Why Mahatma Gandhi matters?

Dissecting how our priorities have all gone wrong in face of the Covid tsunami

It is in the midst of a monstrous Covid tsunami we are all here in India. People are dying, a very large number of them even without proper medical care; there are shortage of oxygen supply; hospital beds; other emergency medical facilities; medicines etc. It is a humongous task before every Indian to come together and fight this monster which is eating away precious lives. While rural India is affected, it is the highly urbanized metropolis which are badly affected. Scenes of relatives and kith and kin running around in desperation either for an elusive bed in a hospital or oxygen cylinder or even struggling to get their loved ones cremated have shaken every citizen of our nation. Also, unfortunately we see even at this hour of devastation, vultures roaming at large trying to entrap desperate relatives either in hospitals, medical stores or those selling oxygen. There is a huge premium attached to all these and suddenly we realize if we have lost the human in us in this grim hour. Of course, the silver lining is the enormous contribution and the spirit of volunteering amongst a large number of citizens who are trying to reach out and help those who are totally unknown to them.

While almost all countries of the world are usurped by the pandemic, it is the second wave of the Covid tsunami which is devastating India.  Have we gone wrong in our priorities? It is a question that is now haunting most of us. Have our understanding of development which focusses on unabashed urbanization and materialism, have our current lifestyle architecture which is not in sync with nature, have our gloated food habits- all fallen flat in front of the monstrous Covid surge. It is time for serious introspection and course correction for all of us.

Notwithstanding the spirit of volunteerism and compassion shown by large number of citizens to help their fellow citizens in the hour of dismay, there are vultures too who are rejoicing at this situation. Like Shylock they want to make money at the death of people. This is human values at its nadir. The greed and hunger for money is so astounding as these vultures have killed the human within them; they remain unaffected at the cry and desperation of relatives trying to save their loved ones. It is undoubtedly a danger sign, a pointer to the crisis in our civilizational ethos. Each one of us including the vultures out to make hay while people die at some stage need to self-introspect whether any iota of human values are left. Let us do a self-talk, let us indulge in an inner dialogue and try to seek answers whether the humongous money that one is amassing from a desperate relative is really worth! Doesn’t it shake us? Do we have the courage to answer our inner self?

Chris Moore-Backman’s in his book, The Gandhian Iceberg: A Nonviolence Manifesto for the Age of the Great Turning uses the metaphor of iceberg to explain three core features of Gandhian theory and practice. In an interview with Miki Kashtan, Moore-Backman argues, “The biggest, weightiest part of the iceberg — the enormous mass under water — is what Gandhi called self-purification, which I refer to as self-transformation. This is the foundational expression of nonviolence, where we align our individual practice with our deepest principles. This alignment is the cardinal Gandhian commitment.” (https://truthout.org/articles/is-there-a-nonviolent-path-to-a-livable-future-a-conversation-with-chris-moore-backman/)

If we have to overcome the crisis in our civilizational ethos- the death of human values, each one of us have to go through a process of self-purification and self-transformation. Through our inner-dialogues and self-talk we have to dissect whether the act we are indulging in even when our fellow beings are going through unsurmountable crisis is appropriate.

The next danger sign of our civilizational ethos comes from the unabashed material development which we have started to think as the key to our happiness and well-being. Our idea of development starts with it and ends with it. Mahatma Gandhi in his seminal book, The Hind Swaraj critiques the modern civilization as one which equates the human body with machine consisting of interconnected limbs, tissues and cells. He explains how the modern civilization gives more credence to body welfare or material development than spiritual and moral progress. He says, “This civilization takes note neither of morality nor of religion. He then points out how the ‘civilization seeks to increase bodily comforts, and it fails miserably even in doing so’. Others like Albert Schweitzer also echoes Gandhi’s concern on the debasement in modern civilization and remarks that ‘the disastrous feature of our civilization is that it is far more developed materially than spiritually. Its balance is disturbed. We value too highly its material achievements and no longer keep in mind as vividly as necessary the importance of the spiritual element in life.’ As we are witnessing in the Covid tsunami, the world has definitely moved further into the abyss of civilizational decay since the times of Gandhi and Schweitzer. In fact, since Gandhi shared his concerns on the ill-effects of modern civilization, there have been tectonic shifts in the race towards crass materialism with humankind finding itself in a quagmire of deep environmental, moral and social degradation.

Bhikhu Parekh in his seminal book, Gandhi: A Very Short Introduction aptly encapsulates Gandhi’s perspectives of modern civilization. He explains, “Based on the beliefs, that unless one was constantly on the move one was not alive, and that the faster the tempo of life the more alive one was, modern civilization was inherently restless and lacked stability, it aimed to conquer time and space and developed increasingly speedier modes of transport and communication… Thanks to its restlessness and mindless activism, mistakenly equated with dynamism and energy, modern civilization undermined man’s unity with his environment and fellow men, and destroyed stable and long-established communities.”    

These thoughts of the Vietnamese Zen Master, Thich Nhat Hanh actually encompasses the civilizational crisis that we are currently witnessing, “We are seeking happiness, but there is suffering inside of us. We are getting sick. We don’t feel at peace with ourselves. There is a big vacuum inside of us, so we look for things outside us to fill up the vacuum. We think that new and exciting things will work, but they do not seem to have an effect. We are consuming more and more, but we do not feel fulfilment. We need love, we need peace, but we do not know how to create love and peace. We know there must be a lifestyle that will create love and joy, but unless we know how to create that kind of life, we will continue to buy things.”

While a large number of volunteers continue to serve those who are suffering, we dissect another danger sign- the perils of an over individualistic society. For very large number of us we are just an individualistic society interested in our own well-being rather than for the society at large, we unfortunately have stopped thinking of our collective well-being. In fact, although there may be arguments and counter arguments on what is wrong and what is right and in many cases the lines of right and wrong may be blurred, overall traits like hatred, jealously, hurting others for one’s own aggrandizement can never by any stretch can qualify as right moral values. We cannot by any means sacrifice moral and ethical values at the altar of strange explanations. 

Here it would be pertinent to look at Bhikhu Parekh’s description of the Gandhian understanding of the decline of moral values in the context of modern civilization. He says, “Morality was reduced to reciprocal egoism or enlightened self-interest. Since self-interest was not a moral principle, Gandhi argued that enlightened self-interest was not one either. In modern civilization, morality was a form of prudence, a more effective way of pursuing self-interest, and was virtually exorcised out of existence.”

Parekh explains on how in Gandhi’s views modern civilization ignored the quality of soul. According to Gandhi, jealousy, hatred meanness, ill-will, perverse pleasures at another’s misfortunes were some of the moral impurities. Exploitation of another human being was an inbuilt immoral value in the very structure of modern civilization. So, when a hospital or medical store or a vulture start exploiting a person who is fighting for life, it reflects the immoral value in the very structure of our civilization.

Another important danger sign which the Covid tsunami portends is our increasing disconnect with nature and other living beings. Eminent primatologist Jane Goodall has blamed human behavior for the current coronavirus pandemic arguing that it as ‘our disregard for nature’. Expressing concern at rapid deforestation which forces wild species come closer to human inhabitants and the human habit of hunting wild animals for food, Goodall pointed out, “ Because as we destroy, let’s say the forest, the different species of animals in the forest are forced into a proximity and therefore diseases are being passed from one animal to another, and that second animal is then most likely to infect humans as it is forced into closer contact with humans.” (https://thehill.com/homenews/coronavirus-report/492357-jane-goodall-blames-disregard-for-nature-for-coronavirus-pandemic?fbclid=IwAR3ZGCyHdPkJHB3IH6Vh0HivGVMhDFwRSSV6i9lp0y0jtVa8xZw-HMt4jgI)

This disconnect and dysfunctional relationship with nature and other living beings is bringing untold misery to humankind. We need to dissect our relationship with nature before it is too late. The spirit of our relationship with nature and other living beings should be interconnectedness. The spirit of interconnectedness is deeply embedded in the reality of our existence that social and universal responsibility becomes enlightened self-interest.

Bhikhu Parekh in his book, Gandhi: A Very Short Introduction talks about the Gandhian approach to interconnectedness, “Human beings were an integral part of the cosmos, and were tied to it by the deepest bonds. In Gandhi’s favorite metaphor, the cosmos was not a pyramid of which the material world was the base and the human beings the apex, but a series of ever-widening circles encompassing humankind, the sentient world, the material world, and the all-including cosmos.” The Gandhian perspective reminds us that we are all interdependent and definitely human beings are not the most superior race.

The Vietnamese Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh has beautifully explained the concept of interconnectedness or inter-being. In Healing Ourselves, Healing the Earth, Thich Nhat Hanh points out, “Your happiness and the happiness of other species inter-are. If you are healthy, if you are happy, then other forms of life can profit from you. If you are sick, if you suffer, then other species will have to suffer with you.”

He further notes, “We have been talking about the environment as something different from us, but we are the environment. The non-human elements are our environments and we are the environment of non-human elements. So, we are one with the environment, we are the environment, we are the Earth. The Earth has the capacity to restore balance.

In the context of the danger signs dissected here and amidst the deep abyss we find ourselves in this Covid tsunami, it has become imperative that all of start sincerely self-introspecting and analyze our actions. Only when we start understanding and act in the context of our interconnectedness, we can cultivate true love. We will then slowly learn on how to generate the immense energy of loving kindness, compassion, joy, empathy and our inclusive nature.  This will probably dissuade us from being vultures and practice self-aggrandisement at the expense of others. It is only when we make sincere efforts to realize the goals of our interconnectedness, we can encourage empathetic and compassionate connections. It will help us tread the path of self-purification and self-transformation. It will also help us rekindle the human values that seems to have become dormant due to our race towards crass materialism.

How Nonviolent Communication enhances capacities of Peer Mediators?

In a world of increasing stress and conflicts of varied kind, quite often we come across news of conflicts and violence in schools. While major incidents of violence and conflicts like a student killing a fellow student or a student hurting a teacher make their way to the media; small incidents of conflicts and instances of bullying keep on happening in educational institutions. In fact, such incidents of conflicts, bullying and related disruptions remain a major challenge for educators, students, parents and administrators.

While the goal of all schools is to construct a peaceful ecosystem, incidents of disruptive behavior and conflicts always remain a hindrance for a harmonious environment. Several studies show how conflicts and disruptive behaviors contribute towards poor learning outcomes, hinders creativity and innovationand vitiates the system. The aim, hence, is to ensure a safe, supportive and overall a peaceful school environment so that it aids in learning outcomes, promotes sense of belonging amongst the stakeholders and contributes to creativity and innovation. 

Conflicts are part of every society, it has always been and will always remain. It is natural and organic. But the real issue is how it is handled and negotiated. If managed properly, it will help resolve the dispute amicably. If it is managed badly, a small conflict could lead to a bigger conflict. It could even lead to violence and breakdown of relationships. Hence, the challenge for every system, whether families, educational institutions or the society at large, is to develop preventive systems in place which can manage conflicts constructively. The aim of resolving any conflict meaningfully should be put together a win-win situation so that no conflicting parties feel aggrieved or they are not coerced to accept humiliating solutions.

For encouraging constructive resolution of disputes and conflicts in schools, one of the most efficient methods is to teach students techniques of nonviolent conflict resolution. It is in this context, introducing and encouraging peer mediation as an integral part of conflict prevention architecture in schools is critical.

Peer mediation can be considered to be arestorative approachto conflict resolution between persons where a neutral third party from one’s peer group attends the persons in conflict while the persons in conflict negotiate a mutual agreement. It has a major role of reducing conflict. A peer mediator is a student in the same age as conflicted parties.

By introducing peer mediation programmes we can develop positive behaviours amongst students. It can help students to adopt healthy communication as part of their habits. In this the mediation process is led by students. Here students learn to be neutral and develop capacities to evaluate the situation in empathic manner and gain internal control over her/his attitudes and behaviours.

According to Hilary Cremin, a mediation trainer for schools in the United Kingdom, states, “Peer mediation needs to be founded on genuine empowerment ofyoung people, and a belief that disputants really are best equipped to resolve their own conflicts. “

Peer Mediation helps in: self-regulation, self-esteem, self-discipline, develop ability of trained youth to transfer mediation skills to a variety of settings including family and neighourhood conflicts, helping the students to become better problem solvers, greater sense of belonging to their institution, promote critical thinking ability, build decision making skills, develop healthy standards of relationship within the school community.

In order to ensure a successful peer mediation programme, schools will have to introduce extensive trainings in peer mediation for students. In order to be a good mediator, a student will have to: be a good and effective communicator; be able to handle issues of relationships; be friendly, should be caring; should develop altruistic traits like empathy, compassion, kindness and gratitude; try to non-judgmental; be impartial and not show biases and is a good listener.

As the core of any mediation process is how the mediator uses his ingenuity of constructive communicator, it is critical that any peer mediation training program incorporates training in nonviolent communication. It will help peer mediators to look at instances of conflicts empathetically and help them to reach out to conflicting students without any biases.

Nonviolent communication according to Senior Gandhian, Natwar Thakkar (Kundu, 2018):

“To me nonviolent communication literacy would mean how our communication efforts should be nonviolent; how our ability and capacity to communicate not only with ourselves but with our family and society be nonviolent in all aspects and overall how the entire process of communication whether between individuals, groups, communities and the world at large should be nonviolent in nature. This would entail deep understanding of the art and science of nonviolence and its centrality in all our daily actions. It’s not just verbal and nonverbal communication, nonviolent communication literacy would also include whether our thoughts and ideas are nonviolent or not. This would also mean how we can rid of our preconceived notions of individuals or groups with whom we want to communicate and stop evaluating them to suit our own ideas. More than often we are attuned to think in terms of moralistic judgments which may be our own constructions. By developing deep understanding of the art and science of nonviolence and integrating it in our communication practices we could get over with biased and moralistic judgments; this in turn could contribute to emotional bridge building.By being nonviolent communication literate, an individual/group/community will be able to self–introspect whether the message they want to share has elements of violence and whether such a message will hurt others. Nonviolent communication literacy would automatically help in strengthening and deepening relationships. When we are able to emotionally build bridges with others, we will be able to empathize with their views.”

 Also Kundu (2020 & 2020) notes the different elements of nonviolent communication:

• Nonviolent Communication means complete lack of violence in the way we communicate with others.
• We should learn to communicate with ourselves and self–introspect.
• Use of appropriate and positive language
• Avoiding stereotypes in our communication efforts
• Avoid moralistic judgements
• Avoid evaluative language
• Role of mutual respect in communication
• The Power of Empathy

• Strong belief in the power of compassion
• Connecting with needs of others
• Importance of flexibility in our communication
• Practicing active and deep listening skills
• Expressing gratitude

Each of the elements of nonviolent communication intertwined and interwoven. If we look at each of the elements and also the expansive explanation of nonviolent communication further by Natwar Thakkar, it can be argued that for any successful peer mediation programme, students should be equipped in skills in nonviolent communication. By introducing students to the world of nonviolent communication, schools can contribute towards a peaceful and harmonious ecosystem and ensure a constructive conflict prevention architecture.

References

1)Kundu, Vedabhyas(2018). Nurturing Emotional Bridge Building: A Dialogue with Nagaland’s Gandhi; Peaceworks; Vol 8, No.1; June 2018

2)Kundu, Vedabhyas(2020).Integrating Nonviolent Communication in Pedagogies of Media Literacy Education; in The Handbook of Media Education Research; Edited by Divina Frau‐Meigs, SirkkuKotilainen, Manisha Pathak‐Shelat, Michael Hoechsmann& Stuart R. Poyntz; Wiley; 2020

3)Kundu, Vedabhyas(2020). Orientation Course on Nonviolent Communication; Gandhi Smriti and DarshanSamiti, New Delhi; https://www.gandhismriti.gov.in/announcement/orientation-course-nonviolent-communication-0

Albert Schweitzer’s reverence for life and Nonviolent Communication

Diagnosing the decay of western civilization due to excessive discrepancy between the material development of the world and man’s moral responsibility, Albert Scheweitzer underlined his ethical principles for reverence for life. He had pointed out that material development which ignores moral and spiritual development is “like a ship with defective steering gear that goes out of control at a constantly accelerating pace, thereby heading for catastrophe”.

Scheweitzer had poignantly said, “The essential nature of civilization does not lie in its material achievements, but in the fact that individuals keep in mind the ideals of perfecting man, and improving the social and political conditions of peoples, and of mankind as a whole, and that their habit of thought is determined in living and constant fashion by such ideals.”

In The Philosophy of Civilization, Schweitzer noted,“True philosophy must start from the most immediate and comprehensive fact of consciousness, which says: “I am life that wills to live, in the midst of life that wills to live.” This is not an ingenious dogmatic formula. Day by day, hour by hour, I live and move in it.”

Schweitzer underlined the essence of moral responsibility to encompass all living creatures. If man acknowledges his connectedness with all living creatures, ‘then he is not permitted to set up a limit up to which he will respect life’.

According to Schweitzer, “A man is truly ethical only when he obeys the compulsion to help all life that he is able to assist, and shrinks from injuring anything that lives. He does not ask how firmly this or that life deserves one’s sympathy as being valuable, nor, beyond that, whether and to what degree it is capable of feeling. Life as such is sacred to him.” This underlines the firm belief in the philosophical position of the essence of human interdependence.

Schweitzer beautifully encapsulates his ethics of reverence for life, “Just as white light consists of colored rays, so reverence for life contains all of the components of ethics: love, kindliness, sympathy, empathy, peacefulness, power to forgive.” He points out on how to be careful to ensure that we do not incorporate bitter phrases about the world’s ingratitude to our philosophy of life.

Schweitzer’s profound underpinning on why we as individual need to be careful in ensuring that we do not incorporate bitter phrases about the world’s ingratitude and his strong argument of human being’s moral responsibility to encompass all living beings provides a powerful guiding post for a nonviolent communication ecosystem. His position that if a man acknowledges his connectedness with all living creatures he will not have any limits up to which he will respect life is like a lamp post which shapes the ideas of nonviolent communication.

Nonviolent communication according to Senior Gandhian, Natwar Thakkar (Kundu, 2018):

“To me nonviolent communication literacy would mean how our communication efforts should be nonviolent; how our ability and capacity to communicate not only with ourselves but with our family and society be nonviolent in all aspects and overall how the entire process of communication whether between individuals, groups, communities and the world at large should be nonviolent in nature. This would entail deep understanding of the art and science of nonviolence and its centrality in all our daily actions. It’s not just verbal and nonverbal communication, nonviolent communication literacy would also include whether our thoughts and ideas are nonviolent or not. This would also mean how we can rid of our preconceived notions of individuals or groups with whom we want to communicate and stop evaluating them to suit our own ideas. More than often we are attuned to think in terms of moralistic judgments which may be our own constructions. By developing deep understanding of the art and science of nonviolence and integrating it in our communication practices we could get over with biased and moralistic judgments; this in turn could contribute to emotional bridge building.By being nonviolent communication literate, an individual/group/community will be able to self–introspect whether the message they want to share has elements of violence and whether such a message will hurt others. Nonviolent communication literacy would automatically help in strengthening and deepening relationships. When we are able to emotionally build bridges with others, we will be able to empathize with their views.”

Schweitzer’s prescriptions on reverence for life guides the understanding of nonviolent communication described by Natwar Thakkar. When it is stressed that individuals need to learn the art and science of nonviolence to be truly be able to practice nonviolent communication, it means the individual genuinely appreciates the notion of human interdependence and furthers ‘the moral responsibility to all living beings’.

Thakkar also talks on the power of nonviolent communication in emotional bridge building. For realizing emotional bridge building not just with other human beings, but also with nature and all other living beings, it is essential to assimilate what Schweitzer describes the components of reverence for life- love, kindliness, empathy, sympathy, peacefulness and power to forgive.

Scheweitzer also underlines the essence of human interconnectedness by drawing comparison with waves. He says, “Just as the wave cannot exist for itself but must always participate in the swell of the ocean, so we can never experience our lives by ourselves but must always share the experiencing of life that takes place all around us.” We cannot experience life by just limited interactions with just other human beings but it has to be all encompassing involving communication with nature and all other living beings. 

In fact, to ensure nonviolent communication to be an all-encompassing experience, we need to bring plurality to our approaches. In this context, Schweitzer’s ethics for reverence for life becomes an important guidepost on how we understand the centrality of nonviolent communication in our lives.

References

Kundu, Vedabhyas(2018). Nurturing Emotional Bridge Building: A Dialogue with Nagaland’s Gandhi; Peaceworks; Vol 8, No.1; June 2018

Advocating a Cause to Promote Human Interconnectedness Intelligence for Ecological Sustainability

“We are at an unprecedented moment in the history of humankind and in the history of our planet. Warning lights—for our societies and the planet—are flashing red. They have been for some time, as we well know. The Covid-19 pandemic is the latest harrowing con­sequence of imbalances writ large. Scientists have long warned that unfamiliar pathogens will emerge more frequently from interactions among humans, livestock and wildlife, interactions that have steadily increased in scale and intensity, ultimately squeezing local ecosystems so hard that deadly viruses spill out. The novel coronavirus may be the latest to do so, and unless we relax our grip on nature, it will not be the last.” – The Next Frontier: Human Development and the Antropocene, Human Development Report 2020

Notwithstanding the major advancements humankind has made in science and technology in the past 100 years, the Human Development Report 2020 warns how the bridled development has brought the Earth to the brink.

The Report points out, “To survive and thrive in this new age, we must redesign a path to progress that respects the intertwined fate of people and planet and recognizes that the carbon and material footprint of the people who have more is choking the op­portunities of the people who have less.”

It also points out, “Easing planetary pressures implies understanding how all life on the planet—the biosphere—underpins so much of what we take for granted, like the air we breathe.” It underlines the essence of nature-based human development and notes, “Nature-based human development helps tackle three central challenges of the Anthropocene together—mitigating and adapting to climate change, protect­ing biodiversity and ensuring human wellbeing for all. Nature-based human development is about nesting human development—including social and economic systems—into ecosystems and the biosphere, building on a systemic approach to nature-based solutions that puts people’s agency at the core.”

The warning underlined by the Human Development Report and the argument for pushing nature-centric human development have been echoed by many practitioners, scientists and thinkers.

For instance, through his seminal work, Hind Swaraj, Mahatma Gandhi had tried to counter the general world view that the modern industrial civilization was resulting in a quantum jump in human progress. He termed this civilization as Satanic. He said that a large number of people were crazy to follow the tenets of modern civilization as they were attuned to a materialistic bent of mind.

The Vietnamese Zen Master, Thich Nhat Hanh talking about the civilizational crisis points out, “We are seeking happiness, but there is suffering inside of us. We are getting sick. We don’t feel at peace with ourselves. There is a big vacuum inside of us, so we look for things outside us to fill up the vacuum. We think that new and exciting things will work, but they do not seem to have an effect. We are consuming more and more, but we do not feel fulfilment. We need love, we need peace, but we do not know how to create love and peace. We know there must be a lifestyle that will create love and joy, but unless we know how to create that kind of life, we will continue to buy things.”

The challenge as put forward by the Human Development Report and practitioners and scientists is how to make citizens across the world committed to the cause of nature-centric human development. One of the biggest drawbacks is the refusal of humankind to critically understand the intricate relationship between nature-human-other living beings relationships. We, consciously or unconsciously, tend to forget the essence of human interconnectedness and our action, programmes and policies do not reflect this. We fail to recognize the deep connections humankind has with nature and other living beings in this planet.

Practitioners like Gandhi followed the Indian traditions in taking a cosmocentric view of human beings. For Gandhi, human beings were an integral part of the cosmos, and were tied to it by the deepest bonds.

Thich Nhat Hanh has beautifully explained the concept of interconnectedness or inter-being. In Healing Ourselves, Healing the Earth, Thich Nhat Hanh points out, “Your happiness and the happiness of other species inter-are. If you are healthy, if you are happy, then other forms of life can profit from you. If you are sick, if you suffer, then other species will have to suffer with you.”

He notes, “We have been talking about the environment as something different from us, but we are the environment. The non-human elements are our environments and we are the environment of non-human elements. So, we are one with the environment, we are the environment, we are the Earth. The Earth has the capacity to restore balance.

As we navigate our way to find alternative solutions for ecological regeneration and ensure a balance between nature-human-other livings, it is essential that we all are aware of the intrinsic nature of human interconnectedness. It is in this context, I make an argument to promote HUMAN INTERCONNECTEDNESS INTELLIGENCE.

In general many psychologists point out that intelligence is a collection of distinct abilities. Also for instance we have Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligence which points out that there are multiple types of human intelligence, each representing different ways of processing information.

Going further from the realm of emotional and cultural intelligence, in today’s context we need to nurture HUMAN INTERCONNECTEDNESS INTELLIGENCE to face the crisis that we all have landed ourselves in.

To me HUMAN INTERCONNECTEDNESS INTELLIGENCE should mean the capability of individuals to critically understand and recognize the cosmocentric view of human nature; have intrinsic faith on the earth-centric paradigm, able to discern action and development on whether it is going help in strengthening the relationship between human-nature and other living beings or not. It would also mean the capability of individuals to adopt a new lifestyle which is sustainable and earth-centric.

In order to develop skills and intelligence on human interconnectedness, educational institutions, different arms of Governments across the world , citizens groups and all lovers of Mother Earth need to come together. It is only then we will be able to reverse the serious damage that humankind has done to the Mother Earth. In fact, critical understanding of the essence of human interconnectedness should be a 21^st century skill that should be promoted.

Why Nonviolent Communication is essential to promote Socio-Emotional Learning amongst Students?

Socio-emotional competence has been explained as the ability to understand, manage and express the social and emotional aspects of one’s life in ways that enable successful management of life tasks such as learning , forming relationships, solving everyday problems, and adapting to the complex demands of growth and development.

In fact, Jones and Doolittle (2017) point out, “Socio-emotional learning (SEL) involves children’s ability to learn about and manage their own emotions and interactions in ways that benefit themselves and others, and that help children and youth succeed in schooling, the workplace, relationships, and citizenship. To effectively manage emotions and social interactions requires a complex interplay of cognitive skills, such as attention and the ability to solve problems; beliefs about the self, such as perceptions of competence and autonomy; and social awareness, including empathy for others and the ability to resolve conflicts.”

As an intervention, socio-emotional learning has made major advancement in different countries across the world. A lot of research and action programmes have been initiated in schools settings to enhance the social emotional learning of young people right from early childhood. Through this process children and young people develop capabilities, attitudes and values necessary to acquire social and emotional competence.

Amongst the approaches to encourage socio-emotional learning in classrooms includes training teachers to skill the students to enhance their social and emotional competencies. Also it can be incorporated in existing subjects. Adequate opportunities need to created as part of classroom practices for students to acquire these skills and apply them in different situations.

Greenberg et.al. points out, “Teachers can also foster skills through their own interpersonal and instructional interactions with students throughout the school day. Student-centred learning approaches emphasize changing adult practices and the ways students interact with one another and their environment, in an effort to promote students’ analytical, collaborative, and communication skills… Instructional methods that involve collaboration and cooperative learning can promote interpersonal and communication skills.”

It we critically analyze on the approaches used to skill students and enhancing their socio-emotional competencies, we will realize that the fulcrum of all these approaches is communication. Without communication we cannot impart these trainings nor can skill them. The way we communicate and the words that we use in our communication determines on how we are able to engage with others. It is extremely critical in the context of class room management practices and for the development of a peaceful school. Communication is in fact an important factor in pedagogical practices. Both communication and pedagogy are intertwined. Communication plays an important role in the learning outcomes of students.

It is in context that nonviolent communication can play a pivotal role to facilitate deeper engagement between all the stakeholders  in a school- students, teachers, principals and the authorities.

Natwar Thakkar gives an expansive explanation of what is Nonviolent Communication:(Kundu, 2018):

 “To me nonviolent communication literacy would mean how our communication efforts should be nonviolent; how our ability and capacity to communicate not only with ourselves but with our family and society be nonviolent in all aspects and overall how the entire process of communication whether between individuals, groups, communities and the world at large should be nonviolent in nature. This would entail deep understanding of the art and science of nonviolence and its centrality in all our daily actions. It’s not just verbal and nonverbal communication, nonviolent communication literacy would also include whether our thoughts and ideas are nonviolent or not. This would also mean how we can rid of our preconceived notions of individuals or groups with whom we want to communicate and stop evaluating them to suit our own ideas. More than often we are attuned to think in terms of moralistic judgments which may be our own constructions. By developing deep understanding of the art and science of nonviolence and integrating it in our communication practices we could get over with biased and moralistic judgments; this in turn could contribute to emotional bridge building…. By being nonviolent communication literate, an individual/group/community will be able to self–introspect whether the message they want to share has elements of violence and whether such a message will hurt others. Nonviolent communication literacy would automatically help in strengthening and deepening relationships. When we are able to emotionally build bridges with others, we will be able to empathize with their views.”

Kundu (2020) lists the different elements of nonviolent communication. These includes:

• Nonviolent Communication means complete lack of violence in the way we communicate with others.
• We should learn to communicate with ourselves and self-introspect.
• Use of appropriate and positive language
• Avoiding stereotypes in our communication efforts
• Avoid moralistic judgments
• Avoid evaluative language
• Role of mutual respect in communication
• The Power of Empathy

• Strong belief in the power of compassion
• Connecting with needs of others
• Importance of flexibility in our communication
• Practicing active listening skills
• Expressing gratitude

Careful analysis of the explanation provided by Natwar Thakkar reveals that the overarching goal of using nonviolent communication is strengthening and deepening of relationships and emotional bridge building. Thakkar notes that if we are able to emotionally build bridges with others, we will be able to empathize with their views. Also it should be noted that all the elements of nonviolent communication enumerated above are all interwoven and intertwined. If we look at these closely, we can argue that all of them actually contributes to enhancement of social and emotional competencies.

In this backdrop, it can be argued that educators need to skill themselves in practicing nonviolent communication as part of their classroom management strategies and also as part of the school communication ecosystem. A nonviolent communication ecosystem is a site of social and emotional learning and harmonious coexistence. Hence, it is essential that we introduce nonviolent communication for students’ right from a young age.

References:

1. Jones, Stephanie M. & Doolittle, Emily J. (2017). Social and Emotional Learning: An Introduction; Social and Emotional Learning; The Future of Children, Volume 27; Number 1; Spring, 2017; The Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at the Princeton University and the Brookings Institution.
2. Greenberg, Mark T.; Domitrovich, Celene E.; Weissberg, Roger P. and Durlak. Joseph A. (2017). Social and Emotional Learning as a Public Health Approach to Education; Social and Emotional Learning; The Future of Children, Volume 27; Number 1; Spring, 2017; The Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at the Princeton University and the Brookings Institution.
3. Kundu, Vedabhyas(2018). Nurturing Emotional Bridge Building: A Dialogue with Nagaland’s Gandhi; Peaceworks; Vol 8, No.1; June 2018
4. Kundu, Vedabhyas (2020).Integrating Nonviolent Communication in Pedagogies of Media Literacy Education; in The Handbook of Media Education Research; Edited by  Divina Frau‐Meigs, Sirkku Kotilainen, Manisha Pathak‐Shelat, Michael Hoechsmann & Stuart R. Poyntz; Wiley; 2020
5. Kundu, Vedabhyas (2020). Orientation Course on Nonviolent Communication; Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti, New Delhi; https://www.gandhismriti.gov.in/announcement/orientation-course-nonviolent-communication-0

Why Nonviolent Communication Literacy is a critical 21st Century Literacy Skill?

At a time when we have already lived two decades of the 21^st century amidst technological advancements at breakneck speech, we find ourselves mired with problems and chaos at a global proportion.  Serious effects of climate change, environmental degradation, unsustainable habits, specter of hate speech and xenophobia, and conflicts of different kinds are some of the concerns which humankind faces as we move forward in our journey in the 21^st century.

As we are living in a hypertechnological era where almost every moment of our lives are governed and directed by technology, it is not enough to just read and write. New literacy skills are needed for the global citizens to negotiate the complexities of the challenges that we face in the 21^st century. While acquiring new literacy skills like scientific reasoning, multicultural literacy and critical thinking abilities have been talked of for a long time, literacy skills like ecoliteracy, financial literacy, media literacy and technology skills have also become critically important.

 The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization defines literacy as the “ability to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate and compute, using printed and written materials associated with varying contexts. Literacy involves a continuum of learning in enabling individuals to achieve their goals, to develop their knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in their community and wider society”.

As the world finds itself in the midst of increasing hate speech, racism, xenophobia and intolerance, the way we communicate and how we communicate has become significant. Whether it is through face-to-face communication or through the online media, the specter of hate speech and related forms of intolerance are having a debilitating effect the world over. Concerned at the situation, the United Nations last year, came up with a UN Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech.

The core point here is how we as a global community address the challenge of unhealthy communication which destroys the social fabric. The answer is to promote and encourage healthy communication at all levels and that is nonviolent communication. It is important to constantly revisit the perspectives on nonviolent communication as furthered by peace apostles like Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela.

To counter the effects of divisive communication it is important for citizens across the world to develop critical capacities to use nonviolent communication in every sphere of their lives- whether at intrapersonal level, in families, in groups, in institutions and in the society at large. They should develop the abilities to understand the need to integrate nonviolent communication in all their practices, reframe from the usual way they have been communicating and put into actual practice the strategies of nonviolent communication.

Nonviolent Communication has to be an important 21^st century literacy skill that needs to be acquired by people all over the world. Without adequate skills in nonviolent communication, going by the speed with which we are moving in our daily lives, the complex challenges that we face and the type of communication that we are exposed, we are likely to get entrapped in an unhealthy communication ecosystem. The way we communicate, how we communicate and the language that we use are critical.  

The global citizen needs to learn the art of self-restraint in communication which is crucial in the practice of nonviolent communication. Mahatma Gandhi’s perspectives can be a powerful guiding principle in this regard, “To be true to my faith, therefore, I may not write in anger or malice. I may not write idly. I may not write merely to excite passion. The reader can have no idea of the restraint I have to exercise from week to week in the choice of topics and my vocabulary. It is training for me. It enables me to peep into myself and make discoveries of my weaknesses. Often my vanity dictates a smart expression or my anger a harsh adjective. It is a terrible ordeal but a fine exercise to remove these weeds.”

The idea to look at nonviolent communication at literacy levels was first underlined by senior Gandhian, Natwar Thakkar who using the Gandhian praxis noted, “To me nonviolent communication literacy would mean how our communication efforts should be nonviolent; how our ability and capacity to communicate not only with ourselves but with our family and society be nonviolent in all aspects and overall how the entire process of communication whether between individuals, groups, communities and the world at large should be nonviolent in nature. This would entail deep understanding of the art and science of nonviolence and its centrality in all our daily actions. It’s not just verbal and nonverbal communication, nonviolent communication literacy would also include whether our thoughts and ideas are nonviolent or not. This would also mean how we can rid of our preconceived notions of individuals or groups with whom we want to communicate and stop evaluating them to suit our own ideas. More than often we are attuned to think in terms of moralistic judgments which may be our own constructions. By developing deep understanding of the art and science of nonviolence and integrating it in our communication practices we could get over with biased and moralistic judgments; this in turn could contribute to emotional bridge building.”

This encapsulates on why nonviolent communication is an essential skill to be acquired in the 21^st century. Hence, the need for a global framework in which nonviolent communication education is integrated in curricula for students- both in schools and in institutions of higher learning, in training programs of different stakeholders and in different settings.

Practicing Nonviolent Communication during Coronavirus: Overcoming CORONAFATIGUE

Humanity has never experienced a global lockdown which it is witnessing now as the coronavirus continues its deadly tirade against humankind. A very large population of the world are either self-isolating or under lockdown as nations, unable to find any credible solutions to handle the menace of Covid-19 are pushing citizens to restrict themselves or enforcing complete lockdown.  They feel it is the only solution at hand to slow the rate of transmission of the pandemic which is not only infecting millions but also is at its brutal best as it taking the lives of innocent people.

We are in an unprecedented situation as we find ourselves practicing social distancing, not going out and forced to spend time with families/ friends/acquaintances/or even alone within the four walls of our homes. We are also used to go out for work or socializing. But for many of us the homes have become our workplace and also sites for socializing. Probably for many, in the first few days, it seemed to be an exciting option. But slowly as time passes, it becomes challenging. Even though it is not a prison, but many of us have started to feel suffocated, our freedoms are all gone and increasingly we feel we are becoming stressful.

About a fortnight back, during an online session on nonviolent communication and coronavirus, one student asked me the solution as he and seven other members of his family – parents, brothers and sisters – all have to share the same space day in and day out. Though they have been living together, but all of them would go out during the day for work or studies, spend quality time outside socializing and then come back in the evening. He said the personal spaces which each member enjoyed before had suddenly disappeared and this was resulting in increasing frictions in the relationship even though no one wished it. This may be true for a large number of people across the world- the sudden disappearance of the precious personal space, the fatigue arising due to constantly being forced to stay in one place and interacting with the same set of people all the time even though they might be our dear ones like parents, brothers, sisters, friends or even house mates. Many of them may find themselves drifting towards the well of mental ill-health, others are being forced to compromise with the unfortunate situation- overall everyone seems to be suffering from CORONAFATIGUE.

While we find a large number of  counselors, spiritual healers, life-coaches, relationship experts giving their advice to people in psychological distress due to the pandemic in different ways through different social media platforms, one of the powerful methods would be to assimilate and practice nonviolent communication to get over with our own mental fatigue  and the friction that may be arising with our fellow beings staying with us.

Well many of us may be wondering on what exactly is nonviolent communication and how it can be an instrument to negotiate the ill-effects of coronafatigue.

Senior Gandhian Natwar Thakkar has given us an elaborate understanding of nonviolent communication. He says (Kundu, 2018):

  To me nonviolent communication literacy would mean how our communication efforts should be nonviolent; how our ability and capacity to communicate not only with ourselves but with our family and society be nonviolent in all aspects and overall how the entire process of communication whether between individuals, groups, communities and the world at large should be nonviolent in nature.

He further says:

So, I firmly believe that by practicing nonviolent communication, there can be amazing opportunities to promote goodness in our world which keeps on getting struck with conflicts. It is an essential part of efforts to evolve a culture of peace and nonviolence not just in our homes but in the entire world. This is also an antidote to all acts of revenge, aggression and retaliation as all these arises from breakdown in communication or our reliance in violence in communication.

Natwar Thakkar passed away in 2018, he was of the view that nonviolent communication is a powerful strategy to encourage emotional bridge-building and helps in strengthening of relationships not through coercive methods but through love and compassion.

So, let us try to assimilate on how the different element of nonviolent communication can help get over coronafatigue.

1. Natwar Thakkar argues that it is important to learn the art and science of nonviolence and make it part of our daily lives if we are to become nonviolent communicators. So, by imbibing nonviolence in our speech, action, thoughts and perspectives, we become less aggressive. This will have calming effect on us and we will avoid being aggressive in our relationships. This is extremely crucial in the context of the current pandemic.
2. An important element of nonviolent communication is the practice of deep communication with ourselves and self-introspect. Modern life has ensured that most of us do not have time for ourselves and even our families. The mad race for materialistic gains and excessive addictions to things like the social media has resulted in virtually no time left to even trying to communicate with oneself. Intrapersonal communication has become a rarity for most of us. We should try to use the crisis forced by the pandemic as an opportunity. The aim should be to encourage deep intrapersonal communication, try to reinvent oneself, think about the positive things in life, try to unearth our hidden talents and develop harmonious relationship with oneself. If we can establish harmonious relationship with oneself, we can improve our relationship with others. So, the coronavirus has given us the time to be more self-aware and understand oneself better.
3. Again, our hectic lifestyle has resulted in limiting our vocabulary to a mechanistic mode. One of the important ingredients in relationship development is to widen the scope of our emotional vocabulary. Inappropriate use of language and words can contribute to conflicts while use of nonviolent expressions can help in resolution of conflicts. An eminent scholar had aptly said, ‘‘Language is the key to the heart of a people’’. Language is hence a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires. So, let us make use of this opportunity to widen our emotional vocabulary so that we can handle our relationships positively.
4. Studies have shown that empathetic individuals tend to experience greater subjective well-being. Another study shows that the need to feel good and be a moral person can be a great motivator to act empathetically. As many of us are locked in a particular arena, it is important more than ever before to practice empathy. Each one of us in a room locked down for a long time could have concerns and challenges. These could result in frictions. So, by being empathetic we could handle difficult situations. In fact, empathy begets empathy. The more empathetic we are towards others; we should expect more empathetic behaviour from the others. Hence, we will be able to promote empathetic connections which in turn will be able to reduce the stress level in our house.
5. Jiddu Krishnamurti says compassion is the essence of the wholeness of life. So, learning to listen with compassion can be a powerful way to realize the cosmocentric approach to human nature- the fact that we are all interconnected- not just with our fellow human beings, but the nature and all other living beings. And when we realize the nature of deep interconnectedness, we will be able to understand each other at a deeper level. Hence, listening with compassion enables us to delve deeper into the heart of possible differences and conflicts; it gives us an opportunity to equanimous understanding of divergent perspectives and ideas without being judgemental and evaluative. In times when each one of us are suffering from coronafatigue, practicing compassionate listening is critical. Also, it is important for all of us to be compassionate to each other so that we can understand each other’s concerns and difficulties. We should not only show compassion for our kith and kin, the pandemic necessitates that we show compassion and empathy to all health workers and medical professionals across the world. Also, we should be compassionate for large number of people who are finding it difficult to sustain themselves in these difficult times.
6. Finally, an important element of nonviolent communication is expression of gratitude. Let’s use this opportunity to express gratitude to workers, doctors, people around who are working tirelessly to ensure that we are safe and also, we get our daily necessities. Albert Schweitzer has so rightly said, “Gratitude is the secret of life. The essential thing is to thank for everything. He who has learned this knows what it means to live. He has penetrated the profound mystery of life.”

To conclude, coronavirus has given us the opportunity to self-introspect and try and make nonviolent communication part of our communication ecosystem in our daily lives.

 

 

Why Compassionate Listening is an essential part of Nonviolent Communication?

Each person has pain. We cannot be happy unless we are heard and understood. We must learn the art of speaking and listening. We want to listen to heal the suffering in the world. We must make no judgments. If we aren’t listened to, we become sick. We go to therapists. – Thich Nhat Hanh

Nonviolent Communication entails a communication ecosystem which involves nonviolent speech and action, nonviolence in our thoughts and perspectives, deep listening, self-awareness, empathy, compassion and expressions of gratitude. As the Vietnamese Zen Master, Thich Nhat Hanh underscores the importance of learning the art of speaking and listening, it is important if we are to practice nonviolent communication on whether our speech, action or even what we are listening is nonviolent or not. Also, nonviolent communication necessitates that we avoid moralistic judgements. It is linked to both what we speak or what we listen.

As the world faces different dimensions of meanness, hatred and brutality, nonviolent communication has become important more than ever before. While all its elements are significant for pluralistic coexistence, it would be pertinent to look at one of its crucial elements, learning the art and science of deep listening or compassionate listening.

While most of us are involved in a mad race, virtually at a supersonic speed to realize our goals, values of compassion and gratitude seems to be declining. Many of us, if we start introspecting, will realize that we have become too aggressive and in fact cruel, in our pursuit of our self-aggrandisement and greed. Suddenly we realize we have forgotten true meaning of compassion and gratitude.

Jiddu Krishnamurti has beautifully explained the true essence of compassion in his book, The Whole Movement of Life is Learning.   He says:  Compassion is not the doing of charitable acts or social reform; it is free from sentiment, romanticism and emotional enthusiasm. It is as strong as death. It is like a great rock, immovable in the midst of confusion, misery and anxiety. Without this compassion no new culture or society can come into being. Compassion and intelligence walk together; they are not separate. Compassion acts through intelligence. It can never act through the intellect. Compassion is the essence of the wholeness of life.

Compassion is indeed the essence of the wholeness of life. Meanwhile His Holiness, the Dalai Lama says, “Compassion is not a luxury, it is essential for own peace and mental stability, it is essential for human survival.” His Holiness links the essence of compassion to happiness. He says, “If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”

As compassion is the essence of the wholeness of life, learning to listen with compassion can be a powerful way to realize the cosmocentric approach to human nature- the fact that we are all interconnected- not just with our fellow human beings, but the nature and all other living beings. And when we realize the nature of deep interconnectedness we will be able to understand each other at a deeper level. Hence, listening with compassion enables us to delve deeper into the heart of possible differences and conflicts; it gives us an opportunity to equanimous understanding of divergent perspectives and ideas without being judgemental and evaluative. Important elements of nonviolent communication are avoiding stereotypes and moralistic judgements. These elements are also intrinsically linked to the practice of listening with compassion.

Thich Nhat Hanh gives us a philosophical insight to the whole idea of compassionate listening. He says, “You can practice deep listening in order to relieve the suffering in us, and in the other person. That kind of listening is described as compassionate listening. You listen only for the purpose of relieving the suffering in the person.”

He further says, “You listen with only one purpose; to help him or her to empty their heart. Even if he or she says things that are full of wrong perceptions, full of bitterness, you are still capable of continuing to listen with compassion.”

In the context of  Thich Nhat Hanh’s perspectives that one listens only for the purpose of relieving the suffering in the other person, it can be stated that in majority of the situations when someone comes to us and wants to be vent out their frustrations, we are attuned to quickly giving some advice without listening them out in totality and without compassion. We think it is a waste of time. However, as Thich Nhat Hanh says we decide to be patient and silently decide to listen to the other person with a goal of relieving their suffering and make the person realize that we are deeply listening to him/her, then the person is likely to become relaxed.

We could have words of wisdom or advice for the person, but as compassionate listener’s, we should decide to provide the person a ‘safe space’ where s/he can feel that there is someone to listen to her/his views/concerns with compassion and empathy. When we show genuine interest and deep concern, the other person will feel secured to share with us their vulnerabilities and actual problems.

Also, it is important for a compassionate listener to just let the other person express themselves without unnecessarily interrupting them. It will make them feel that we are interested in what they want to say rather than what we want to put across to them.

Talking on compassionate listening, Gene Knudsen Hoffman, writer, therapist and peace worker notes, “We should learn to listen to those we consider ‘the enemy’ with the same openness, non-judgement, and compassion we listen to those with whom our sympathies lies.” She further says, “Compassionate listening is adaptable to any conflict. The listening requires a particular attitude. It is non-adversarial, non-judgemental and seeks the truth of the person questioned. It also seeks to see through any masks of hostilities and fear to the sacredness of the individuals and to discern the wounds suffered by all parties.”

To conclude, for a communication ecosystem to be nonviolent, it is critical that nonviolent communicators learn the art and science of compassionate listening. Let’s all learn to listen to others with compassion for better understanding and pluralistic coexistence.

 

Does Humankind have the Spirit to Press the Reset Button for Pluralistic Coexistence?

Eminent Primatologist Jane Goodall has recently blamed human behaviour for the current coronavirus pandemic arguing that it as ‘our disregard for nature’. (April, 2020)

Expressing concern at rapid deforestation which forces wild species come closer to human inhabitants and the human habit of hunting wild animals for food, Goodall pointed out, “ Because as we destroy, let’s say the forest, the different species of animals in the forest are forced into a proximity and therefore diseases are being passed from one animal to another, and that second animal is then most likely to infect humans as it is forced into closer contact with humans.”

Time and again concerned citizens across the world have been airing their apprehension on how humankind is steadily destroying the natural ecosystem which is leading to environmental destruction. It is not only harming nature, but all living creatures on this Earth including humankind itself. Goodall’s concerns echo the deep abyss which human beings have led themselves in- a clear march towards self-destruction.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama eloquently reminds us on the need to come together and work to fight the challenges of climate change and related problems. He (April, 2020) notes, “Photographs of our world from space clearly show that there are no real boundaries on our blue planet. Therefore, all of us must take care of it and work to prevent climate change and other destructive forces. This pandemic serves as a warning that only by coming together with a coordinated, global response will we meet the unprecedented magnitude of the challenges we face.”

As His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Jane Goodall rings the alarm bell of human propensity to self-destruct by racing for unbridled materialism and greed, humankind must try to remind itself on going back to the principles of cosmocentric approach to human nature. This is what peace apostles like Mahatma Gandhi stood for and advocated. The cosmocentric approach wherein human beings realize that humankind is inextricably linked to not just nature but all other living beings can be the only crucial way in which human beings can stop itself from further self-destruction.

Bhikhu Parekh (1997) explains the notion of cosmocentric view as followed by Gandhi:

The cosmos was a well-coordinated whole whose various parts were all linked in a system of yajna, or interdependence and mutual service. It consisted of different orders of being ranging from the material to the human, each governed by its own laws and standing in a complex relationship with the rest. Human beings were an integral part of the cosmos and were tied to it by the deepest bonds. In Gandhi’s favourite metaphor, the cosmos was not a pyramid of which the material world was the base and the human beings the apex, but a series of ever-widening circles encompassing humankind, the sentient world, the material world, and the all including the cosmos.

According to Parekh, Gandhi was clear that a nonviolent society, ‘as human beings were interdependent, should discourage all forms of exploitation, domination, injustice, and inequality…and should find ways of institutionalizing and nurturing the spirt of love, truthfulness, social service, cooperation and solidarity’.

Senior Gandhian ecologist, Dr Vandana Shiva talking further on the essence of interconnection points out, “We are all members of the earth family, interconnected through the planet’s fragile web of life. We all have a duty to live in a manner that protects the earth’s ecological processes, and the rights and welfare of all species and all people. No humans have the right to encroach on the ecological space of other species and other people, or to treat them with cruelty and violence.”

As Goodall rightly points out that the more, we use our might and inflict violence on nature and destroy animal habitats, the more we will face challenges like the one we are facing due to the Coronovirus. Probably humankind has lost the plot of working in harmony in nature and how to ensure balance. Excessive greed and clamour for greater and newer forms of modernization is steadily pushing us to destruction. Who knowns when the next pandemic will be visiting us!

Gandhi has warned against the mad race of development which actually destroys all. He had explained this as a crisis in modern civilization. He had said, “I wholeheartedly detest this mad desire to destroy distance and time, to increase animal appetite and go to the ends of the earth in search of their satisfaction. If modern civilization stands for all this and I have understood it to do so, I call it satanic.” (Young India, 17-3-1927)

Today I was discussing this crisis with my sister, Sayantani and the emerging possibilities. We strongly felt that humankind need to press the reset button urgently and start taking serious action to practice the interconnected nature of existence and not think unidirectionally for only sustaining the greed of human beings. We need to delve deep on the essence of the pluralistic nature of our coexistence and how it can lead to genuine happiness and well-being. This is the only way we can save ourselves from self-destruction.

Postscript: The challenge to press the reset button for humankind to follow the cosmocentric approach so that we can ensure pluralistic coexistence between nature-human-all other living beings comes from human beings themselves. We are too obsessed to pursue our efforts to fulfil all our greed and self-aggrandisement. So, once we get away from the current pandemic of Coronavirus, we are all likely to find ourselves back to square one effortlessly pursuing our goal of self-destruction destroying natural habitats in the name of ‘development’. We will get engrossed in debates and pursuits to increase our GDP and other such parameters until the next pandemic strikes us. Also till then, Mahatma Gandhi’s famous saying, “The world has enough for everyone’s needs but not for everyone’s greed” will remain a wonderful quote for articles and discussions but not for consideration of human action.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deese, Kaelan (April 11, 2020). Jane Goodall blames ‘disregard for nature’ for coronavirus pandemic; https://thehill.com/homenews/coronavirus-report/492357-jane-goodall-blames-disregard-for-nature-for-coronavirus-pandemic?fbclid=IwAR3ZGCyHdPkJHB3IH6Vh0HivGVMhDFwRSSV6i9lp0y0jtVa8xZw-HMt4jgI

 

‘Prayer Is Not Enough.’ The Dalai Lama on Why We Need to Fight Coronavirus With Compassion; https://time.com/5820613/dalai-lama-coronavirus-compassion/?fbclid=IwAR3j_vDDfEudeFM0tkJURcqFix2Njrtkt4nld3nxMfjP0vbTGGLt0doyfDs

Parekh, Bhikhu (1997). Gandhi: A Very Short Introduction; Oxford University Press.

 

Need for Human Solidarity at the deepest level: Lessons from the Coronavirus

It is now almost a month since I have been getting regularly messages about my well-being from Facebook friends’. I haven’t met with majority of them or have even spoken to them. The interaction most of the times are restricted to likes or some occasional one-liners to some posts. But Coronavirus seems to be changing it all. For instance, Faniriantsoa Rindra Razafimamonjy from Madagascar profoundly posted, “Let’s pray for our world for ending this bad situation.”

In fact, Coronavirus is propelling a large number of individuals across the world to not just reach out to their kith and kin, but many others whom they hardly know. A petrified humanity is finding in the Coronavirus a central pole to come together to share their anguish and concerns.

This is in the backdrop of the society that we all have constructed in the past century which is highly individualistic and materialistic. Self-aggrandisement is the key and for a very large population across the world it has become a habit to achieve anything and everything for oneself even at the cost of others. The world has truly become a site of limitless human greed and this current pandemic reminds us of what Mahatma Gandhi had said, “The world has enough for everyone’s needs but not for everyone’s greed.” The resources of the world have been seriously compromised due to unlimited human greed and exploitation at the cost of the environment, other living beings and one’s fellow-beings.  It is in this backdrop that Coronavirus comes in the picture. Like an unassailable demon, it is causing havoc across the length and breadth of the world forcing lockdown and social distancing. In fact, it is remarkable to reflect on how the global push for social distancing is actually drawing humankind towards greater solidarity!

Ramin Jahanbegloo, the Executive Director of the Mahatma Gandhi Centre for Nonviolence and Peace Studies in an article in the Mint (March 27, 2020) eloquently states that pandemics have always changed history. He notes, “They hold up a mirror to civilizations, show them what they really are, and force them to change. This is what the coronavirus is doing today. It is showing us images of indifference in our societies around the world, and compelling us to think in terms of one humanity. This is an irony of fate, with the enemy of human civilization teaching us how to be civilized humanistic.”

Jahanbegloo beautifully links on the compulsion for the entire global community to think in ‘terms of one humanity’ to the Czech philosopher Jan Patocka’s perspectives on ‘solidarity of the shaken’. When one browse and try to gauge large number of Facebook posts, Patocka’s ‘solidarity of the shaken’ seems to be the underlying message. Individuals cutting across the nation states, race, caste and creed seem to suggest to others on how to escape from brutal attack of Coronavirus and eloquently try to cheer up those who are presently experiencing lockdown. For instance, I found one of the Facebook friends recording songs of love, compassion and the importance of endurance almost every day and posting them for her friends to listen.

Patocka in his seminal work, Heretical Essays in the Philosophy of History introduces the idea of ‘solidarity of the shaken’ which underlines a bond that originates between people who have experienced a strong disturbance of the certainties, big or small, that hold their lives in place. Patocka points out that the ‘shaken’ are those individuals whose everyday assurances have been overturned by a deeply shocking experience which allows them to change their perspective on life.

According to Patocka, the ‘shaken’ are those who are capable of understanding what life and death ae all about, and so what history is about as they have regained the true meaning of their own life through the experience of actual change. Patocka notes that by rediscovering the meaning of their death, human beings can also understand what life really is, i.e. something that cannot be restricted to ordinary every day experience, or limited to more facts.

The experience of people around the world in times of Coronavirus where they face possibilities of devastation or even death propels them to try and rediscover the true meaning of their lives. ‘Shaken’, they are now trying to reach out to each other more than ever before which has not been experienced in the consciousness of the global community possibly not even during the World Wars. This could be argued that even during the World Wars such a large number of countries were not affected as what ‘Coronavirus’ has been able to achieve.

The ‘solidarity of the shaken’ should be an opportunity for humankind to deeply understand the importance of human solidarity for peace and happiness. It should open gates for we human beings, so adept in getting into hate narratives, racism, xenophobia and different forms of intolerance, to realize that these takes us nowhere but destruction. Coronavirus teaches us that all forms of hatred, racism and xenophobia makes us morally poor and when time comes such as these, we all feel weak trying to scramble to be with each other in times of despair.

We should try to learn the true meaning, the art and science of human solidarity and nurture the habit of mutual respect and try to understand each other’s needs of life. This is not limited to human -human solidarity. Coronavirus teaches us to promote deep solidarity with not just other human beings, but equally important is to nurture solidarity with nature and all other living beings. Coronavirus teaches us on the significance of practicing deep appreciation of each other’s uniqueness. It teaches us on the urgent need to practice compassion for all living beings and nature as disregarding this will lead us to greater pandemic than Coronavirus in the future. In short there is no other option but to encourage human solidarity if the humankind is to survive for further disasters.

To conclude it would be pertinent to quote Jacques Delors at the UN Conference on Environment at Rio de Janiero in 1992:

The world is our village. If one house catches fire, the roofs over all our heads are immediately at risk. If anyone of us tries to start rebuilding, his efforts will be purely symbolic. Solidarity has to be the order of the day, each one of us must bear his own share of the general responsibility. We need a global ethics to guide us in solving global issues, in strengthening our interdependence and solidarity.”