The Hour of the Earth !

A global event organised by the World Wide Fund for Nature, Earth Hour is an event on the last Saturday of March annually, requesting businesses and households to switch off their non-essential lights for one hour. This is aimed at raising the awareness of humanity towards the need to take action on Climate Change.

The first Earth Hour event was in Sydney in 2007, when 2.2 million residents of Sydney participated by turning off all non-essential lights. Following the lead by Sydney many cities followed suit and now the Earth Hour is a global event.

The Earth Hour 2011 will take place on March 26,2011, at 0830 to 0930 PM, at participant's respective local time. The supporters of the E H include Bishop Desmond Tutu, Helen Clark, the Irish Rock band the Cranberries, the Mayor of London Borin Johnson, NFL Football player Tom Brady and other celebrities.

The United Religions Initiative

The United Religions Initiative is an effort to integrate all religions. All the great Religions of yore Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism etc should be integrated, as all are brethren, and all religions are nothing but different radii of the same Eternal Circle, with the Absolute Self as the Center.

Maurice Strong and Gorbachev, founders of the Green Cross International, pushed for this U R I in the Earth Charter. The Green Cross Earth Charter Philosophy views & highlights the protection of the Biosphere, as the Common Interest of Humanity, as top priority.

Great men are always integrators. The Knights Templars of yore tried to integrate Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Syncretism or Ecumenism is the essence of Masonic and Indian Philosophy. Sarva Dharma Samabhava ( seeing all Religions as equal ) is the culture of India !

U R I - Philosophic implications

In Sanskrit the word Jnani for Philosopher has deep philosophic meaning. Jnan means " me " and Ni means " you ". So Jnani means "I am you" or " You are I". The same constituents which comprise my body comprise yours. The Self is the same. So you and I are the same and the man who knows this mystic principle is considered as a Jnani.



When it comes to human relations, we should look upon others as ourselves.

Isnt my son me ? He is me in another aspect ! Isnt my brother me? He is me in another aspect. By applying this principle to the entire humanity, we can save the world from its iniquity !

In Bridal Mysticism

YOU in Bridal Mysticism is He. " I am You" means in B M - I and my Father are One !

Mansur Al Hallaj, the mystic said

I met the lord of my Heart and asked Him " Who are you? ".He replied " I am You " !


I thought of Thee always
Till I became Thee
Swiftly Thou drew near
And I merged into Thee !

Whatever we see is His gross Universal Aspect, His Visva Virat Swaroopa. Everything is He !

There is only one difference between Thee and me
If I erase me, what remains is Thee !
Isnt that what I want?
(Dissolution of my Ego ?)

Return to Nature !

Returning to the Wisdom of Nature is what is meant by the Earth Charter and the Ark of the Gaia Covenant.

"Do not do unto the environment of others what you do not want done to your environment... My hope is that this charter will be a kind of Ten Commandments, a "Sermon on the Mount", that provides a guide for human behaviour toward the environment towards the next century". said Gorbachev. The Earth Charter should become like the Ten Commandments and the 16 principles are more or less the 16 Commandments of Gaia !

Let us return to Nature and her Wisdom. According to Satish Kumar, contemporary thinkers of the Green Movement are collectively developing an ecological world-view. Or in other words, Deep Ecology has become the priority in the minds of the thinking class.

The earlier "pagan" festivals worshipped the Sun's entries into the constellations. The Sun's entry into Capricornus was celebrated in India as Pongal. This is the beginning of Uttarayana, the northern transit of the Sun. At this point on Dec 21, the Sun's gross RA (Right Ascension) will be 270 degrees and his declination -23 degrees and 27 minutes. That was the end of Daskhinayana, or the Southern Transit of the Sun. The Sun's entry into the Vernal Equinox was celebrated as Vishu, the beginning of the Indian Year. At that point Sun's gross RA will be zero and his declination zero ! Also the Sun'e entry into the Summer Solstice, Karkyadi, was celebrated as the Ramayana month. His declination will be +23 degrees 27 minutes and his gross RA will be 90 degrees ! His entry into the Autumnal Equinox, Thuladi, was also celebrated. It marks the beginning of the Thula Varsha, the North East Monsoon. His gross RA will be 180 degrees and his declination 0 degrees ! The word Equinox is derived from Latin Equi Noctis, when night and day are of equal duration ( at Equinoxes ) and Sun's declination will be Zero degrees !

The Cross of the Zodiac refers to the Four Major Cardinal Points of the Sun - his gross Right Ascension at 0 degrees ( Meshadi ), at 90 degrees ( Karkyadi ), at 180 degrees ( Thuladi ) and at 270 degrees ( Makaradi ) !

The musician Paul Winter peformed concerts at the Cathedral of St John the Divine in New York City, on the days of Equinoxes and Solstices. One of these concerts was for an annual Earth Mass, on Oct 7th. Oct 7th happens to be the Hindu holy day of Dussera, when the Universal Life Energy, the Universal Mother, is worshipped in India.


The Gregorian Calender may be more popular than the Astro Calender, but knowers of Astronomy and Astrology know which one is better !

Let us move from an anthropocentric theological world-view to a biocentric cosmic humanistic world-view !

The 16 principles of the Earth Charter

It is our divine duty to protect Mother Earth's diversity, beauty and vitality and this duty is highlighted in the 16 principles of the Earth Charter.

1) Respect Earth and Life in all its diversity.

2) Care for the community of Life with compassion, understanding and love

3) Build just democratic societies that are peaceful, participatory and sustainable.

4) Secure Earth's beauty and bounty for posterity.

5) Protect and restore the integrity of Earth's ecosystems, highlighting biodiversity and nature life sustaining processes.

6) Prevent harm to the environment.

7) Adopt patterns of production, consumption and reproduction that safeguard Earth's regenerative capacities, human rights and community well being.

8) Advance the study of eco sustainability and promote eco knowledge.

9) Eradicate poverty ( Poverty is sin - Shaw )

10) Ensure that economic activities and institutions at all levels, promote human development in a sustainable and in an equitable manner.

11) Affirm gender equality and equity as prerequisites to sustainable development and ensure universal access to education, health care and economic opportunity.

12) Uphold the rights of all, without discrimination, to a natural and social environment supportive of human dignity, bodily health and spiritual well being, with special attention to the rights of indigenous peoples and minorities.

13) Strengthen the democratic institutions at all levels, and provide transparency and accountability, in governance, inclusive participation in decision making, and access to justice.

14) Integrate into formal education and life long learning the knowledge, values and skills needed for life sustainable.

15) Treat all with respect and consideration.

16) Promote a culture of Nonviolence, tolerance and peace.

Look at the 16th principle and you will find that it is nothing but Indian Culture in toto. The ancients said Dasa Putro Sama Druma ( one tree is equal to ten sons ). To counter Deforestation and Desertification, Reforestation is the answer.

Love cognised is Truth
Love in action is Non Violence
Love as feeling is Peace !

Tolerance is one of the best qualities in man. The true mystic is he who tolerates both enemy and friend !

We have two duties - duty unto Caesar ( worldly duty ) and duty unto God ( divine duty ). While one should work and support one's family, one should also devote one's time to Nature ! Protecting Gaia is our duty. She gave birth to us.

You can read about the Earth Charter Initiative here.

We are standing at a critical time in the history of our beloved Earth, as many eco problems have arisen. There are depleting water levels, pollution, overpopulation, resource depletion, desertification etc. It is upto us to protect Gaia. Otherwise we are doomed.

The Green Movement, undoubtedly the largest social movement of all time, is transforming the world. People have become more eco conscious. All nations of the world should renew their allegiance to the United Nations, fulfill their obligations and implement the Earth Charter. Then only can the Earth be redeemed !

The largest Social Movement of all time !

The Green Movement is considered to be the most influential social phenomenon in history.

Now humanity has recognised that the greatest enemy of humanity is Man himself, the human negative aspect. Who is our real enemy ? Global Warming, water shortages, resource depletion, pollution & overpopulation - dangers caused by human intervention ! We are the masters of our own Fate ! We have to change our attitudes and have more respect for Almighty Nature and her workings. After all, she gave birth to mankind and is protecting us. Our behaviour towards Nature must change. Remember what Shaw said " God created a perfect Heaven and it is only man's foolishness which prevents us from making it a Paradise ".

We extoll democracy, but believe in the dictatorship of the Ego ! We talk socialism but are capitalistic minded. We talk about environmental awareness but go on destroying ecosystems, flora and fauna. In us, there is inner war, between our positive and negative aspects.

The Environment Movement has been defined as the First Global Revolution. It was in relative obscurity a decade ago. Now it has blossomed into a great movement, spawning thousands of organisations and has millions of activists.

If we adopt a one child policy for the next two generations, population can be controlled. If we go on at this rate ( in resource depletion, population growth, mass urbanisation, industrialisation, pollution and food production ), there will be limits to growth. We have to alter these growth trends and establish a condition of ecological and economic stability, to save our planet ! Will we wake up to the call of Gaia ?

The Green Kerala Express, a social reality show !

Considered as India's biggest and first social reality show, the Green Kerala Express is a successful S R show, by the govt of the coastal state of Kerala.

There is a grand jury consisting of PhDs and the 1223 Panchayats, the Corporations and the Municipalities of Kerala will come under the scanner. It has received 250 entries so far from the residents of Kerala. A whopping 213,000 USD will be awarded to the best Corporation, Panchyath and Municipality, after 100 days of intense competition. Projects will be selected and there will be video documentation. The leaders of Panchayats who are selected will have to answer the learned Jury's questions. The august assembly or audience can vote via text messages.

By Green is meant Sustainable Agriculture, Organic Farming, water conservation, health, food and social security, eco friendly homes, atmospheric non pollution, education, energy, housing and women's empowerment, in a land burdened by overpopulation and scarce resources.

There are some good examples like a village that ditched pesticides for Organic Farming. Waste was converted into biofuel by one village's initiative , and another village replaced incandescent bulbs with flouoscent bulbs. Another village is based on Bio Gas. Another village which solved its potable water problem was highlighted. The Green Initiative is spreading worldwide and will sweep the world.

Education or Wisdom is great and is the teacher of teachers. It is time India invested in R & D in Agri and educated its people about both Bio Technology and Organic Farming and the necessity of keeping the land green and improved her agri infrastructure. Now there is an awakening and 32 lakh trees were planted on Environment Day. 2000 trees were planted at the Trichur Medical College Healing Garden and 200 gooseberry seedling were planted by Oushadi, the state's Ayurvedic arm at the nearby Santhvana Vana. More than 10 million trees will be planted in Kerala !

I hope they include Bio Dynamics and Astro Meterology as part of Organic Farming.

The Earth Charter & the Ark of the Gaia Covenant

The Earth Charter is an international declaration of fundamental values for building a sustainable society. Humanity is called upon to create a global partnership to protect the Environment, human rights, human development and sustainable living.

The Ark of the Gaia Covenant means protecting Gaia, the Earth, the Mother who gave birth to mankind.

Isnt Nature the first teacher of Man ? Didnt Man first experience the Divine in the stillness of the woods ?

In Natural Philosophy, Sankhya, Universal Nature and Universal Time are the two main principles which are responsible for the world.

Time is the Creator, Time is the Preserver, Time is the Destroyer and Universal Nature is His consort !
(Sarvam Kalena srijyanthe, Sarvam Kalena Palayanthe, Sarvam Kalena Samhriyante ).


Time is the all consuming Power
Of mighty Absolute !
The foolish Ego thinks it is the doer
But is afraid of Time !

Prabhavam Paurusham Prahuh
Kala meke yatho bhayam
Ahankara vimoodatma
Karthaham iti manyate


It is time for us to give Nature Her due !

Theology or Anti Paganism tries to convert people into dogmatic and superstitiious believers of an extra cosmic God ! It is time for us to choose between the forces of Darkness and the forces of Light. This is the Golden Age of Enlightenment and the ignorant have no place in the Age of Enlightenment !

Bio Regionalism

Bio Regionalism is a system of Philosophy which highlights the Enviroment. Its exponent Gary Snyder is considered as the Poet Laureat of Deep Ecology.

Gay Snyder was attracted to Zen and drew his inspiration from the writings of D T Suzuki. He was inspired by Zen's attitude towards Nature and the Environment.

Zen is nothing but esoteric Buddhism and Snyder was attracted towards Buddhism and ( through its sciences and arts ) to East's traditional attitudes towards Nature.

Did not Lord Buddha say

Know that which ye sow ye reap
See yonder fields
The sesamum was sesamum, the corn was corn
The Silence and the Darkness knew
So is a man's Fate born ! ( The Light of Asia )

Even though Buddhism does not postulate the concept of a Divine Judge, Nature substitutes Him ! What ye sow ye reap becomes the Grand Law of Causation, the Law of Karma and Universal Nature is the Judge.

Biio Regionalism sees ecoregioins as bioregions and highlights the unique ecology of the bioregion. B R encourages the use of local foods and local materials. The cultivation of native plants in the bioregion is highlighted. Native traditional wisdom, which is benevolent to that particular bioregion, is given prime importance.

BR opposes consumer culture and a homogenous economy. It is obvious that Bio Regionalism is based on the Wisdom of Nature.