Can we tap the abundant energy of the Universe for our development?

The world is made of energy, say the scriptures. So then why do we need to burn up fossil fuels and play around with dangerous nuclear fuels to feed the needs of our world?

May be there is a way to tap all that abundant energy for our needs, without upsetting the delicate balance of nature and bringing untold suffering to all living beings. May be there is a way to fuel our development without leaving the planet as a trash bin for posterity.

I don't know, but we can do that only if we get rid of the "scientism" that has got ingrained in our mindsets. We need to accept that there is more mystery to the universe than we care to admit. We need to get out of our matter-entwined world view and think of the universe as energy, and then be open to explore ways to tap that energy.

The sages and yogis have shown us -- for ages -- that it is possible. But our "modern, scientific" mind refuses to accept the possibility, dismissing everything we cannot understand as humbug!

That needs to change for the planet to be saved.

And there is the question: do we really need all that we are craving for?

Can we live a life where we can do away with all the trash stuff that we're madly accumulating? Doing that will go a long way toward helping Earth from becoming a trash bin.

For both the things to happen we need to develop the right attitude and follow it through.

It is possible and we need to work to make it possible.

A society in harmony with Nature: it really existed in India!

This is one issue that has always recurred in my thoughts: how long can the world's resources last if we go at this pace? Not that long, I would say. Now consider this: modern society measures success with more consumption and possession and every nation in the world is out to increase its GDP and per capita income. Which means the pressure on our limited natural resources would get even worse. How long can the world provide for its people as more and more of them try to get more and more of those resources in their grasp? I am horrified to think of what is going to happen to this world.

Already we are hearing of many species going to disappear, ocean life and food chains collapsing, global warming, food and water scarcity and a lot more. But no one is paying any attention as we all try single-mindedly to get more wealth for ourselves and our families.

I have always wondered what an ideal world would be like. Should it be a socialist world with common ownership or resources? For a long time I thought such an arrangement could solve a lot of the problems faced by a world racing for more security and prosperity. But there are two issues here: one the socialist utopia can easily degenerate into an authoritarian regime, as happened in the erstwhile Soviet Union. Second, we are still considering nature and other living beings as resources -- to be consumed by humans.

That is where the problem is: as long as we consider that everything here has been created for our consumption, we are going to run into this wall of scarce resources and an inhospitable world sooner or later.

So what is the answer? Did a society ever exist that had tackled this problem? My search suddenly got an answer when I found this blog. 

This blog talks about what Pandit Rajmani Tigunait said about village life as it existed in North India a few years ago. Imagine how ideal such a society would have been, and the biggest surprise in this for me was that it had managed to survive the Islamic regimes and the British Raj in India. As materialism sweeped across India following its Independence, and as age-old social systems collapsed (some of the practices in those rural societies, such as untouchability, had to go anyway, but I would assume those practices were corruptions that crept in later into the system), the ideal and close-to-nature life that Indians had managed to preserve also were swept away.

With that went, I would say, the the wisdom of the sages from Indian society.

But here, finally, I think there is a blueprint that can be used to re-create such a society. Not just in India, but all over the world. For, if the world needs to survive, it will need to learn to live in harmony with Nature. My dream, nay, the Himalayan sages' vision of a Centre for Vedic Culture and Civilization would be the first step in re-creating such a society!

Civilization is under threat; we need to alter course -- fast!

A recent New Scientist article carried an alarming warning about the implications of global warming for the world and humanity, in much more clearer terms than anything I have read till now. It also included a link to an interactive map. The article says "Bangladesh, south India and Pakistan will be largely abandoned, though isolated communities will remain".

I feel bad that this ancient land will become a desert soon (there is a big 'if' here as many scientists still think these are alarmist views), but can't understand how we can avoid this unless we do something to change the competitive conspicous consumption and self aggrandizement that is sweeping the world. Many intervention techniques are being discussed by scientists all over the world to slow down and roll back global warming but I think they could invite disaster on the planet as they still do not understand the dynamics of this phenomenon and, more important, they are not trying to address the basic triggers -- human greed and ego -- that have brought this calamity on. 

I think while attempts to slow down global warming are welcome the main thrust of any effort to save the planet and civilization should be at changing the way humanity think and works, from a narrow, self-centred perspective to a broader all-inclusive one. Only such a back-to-nature approach is going to make any serious difference and help us prosper without endangering the very existence of future generations.

I believe it is the right time to start some kind of a worldwide movement that will work at the level of human consciousness to change the collective consciousness and impel humanity to go back to a lifestyle closer to nature. My dreams of an Vedic educational movement center around this but I am not sure if I am prepared enough to start on this. My fervent hope is that Himalayan sages are not unaware of this impending calamity and would be planning something drastic to keep the human civilization and life on earth from being thrown back to the stone ages.

But before any work at the level of consciousness can take effect, I guess the material scientists should be first given an opportunity to try and fail spectaculary in their efforts. Then and only then will the masses start to think of an alternative approach to life that is more harmonious than the current 'I can conquer nature' one that has been created and nurtured by modern science and education.

The educational initiative I dream of should be strong enough to take over from where Science failed and move humanity to a higher level of understanding,  or there is a great danger humanity could fall into the grip of ignorance and fall back to superstition and helplessness. I am still dreaming and trying to tap into my inner powers using the key that Panditji recently provided me. Hope I will be ready soon to start on this initiative.

Idol worship is a "kind of corruption" but who cares?!

A recent search on Al-biruni led me to this page. What struck me was what the Persian traveler wrote about the religion of the Hindus. Biruni, aka Baruni, wrote :

"The educated among the Hindus abhor anthropomorphisms of this kind, but the crowd and the members of the single sects use them most extensively."

"The Hindus believe with regard to God that he is one, eternal, without beginning and end, acting by free-will, almighty, all-wise, living, giving life, ruling, preserving; one who in his sovereignty is unique, beyond all likeness and unlikeness, and that he does not resemble anything nor does anything resemble him."

Biruni argued that the worship of idols "is due to a kind of confusion or corruption." He writes:[68]

"The physical images are monuments in honour of certain much venerated persons, prophets, sages, angels, destined to keep alive their memory when they are absent or dead, to create for them a lasting place of grateful veneration in the hearts of men when they die."

Now, if we tell our hysterically religious Hindu masses that this is what real Hinduism is (what Baruni wrote was essentially what the realized masters from the Hindu religious tradition have always said, and still say), will anyone listen? In fact, I fear if anyone dares to utter such blasphemy in our religiously-charged times, he or she can expect to be lynched and, maybe, even a Vatican-style inquisition!
Hinduism, as separate from Vedic dharma, today is the opium of ignorant masses, which need it in its current form to stay addicted and hysterical.
If you are looking for salvation from such a religion, God save you. And that goes for most other religions on this Planet, as they are practiced now.

A theory designed to discredit the glory of India, and supported by our historians

If you choose and screen your friends carefully, I have found that Facebook can become a sort of provider of information filtered to your interests. Whatever your friends comment upon, or post, on this social networking site can be a easy reference for you to keep updated on what is happening of interest to you in the clutter of cyberspace. It was through Facebook that I came across this article.
"Story of India" Misses the Mark on India's History, Hindu Watchdog Group Announces
And that has reopened in my mind the question: how can this theory, never substantiated and whose only claim to authenticity is that it was articulated by some half-informed European and British colonial historians, become the dominant theory about India's past? And how can it still be tom-tomed about when there are numerous other theories of equal validity, some of them articulated by better informed historians with better evidence?
That says a lot about how our so called historians have become tools in the hands of politicians of different hues who want to discredit the Hindu civilization for narrow political gains. These politicians and academics are no better than the colonial historians but the ill-informed Indian masses -- and the government -- give them a kind of credibility which they hardly deserve.
The Aryans never came to India; there is enough evidence to prove that India was the cradle of the Aryan civilization, that is, if you have the will to open your eyes and look at the evidence with and open mind. One of those proofs, a more scientific and recent one, is mentioned in the article whose link has been posted above.
How sad it is that we call those people who discredit our identity and history as great historians!
How can this state of affairs change? To my mind it can happen only when people who want to understand the propagate the truth come together and form organizations that will sponsor studies on such topics, and also expose the current crop of pseudo-historians.
It seems an uphill task, considering the many groups of various hues who will try to usurp the stage if such an effort is made. But such an effort can succeed it it has the blessing of the Himalayan masters. Again, we need to be wary here. The Himalayan masters shun the limelight; and it is easy in the world we live in to fall for the machinations of pseudo-swamis who may try to usurp such a platform.
Which means, such an effort cannot be undertaken in isolation; it needs to be part of a holistic movement to revamp Indian society and politics, along with religion.

Let us start by cleaning up the Holy Ganga!

This is my first post in the year 2009, and here I want to return to my favourite theme: cleaning up the Holy Ganges. The more I think about it, such a cleansing would be symbolic of the cleansing of Indian, especially Hindu, society. Mother Ganges has become a super-drain of the Gangetic plain, and no one really cares about it. The so-called secular leaders who govern this country would have no reason to care and so would the many pseudo-holy men in the country. But if India and Vedic dharma have to be revitalized, I have a feeling it needs to start from the Holy Ganges.
Such a massive exercise cannot but affect the lives of every human being and animal in the Gangetic plain and, by extension, a major part of India. It will, automatically, turn into a cleansing process for our society and body politic.
Which is exactly why none of the powers that be want Holy Ganges cleaned up.
Apart from the need for hygiene and cleanliness, cleaning up Mother Ganges would also be a washing away our accumulated bad karma, cleaning up Hindustan for higher achievements in the grand scheme of things.
I hope I can contribute something towards the cleaning up of Mother Ganges this year.

Listen to the Message of the Himalayan Masters

The more I read about the tradition of the Himalayan Masters, the more enchanted I become. This lineage of great sages has been guiding life on earth of eons now. And we poor mortals have the gall to think we are the ones who are the smartest on earth!
Consider the few thousand years of known human history (most of which is anyway pretty cloudy and sketchy). We the 60-odd years of comparative peace following World War II is a great achievement. But when you compare our timelines with the planetary ones, those 60 years seem like a second, even a fraction of a second. And we think we have achieved something!
Already the tenuous peace that held is fraying. The world is headed inexorably to another period of war and suffering. So much for man's haughtiness.
Yet, for the discerning, a little bit of probing will suffice to know that behind all this drama is the hand of the great sages, doing their work silently.
The more I think of it, the more I am certain civilization as we know it is headed for doomsday. Even our exploitation of earth and its natural resources have reached the point where they are being taken faster than they can be renewed.
The only option for right thinking individuals who want to change this course of doom is to seek out the ways of the great sages and practise what they have taught. The teachings have been there always; only we need to practise it.
We talk of religious dialogues, tolerance, etc. And come to think of it, we don't even know why we are here. Are we running after something completely useless by following the way of life? I am more and more convinced that we are. And I am taking the message of the sages to heart seriously. Let me practise, and the rest is in THEIR hands!

Post-Mumbai, India has few choices

Am out of Bangalore, too! Or almost.
But more on that later.
I have been watching the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attacks with a sense of deja vu. Remember the Parliament attack? The same sense of inability to do anything really concrete still haunts the Indian political establishment. The only difference is that it is the Congress, and not the BJP, that is in power now at the Centre.
The choices, or lack of thereof, facing India in the aftermath of the terror attacks in Mumbai are worrisome. The fact is, despite all the hard talk, the government of the country can do precious little to force the Pakistani army and the rogue elements in its intelligence establishment to desist from supporting Islamic terrorists fighting India.
Indian leaders and military chiefs can talk about hot pursuit, but if India really tries that in Kashmir it would be risking a nuclear war in the sub-continent. The US can do that in the Pakistani tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, but if India tries the same trick it is bound to invite a swift and strong military response from Pakistan.
The fact is, a nuclear-armed Pakistan has made it safer for the terror elements operating from that country to strike with impunity at India.
All the talk about cutting trade and cultural links with Pakistan is not going to solve the problem. Pakistan has survived Indian embargoes earlier, too. Besides, forcing Pakistan into an economic crisis will only strengthen the hands of the jihadists and no country in the world, let alone India, would want them to have access to Pakistan’s nuclear weapons.

What is the solution? Try the same tack that Pakistan has used with great success against India – foster insurgencies in that country taking advantage of the many ethnic fault lines that fan across its landscape.
The recent explosion of protests from Pakistan against a map that was doing the rounds in the United States, showing present-day Pakistan divided between India, Afghanistan and an independent Baluchistan shows how much Pakistan’s ruling elite fears such an outcome is possible.
India needs to reply in the same coin to what Pakistan has been orchestrating against this country. The question here is can the weak-kneed politicians with their eyes on vote banks conceptualise and execute such a strategy?
It doesn’t sound easy, but if ever there is a time for India to launch such an operation, it is now. And the community of nations, having seen the damage a rogue Pakistan can do, would be only too willing to help!

Being A Non-Hindu Is Good For The Environment In India!

It may never be too late to mention the Sethursamudram Project, to link the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar. Because the forces who want it, despite the end users and the environmentalists saying it would be a disaster, are still at work. From my recent talks with a colleague, I understand it is DMK chief Karunanidhi's personal ego that is making him push for the project. That is what today's democracy is for you. Even if it means wholesale death and destruction, a megalomaniac masquerading as a popular leader can do whatever he wants to!

The Sethusamudram Project will be an environmental disaster, will cost a bomb to maintain and will be of no real use as a shipping lane. Still we are spending crores on it on a daily basis. The fact that it would hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus hasn't been taken into account either. Just imagine, if it was the religious sentiment of the Muslims or Christians the project would not even have seen the light of the day. The same would have happened if it was a really good project, unlike this one is. That is secularism for you!

Just one question: is being a Muslim or a Christian good for the environment in India?!

VHP to Wash Away Sins in Holy Ganga

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad is teaming up with godmen again. But wait, before you say what is new, these are not the bunch of rabble rousers and ultra-conservative set of ochre-clads who had dominated the VHP's ranks all these years. And this time it is for an environmental cause - clean up the Ganga. And these godmen are some of the most influential personalities in today's moderate Hindu society - Ravi Shankar, Baba Ramdev, Asaramji Bapu and Morari Bapu. They are not exactly pushing a religious agenda in today's Indian society either. (Read story in Mint)

The VHP's agenda is, of course, to reach out to moderate Hindus and thus remove the "untouchable" status it has acquired over the Babri Masjid demolition and riots. But the godmen say they are in the tie-up because it is for enviornmental causes that need immediate attention.

I wish the VHP's agenda fails and the godmen's agenda wins!The Ganga or Ganges needs urgent cleaning up - no doubt about that. The river has nurtured Indians for thousands of years, and now we repay that by polluting and destroying it. The government, and various political parties, with their votebank agenda, are squarely responsible for this state of affairs. If they had any concern about the well being of India, its culture and heritage, and its environment things would not have come to such a pass. What I am saying is if India had a Hindu religious government it could not have allowed the Ganga to be destroyed this way. But I am also saying you don't need any religious affiliations to keep the Ganga clean. Any government which has genuine concerns about its people and country would not have let this happen.

I am really happy this is happening. Of course, there will be people who will try to find an alliance between the VHP and these godmen worrisome for national harmony. And given the VHP's track record they shouldn't be blamed either. But I am sure these godmen, who have proven over the years that they are more humanitarians than religious fanatics would keep the VHP firmly on track and won't let them hijack the movement for narrow political gains. If they manage to do that, the whole nation will be thankful to them and they will get the blessings of Mother Ganges. And the blessings of Mother Ganges could go a long way in washing away the VHP's sins, too.

Time To Bring Back The Philosopher Kings

The news of businessmen and film stars grabbing forest land in the Western Ghats comes as no surprise to me, considering the kind of rulers we have. The problem is we like to read and revel in such news, but scarcely do anything about it other than blame the government. But we are the ones who elect our own rulers, and when it comes the time to select our representatives we forget our duty -- we prefer to go by our religious, caste, regional and other parochial preferences than about the suitableness of the candidate. And then we blame the government. What a sorry state of affairs. We are digging our own grave and we blame others when they are just trying to finish off the job we started, and bury us!

I personally feel India is not ripe for democracy. And thinking about it, why do we need this western adjunct to our political life. I am not saying we go back to our monarchies. God forbid! But we could try to bring back the philosopher kings who ruled in Indian's golden age, the ones who were guided by the great sages - the Rajgurus. But for that we need a fundamental change in the way we mould our new generations. Because such kings will arise and can thrive only in an enlightened society. And we can start doing that only by establishing educational and other institutions that go by the teachings of the Himalayan masters. Again, I am making a case for institution(s) for Vedic culture and knowledge. Any takers?

The Positive Side of $130 Oil

Oil hitting $130 a barrel may be worrying for the economy but I think there is a silver lining there. This would surely spur the big corporations and governments to act faster on alternative energy sources - and with the current expanding consciousness about the environment, we can confidently hope those alternative energy sources will also be greener. That last 100-150 years of development - powered mostly by fossil fuels - has already burdened nature with toxins that may take hundreds of years to clean up. We need to make a start somewhere to reduce and roll back the amount of those toxins. At the very worst, this kind of galloping oil prices can push the world's economy into a recession, and cut down on the huge amount of pollution we create daily.

At the same time, I have read reports of US politicians threatening to punish China and India over over-use of dirty fuels. I agree that what India and China are doing is a bad thing, but that is because these Asian nations are now following the crassly materialist path of development shown by the West. And man for man, people in these countries pollute less and consume less -- at least four fith less than the average American. So who should be punished?!

A New Educational System For India

Violence of various hues and forms are sweeping the world, apart from the floods and quakes that have claimed lives by the thousands in Myanmar and China. Today's papers carried news of India's home minister saying immigrants from Bangladesh would not be confined to camps, even as Muslim terrorists from that country are under the scanner for the recent blasts in Jaipur. The fact, is you can argue for both sides in this issue. Yes, Bangladeshi migrants in India are human beings too and we cannot just put them into concentration camps - that militates against humaneness. Again, we cannot let terrorists among them roam free and target Indian citizens with bombs at will. The only way to solve this is to incorporate the migrants into the intelligence gathering process. Recent reports say they are a very closed group, refusing to divulge any sort of information to intelligence agents.
If that is so, there is a clear case for them to be collectively held responsible. But I doubt if that version of affairs is actually true; there could be many well meaning Bangladeshi immigrants who want a secure future for themselves in India, as some news reports quoting some of them made it clear.
So why is this happening? The answer is politics, and corruption. These two are eating into the very fabric of Indian society and culture and, if let alone to continue, can bring about balkanisation of the whole nation.
It is sad that Indian democracy, which could have brought about justice, equality and prosperity to everyone in the country, is being held to ransom by thugs and robbers posing as politicians. But I think this was inevitable. Every institution will reflect the development and perspicacity of the individuals who are in it; and our political rulers have failed to put in place an educational system that instils values and helps the new generations aware of and practise the the messages of the Himalayan masters. Without such practical moral and spiritual teachings, it was inevitable that our society and politics deteriorated into the current state of travesty and moral turpitude. Yes, India needs to revamp its educational system - not just to create more quality engineers and doctors, but better men and women who understand and practise the teachings of the sages.
I think sooner or later I have to do my part in that effort.

A School of Vedic Culture and Religion

Sorry, I have been away for some time. But I will be updating this blog more frequently now. Last few days I have been reading up on Sri Vidya and tantra, especially the book 'At the Eleventh Hour: The Biography of Swami Rama' made a deep impression on me. The more I read it (I have read Swami Rama's 'Living With The Himalayan Masters' earlier), the more I feel humanity is hurtling down the path of destruction, and India, which had traditionally acted as a counterveiling force to the materialistic tendencies in the world has now switched sides, adding to the momentum of the destructive forces. The answer seems to lie in resurrecting the Vedic culture, not the Vedic culture that have come to us through the filter of Hindu priests, but in the original, unadulterated teachings of the Himalayan sages.
Those teachings are eternal - Sanatana - and hold valid for today's world as much as they did when they were first taught. It seems the competitive consumption we are indulging in, without regard to the impact on nature, is taking us to certain doom - unless we decide to apply the brakes now. But for that, the world intelligentsia and opinion leaders need to back a new way of living centred not on conspicuous consumption, but on sensitivity and respect to nature. If they don't, a new breed of more perspicacious opinion leaders and intelligentsia need to be created. That is where we need a School of Vedic Culture and Religion. The faster that is set up, the better.

Back to the future!

Today I read an article in Fortune magazine about how stock markets might never be the same, after the recent crash. Many of those rules that a few generations of human beings went by when it came to stock market investing may now have to change. Well, I think we need to change almost all the rules by which we, as a civilisation, live including the rules that define success and the whole orientation of our progress.
That is because we cannot keep on adding stress to our ecosystem the way we have been doing for the last few decades. The choice before us is stark: reform or perish.
It seems to me the ancient system of life that the sages of India, and other lands, preached and by which our scriptures say our ancestors lived will need to be reviewed. But that is easier said than done. For hundreds of years we have got accustomed to a life powered by animals or machines, and have allowed our faculties to atrophy.
An ancient way of life doesn't mean going back to the bullock cart age. Rather, I would characterise it as living in perfect harmony with nature and creation, while using our currently untapped latent powers to make life easier for us, instead of using the hazardous route of machines and fossil fuels to do it.
More on this later. Stay tuned!

Chidambaram has done a good thing!

So I am finally back to the budget grind, after two years. The markets are down and some analysts are cribbing about the loan waivers to farmers. What the hell, it is they who suffer and add value; and all the others just profit from their sweat and blood. It is a good thing Chidambaram has done, whether it was political compulsions or not.
In a way the plight of farmers is symptomatic of where we are heading, as a civilisation. The real earners and producers get scant regard or profit for their labours; the manipulators and profiteers are held in high regard and rewarded. As the seers fo yore said, the Mother Earth is now valued only for her minerals and metals. There is no regard for the life forces and the the Cosmic intelligence.
I am wondering how long can man go on pillaging and ravaging the planet. Again, I shudder to think of the consequences this avarice will bring to all creation on Earth.

Swept aside by the forces of greed and selfishness...

The train I take to work every day travels over the Vashi creek. The area surrounding the creek was once a marshy mangrove, but is now a bustling urban centre. A lot of people are moving into Navi Mumbai, just across the Vashi creek; and the marshland is being filled in ever more rapidly. The ecological implications of these changes are enormous, even to the untrained eye. But strangely, no one seems to be giving it much thought. I even read a news report after I came to Mumbai of the state environment minister saying the remaining mangroves should be cut down to make way for highrises!
My friends, who have been in this city far longer than I have been, tell me that only a few years back there was not one human being in the area. Pioneers here say stories of how hard daily life was in the early days of development, with taxis and even groceries hard to come by.
This transformation has set me thinking: who lived here once and were there wild animals in those ghats overlooking the coast? I still have no answers. But I guess there could have been people here; those that scrapped a living out of the meagre resources that nature offered, much like rural life in India in the early 1960s.
All those people could have been swept off by the fast-paced development. Many of those people would have become dependant on the new economy, after seeing their lands and the countryside which provided them sustenance, being snatched away from them.
It is a sad story, and our rulers are ensuring that it get repeated across the country, day after day. Naxalites and other radical elements may try to profit from this displacement and disempowerment but I don't think they can make any lasting transformation in the way things are going now. The forces of the market, fuelled by greed and selfishness, are too strong to be stopped on their tracks, let alone rolled back, by such radical movements.
So what next? I guess we are heading for a huge ecological disaster. I shudder to think of its dimensions and implications.