Article 4: The shift in Paradigm has begun!
by Meenakshi Umesh
BArch, MSc. in Applied Psychology, Puvidham Learning Center, Founder, Trustee
SUSTAINABILITY is a WAY OF LIFE – a culture that is handed down through generations! And it used to be handed down in our country when people lived in alignment with the laws of nature.
Most of the problems of the present system stem from the distance that it has decided to maintain from nature. In nature, everything is a process. Nothing is permanent. Nothing is separate. Continuity of life is at the core. Everything else succumbs to this law. The whole is nurtured by the parts, and it nurtures and protects the parts in return. Every creature’s need is met to the full by the bounty of nature. There is no paucity of food and when there is; the creatures discover new ways to survive. Everything flows in cycles even the hardest of rocks erode, sediment and melt again. Nothing is static.
Nature created all creatures to be a part of the whole. There could be no waste. The cycle had to be complete. The links had to be small. The longest chains are built from small links. The biggest of trees from small cells! The hardest of materials from small atoms!
All creatures of nature are content in allowing nature to work through them and within them. To live one must eat! All other creatures eat to live. They do not hoard. They do not kill if not hungry. They do not waste! Their lifecycle is complete. Only man feels the need to hoard, to create! This need has made man a hazard to nature, to mother earth. As man used his creative mind to make eating easier, he had more time on his hands. This time created a lacuna that had to be filled by activity. This activity became competitive. This competition has become our doom! Competition for ownership of goods, for ownership of people and their love and the need for appreciation of our property. To create man must destroy nature! To hoard man must steal from fellow beings!
Nature gave us intelligence first so that we could survive. But our minds have not yet learnt humility and compassion! The real revolution will be the evolution of the human mind! When more and more people decide to live with less and less. The revolution has started. Minimalism is becoming a choice that people are taking, over capitalism!
Nature gives without condition, without a price. The only price we pay for taking from nature is the extinction of the resource, the pollution of our own environment and the deterioration of our bodies! Our desire to create beauty around us is our inability to admire and understand the wholesome beauty of Nature’s Creation!
Action to Implement
🌱 April 2022: Sahasra Vrksha Sankalpa – As a CommUnity, bring your heart and hands to the ground to plant 1000 trees together. Track and share here.
🌱 March 2022: Contribute to the health of our planet and the health of beings by doing the following:
Each day take inventory of what goes in the trash.
Identify the most common item.
Find an alternative that eliminates this waste.
🌱 February 2022: Implement the following and encourage others to follow:
- Unplug chargers when not in use
- Use the ‘Energy Saver’ mode on phones & laptops
- Use cold water for laundry & line dry
🌱 January 2022: Identify 3 actions you do that help the environment and 3 actions that harm it
Post your reflections & observations in the comments section below ⬇️
Our April PS Workshop
CommUnity Reflections
What is the root cause of our climate crisis? What can we do about it?
~ Vignesh
These are some of the immensely important questions that this month’s Prithvi Sevasanga article explores.
Contrary to popular belief, the root cause of climate change is not industrial or governmental. It is spiritual – we have forgotten that our nature is one with Mother Nature. In our imaginary separateness, we feel incomplete and seek completeness through consuming more, driving the industries and public policies that fuel climate change.
The solution is in our hands; a spiritual problem requires a spiritual solution. We can start with this month’s AIM – by planting a tree and caring for it, we nurture a long-term relationship with Mother Nature. The more proximate we get to Her, the more we will realize our interconnectedness and the fulfilment that comes with that. Only when we evolve can we help humanity evolve.
Birthdays have become events where we expect to receive gifts, to satisfy our desires. Yet, as we cultivate this mindset of deserving, we spin further downwards into a spiral of materialism and possession. Instead, the best birthday gift we can give ourselves is to have fewer desires.
~ Ananya
This begins by feeling grateful for what we have and who we are. When traveling to new places, it is often encouraged that one should try out as many new foods as possible to “truly” experience the place. Recently, I have been traveling a lot, and I actively try to eat that which is closest to nature (leaves, fruits, roots in a salad) while limiting myself to two meals a day. This, along with spending as much time outdoors exercising or walking, gives me more energy to go about my day. By being in alignment with nature, we will feel more light-hearted and energetic!