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Thursday, April 11, 2013

Mother Earth Day April 22nd 2013


                   Mother  Earth Day April 22nd 2013
         By Balayogi- balayogiv@gmail.com

Let us try to understand in simple terms the role of MOTHER EARTH in our life and decide how to deal with her without either superficially sloganeering that we need to protect her or recklessly raping her for our pleasures.

We must  do this  without getting into the mode of extremism on the one hand in the form of pro environmentalist fanaticism or jargon churning  ecological experts or on the other hand extremism in the form of promoters of development indifferent to the well being of mother earth.

Mother earth has a unique splendour in that she is too complex but neither complicated nor complicating and her relationship with us is very simple. She is a very loving, tolerant and forgiving mother.

This simple relationship needs reciprocation in the form of primarily acknowledging the simple facts which tell us that we need to respect MOTHER EARTH. Almost all of us Must Obviously Take care of Her in Every Respect because Everything All of us Require we receive Through Her.

She gives birth to, supports and sustains multiple life forms with equal hospitality and enthusiasm. Among the multiple life forms that she has given birth and /or harbours human beings are the only ones who are capable of  carrying out many activities which may insult and injure her and this has happened in the past so many years.

Unfortunately human relationship with mother earth has been one of extremes starting from looking with ignorance and awe at many of her marvels [when men imagined the Earth as the centre of the universe] to deifying and worshiping her [ there are many references to it in many religions, regions and cultures, the extreme one being in Atharva Veda, where as many as 63 mantras pertain to Prithvi-Sukta (Hymn to Earth), glorifying Mother Earth] to damaging her, sometimes irresponsibly and irreparably as is evident from all that is around us today.

Still like a very tolerant and forgiving mother she has been sustaining us patiently. We must note that nothing remains unaffected if it is over used, abused or misused. Mother earth is no exception. At the same time as Neale Donald Walsch says “Everything that exists is functional, adaptable, and sustainable in some form, or it would not exist”, and mother earth is no exception to this rule as well. So there is no need to get into doomsday preaching either.[1]

However, her health too gets affected by the injuries and insults we inflict and the reactions are seen in the form of uncontrollable floods, tsunamis, hurricanes, blistering hot climates, drying up of water resources, El Nino etc. Only whenever she manifests her fury unbearable for us, we reluctantly react by reflecting to rectify the damages to certain extent and in many case we have not even understood her health properly.
People populating earth are made of different levels of concern, callousness, involvement, indifference, ignorance etc as for as mother earth is concerned. In the story of evolutionary biology and psychology man has surpassed other life forms not only as a mere creature with consciousness and clever means of communication, carrying within him many extra and extraordinary senses and perceptions but also as the most capable of manufacturing and using many products for making his life more comfortable, secure and pleasant.

This process of making life more comfortable, secure and pleasant has inflicted many injuries to the mother earth as a side effect or as an after effect.

Now it is practically impossible to rewind life styles to few centuries back and expect all human beings to forgo the comforts that they have been used to for so many centuries.

We are faced with the three proverbial problems as Adolph Monod says, “Between the great things we cannot do and the small things we will not do, the danger is that we shall do nothing."  
It is evident over the years that we cannot draft grand global plans [though they may make good news headlines] and ensure its implementation. Majority are both unwilling and unable to make small life style adjustments and that too cannot be enforced either. But it would be dangerous if we remain either as silent spectators or indifferent idiots without doing anything about them because ultimately we may end up losing mother earth’s bounty.

However, after knowing the danger signals we must do what best we can to ameliorate the situation taking into consideration the context and all relevant facts and factors as they are in every place where we live, in whatever way we can to protect mother earth as Clarissa Pinkola Estés says, “Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach...”
With this practical approach if we proceed then we can see some real results as Mother Earth is the only planet known so for with the chemistry needed to bring to life, build and sustain organic life as till date the Drake equation (is an equation to organize our guesses about the potential number of alien civilizations in the Milky Way) remains only a hunch and not a reality.

So let us at different levels as individuals, as small social groups, as regional states , as nations all over the world take the pledge to do whatever we can to protect Mother Earth from further injury and damage.
April 22 as International Mother Earth Day was established in 2009 by the UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY under Resolution A/RES/63/278.
Mother Earth
Marvellous subterranean life meandering all over;
Oceans opulent with marine life and minerals;
Trees that help all life;
High mountains harbouring many lives;
Expanses of flora and fauna;
Rivers that reverberate with lovely life; 
Every life injecting and interacting with
Atmosphere above; and all
Reciprocating in
True harmony of interdependence and interaction;
Heaven is the life you give to all and the life in You, Mother Earth.

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