among the creation, where nature would be priced far above the quick-buck seeking economic and political gimmick. Despite the imperfections shared by democratic political processes, where the doctored majority voice turns out to rule the box, it also offers us the opportunity for the people’s voice being heard. As more and more people are aware of the issues involved in the exploitation and extermination of nature for vested interests of the economic and political mighty around the globe, the move to save the earth, environment, and life seems to gain momentum and impact.
Looking at the whole issue of exploiting and exterminating nature from a critical angle would clearly indicate that the humanity has arrived at this through a sheer selfish mode of existence and action. The capitalist thrust which has been identified by many as the ‘successful’ mode of conducting economic transactions focuses on the generation of profit at any cost. When the capitalist mode is wedded to a utilitarian philosophy, even cutthroat competition and exclusive thrust on profit are said to be justifiable provided that would facilitate the amassing of economic benefit for the parties who run the show; as long as they gain their best, without incurring any loss, anything, including the exploitation of anyone or anything is acceptable among the practitioners of capitalism. The rule of thumb is the gain of the self. One could go any extent, provided that would open up the avenues for more gain and more profit for oneself. The fact that the resource rich countries around the globe (for example, some countries in Asia, Africa, and South America) encounter the poorest of the living conditions and the mayhem in the areas of development, political instability, etc., is indicative of the worst that can be set in motion by those who are intent on grabbing the best, even if the rest are left in the lurch of economic deprivation and social cohesion.
While the humanity has paved the way for the destruction of nature, the only way to salvage ourselves along with nature is to curb our selfishness, on the one hand, and to initiate positive measures of reinstating the nature to its mode of self-maintenance and protection through selfless action in favour of nature, on the other. As the symbiotic relationship existing in nature facilities each one’s mutual support and dependence, creating a mutually enhancing symbiotic network of relationship among the entire creation, including all animate and inanimate existences, is the need of the hour.
Nature is the most effective nurturing ground of all; in fact, apart from and beyond nature, no embodied existence can survive or nurture itself. As nature is devastated due to unbridled human carelessness and exploitation, it is increasingly becoming inhospitable (e.g., by unmatched increase in pollution, mostly consisting of emissions and effluents) and unmanageable (e.g., the global warming is known to have done irreparable damage and has reached almost a point of no return). In the context of emphasis being placed on more industrial output and furthering of sound economic growth rate, chances are quite high for further degradation of nature. Although this self-defeating process against nature (which includes the human beings) has been set in motion by human beings, an end to this can be brought about only through the same human beings, but only if they are ready to change. It should be a metanoia – change of heart – that runs through their thinking, speaking, and acting, inviting every human being to be infused by the true teachings of various religions.
True to their fundamental nature, religions have been facilitating a healthy relationship not only between human beings and God, but also between human beings and the nature. Despite some of the overtures on the part of these religions at one time or the other in the history of humanity, religion, if employed properly and creatively, is an effective institution to initiate and sustain trendsetting changes among the people. Christian teaching, for example, offers a ray of hope in this regard through its centrality on the total self-giving for the other. Against the background of all-pervasive human selfishness having caused most of the exploitation and degradation of nature, a true understanding of the Christian perspective would call for the practice of sharing and self-giving for the sake of others. While all are interested in grabbing as much as possible for oneself or one’s own, a true Christian will have to let go of everything for the sake of the other, including the nature. As we take part in the nature’s bounty, each one, then, has a responsibility to give back to the nature and to others as much as one can; while all other living beings would give back to nature whatever they have received from nature (as their nature is such that they neither hold anything back to themselves, nor do they take more than they need), human beings have a responsibility to give back to nature much more than they receive. It is due to their endowments of intelligibility and conscience which place upon them a greater responsibility to remedy the harm already done either by themselves or by their forefathers. As Pope John Paul II has put it in his encyclical, Sollicitudo rei socialis (“Social Concerns of the Church,” 1987), human society should pay attention to “the limits of available resources, and of the need to respect the integrity and the cycles of nature and to take them into account when planning for development” (§26). This would become a reality only in the case of human beings, by employing their intellect and will, in being and becoming true human beings placed in the matrix of nature. A true Christian, then, will not participate in any action that would bring about the death or annihilation of nature, but would be an ardent participant in resetting the nature back to its healthy course, by giving back to nature much more than one receives from nature.
A careful and impartial analysis of the sources of almost all religions would indicate that there are enough and more ideals and ideological provisions for the mutually enhancing existence of all within the world, highlighting the prominent responsibilities of the humanity as a whole in this regard. Moreover, as international organizations such as the United Nations and various political sovereignties across the world claim the right to manage the affairs of the people for the realization of the common good, they too have a greater responsibility to see to it that nature is properly cared for, as they make provisions for its continued use (or misuse!). While the states claim their legitimacy through legislation, religions have their justification in offering inspiration to their votaries; together they could make a significant difference in the lives of human beings through proper legislations for the holistic development and sustenance of nature. In fact, these two core institutions of human society shall become effective only if they could initiate a different kind of thinking and life based on a set of values and attitudes that are based on the self-giving and other-enhancing worldview.
It is such a realization in the context of an acute awareness of the environmental problems that are encountered by the whole creation and a systematic analysis of their complicated causes that is at the source of this amazing book Rush to Riches: The War on Creation. Rayappa A. Kasi, an eco-warrior in his own right and commitment, offers us an incisive analysis of the present plight of the world focused exclusively on a rush to riches by waging an incessant war on creation, which is beset by many ills ranging from mysterious illnesses to catastrophic climatic conditions, unpredictability of weather to unprecedented global warming, and ruthless human greed to hopeless lethargy of political sovereignties. To cite an example, Kasi writes: “The holy land of India is stripped, raped, abused, and pillaged. Violence has been perpetrated to the extreme on the land of ahimsa in the form of modernization, industrialization, westernization, globalization, and contamination. Guess what? India is losing in the war of rush to riches” (329). After having depicted the maladies that the nature faces, which do not seem to be showing any sign of immediate improvement, and knowing well from his scientific expertise and immense experience that there is no alternative for a sustainable development which will be good both for the humanity and for the rest of creation, Rush to Riches dwells on the creative role that different religions should play in inaugurating a new era against the war on creation. According to Kasi, human beings have to respond to the plea of nature, which is obviously visible and audible in themselves, by changing their approaches and attitudes.
The proposal of Rush to Riches is not any temporary small-scale solution. In fact, its author does not believe in any cosmetic rearrangements or a hand-to-mouth solution. Instead, the proposal is for a total revamp of human approach to nature, by challenging a number of contemporary practices that seem to go against ourselves and our nature. According to Rayappa A. Kasi, “What may be hoped for is that humanity, on account of her fine and scientific intellect, will realize the obvious and retrace her steps and, from the demoralizing industrialism, she will find a way out. It will not necessarily be a return to the old absolute simplicity. But it will have to be a reorganization in which village life or simple life will predominate, and in which brute and material force will be subordinated to the spiritual force…” (241).
Although he calls for swifter human action (compared to the almost ten thousand years long agricultural revolution and two-centuries long industrial revolution, the environmental revolution should have a momentum, if it should succeed, compressed into a few decades), “the heart of environmental revolution is a change in values, one that derives from a growing appreciation of our dependence on nature. Without it there is no hope. In simple terms, we cannot restore our own health, our sense of wellbeing, unless we restore the health of the planet” (296). It is this process that is referred to as the new mode of sustainable development. Without halting the progress that humanity has been making, it proposes a more intelligent planning and execution of developmental paradigms that would protect and preserve the entire creation for the good of itself. In the given context of our contemporary economic and industrial practices, Rayappa proposes an intelligent understanding of sustainable development and an action plan to be adopted: “Sustainable development is defined as balancing the fulfilment of human needs with the protection of the natural environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but in the indefinite future. It means development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Thus, to save the environment, it is not necessary to sacrifice our economic growth but it is necessary to adapt our economic growth in order to protect the environment” (409).
Indeed, the call is to creatively involve in facilitating the growth of everything, be it a plant or tree, a tiny insect or animal, or a human baby or a grown up: everything should have its due place in nature, even if one may not always understand the implication or relevance of the other elements or agents within a given context. Both the presence and absence of anything can set in motion a ‘butterfly-effect’, which may have positive or negative impact upon everything in the world.
Hoping for a positive catalyst effect from both the concerned and the unconcerned about the plight of nature, Kasi offers an intense personal invitation to all his readers. He writes: “As a Catholic priest, I believe that addressing this imbalance at its roots requires more than public policy, regulation, or legislation. It will require a collective psychological process (a global consciousness or noosphere) to heal us, technological peoples, who, through a mechanized culture, have lost touch with the natural world... We seek to reclaim the wisdom of native peoples and reconnect the noosphere to the primal matrix of the earth. A species smart enough to discover the double helix should be wise enough to leave unsustainable … technology and development” (351) and should seek other modes and paradigms to live a holistic life, a life and its amenities which would be through and through pro-nature. More than an invitation, here is a passionate appeal to save the planet earth. It is not something that one would do by oneself; it needs our collective will and concerted action plans.
Both religious and political powers have to contribute their might in this regard, as they are the most conspicuous and powerful agencies that can change the world for bad or for good. Even if we realize that their powers have been identified at the base of almost all the problems we confront today, they do have the potential for impacting positive and constructive changes. Hence, hoping against hope, Rush to Riches envisages that the war on creation can be halted and a post-war reconstruction of the whole nature can slowly but steadily be effected by the personal and collective involvement of every human being. Instead of grabbing every opportunity for selfish gains, humanity has to tune in itself to a new philosophy of sharing, where one would not hold anything back to oneself, but would give away for the other, even to the extent of giving away all that one has and, hopefully, much more than what one has… Indeed, everything is not lost, as long as humanity has not lost itself!

Bangalore Dr. Saju Chackalackal CMI
26 August 2011 Dean, Faculty of Philosophy, DVK
Email: saju@chackalackal.com

Rush to Riches: The War on Creation by Rayappa A. Kasi with a Foreword from Saju Chackalackal

ECOLOGICAL CONCERNS: ADVERSE IMPACT OF RELIGION, ECONOMY, AND POLITICS

ECOLOGICAL CONCERNS
Adverse Impact of Religion, Economy, and Politics
Journal of Dharma is published from Bangalore, a city located in south India. Bangalore was known as the Garden City of India, both for its salubrious climate and an abundance of trees and large stretches of gardens maintained within the city limits. I arrived in this city, as a university student, in 1985, and had the fortune of experiencing the glories associated with the Garden City. Over the last 20 years, Bangalore has undergone a sea-change by the migration of millions of people from different parts of India and abroad. As more and more people are flowing in, as more and more employment opportunities are generated, especially in the IT-related segments, the city also has become quite different from what it used to be. More and more water-bodies are vanishing everyday; in fact, the handful of water-bodies that still remain face extinction in the context of rapid developmental activities. Gone are the days when you would see varieties of magnificent trees on both sides of every road; though the old gardens can still be located, they too have become less attractive due to the increasing levels of pollution and contamination of soil, water, and atmosphere. The practice of taking a refreshing walk through the city roads is almost impossible as the vehicles plying through Bangalore roads have sky-rocketed over the last 10 years. Further, the Bangalore weather has undergone tremendous change; indeed, it has become warmer and almost unpredictable! Is this peculiar to Bangalore alone? No, not at all! In fact, the sketch I have tried to draw about Bangalore, indicating a lot of distortions with regard to the landscape and weather, people and their lifestyle, would be shared by almost all cities, though the degree and extent would be different in specific cases.
What has happened to Bangalore, however, is an indication of what is happening elsewhere in the world, and the changes that we experience here are heralds of what is in store for humanity. India, in general, or its southern part, in particular, boasts about its religious ethos and large following of practising believers. Almost everyone living in Bangalore has adherence to one or another religion, with a large majority belonging to Hinduism. In spite of the religious allegiance of the majority of Bangaloreans, these religions seem to be having almost no impact upon the changes that are taking place in the life and surroundings of the people. While the politicians and the bureaucrats continue to be immersed in large-scale developmental works (as it has turned out to be the most lucrative business Bangalore has ever witnessed, in the name of which nature is butchered and large amount of public funds are unjustly siphoned out by the self-styled but ‘democratically’ elected custodians of Bangalore development) that has adversely affected the natural surroundings of Bangalore, not many religious heads have come out in the open to call for a change of developmental patterns, or to exhort his/her following to abide by a respect for nature without curtailing the prospects for development and all benefits that accrue from such developmental activities; in effect those who claim to be practising believers are almost untouched by their acclaimed religious foundation when it comes to environmental issues.
A question may be posed: what business has religion got to do with development in Bangalore or elsewhere? Is religion supposed to be an involved party in the issues related to the changing natural surroundings and high-tech developments that bring with it greater wealth and better living conditions? Can’t religion be restricted to private domains than intruding into those domains under the auspices of secular and democratic forces? In answering the above queries, I tend to hold that religion is not merely a private affair at all; though it begins with a personal faith affirmation in the case of individuals, it must reach every recess of life, affirming all life-giving and life-enhancing aspects and denying all that is life-threatening and life-denying, whether it occurs in private or public domains. Religion being a view and a way of life at the same time, it should reach out to all domains of life, in a very special way, inspiring and animating every religious person to lead a life conducive to the integral co-existence of all, living and non-living, sentient and non-sentient.
In fact, we are confronted with a cluster of interlocking problems that surround our nature and threaten the very matrix of life, the future of humanity, and survival of the universe. In the name of development and modernity indiscriminate methods have been adopted by many in handling the natural resources. Although the available renewable and non-renewable natural resources are limited, the present generation, the world over, is blissfully ignorant or careless about it, and tends to behave as if these resources could be indiscriminately exploited to serve present purposes. The clarion call from many concerned individuals and organizations for initiating and maintaining a sustainable development is still unheeded both by private individuals and national governments. Many of the developmental practices, and the accompanying political strategies adopted by multi-national business corporations and governments seem to be quite insensitive to the nature and natural habitats of millions of species that maintain the balance of life on earth. Indiscriminate exploitation of natural resources in the name of economic development is so widespread and is carried out under the protective shield of the ruling political parties. Although the situation is almost beyond the control of one or another individual or organization, it is the need of the hour that these issues are squarely faced and controlled through a definitive plan of action.
In the context of developmental issues and the resulting environmental concerns, the South and North are again at loggerheads. The call for restraint in development emerging from the Northern countries, specifically addressing the Southern economies, is many a time rejected as insensitive to the needs of the latter.
The most industrialized nations of the world have produced enough CFCs [Chloro Fluoro Compounds] to generate dangerous holes in the ozone layer of the atmosphere, with deleterious effects on the health of the entire world’s plant, animal, and human population… The poor and developing nations around the world (primarily in the global South) attempt to satisfy their rights to development as the rich, industrialized nations (primarily in the global North) call for environmental protection against the same development practices that they themselves invented and used for decades and which introduced much of the environmental degradation we see around the world today.
It is a fact that the North has realized the adverse impact of development only after having attained a greater growth rate over the last two centuries, and in achieving this growth rate they were involved in indiscriminate business practices in which the natural resources around the globe have been exploited beyond any reasonable limits. The nations in the South, however, have started off only quite late in this race for economic growth – with an unrealizable goal of the economic and living standards of the North – and are looking forward to quick bucks by accessing most of the resources left untapped by the North, but in the South. The ‘enlightened’ North, then, begins moralizing the whole situation, and critiques every industrial practice of the South without, however, sharing the know-how or nature-friendly methods of development. In fact, while discussing a lot of issues from the developing world, and making those nations responsible for the same, many affirm that all such practices must be stopped; however, no word is directly mentioned about the developed nations, which have already contributed most to the environmental crises that we face today; they have already made their road through development – of course, at the cost of the nature and other economies. As they lament about the present attempts of the developing nations to stand on their feet, it should naturally provide an ambience to question and challenge the apathy that many developed nations (especially its irresponsible governments) have been exhibiting to initiate corrective measures. All these nations, whether in the North or the South, do lack political will to adopt alternate modes of development without endangering the whole creation. It is already accepted on international level that the polluter should be accountable to the pollution, and should be made to bear the cost of rectifying the situation. This must be enforced even if it would require a reversal of a lot of developmental activities as well as ‘developed’ habits and lifestyles of peoples, both in the industrially developed and developing countries.
The destruction of environment that we witness today has begun long ago, along with industrialization of almost every field, including agriculture. It was a sudden surge and a leap into the future: from the limited and apparently innocent practices of a village craftsman and his shop, humanity was making leaps into mechanized production units and aggressive distribution systems. As the volume of production was increased and the extent of distribution enlarged – both for the sake of better profits – industrialization began to eat up the chunk of nature and natural resources. Eighteenth and nineteenth centuries’ rationalization processes have led humanity to this high-paced industrialization, through which technological and economical efficiency was made to be the imperative of human achievements. As this slogan was spread to every facet of human existence, ranging from the things of everyday need to the most sophisticated electric and electronic gadgets and precision instruments, factories began to incorporate many an environmentally insensitive practices. They adopted certain methods of tapping on to the available sources of raw materials without any thought of replacement; they adopted no sustainable processes of waste management; they concentrated only on efficiency in production – both qualitatively and quantitatively – and the ensuing increase in profit. At a time when industrialization became so fashionable in the now-industrialized world, it was the right of everyone who had the necessary capital and the know-how (and, of course, the much needed political patronage) to involve in any business practice indiscriminately, if that would produce goods of consumption effectively, meaning higher quality goods in a cost-effective manner. One of the consequences of this indiscriminate industrial practice is the objectification of nature.
Nature, which had been a terrifying swarm of deities at one time, a partner in human endeavour for 10,000 years, became at best a simple warehouse of “raw materials,” “resources,” ripe for exploitation, and at worst a cowering adversary ripe for destruction. The century that gave us “science,” as the method that turns everything into value-neutral objects, finally reduced all approaches to nature to a simple utilitarian (some times called “positivism”), which completed the depersonalization of nature.
Although there are many other ways of seeing and approaching nature, an industrially motivated people – generation after generation – adopted a mode of objectifying nature for convenience and utility. This has led to certain behavioural changes among human beings, as they began to interpret everything in nature as something to be controlled and used to fulfil human wants and desires.
Every realm of human living is infused with a world view of dominion over nature. This is particularly visible, for example, in the contemporary business practices. The emphasis in business is on an increase of profit or the shareholders’ wealth, which is usually attained through aggressive business practices primarily centred on the exploitation of natural resources, mostly acquired at the lowest possible investment. In the competitive world of international business practices, the environmental damages are hardly treated in realistic terms, but are mostly treated as contingencies or externalities that cannot be avoided if successful business is to be conducted. As the career prospects of the involved individuals and the profit for the whole of business would significantly depend on their ability to utilize every possible resource, everyone is directly or indirectly forced to continue to exploit nature to the maximum extent. Nature is taken to be a bounty to supply all needed raw materials, and as a dumping ground of all that is considered to be waste once the designed product is made. The aggressive business strategy adopted by many business corporations can be sustained only if all the involved parties boost the earnings, constantly moving on an upward graph.
If the above example is taken in all its seriousness, we understand that the degradation taking place within the nature is fundamentally based on attitudes, perspectives, or the world views adopted by individuals. As it is stated by Skolimowski, “contaminated minds produce, almost of necessity, contaminated environments.” The present status of our environment indicates that there is widespread flaw in the human handling of nature as a whole, resulting in its destruction and contamination at extensive levels. Indeed, individuals as well as groups of people are to be held responsible for almost all issues of environmental pollution and the indiscriminate use and the consequent depletion of natural resources. Although, from a moral perspective, individual human persons could be finally held responsible for all these, it may not be possible to exonerate certain key agencies in this regard. It may not be an easy task to list all the involved parties; however, the role of religion, economy, and political agents is of vital importance, as all these three have been directly or indirectly contributing to the ill effects that we experience in our environment. Hence, any search for a solution in this regard has to first take into account how the unholy alliance among the above mentioned triple entities has resulted in destabilizing ecological balance, especially in the twentieth century.
A perusal through the sacred scriptures of various religions indicates that almost all of them have originally inculcated a respectful attitude towards nature as a whole. Starting with the ancient scriptures of the Hindus, the Vedas, and the scriptures of the Semitic religions, almost all of them repeatedly portray a symbiotic relationship between human beings and nature, and call forth to maintain the same with human conscious efforts. That is, religions originally had a life vision that was integral and holistic that catered not only to human levels, but also to every sphere of creation, including inert matter (see Col. 1:15-17). However, in the course of time, such a vision seems to have lost its impact. Historically, due to the distortions of religious tenets, almost all religions passed through dark ages, during which not only religious principles and practices were not capable of enhancing the life of their members, but also caused and perpetuated life-negating ambiences. This went to the extremes of justifying any exploitative attempts from those in power, mostly at the pretext of serving and saving the needs of the community. Surprisingly, at this level of religious consciousness, individual persons and various natural elements were almost neglected and manipulated, apparently for serving the interest of the whole society, which was elevated to the zenith of religious practice, mostly by vested interests.
All these dynamics were clearly visible in the development of Christianity in the West and in the adverse impacts on natural environment. Although Semitic religions have a particular pattern of thinking, hailing from their shared roots and world view, devious interpretations of the Christian religious tenets had been instrumental in accelerating the aggressive exploitation of the natural resources. It is true that the Bible considers the world as respectful, as it stands in relationship with God; in fact, human beings are placed in this world as the only possible link between God and the creation. The original vision of creation as portrayed in the Bible projects the presence of human being as one of enabling the whole nature/creation to be itself and to be in communion with God, with the possibility of both human and the nature being sanctified simultaneously. The freedom of human beings that would initiate this process, according to the Bible, hints at human beings as capable of enhancing or condemning the creation, by treating it as an integral part of their existence or as an object altogether separate, thus providing scope for mutual sanctification or condemnation (shareable by the human in relation to the nature). The Christian view of freedom attached to humanity implies a heavy responsibility for the destiny of creation; this responsibility implies not only a passive indifference towards creation, but cultivating deep respect towards it, on the one hand, and an active involvement in preserving and ennobling it in and through their existential presence and activity, on the other.
It is disheartening to note that the high ideal of simultaneous sanctification of human and the nature is lost on the onward march of Christianity, especially as its members were more and more motivated by materialistic concerns. It is a gradual shift from mutuality to exclusivity and exploitation. From the available biblical ‘creation narratives’, the dominant view, i.e., the view promoted by those in power, conveniently preferred an exploitative theory, according to which humanity is urged to “multiply and dominate the earth.” A new theological interpretation of the whole creation story was offered to usher in dominion over the whole of nature, implying the right on the part of human individuals to exploit everything in nature to their advantage, even if it meant that nature is destroyed irreparably. The religious licence to dominate and exploit nature for the sake of human welfare produces, gradually, the modern almighty economy in the form of capitalism. In fact, all-enveloping dominion and exploitation are inherent to the capitalist economic theory, as it is single-mindedly intent on augmenting the profits, even if that would mean the destruction of everything else. Eventually, these trends have given rise to a technological revolution and a new civilization that is unmindful of the large scale damages done to nature. Unsurprisingly, the religious outlook of Christianity (particularly the Calvinist theory ), especially its renewed understanding of the rights of human beings to conquer nature and to exploit every available resource was reinforced by the subsequent theological interpretations of biblical revelation. Even the final seal of salvation was said to be dependent on the success that a person attains in this world: it was understood on par with capitalist business calculations! Though the above referred theological interpretation was officially subscribed only by a few Protestant sects, in practice it was shared by many Christians, who were only too happy to open up the new avenues of progress to further their earthly success.
Another factor that had contributed to the degradation of nature is the prime place accorded to the spiritual, and the neglect of the material or natural. Although affirmed as God’s creation – which God is said to have found “good” (Gen. 1:31) – the dualistic understanding of reality (affirmed as part of Christian outlook especially through the Platonic-Manichaen theories of Augustine and subsequent ‘spiritualisers’) had relegated the nature to a secondary status. The primacy of the spiritual, gradually, facilitated a right for every Christian to loath the physical world and to condemn the natural. This world view, coupled with the capitalist tendencies perpetuated in collaboration with the new technologies, in turn, became instrumental in offering complete support to ‘tame’ the nature for serving the high ideals of the spiritual. It is understood to be a God-given mandate to use the nature and its bounty as human beings wish. This apparently ‘affirmative’ stand, evolving from a ‘spiritualised’ understanding of the dualistic world view, has played havoc in Christianity’s role in degrading and butchering nature.
It is against this background that we locate (not chronologically) various movements, such as Enlightenment, and modern revolutions, such as French Revolution, American Revolution, etc., paving the way for asserting not only the individual person, but also his or her inalienable rights. Though there were initial suspicion and rejection of such views by religionists, especially those who held the reins, in history we find a gradual acceptance of the Enlightenment values into the life and dogmatic formulations of various religions. Modern interpretations of various sacred scriptures indicate that most of the Enlightenment values are already found in them. Such an attempt to re-orient the teachings of various religions along the line of the primacy of the individual, has simultaneously been complemented by the theory and practice of capitalist market economy, in which the individual’s ability to amass as much profit as possible was justified. In the course of time, then, we find many religions supporting the stand of capitalist market economy as the justifiable mode of human life, though its principles seemed to be going against many a section of the human society itself.
Almost at this time we find the free market economy finding inroads into the religiously accepted ways of economic behaviour. The aggressive market trends that were indirectly, at least, backed up by the religionists and the official organs of various major religions in the world tended to push the boundaries of individual rights beyond the permissible limits, stretching them to such extremes as to totally neglect a cosmic vision of life, tending to be egoistic in behaviour and action. One of the catastrophic impacts of this new vision of life along the principles of capitalist market economy has been the unbridled use of natural resources. Even if it were for amassing unjustifiable profits, they had not only an economic justification, but also a pseudo-religious justification, whereby the exploitation of the natural resources continued without any control whatsoever. Nothing needs to be said further as to what is the consequence: social relations as well as ecological relations have been turned upside down, leading to life-threatening practices on the part of human agents and natural calamities and imbalances from the nature.
True, initially, religion was instrumental in helping human beings integrate themselves with nature under the auspices of God or the divine. However, later, certain deviant elements within religion itself initiated an alienation of humans from nature; the natural was pitted against humans in such a way that, finally, they were seen against each other: humans established dominion over nature. This alienation gradually led to yet another foundational alienation: between humans and the divine. Human outcry for total autonomy led the way towards the denial of religion, and the banishment of every religious dimension from human life. These consecutive alienations led humanity to a state of disintegration and disarray.
The speed with which the destruction of nature was carried out over the last two centuries bears witness to the fact that the western civilization has ingrained into it this world vision. The technological craze that is experienced by the contemporary world has its roots in the western thought which wants to control the whole of nature through impersonal instruments that have become the mark of human domination. In fact, generations of western philosophers and theologians (not necessarily Christian believers), inspired by this exploitative model have contributed further in cooking up rational or systematic foundations. The Cartesian dualism, Nietzschean “will to power” (despite his very provocative criticism of the Christian stand on nature), the Marxian revolution for the redemption of the Proletariat (at any cost), etc., have contributed over the years for re-affirming the western mindset in continuing to subdue and exploit the nature. The widely accepted utilitarian philosophy tended to give momentum to the exploitation originally sanctioned by religions. Among many others, a strong voice heard from among philosophers from the West is that of Martin Heidegger, who insistently called the western civilization to give up the Cartesian model and to return to a new era of ‘shepherding’ the Being. Care for being, according to him, should necessarily include the whole nature, human beings being only a part of it, though definitely occupying an important role. Such a vision of reality would naturally bring back the western, or an apparently Christian, civilization back on its track. For, “faith, our basic attitude toward life and being, is crucial to how we work and play, how we treat our wealth of resources. If we could develop a faith more holistic, more peace-making, more feminist, more like ancient peoples’ sense of Mother Earth’s sacrality, we might offer the twenty-first century a new rationale to ease its interrelated crises of world hunger, nuclear arms build-up, and widespread pollution.”
In fact, Christian sources themselves are abundant in providing inspiration for such a holistic understanding of nature and reality; what is required is only a re-emphasis, which does not seem to be so easy as the civilization has been glorifying materialistic values against the original integral thrust of the Bible, especially of the New Testament (although in a germinal form). This may be easily traced from the fact that many Christians in the West are said to be officially not practising Christian faith; however, the world view ingrained in their mind does not cease to be different from what was already imprinted on the western psyche in general. Yet, a paradigm shift to reinstate an integral life vision that would mutually accord rightful place to nature and to humanity is the need of the hour.
The negative picture painted above around Christian interpretations and the resulting destructive tendencies in the West, I should say, is not at all exclusive to them; in fact, it is shared by almost all religions, including Hinduism and Buddhism, which are acclaimed to be religions closer to nature and nature worship. Ruthless destruction and exploitation of nature have been unleashed in India and other Asian countries where these religions are the majority religions. Even the profound doctrine of Advaita (and its realizable goal of oneness of the whole of reality) and the Hindu ideals of Vasudaiva kudumbakam, ahimsa and sarvodaya (non-violence or holistic creative love and the welfare of all) could not motivate the Hindus to accord nature its proper place in human affairs. Although not many critical and objective studies are available as to the negative impact of religious doctrines of Hinduism and other Asiatic religions upon nature, there are scholars like Thomas Derr, who do not spare any religion from the overall critique on religious ideologies being instrumental in effecting environmental destruction:
… if ecological disaster is a particularly Christian habit, how can one explain the disasters non-Christian cultures have visited upon their environments? Primitive cultures, Oriental cultures, classical cultures – all show examples of human dominance over nature which has led to ecological catastrophe. Overgrazing, deforestation and similar errors of sufficient magnitude to destroy civilizations have been committed by Egyptians, Assyrians, Romans, North Africans, Persians, Indians, Aztecs, and even Buddhists, who are foolishly supposed by some Western admirers to be immune from this sort of things.
This points to an all-pervasive corruption of religious foundations (brought about by pseudo-Christian practices) and the inability of almost all religions to motivate their votaries to cater to a healthy and integral attitude towards nature. As a matter of fact, it is the onslaught of materialistic and consumeristic orientations resulting in the enthronement of individualism that has brought about the sidelining and downfall of original religious ideals and the total inability of religions to motivate their faithful. This is being accentuated in the contemporary society by industrialization and uncontrolled craving for the consumption of goods without any regard for the sources and other generations who have a right on the available resources.
The next in the unholy alliance that has brought about catastrophic destruction upon nature is the economy and modern concept of development. Industrial development within the matrix of a capitalist economy, which is intent on amassing wealth even through unjust means of cutthroat competition, has unleashed the insatiable human cravings. By and large, anything and any person is said to be valuable only in terms of its/his/her capability of being ‘exploitable’; if one does not fall in that category, it would be considered ‘valueless’. As profit generation basically depends on people’s desire, their needs and wants, the market forces have come to such a state of even creating certain wants among the people so that industry/market could produce and sell more and more goods that in no way would be needed by many. So, economic market forces that tend to be dictating the needs of the people are basically functioning on manipulative strategies, but with a single goal: boosting the profits. Although at one time people had engaged in exploiting the natural resources for economic purposes, the extent of damage committed today by various agencies in the name of economic development cannot be attributed to ignorance. Having had a rather clear picture of how unbridled developmental activities and insatiable craving for material consumption affects (and would affect) the nature, the contemporary society has reached a point of no return unless natural disasters force them to do so. Even agriculture, which was at one time considered to be a process of participating in the natural rhythm, is being carried out to cater to the industrial greed, and any artificial method of farming would be welcomed without a thought of further adverse consequences. As the needs and wants of the people at large are pampered up, any amount of production does not seem to be enough. It is natural, then, to exploit the nature, which is indiscriminately expected to match up to human greed: nature is the servant of humanity, which shall be controlled by humans to facilitate the fulfilment of their wants. Thus, ultimately, the attitude of religious persons (referred to in the previous pages) and that of the industrialists and the economists runs on parallel lines. Indeed, they are not different, but the same people whom we approach for our analysis’ sake from two different angles, that of religion and economy.
However, if the affairs of life and nature are to be set in order, the market economy needs to be freed from the sheer profit motive, and must be brought under the control of reason and common good. Deforestation, exhaustion of nutrients of soil, chemical residues in the soil, etc., resulting from aggressive agricultural practices to cater to the increasing wants of the people around the globe need to be stopped; they do provide convenience to people and profit to the businessmen, but both result in a whole lot of troublesome consequences both for the present and future generations. The present form of capitalist or neo-liberalist economic arrangements unleashes systematic violence against nature’s survival which is totally unjust in the way it operates.
Economics must recognize the limits of the ecological system. The earth cannot go on producing more and more. The idea of economic growth and development only means an increase in the ability to grab more of the pie: the pie itself cannot get any bigger. More land devoted to cattle for hamburger meat means less land for tropical forests. To enrich oneself at others’ expense is unjust and immoral.
Degradation of the environment should become a major concern of all, and the business firms must be forced by the collective will of the people to stop with those business practices that destabilise the natural equilibrium with an anthropomorphic tilt.
The speed with which the affairs of human world are conducted has, for example, undergone tremendous change while the rest of the world functions the way it used to be (like the difference between email and snail mail in the new electronic world of communication). Human manipulation of every segment of nature to suit exclusively the human world has changed the natural matrix and its horizons unimaginably. Globalized economy is instigating every segment of its operation to match the new (astonishing) speed, whether it is at the level of capital investment, labour power, tapping of natural resources, or even the conversion of natural elements into commodifiable entities. While the pace of nature and everything in nature continues to be the same, the global market economy seems to be sustainable only at an unnatural (and inhuman!) pace. As speed has conquered human domains (e.g., computing) everything and everyone else who is incapable of coping with the ever increasing speed of the multi-national companies (those market giants who, in fact, tend to control every facet of human and natural dynamics through their subtle economic and political strategies) are either being side-tracked or being manipulated. Nature and everything natural fall into this latter category of the mercilessly-manipulated, which are not accorded even the right to exist by themselves: they all are accorded value only in terms of their place within the total market spectrum; if they do not fit into the market economy’s scale, they are not even accorded existence!
Our analysis indicates that the capitalist economic orientations are at the root of a lot of problems that haunt the environment. Even after realizing that its economic orientations are leading the creation to its own destruction, its insistence on augmenting profit still presses ahead faster and nature-denying modes of production. Arran E. Gare looks at this phenomenon from a global perspective where any capitalist economic agent is intent on continued exploitative strategies:
Capitalism has evolved into a differentiated system which now envelops the globe, and in this system, massive oppression and exploitation of vast regions of the world by the core zones of the global economy are inevitable. Individual states are part of a system of states situated within this differentiated economy, engaged in a struggle to augment their own power and to preserve or change the status of their region within the global system, to exploit other regions, to resist exploitation or to suppress local populations to facilitate exploitation by other regions.
This refers to the way ‘developed’/industrialized/North nations continue to exercise control over the rest of the world economies, primarily focussing on a very narrow understanding of welfare. Unfortunately, the highest ideal of a society, the common good, is interpreted individualistically, which in turn paves the way for a subtle and total neglect of the whole of the society.
Globalization, the neo-liberal face of capitalism, along with its promises and threats, has brought about a disorientation among the people at large. The glittering side of development and the surge of the middle class and the upper middle class onto the heights of ‘ever booming’ economy, leave the people clueless in deciphering what exactly is to be chosen: should they give up an all-promising career and opportunities for the ‘outmoded’ environmental concerns, which would only adversely affect the prospect for better business, better economy, and better pay-packets? Globalization introduces an attitude among the growing economies (like India and China) that they themselves are advancing at a faster pace that cannot be matched by any other, thus apparently assuring a place with the already developed. The infused pride of these middle class, boosted by the politicians who are intent on cashing in every opportunity for their advantage and the ‘almighty’ media that does not miss any chance for making private economic mileage of anything that takes place on the face of the earth, blinds these nations to involve in indiscriminate use of the resources. Their sole aim is economic growth. The hidden economic and, hence, human and cosmic tragedies are either not understood or are conveniently overlooked for temporary benefits. They, however, easily forget that “nature shrinks as capital grows.”
Local and international political structures also play an important role in degrading nature and creating ecological imbalances. In fact, it is these political agents who are responsible for according force to pseudo-religious as well as market forces in their attempts to exploit and destabilise natural resources. If we critically look at the contemporary political ideal of democracy, most of the democratic governments are said to be market-effected new face of capitalism. Even the left-led democratic governments have turned out to be puppets in the hands of national or multi-national business concerns. When it comes to the issues of environmental devastation effected by industrial and business practices, politicians tend to be siding with unbridled development as that would temporarily satisfy the populace, which would assure them continued governance, even if that would eternally impoverish the nation in terms of natural resources and country’s wellbeing. This presents us with a very pathetic situation. Putting together lack of effective political will and the profit-driven market economy as the key responsible factors that do not relent in the fast-track mode of production and consumption, R. J. Johnson holds that “the solution of those problems is difficult because the only institutions within which the necessary collective action could be mobilised exist to promote the interests of that mode of production.” Therefore, an environmentally sustainable global civilization has to emerge through a definitive commitment among the local population, which can overcome the impasse initiated by the parochially motivated and economically-crippled ‘democratic’ governments that define their ends only on political grounds.
A common factor that has unleashed adverse impacts of religion, economy, and politics upon environment is the individualistic attitude that runs through the inner fabric of our society. Subscribing to one or another religion and its universal principles of altruism and inter-relatedness do not seem to be successful in fundamentally altering the economic and political individualism. It would only open up the highways to disasters and alienation. However, the cosmic system exists and functions on an intricate networking of all its constituent elements. Human agency shall partake in this integral networking in a meaningful manner by consciously involving in it, and enhancing the same for the sake of the common good. It would succeed in transforming and motivating the human race to a harmonious existence if all would fulfil their cosmic responsibility both at the individual and collective levels. For, it is the inner harmony experienced at the individual levels that can be extended to the wider horizons and the outer world. Indeed, the inner harmony can be realized only if religious dimensions of human existence are taken seriously.
There is need for a new perspective, a new philosophy, if the biosphere should continue to exist and exercise its prime role: ecology shall not be seen as a luxury, but an imperative. Human approach to any reality, including religion and religious affairs, must be primarily infused with a vision that emerges from oekos. It calls for a radical metanoia, a transformed vision of life in which the whole nature would assume the status of a sanctuary, and human response will be one of taking responsibility in the form of offering respect and reverence to the sanctuary. Nature shall no more be a machine that supplies raw materials to the industry but the life-giving and life-affirming matrix under the over-arching creative and protective involvement of human beings. From a practical point of view, this can be attained by a concerted effort of religions and the states by investing in the education of the younger generations. The crippling narrow technological vision that permeates the whole gamut of education must give way to a holistic wisdom. Religion, economy, and the state – great institutions that encompass human affairs in the contemporary society – should be capable of enhancing human existence to such great levels of consciousness that human beings would become catalysts in leading a life that is totally integrated with nature.
It is with these hopes that the Journal of Dharma has undertaken the present issue on “Ecological Concerns.” Against the background of the present day ecological crises unleashed by modernist and industrial civilisation, A. Pushparajan proposes the relevance of Gandhian eco-vision in conceiving a “development through appropriate technology.” In another article on “Environmental Crisis and Religions,” Jose Kalapura affirms that “as religion exists in nature and nature sustains human life, both religion and nature should be inescapable parts of human existence.” From an eco-pneumatological reading of Raimon Panikkar, Brad Bannon affirms that “the time has come for a radical metanoia in which we begin to recognize the Earth as caretaker of us and of the countless organisms that are equally cared for by this Mother Earth.” “Tapovanam and Eco-surroundings,” by Jojo Parecattil, is an attempt to recapture the age-old cultural paradigms of Indian classical literature to infuse the contemporary world with deeper respect for nature. Radharani P. has made a study on ‘Tree worship’ as is prevalent within Hinduism and affirms that, by and large, it was instrumental in imparting better respect for nature. K. P. Sasi and S. M. John Kennedy approach the issues related to the natural resource of water from ideological and existential perspectives.
Indeed, a radical spiritual revolution has to take place if our consciousnesses were to be transformed from the present mode of exploitation of nature to that of collaborators and partners with nature. The individualistic consciousness need to be supplied with a communitarian consciousness, in which justice would take into account not only human point of view, but also the cosmic. In fact, emergence of a cosmic consciousness is essential if we were to give shape to a sustainable eco-sphere. If religious ecologies had been so influential among the votaries of different religions, even to the extent of alienating them from the environment and in furthering the destruction of the nature, what we need today is, again, alternative religious ideologies, but with a different orientation and healthy/holistic perspective. Preference for religious ecologies over secular ones results from my conviction that religion is still a vital force in motivating people into action by effecting a self-transformative life vision. In fact, affirmative action with a view to bring about a better world to live in can be facilitated by the concerted efforts of all cosmic forces, in which human beings have to play the lead role. Future will not be bleak if human conscious efforts are underway in holistically infusing religious ethos into economical and political spheres. Nothing exists by itself or for itself; cosmic networking is an undeniable fact, which we human beings shall effect in this universe through our unceasing conscious efforts. So, let me conclude with the closing hymn of the Rgveda, an aspiration for peace and harmony attained in the realization of human integration and cosmic communion:
United your resolve,
United your hearts
May your spirit be at one!
That you may long together
Dwell in unity and concord (X.191.4).
Saju Chackalackal
Chief Editor, JD
Journal of Dharma 31, 4 (October-December 2006), 387-406