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MAHATMA GANDHI WAS AN ECOLOGICAL-YOGI & ENVIRONMENTAL-MYSTIQUE

I do not know whether you have seen the world as it really is. For myself, I can say, I perceive the world in its grim reality moment to moment. My life is my message..Mahatma Gandhi.

Gandhi lived all his life loving nature, appreciating natural resources, realizing the importance of wild animals and humans amidst natural environment. His hot pursuit of repair, build and economizing upon surrounding human ecology, ecosystems and environment, made him an ecological-yogi, an elusive and indefatigable environmentalistA K Singh

Gandhi started the Phoenix Communal Experimental Farm on 100 acres of natural land in 1904 near Inanda town some 20 km from Darban in South Africa surrounding sugar cane plantations which was inspired by the works of John Ruskins Unto The Last. The farm was for experimentation of promoting justice, peace and equality devoted to the principles of Satyagriha (passive resistance). The farm was made lively with bustling community. Green-agro forestry-cum-horticultural-gardens were developed for supply of dairy products to all homesteads of the farm with milk, butter and ghee. Communal activities such as prayers and singing of hymns used to be encouraged together with imparting lessons on Gita, love for nature, Ayurveda and importance of vegetables, fruits and forest products. Self-help, dignity of labour and simplicity were taught by Gandhiji together with fearlessness and constantly to struggle against injustice and exploitation. The farm symbolized the virtues of simple natural living with love, labour and dignity of humanity amid natural environment. In 1910 Gandhi started Tolstoy Farm near Johannesburg in South Africa with support from his friend Herman Kallenbach in recognition of their deep admiration for Count Leo Tolstoy. Farm of 1100 acres two miles long and 1 mile broad, the farm sloping

down from the natural forest hills was developed with enormous fruit bearing trees, fodder, peaches, apricots, figs, almonds, walnuts and the forestry plantations of wattle and eucalyptus trees. Tolstoy Farm served for training for new passive resisters, trial for communal living, which served as resting place for families of prisoners, for prayers, spiritual purification and penance. With a small library of books Gandhi taught children and families of the prisoners the respect for nature, concern for self-cooking, vegetarianism, regard for schooling, admiration for natural living with skill up gradation like wood-works, small timber-crafts, carpentry and shoe-sandal-making. There was a strong emphasis on education, manual labor, vocational training in communal living nurturing the ideals of social service and natural living in co operative commonwealth. Gandhi started Sabarmati Ashram of 36 acres of land in 1915 on the bank of pristine environment of Sabarmati river near Ahmedabad in Gujrat of India, which he described and said, This is the right place for our activities to carry on the search for truth and develop fearlessness, for one side of the Ashram are the iron bolts of the foreigners and on the other, thunderbolts of mother-nature. The place was an open barren but fertile land where he initiated

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experiment with farming, animal husbandry, cow breeding, khadi weaving. Gandhi started a school that focused on manual labour towards horticulture and agriculture. The ashram was a human laboratory for testing human natural instincts and spiritual transformation by an allegiance to common ideals for education, truth, love, celibacy, frugal diet, abandoning of possessions, use of home made articles, eradication of untouchability and dignity of human being. Gandhiji was a visionary with foresight and intuition inspired by David Henry Thoreau. Thoreau considered the nature, natural environment vitally important to uplifting human spirit, strength and disposition. He is well known for his work Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings. Gandhis model of environment was opposed to western modus vivendi, based on narrowing down the socio-economic divides between haves and have-nots inclined towards ecological nourishment and development of natural milieu of the surroundings. Gandhiji warned against ecological devastation and dehumanization for the sake of advancement of selfish urban development, privileged for few elites which started causing irreversible and irreparable damage to the forests, wild animals and the environment by exploitation of finite and exhaustible natural resources. Cataclysmic impact of ruthless destruction of natural resources and catastrophic repercussions of ecosystem damage were foreseen by Gandhiji much earlier than the environmental brigade of 21st century. His principles of finding out truth with non violence methods, comprised well being and human welfare. For him, man is at the helm of affairs, in the ecosystem functioning, bestowed with privileges and profound accountability, for welfare of animals, all living beings. Gandhi envisioned environmental hygiene by repairing, restoring and revamping the human

ecology, nurturing the ecological niche in which the man is living in harmony with nature. Gandhiji alerted against western style of development which strives to offer much comfort and luxury, leading to sedentary and affluent lifestyle, full of sluggishness and indolence, which give rise to swarms of ailments and diseases. With each passing year, modern medical practices and treatments were being invented, mushrooming new industries of healthcare and redundant modern system of medicines, which devised artificial personal care and western life style management. This shortens the ordinary life of human being and harbor plenty of diseases and enormous ailments. Therapeutic remedy and treatment of such resultant morbid-sickness entail much per capita expenditure and triggers vicious circle of western consumerism and materialistic self indulgence. Gandhiji used to prefer sit on hard surface on earth, clad with least garbs and modicum of costumes, periodically in a state of unremitting fasting and recurrent starvation, incessantly catapulting social movement. He never abandoned sleeping under the open sky, gazing planets, stars and constellations. Grabbing opportunities for living with nature, appreciating nature and natural beauty and environmental splendors was his addiction and ever craving obsession. Eat to live and work, but do not live to eat and over consume for the sake of joy and pleasure. He was frugal in diet and practiced multi-vitamin nutrition advising the food to be considered as medicine which is required to keep the body healthy and fit for work. He stressed upon yoga, exercise and physical exertion tilling the field in a regular routine. Gandhiji was a strict vegetarian and encouraged taking regular five nutrients in the food for maintaining balanced diet. He nurtured the predilection for taking

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nourishing drinks, fruit mix juices, squashes as against western brews, tea, coffee and aerated drinks which unnecessarily stimulate reflexes and harm the body- posture and make the man non-compose-mentis. He rejected intoxicating drinks and addictive substances considering these harmful to spirit of human being to which is attached the colossal social stigma and enormous public malevolence. Mixed diet, addictive liquor and flesh foods act as deterrent to mans inner purification and spiritual elevation. He equated chastity of food with chastity of soul. He wrote in Hind Swaraj, I do feel that spiritual progress demands at some stage that we should cease to kill our animals for our bodily wants. Any seeker of the truth and spiritual advancement should use vegetarian food as a means, for purification of heart, for cleansing of the soul, to be nearer to the awakening and enlightenment of inner essence. He preferred uncooked vegetarian food for retention of more nutritional value, which helps achieving super-consciousness in yoga and meditation. He practiced celibacy right from the age of 37 and considered it most essential in keeping spiritual state of mind. With vegetarian diet, regular exercise, celibacy, prayer and keeping oneself busy in his interest of professional works leads the man to realization of his goal. Gandhiji a well known nutritionist and dietician wrote a book called Diet and Diet Reforms in 1930 and prescribed variety of recipes on experimental basis for various state of physical and mental composure. In one of the letter to Dr McCarrison Gandhiji answered, Your claim for medical science I opine that scientists have not yet explored the hidden possibilities of the innumerable seeds, green leaves and nourishing fruits for giving fullest possible nutrition to mankind. Ram Chandra Guha proposed to inquire whether Mahatma Gandhi could be

considered an environmentalist ? His remarks on mans exploitation of nature, excesses of materialism, and reckless industrial expansion inferred that the earth has enough to satisfy every ones needs but not every ones greed. Guha laments, Though Gandhi is remarkably reticent on the relationship of humans to external environment, he could never explicitly initiated any environmental movement, nor does the word ecology appear any where in his writings. Though commercial forestry commenced well before Gandhis time, forest degradation would unleash peasant resistance, Gandhi himself was yet never associated to any forest satyagriha movement, however much of his name was invoked by the peasants and rebels. Modern environmental movement was yet in the offing since Gandhis times, and the environmental struggle was yet to manifest in taking the shape of society. Gandhi was a man of his times, so it is very likely that if had he intended and took a ride over concern for forest depletion, over impending diminution of wilderness, over revival of stability of environment, he would have with-much perfect-certainty led the environmental-crusade most vociferously, with much audacity of hope, with much critical-gusto and fanfare. It would concomitantly have achieved far outstanding and productive consequences. Gandhi had profound influence on Chandi Prasad Bhats green Himalayan movement, Sunderlal Bahugunas chipko drive, Baba Amte-Meda Patekars Narmada River Save Campaign of worlds largest dam project envisaging consequent dislocation of thousands of rural and tribal people who triumphantly recognizing their achievement emerging out of the spirit of the motivation from Gandhian passive resistance. Ecology is defined as science of the economy of animals and plants and their relationship with environment where

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Gandhi commanded to economize, render less wasteful, on use of the earths natural resources to which we are trustees, responsible for inheriting each time the replenished and reloaded earth for our children with much wisdom, each time holding the natural resources with utmost esteem, respect and admiration uncompromising upon economy. One study of Gandhi spoke of him as a practical ecological yogi based on the profound belief from Gandhis observance of his circumspect moral principles founded on environmental ethics which sparked off practicing austerity, conducting self introspection, nurturing complacence with frugal use of natural resources, learning self reliance, renouncing materialistic possessions beyond our natural needs, being worried about the vicissitudes of poor and downtrodden, working for sustainable development of limited natural resources. Ethics, ecology and politics after second world war were closely knit and indistinguishably interwoven into constitution of thought and practice. His observance of silence was unique in conserving his energy, transmigrating into soul-searching, hearing his inner self-conscience as he called the still voice within. Amidst an ecosystem of body, mind and soul, which Gandhi dwelt upon, through his moment to moment thought, emotion and action orchestrating in perfect symphony with nature, ecology and surrounding environment, his constant ink writings on small pieces of papers, use of post-cards, saving on left over pieces of pencils, economizing on sticks of match-boxes, his aversion to wastage, his penchant for long physical morning walks, resorting to frequent fasting for spiritual transformation of the body, mind and soul make Gandhi inscrutably an ecological-mystique who sustained the dreams of millions of poor and

the oppressed, preserving prolonged aspirations of the people of India. Once Albert Einstein about him quoted saying, generations to come, it may well be, will scarcely believe, that such a man as this one in flesh and blood ever walked upon this earth.

A K Singh is the member of India Forest Service 1997 serving in the Ministry of Forest

and Ecolgoy the Government of Karnataka.

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Varanasi 1997 2. Mahatma Gandhi and The Environmental

Movement by Ramchandra Guha 3. Mahatma Gandhi-An Apostle of Applied Human

Ecology ( New Delhi:Tata Energy Research Institute 1995)

4. Short Account of Chipko Movement Bandhopadyay and Vandana Shiva Seminar Feb 1987.

5. The Unique Woods, Ecological Change and Peasant Resistance in Himalaya Meiraben Madeline Slade.

6. Gandhi and Nuclear Age by Arne Naess 7. The Deep Ecology Movement, An Introductory

Anthology by Alan Drengson & Yuichi Inoue 8. Gandhi, The Man by Eashwaran Eknath 9. Gandhi: The Man, His People and the Empire by

Raj Mohan Gandhi. 10. Gandhi & Churchill, The Epic Rivalry That

Destroyed An Empire and Forged our Age by Herman Arthur 2008.

11. Economic Thought of Mahatma Gandhi by Rivett Kenneth 1959

12. The Message of Gandhi by Edgar Snow 13. Great Soul: Mahatma Gandhi and His Struggle

with India. 14. Gandhi Before India by Ram Chandra Guha 15. The Life of Mahatma Gandhi by Louis Fischer. 16. My Experiments with Truth by Mahatma Gandhi 17. Making of a political reformer: Gandhi in South

Africa 1893-1914 Bhana Surendra V Goolam 18. Gandhi in His Time and Ours: The Global

Legacy of His Ideas by Hardiman David.