For thousands of years, indigenous people have lived closely with nature and used natural resources in a sustainable manner. These people are called the ?ecosystem? people for the way they have managed the resource base of soil, water, minerals and biodiversity. Culture (way of life) and religion (beliefs) were indistinguishable. Traditional cultures and religions contain vast stores of knowledge and wisdom, accumulated over centuries, about the potential and actual usefulness to human welfare of natural resources.

The first religions recognised two main concepts ? Mother Earth (the provider) and Father Sky (worship of the sun, thunder, lightning, etc). When a clash of civilisations occurred (e.g. the conquest of America by Europeans), the voice of reason was often on the side of the traditional peoples. Witness that extraordinary speech by Chief Seattle, addressed to the ?Great Chief in Washington?, who wished to ?buy? the Indian?s land.The last few lines state: ?Hold in your mind the memory of the land as it was when you take it. With all your strength, all your mind and all your heart, preserve it for your children and love it. ? as God loves us all. One thing I know, our God is the same God. The Earth is precious to Him. Even the white man cannot be exempt from the common destiny. We may be brothers after all. We shall see?. In today?s context, it could almost be Chief Bancoult talking to Great Chief Bush in Washington !

In vastly religious Mauritius, it would be interesting to see what the various established religions say about Man?s relationship to the environment or to Nature. (The research was done for a UNESCO/UNEP publication in 1991?Teaching for a Sustainable World, International Edition? (Editor John Fein, Associate Editors: Michael Atchia, Wimala Ponniah, Orlando Rose).

● <B>Hinduism</B>

The gods were first identified with and manifested by features, forces and processes of nature (sky, earth, thunder etc). Hindu thought then gravitated towards belief in an inner, unseen, abstract reality, underlying the manifest world disclosed to the senses. For people (and other living things) it was Atman, the spirit of inner self, in contrast to the body. All things in the divided, articulate world disclosed to the senses are manifestations of inner Being, Brahman. To know one?s self, not one?s personality or empirical self, but one's transcendental self, is to know the nature of all things.

The natural world seduces the soul into illusion and bad karma. It distracts the soul from finding itself, attaining liberation, and merging with the one essential, transcendental self, i.e. from achieving nirvana. On the other hand, since the essential or transcendental self of each person is the same, ?same? in the strongest sense, in everything else, one is led to empathy and compassion. Indeed, there is no real distinction between self and other. One cannot, thus, profit at the expense of others ? human beings or natural, environmental beings ? since, ultimately, there are no ?others?, all are ephemeral manifestations of one indivisible Being.

Lastly, there is a similarity between the ecological world view and the world view of Hindu thought. Ecology also represents the world as a unity, unity of oneself and one's surroundings, of man and nature. Two major elements in Hinduism contribute to the development of a universal environmental ethic (empathy and compassion regarding all living things and a sense of harmony with the environment); they inevitably lead to environmental protection and enhancement.

● <B> Buddhism</B>

Buddhism stems from the teachings of Siddharta Gautama, who lived in India during the sixth century BC. It, however, flourished less in India than in countries to the south and east of India such as Sri Lanka, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, China, Korea, Japan and Tibet.

Core moral values in Buddhism are to be found in these precepts: abstention from killing living creatures, from stealing, from lying and from taking intoxicants. These precepts embody the basic requirements for the living of a good life and the establishment of a good community; most of them are relevant to modern conservationist ethic. The respect for life and property, the rejection of hedonistic life styles and the notion of truthfulness emphasising consistency in thought and action are all ethical premises relevant for the development of environmental ethics.

The Buddhist precept concerning abstention from killing any living creature is a concern for the value of life.Buddha asked people to abstain from destroying the life of human beings and animals and also condemned the infliction of suffering and pain on living creatures. He was also critical of the pleasures of hunting. Kings were expected to provide protected territory not only for human beings but also for the beasts of the forests and birds of the air. The principle is called ahimsa, non-harming and non-injury to life. It shows a great feeling of sympathy for living creatures.

Thus Buddhism proposes a pro-conservationist (sound management) concept of nature, which is critical of an aggressive attempt to exploit the environment for short-term benefits and a life style based on limitless consumerism. In short, a non-violent and gentle attitude towards nature, animals and fellow people provides the essence of the environmental position of Buddhism.

● <B> Taoism</B>

The tao literally means a way, or a road.It is a way of life. It is the way of the universe, the orderly and harmonious unfolding of phenomena and cycles in nature. If allowed to take its course, it results in natural fulfilment and perfection. Taoism stresses the perfection of harmony between humanity and nature. It also provides the basis for a philosophy of technological development. The traditional Western forms of 'high' and 'hard' technology should be abandoned from the Taoist point of view, for forms of 'low' and 'soft' technology or what has recently been called ?appropriate technology?. An appropriate technology is essentially adaptive and cooperative. It does not attempt to command or control nature; rather, its approach is to bend natural processes to human advantage and adapt human ways of life to the environment.

Like Zen Buddhism, Taoism conceives unity among natural things and between these things and humanity.

● <B>Confucianism</B>

Confucius also accepted the Tao but focused on the order of human society. Just as nature is an orderly and harmonious realm so ought human society to be equally orderly and harmonious. Confucianism supports an environmental ethic. Environmental destruction and degradation would in most cases impose negative effects on other people and thus violate the first three Confucian virtues: regard for others, wisdom and justice. A fourth virtue, namely, faithfulness to one's children or one's children's children or to one?s more remote posterity has clearly contributed to a universal environmental ethic(?you have not inherited the earth from your ancestors, but borrowed it from your children?).

(Next week: Judeo-Christianity, Islam and Conclusion)

<B>Dr.Michael ATCHIA

[email protected]</B>

Note: The above descriptions of religions do not represent authoritative positions; they are only given for the sake of discussion. While every effort has been made at accuracy, any discrepancy is regretted.