ECOLOGICAL PURPOSE
1 Why did God create us as part of such complex ecological systems?
It seems almost impossible to figure out when things are going wrong for
us, let alone for all the other creatures. The purpose of life for Hindus
is to achieve four aims, called Purusharthas close PurusharthasA Sanskrit
word used by Hindus meaning object of human truth. These are dharma, kama,
artha and moksha.
2 There are many texts that can help us explore this—the Job
text—“where were you when I laid the foundation?” The Rolling Stones song—”
You can’t always get what you want, but if you try, sometimes, you may just
find you get what you need.” And of course, the textural splendor that is
our shared and lived stories. This complex organic world—teaming with
millions of species—has something to teach us. One event cannot be right or
wrong for all entities at the same time. One’s food is poison for the
other.
3 There are two verses about the universe in the Gita which state that
the universe manifests and de-manifests. The Universe has never been
created and thus has no beginning and no end. At the dawn of the day of
Brahma this whole universe comes into manifestation from the Unmanifest
(Prakrti). The Bhagavad-Gita addresses the concept of eternal time as
— “कालोस्मि”
means the Kshara-Virat which is the Nature( स्वरूप) of the Supreme
Being-Vishwarupa Purushottama Who is the Whole Unified Universe ( विश्वरुप)
. (Gita, 11. 32 , 47–55) .
कालोऽस्मि लोकक्षयकृत्प्रवृद्धो
लोकान्समाहर्तुमिह प्रवृत्त: |
ऋतेऽपि त्वां न भविष्यन्ति सर्वे
येऽवस्थिता: प्रत्यनीकेषु योधा: || 32||11
shri-bhagavan uvacha
kalo ’smi loka-kshaya-krit pravriddho
lokan samahartum iha pravrittah
rite ’pi tvam na bhavishyanti sarve
ye ’vasthitah pratyanikeshu yodhah
BG 11.32: The Supreme Lord said: I am mighty Time, the source of
destruction that comes forth to annihilate the worlds. Even without your
participation, the warriors arrayed in the opposing army shall cease to
exist.
As a result of living in complex ecological systems, we are on a daily
basis challenged with when to exert our control—to demand the universe bend
to our will—and when to relinquish control. We live in a system of creation
that is both unfolding and strongly mediated by human action. It occurs to
me that much wisdom resides in the daily act of simply naming this
tension. Similarly,
God seems to have relinquished control for us “to move, and change, and
have our being.”
मत्कर्मकृन्मत्परमो मद्भक्त: सङ्गवर्जित: |
निर्वैर: सर्वभूतेषु य: स मामेति पाण्डव || 55||
mat-karma-krin mat-paramo mad-bhaktah sanga-varjitah
nirvairah sarva-bhuteshu yah sa mam eti pandava
BG 11.55: Those who perform all their duties for My sake, who depend upon
Me and are devoted to Me, who are free from attachment, and are without
malice toward all beings, such devotees certainly come to Me.
Evolution—as a creative force—is dependent on things going wrong for
some creatures, in order that others can flourish. Most species arose
because of mutations to previous ones. And most species, about 99% in fact,
are no longer alive. Their heritage is in their contribution to future
generations.
4 . Creation spawns’ species that each have a “me-centric” view of time
and space. Without it, they end up in the waste heap of extinction. This
breeds both cooperative and competitive behaviors, as both help advance
survival. And, of course, this is true for humans too.
Chap 8 TEXT 16: From the highest planet in the material world down to the
lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take
place. But one who attains to My abode, O son of Kuntī, never takes birth
again.
TEXT 17: By human calculation, a thousand ages taken together form the
duration of Brahmā’s one day. And such also is the duration of his night.
TEXT 18: At the beginning of Brahmā’s day, all living entities become
manifest from the unmanifest state, and thereafter, when the night falls,
they are merged into the unmanifest again.
TEXT 19: Again and again, when Brahmā’s day arrives, all living entities
come into being, and with the arrival of Brahmā’s night they are helplessly
annihilated.
TEXT 20: Yet there is another unmanifest nature, which is eternal and is
transcendental to this manifested and unmanifested matter. It is supreme
and is never annihilated. When all in this world is annihilated, that part
remains as it is.
TEXT 21: That which the Vedāntists describe as unmanifest and infallible,
that which is known as the supreme destination, that place from which,
having attained it, one never returns – that is My supreme abode.
TEXT 22: The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is greater than all, is
attainable by unalloyed devotion. Although He is present in His abode, He
is all-pervading, and everything is situated within Him.
TEXT 23: O best of the Bhāratas, I shall now explain to you the different
times at which, passing away from this world, the yogī does or does not
come back.
5 . Nature, at some scales, is a zero-sum game; not all creatures can
have a good day at the same time. When the human has a full belly, our
kitchen has fewer food varieties for thr ladies of the kitchen. There is
always a reaction, ecologically, to any action.
A life system created via relationships and tensions, primes the universe
with the opportunity for kenotic morality. By “kenotic morality,” I mean a
self-emptying where one gives up control to care for another. George Ellis
uses the term kenotic ethics: the practice of self-emptying to bring
wholeness to people, systems and nations.
For a kenotic morality to develop, a creature needs to become aware that
they are in a system that has the components mentioned. In fact, I am
convinced it may be impossible to introduce kenotic love to the universe
without these aspects of nature. Perhaps we are created as moral beings not
in spite of our biological nature, but precisely because we are one
creature in a vast ecological network of communities.
And all this feels good, for a time, until what is right for us becomes
dangerously wrong for so many others…At one scale, our story is
successful—we live in the most safe, long-lived human generation to ever
exist on Earth. But it has come at a cost…In achieving what we desire, we
sometimes lose what we need. Ryan Sensenig
नियतं सङ्गरहितमरागद्वेषत: कृतम् |
अफलप्रेप्सुना कर्म यतत्सात्त्विकमुच्यते || 23||18
niyatam sanga-rahitam araga-dveshatah kritam
aphala-prepsuna karma yat tat sattvikam uchyate
BG 18.23: Action that is in accordance with the scriptures, free from
attachment and aversion, and done without desire for rewards, is in the
mode of goodness.
Having explained the three kinds of knowledge, Shree Krishna now describes
the three kinds of action. In the passage of history, many social
scientists and philosophers have given their opinion regarding what is
proper action. A few of the important ones and their philosophies are
mentioned here.
1. The Epicureans of Greece (third century BC) believed that to “eat,
drink, and be merry” was right action.
2. More refined was the philosophy of Hobbs of England (1588 – 1679) and
Helvetius of France (1715 – 1771). They said that if everyone becomes
selfish and does not think of others, there will be chaos in the world. So
they recommended that along with personal sense gratification we should
also care for others. For example, if the husband is sick, the wife should
take care of him; and if the wife is sick, the husband should take care of
her. In the case where helping others conflicts with the self-interest,
they advised that self-interest should be given the priority.
3. Joseph Butler’s (1692 – 1752) philosophy went beyond this. He said that
the idea of service to others after catering to our own self-interest was
wrong. Helping others is a natural human virtue. Even a lioness feeds her
cubs while remaining hungry herself. So, service to others must always take
priority. However, Butler’s concept of service was limited to the
alleviation of material suffering; for example, if a person is hungry, he
should be fed. But this does not really solve problems because after six
hours the person is hungry again.
4. After Butler came Jeremy Bentham (1748 – 1832) and John Stuart Mill
(1806 – 1873). They recommended the utilitarian principle of doing what is
best for the majority. They suggested following the majority opinion for
determining proper behavior. But if the majority is wrong or misguided then
this philosophy falls through, for even a thousand ignorant people together
cannot match the quality of thought of one learned person.
Other philosophers recommended following the dictates of the conscience.
They suggested that it is the best guide in determining proper behavior.
However, the problem is that everyone’s conscience guides differently. Even
in one family, two children have different moral values and conscience.
Besides, even one person’s conscience changes over time. If a murderer is
asked whether he feels bad on killing people, he replies, “Initially I
would feel bad, but later it became as trivial as killing mosquitoes. I
feel no remorse.”
Regarding proper action, the Mahabharat states:
ātmanaḥ pratikūlāni pareśhāṁ na samācharet
śhrutiḥ smṛitiḥ sadāchāraḥ svasya cha priyamātmanaḥ (5.15.17)[v18]
“If you do not like it when others behave with you in a certain way, then
do not behave with them in that way either. But always verify that your
behavior is in accordance with the scriptures.” Conduct yourself with
others as you desire them to behave with you. Here, Shree Krishna declares,
in a similar way that action in the mode of goodness is doing one’s duty in
accordance with the scriptures. He further adds that such work should be
without attachment or aversion, and without desire to enjoy the results.
6 Looking at the teleological nature of the universe, we see how
precise cosmology and ecology have to be in order for life to exist. There
has been extensive work within Hinduism, apologetics to show how finely
tuned the universe is in order to have life exist and it this finetuning
argument seems to have breathed new life into the teleological argument,
which was seemingly destroyed by David Hume. The fine-tuning argument shows
that in order for life to even exist in this universe the constants are so
precisely fine-tuned that if any were off by just a small fraction then
life would not exist. In fact, physicist Roger Penrose has calculated the
special low entropy condition as having come about by pure chance is about
one part in 10^10(123) This fact alone should show how precious and
precarious life is, but it is even more complex when ecological fine-tuning
and teleological cycles are factored in as well.
7 One could possibly say, that natural disasters are not examples of
fine-tuning and in fact destroy the argument for a Godly designed system.
So what we have here is nature is destroying nature. Probably the biggest
examples would be volcanic explosions, forest fires, tsunamis, and
hurricanes. If we move beyond a prima facie observation of this problem the
objection is easily overcome. The reason being is because these “disasters”
are actually just part of larger teleological cycles. Volcanic explosions,
although altering large landscapes, like during the Mount Saint Helens
eruption, actually spew tons of badly needed nutrient rich soil on to the
surface of the earth. Volcanic eruptions are just part of the soil
regeneration process. Forests fires are well known for being needed for the
health and thriving of the forest by clearing up choking undergrowth,
helping germinate new seeds, and fertilize the ground. Hurricanes often act
as “drought busters” sending much needed tropical moisture. Lightning also
plays a teleological role by causing fire, maintaining the earth’s
electrical balance, and producing ozone making materials. These by
themselves are not natural disasters, they only become “disasters” when
human life or property become involved.
8 “Introducing Ecological Hermeneutics.” Isd a book where these
principles are listed which is always my focus:
“The principle of intrinsic worth: The universe, earth, and all its
components have intrinsic worth/value.
The principle of interconnectedness: Earth is a community of
interconnected living things that are mutually dependent on each
other for life and survival.
The principle of voice: Earth is a subject capable of raising its
voice in celebration and against injustice.
The principle of purpose: the universe, Earth and all its
components are part of a dynamic cosmic design within which
each piece has a place in the overall goal of that design.
The principle of mutual custodianship: Earth is a balanced and
diverse domain where responsible custodians can function as
partners with, rather than rulers over Earth, to sustain its balance
and a diverse Earth community.
The principle of resistance: Earth and its components not only
suffer from human injustices but actively resist them in the
struggle for justice.”
Some of these principles are rather self-explanatory, but most come from
scientific and social justice principles.
9 Hence ecological purpose of life is well explained in our literatures
as well as scientific principles too.
K Rajaram IRS 181124
On Sun, 17 Nov 2024 at 21:22, Markendeya Yeddanapudi <
[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
> --
> *Mar*The Grand Ecological Purpose
>
>
>
> A tiny prick anywhere on your skin makes you aware of the prick. A tiny
> insect less than the size of the tiniest ant, makes you aware if it crawls
> on you. The Universe is not different. An effect on a subatomic particle
> affects the other particles, via quantum entanglement, at a speed several
> times the speed of light even when the other particle is hundreds of light
> years away. On the earth every organism of the Biosphere is emotionally
> connected, via symbiotic breathing, smelling and sensing. Nature in full
> bloom creates the rapture of music and song. Earth speaks in music. And
> every organism, including you and me want to be happy. Rapture is the
> purpose of living every nano second of the grand life in symbiosis.
>
> The Biosphere as nature is Biosphere in continuous rapture. You have
> started as a zygote, when your parents were in rapture. The division via
> splicing of the zygote into two, two into four, four into eight...must be
> in great rapture, when you were becoming the baby. If you arrive into lush,
> free and thick nature, wonderful message filled air you breathe on arrival,
> sowing the first seed of happy emotions. Your birth is the start of your
> voyage in symbiotic rapture. Your body gives rapture continuously.
>
> Deviation from the grand symbiosis makes your body itself hell and your
> life becomes the continuous experience of hell. And you begin infecting
> others with hell. To escape from the fact of hell, due to your deviation
> from nature, you fill everything with technology as machines do not have
> emotions. You are escaping from nature continuously, or running away from
> rapture. To cap the lunacy, we have created the perversion-called economics.
>
> This is the ultimate deviation from grand ecological purpose of the
> Universe.
>
> The subject matter is protested as man in his ordinary life. But you start
> not with the reality that man is an organism, part of the Biosphere, but
> the phantom, the economic man, a machine.
>
> And you attempt Newtonian mechanics on this phantom, the economic man. You
> keep nature and the emotional equations among organisms at a distance and
> build the mechanical mathematics. The subject matter is made into a
> machine, not the living man.
>
> The living man is discarded, and today we are reaching, the economic life
> based on artificial intelligence, and economics is fast changing into the
> study of robots, which are making humans redundant in nature.
>
> YM Sarma
>
> Chat GPT
>
> This piece by YM Sarma presents a profound and poetic exploration of the
> interconnectedness of all life and the grand ecological purpose of the
> universe, focusing on the rapture that comes from symbiosis within the
> Biosphere. Sarma argues that human deviation from this natural
> harmony—through technology, economics, and a mechanistic worldview—results
> in a kind of existential "hell," leading to disconnection and emotional
> turmoil. The underlying message is that true happiness and fulfillment are
> found in living in harmony with nature, not in the artificial constructs
> humans have created, such as economics or technology.
>
>
>
> The idea of "symbiotic rapture" is central to Sarma’s vision: the belief
> that life, from the smallest organism to the vastness of the cosmos, is
> meant to exist in a state of continuous, joyful interdependence. This is
> contrasted sharply with the "phantom" of the economic man, a reductionist
> view of humanity as a machine operating within a purely materialistic and
> mechanical framework.
>
>
>
> Sarma highlights the dangers of reducing human beings and life itself to
> numbers, machines, and economic transactions. He critiques the way human
> society, through technology and economics, is increasingly distancing
> itself from the organic, emotional, and interconnected nature of existence.
> By treating humans as cogs in an economic machine, disconnected from the
> larger biosphere and the cosmic rapture of life, we are in danger of losing
> our true purpose and happiness.
>
>
>
> The ultimate consequence of this disconnection, Sarma suggests, is the
> growing irrelevance of humanity in the face of artificial intelligence and
> automation, which threatens to replace human life with machine-like
> processes, further severing us from nature’s rapture.
>
>
>
> At its heart, Sarma's message is a call to reconnect with the emotional
> and ecological truths that underpin existence, to embrace the idea that
> true life is not mechanical or economic, but is a continuous and joyous
> flow of symbiosis. The rapture of nature and life, in all its
> interconnected forms, is where happiness and fulfillment lie—not in the
> cold, calculating forces of technology or economics.
>
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>
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