“Thoughts” to Mother Earth’s Plea

Image by Getty Images via DaylifeMany countries struggle to attain development and to supply the bottomless pit of man’s endless demands at the expense on nature. This has brought the conditions we are now bitterly experiencing: the green house effect, the shrinking of grasslands, the hazardous effect of pesticides and other chemical pollutants, nuclear power, the ozone depletion, denuding the forest lands, the endless exploration and sucking out of mineral ores and fossil fuel, and the displacement ans exploitation of indigenous people. There seems no end to the list of atrocious crimes against Mother Earth.

The tug-of-war between the environmentalist and economist have often qualified the parameters of sustainable development. For economist, sustainability denotes the guarantee of profitability. For its part, the Brundtland Commission of the World Commission on Environment and Development, who solicited opinions and facts world-wide from 1984-1986 on the common endeavor and new forms of behavior, says: “The sustainable development program must meet the needs of the present without compromising future generations just so the present will meet their own needs”

Sustainability, however, must be viewed in terms of economics which, in the first place, has no limiting principle. Sustainability should be focus on the care of the ecosystem – an irreplaceable, unreconstructed resource.

Imagine the repercussions of sustainability in terms of agriculture from the perspective of economists. Economic returns ont the yardstick. With an intensive agricultural program, forest are burned down, to plough in and chemical spraying are done just to ensure high yields. Taken to the extreme, what if by such a worldwide practice the global environment becomes unlivable? It should be disastrous. The ecosystem would be muddled and skewed, you wouldn’t be around to answer this.

J.Stan Rowe of the University of Saskatchewan has aptly made as analogy between the economic system in Mother Earth and the fetus in mother animal. He says, “Just as a size limit exists for the fetus that a 64kg. woman can support without undermining her health, so there must be a limit to the size of the human economy that the health ecosphere can support. In both instances, the subsystem can threaten the health of the larger enveloping system in two ways.
-by appropriating materials and energy faster than the parent can renew them; and/or
-by poisoning the host system – expelling wastes in quantities and at rates that exceed the detoxifying capacity of the parent.

But isn’t this already occurring? Isn’t the fetus slowly gobbing up the mother?

Taking the microscopic view of the environment crisis, it is apparent that human beings – not dolphins, trees, or plastics of CFS – are mistreating the earth. We, who wanted the to economically prosper, are all contributors to the cause of environmental crises, through many would like to point accusing fingers at the capitalist, economists, and politicians.

It is a question of setting clear-cut priorities. J. Stan Rowe has hit the nail on its head when he said; “Humanity will destroy the world and inadvertently itself. The idea that the two pursuits–economic development that looks after the welfare of the people, their needs and wants, and environmental conservation that attends to the welfare of the world – can go merrily hand in hand as equals is false. The first priority has to be the welfare of surrounding ecosystem, for without their healthy functioning, no ecosystem can last. The world religions all condemn selfishness in individuals. We must now go one step further and recognize that species selfishness, hitherto condoned, is not only stupid, it is criminal.”

Now consider this popular environmentalist slogan; “The earth is our only home so Save the Earth.” If we are to accept this philosophy, this means “I am this material body and the earth is my only home. So my natural function, or what will make me happy, is to enjoy the earth.” This is the very consciousness of the people who are destroying the earth: to satisfy their endless needs with endless material consumption, leading to problems of over consumption.
Selfishness id an inevitable fruit of this materialistic outlook in life, the goal in life is essential pleasure: and sensual pleasure is such that it can only be experienced by you. My enjoyment does nothing to you – you cannot taste it.

Man endless craving for more and more has taken such a heavy toll on and is so burdensome for Mother Earth is caused by lust. In the Bhagavad-gita, Arjuna ask Krishna, “By what is one impelled to sinful acts, even unwillingly, as if engaged by force? The Blessed Lord says: “It is lust only, Arjuna, which is born of contact with the material modes of passion and later transformed into wrath, and which is the all-devouring, sinful enemy of the world.”

This is the exact reason for the cause of environment crises. In the matter of endless consumption, nobody ultimately consumes anything. Everything that comes in goes out sooner or later. It’s not really endless attempts at sensual gratification.

Many solutions have been proposed by environmentalist. But for problems to be eradicated, we must strike at the root cause. Otherwise, proposed solutions will merely be band-aid-solutions – superficial. Before striking at the root, we must know the cause. An internal change, a change in consciousness or outlook in life in each of us must happen. This is not about happiness. Instead of searching for happiness in endless material consumption which only brings emptiness, frustration and loneliness, why don’t we focus on satisfying our endless desires on seeking the sweetness of an eternal loving relationship with God. In this way, being full within our hearts, exploitation and unnecessary violence towards man and the whole ecosystem will be superseded by compassion, respects, and wisdom in our actions.

Finally, as Jagad Guru reminds us: “People cannot remain as materialistic, selfish people, and have peace and harmony in the family, society, or world. For the world to be peaceful, we have to be peaceful within ourselves.” Happy Earth Day!

Slimming Naturally

Tons of people worry on how to unload those excess baggage, getting rid of flab – slimming.
Going by today’s standards, to be slim is to be attractive. to look lean and mean with firm muscles is the anxiety which results in making aerobic and other fitness centers thrive as a booming business. Fitness programs with treatments compete for your hard-earned money, all promising to make you shed 20 to 30 unwanted pounds. Fat burners and slimming teas abound in the shelves of health food stores. Those without patience with the programs get an instant liposuction, surgical shortening of the small intestines or sewing of the stomach so to be smaller.

Weight loss actually is not a big problem with which to be burdened. To lose that excess weight is desirable, not just for superficial reason  of so-called beauty standards. Actually, it is quite sad that people see others on the basis of the person within that body.
But be sure to lose that excess weight because having more fat in the body slows one down , invite diseases, and cause fatigue. Please consider that the first reason why one may be over-eating, though. Is it due to some emotional problem, or some glandular disorders? From there you can adopt a program for a more healthy living

Attention to diet is crucial. Your body is the result of your current eating habits. If your body is sickly or heavy on the scale, introduce changes gradually. Changing to a new good diet should not mean making abrupt stressful adjustment. You must be aware of the desirable and undesirable food identity.

Stay away from sweets, salty, fatty processed foods. You don’t have to live on a monotonous unpolished rice and veggies either. Fad diet are not the answer either to obesity or bad health. It deprive the body of essential nutrients and lower the body’s metabolic rate. What is needed is establishing a good ratio of nutrients by choosing good quality foods.

You must be aware of your individual requirements. Many of my friends who work with computers like to nibble while working. What do they nibble? Some salty, sweet processed junk food. It must be hard for them to go a weight control diet program. But still, you must find a healthy substitute to eat like dried fruits and fruit juices.

Work within a sensible framework, and occasional treats can be enjoyed without harm. Eat food as close to their natural state as possble. Add more raw food at the start of the meal, or follow the main meal suggestion twice a week, then three times until you are close to the recomended pattern.

Having fiber in one’s food is essential to anyone even if he/she is not in some trimming down program. Fiber comes from whole plants, wholen grains, vegetables, and fruits. it is bsically composed of the edible plant which forms the plant cell walls. Fiber is neither digested or absorbed in the small intestine; it is digested in the large intestine. Some of the digested products actually get into the body and significantly reduce the production of cholesterol.

Fiber is mainly a source of complex carbohydrates which releases gradual energy level into our blood sugar. Complex carbohydrates also does’nt shoot up our blood sugar leaving our body suddenly depleted with energy, a reaction given of by simple carbohydrates.

According to medical findings, fiber may protect you against cancer, may reduce the risk of coronay heart disease and help control obesity and diabetes. Fiber is essential in fostering healthy bowel movement and protects us against gall-stones, reduces cholesterol levels and ensures better health.

Avoid white bread, white sugar, dyed or artificially sweetened foods and drinks. Avoid meat, if possible, specially red meat. Eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains like oats, brown rice and wheat. Take multi-vitamins and minerals three times a day. Minimize or avoid intake of artificial salt. Pay attention to trace minerals such as zinc and sulphur which are good for the skin.

Perhaps you have heard that when you are on a diet, one of the basic rules is NOT to starve yourself. Rather, you must eat the proper food that can lessen your weight but still provide energy for your body. To be continued….”thought”