Gandhian Village Swaraj: A Solution for Global Crises

The Present Very Grave Global Environmental, Moral and Spiritual Crises

Dear friends,

We must know that so far what we know at present scientifically, only a human being has the potential through one's efforts to become a divine being or a devil within one's journey between birth and death; and in the entire universe, only our planet mother Earth has the life-and-health-sustaining natural Eco-systems where beings with such potentiality exist. The present global environmental crisis is the greatest human-made crisis ever made on Mother Earth due to the unethical use of science and technology of our age, which has catastrophic consequences for the masses, future generations and the dumb-and-deaf life-world.

No great teacher/seer of any great religion would approve of the present fundamentally unspiritual, lust for pleasures and greed for wealth-based, extremely Eco-hostile, unsustainable out-and-out consumerist culture of development of modern civilization, which has been caused through the unethical use of the massive power of science and technology of our age disappearance of tens of thousands of plant and animal species, and continues to cause greater and greater violence to the invaluable life-and-health sustaining natural Eco-systems of mother Earth, which has catastrophic consequences for the masses, future generations and the dumb-and-deaf life-world. Mahatma Gandhi rightly considers it to be satanic and nine days wonder only. It produces wealth in some ways that cause greater and greater harm to the invaluable natural Ecosystems of Mother Earth and consumes its limited natural resources substantially more than what our planet Mother Earth can regenerate it. Humans have become the most dangerous species on our planet Mother Earth due to the unethical use of the massive power of science and technology of our age, although every person has the potential to become a divine being, i.e. a spiritually enlightened person, by exercising one's free will and reason within one's journey between birth and death, and so far we know only humans have such a potentiality. The WHO in its report released on 11th October 2021 claims that every day about 18,700 people die due to air pollution caused by fossil fuels. According to the Living Planet Report 2022 of WWF, about 69 per cent of the wildlife population has declined only in the last 50 years and soon many more wildlife species will disappear from planet Earth if global warming continues to increase at the present rate. (Https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/wildlife-biodiversity/living-planet-report-2022-wildlife-decline-by-69-in-50years-85438 ) . According to the Annual report of WMO released on 18th May 2023, there is a 98 percent possibility that the period between 2023-30 will be the hottest so far ever recorded. The scientists of IPCC of UNO are unanimously claiming that their warming about the impending catastrophic consequences of global warming and climate change is essentially true ( See the UNO -Report released on 13/ 09/ 2022: https://news.un.org.en/story/2022/09/1126511)

Unfortunately, under the spell of the glamour of the present culture of development of modern civilisation, leaders world over, including our leaders, are showing great apathy to take any substantial step in the right direction to avoid the impending catastrophic consequences of the present very grave global environmental crises in general and the crisis of global warming and climate change in particular, although the scientists of IPPC of UNO are unanimously claiming that their warming about the impending irreversible catastrophic consequences of global warming and climate change is essentially true. The UNO Secretary-General Antonio Gutters has again claimed this in his speech at the UN Climate Ambition Summit in New York on 20th September 2023.

The Gandhian claim about the Importance of the Gandhian Solution for the Present Very Grave Global Environmental, Moral and Spiritual Crises

If we sincerely and rationally reflect on the scientific claims about the present very grave global environmental crises, it would not be very difficult for us to see the importance of our 1st Gandhian Modern Eco-Village, Village Swaraj Pilot Project in Odisha to test the Gandhian claim that the fundamentally ethics-based, Eco-friendly, village-friendly, agro-friendly, just, sustainable, loving and caring Gandhian non-violent culture of decentralised industrialisation and urbanization, which is based on the basic ethics of all great religions as well as of our great living ancient Indian civilization in the context of our present technological age, is the only surest long-term permanent rational solution available to us for avoiding the impending catastrophic global ecological crises, including the crisis of global warming and climate change, along with the present all-pervasive, deep-rooted global moral and spiritual crises. Gandhian Village Swaraj constitutes its core. Let all like-minded noble people sincerely try through a mass Satyagraha to create such a culture of development in our mother country and save India and through it the world at large from the present very grave global environmental, moral and spiritual crises. Surely our great living ancient Indian civilization has the necessary moral and spiritual resources to create such a culture of development in our country.

Let us sincerely try to make our first Gandhian Modern Eco-village Project in Odisha a role model of the Gandhian Village Swaraj not only for our country but also for the entire world. While working on or planning what to do for the project, let us always think about whether Mahatma Gandhi would have approved it or not. Let us sincerely help /work for the success of this profoundly noble project with compassion and empathy for the sufferings of the masses, future generations and the dumb-and-deaf life-world due to the impending catastrophic global environmental crises in general and the crisis of global warming and climate change in particular.

With goodwill, love and prayers,

Smt. Rama Rauta