Ecology, sustainability and traditional wisdom

摘要

During the last few years the world has witnessed severe climatic conditions, be it in the form of unprecedented droughts or devastating floods, tornadoes, landslides along with major earthquakes and Tsunamis. Are these natural calamities natural and normal or are these the manifestation of man's adverse impact on the environment? If the nature and frequency of numerous geo-climatic upheavals that the earth is experiencing is compared to the worst case scenario of the climate change advocates, the resemblance seems amazingly similar. A plausible explanation for this could be the fact that mankind does not know how to reign in its need for continuous economic growth without adversely affecting ecological sustainability! This problem of achieving and maintaining sustained economic growth seems to be a problem that is unique to the modern post industrial economy. It is being increasingly realized that the ancient civilizations may have economic systems and practices that was based on living in harmony with nature. Hence, there is a growing clamor to learn from the wisdom of the ancients and incorporate their ideas and practices or in other words learn from the philosophies that have stood the test of time.