How to change the Inner Climate? || Acharya Prashant, with Bard College (2022)

Acharya Prashant

‍♂️ Want to meet Acharya Prashant? Be a part of the Live Sessions: https://acharyaprashant.org/hi/enquir...   Want to read Acharya Prashant's Books? Get Free Delivery: https://acharyaprashant.org/en/books?...   Read 3 handpicked wisdom articles, just for you: https://acharyaprashant.org/en/articl...  ~~~~~  Video Information: 27.07.22, 'East-West Dialogue on Climate and Justice', organized by Bard College, USA.  Context: ~ What is Climate Change? ~ How to stop climate change? ~ What is the solution to global warming? ~ How can we control the increasing population? ~ How can spirituality solve the problem of global warming? ~ What is the most effective way of dealing with climate change? ~ How can population control help in dealing with climate change? ~ What is the solution to climate change? ~ How spirituality can stop climate change? ~ Climate change has no scientific solution  Music Credits: Milind Date  ~~~~~

Transcript

00:00Hello, I am Emily from Texas A&M University, and my question is more of an economics question

00:13as we've been talking about before.

00:15How can we encourage factories and companies in poor areas to prioritize the health of

00:20the local environment when the nature of business is to prioritize lowest cost and a margin

00:26of a net zero profit margin?

00:29This is topped with the natural tendencies of human nature to prioritize breed above

00:34all else, profit over regulation.

00:38I didn't get the part about the local stuff.

00:43You may please need to repeat the question.

00:46My apologies.

00:48How can we encourage factories and companies in poorer areas to prioritize the health of

00:55the local environment when the nature of the business is to prioritize lowest cost and

00:59maintain a net zero profit margin?

01:02This is topped …

01:03Okay, I got it.

01:10You see, I don't think again, continuing in the same vein, I don't think you can tackle

01:18this in isolation. Though you could bring about suitable legislation, you could treat

01:25for example the climate as a person and the climate could have its own rights just as

01:37there are fundamental rights given to persons. Similarly, treat the climate as a person and

01:45give it rights and if those rights are violated, there would be penalties. So that's a route

01:51you could take and that's an effective route that should be taken but I don't think even

01:56this is going to be very effective. It must be done but even if done, it will have limited

02:06effectiveness though it's one of the things that we should begin with. Recently, a South

02:16American country brought about changes in its constitution. They actually overhauled

02:26their entire constitution and the constitution is now almost founded on giving great rights

02:39to the climate, to the various animal and bird species and it's a document worth emulating.

02:54I think a lot of countries in the coming years will take inspiration from it and actually

03:01need to take inspiration from it. So that could be done but profit is profit, greed

03:13is greed and when we do not respect the rights of sentient beings, people in flesh and blood

03:26we can see and talk to, how will we respect the rights of something a little abstract

03:39as the climate. The climate is not going to come and talk to you and plead to you as

03:47a person and the climate is not going to sue you on its own. Somebody needs to act on behest

03:58of the climate as a proxy. So I don't think we are going to be very respectful towards

04:03the climate on our own even though the right legislations are important and must be there.

04:12So what to do then? You need to tell people. There has to be the right kind of knowledge.

04:25What is happening is we are in the middle of an information revolution, right? We all

04:33know we are. But this information revolution has not increased knowledge. It has not increased

04:47knowledge and for sure it has decreased wisdom. Why? Because there is so much information

04:57available to us, this part we see. What we do not see is that the opportunity to disseminate

05:06misinformation is now greatly available to the miscreants. So you get a lot of information

05:17today, several hundred times more than what you used to get 30 years back. But most of

05:25what we are getting now is misinformation or disinformation or false information or

05:34misleading information or distracting information. So the result is that the quality of our knowledge

05:44has greatly fallen and knowledge is what forms our insides. On the outside we are made of

05:56food, air, water, flesh, bones. On the inside we are made of knowledge and the knowledge

06:06that constitutes our insides has become all corrupted. So what will happen is that there

06:13is this factory and this factory is harming the health of the local environment as you said,

06:21right? But people have been taught that comfort and greed are more important,

06:32more important than the health of the environment. That needs to change.

06:40Is it okay if I add on? What about the nature of human nature to survive? It also prompts us

06:48to prioritize ourselves more and also adds on to that greed because naturally we want to survive.

06:56You see, we need to appreciate the

07:07nature of the beast within more clearly. There was this COVID pandemic and people knew that if

07:18they would behave in certain ways they may even die. Did they still behave rationally?

07:26No. The climate crisis does not even threaten you that much.

07:32Nobody will say that if the climate keeps worsening then by next year 35% of the world's

07:38population will be wiped out. So when it comes to having a good time, when it comes to having

07:45pleasure, the beast within is prepared to trade long-term wellness for instant gratification.

08:00Long-term wellness can wait. After all we do not know whether we would be

08:03around in the long term. Then somebody said in the long term we are all dead.

08:09Anyway, so why not have a good time as long as it lasts?

08:20Yes, you have also mentioned that how with the skin condition if it doesn't affect us directly

08:27we more than likely won't see it and I'm thinking that this is also what you're trying to infer

08:35with the climate crisis. We can't really see it directly so therefore it's easier for us to ignore

08:40it and push it aside. So let me ask you what is it that we can see directly? You cannot for example

08:49see at this moment the carbon dioxide concentration in the air increasing. We cannot see that. We

08:57don't even actually have instruments to measure that. The common man does not have that. But what

09:02is it that we can see worsening on a daily basis and we are also concerned about what is that?

09:10The rising temperatures with this current heat wave that's going on right now and then also in

09:16the past we've also had a snowstorm in this area so it's also we could see the issues going on too.

09:24You see the opposite is also sometimes evident. There are places on the planet that are having

09:32harsher winters and I have seen people when the winters are harsher they would say oh and then

09:38there are people who are talking of global warming. Where is the warming? All I'm experiencing is the

09:42cold. So you see these temperature fluctuations are not so wild or so apparent that they become

09:52undeniable. When we want to stay in the false, when we want to deceive ourselves,

10:00we get enough evidence to stay in that deception. The proof of global warming or climate change

10:11is still not irrefutable for those who are hell-bent on denying them. There are, we very well know,

10:20there is a huge community of climate deniers that exists and who keep saying that all this

10:27anthropological global warming thing is a hoax. It does not exist at all. So what does that mean?

10:33I mean that means that the common man still has a lot of places to take refuge in.

10:44The truth is still not very bluntly out in the open. Those who want to refuse it

10:52are still refusing it and will probably be able to refuse it for another I think five or eight

10:57years at least. So my question, let me take that. I asked you what is it however that no person

11:08in his senses can refuse? Can he can neither refuse it nor can he pretend disinterest from it?

11:19What is it? The fact that our lives are in a mess. There is nobody who does not want to improve the

11:30quality of his life. Do we agree on that? Every single person on this planet wants change in his

11:38or her life and what is that change all about? That change is about improvement. We want a better

11:42life. What does that prove? We accept, we acknowledge that our lives as they stand

11:48have problems in them. Otherwise why would we want to change or improve? We are all looking for

11:53change. We get up each morning and we say can we have something better? Can we reach a better

11:58place? Can we do something better? Whatever, whatever. Can we eat something better? So if we can

12:05show this to the person and impress on him that you need to be better, your life needs to change,

12:13then I think the climate crisis can also be addressed.

12:17With the common man example how they would, you give the term global warming and then others

12:24would be like how is it warming whenever it's freezing cold? They fail to take into account

12:29the destruction of the ozone layer which protects us from extreme heat. It protects us from freezing

12:35winters. It protects us from these extremes and they fail to recognize these issues that's going

12:41on due to the breakdown of the ozone layer. You know I'm a part of certain whatsapp groups

12:50of intellectuals, people coming from technological backgrounds, working in tech companies,

13:01having good tech knowledge and good numerical skills and decently well-informed people

13:11and there is a sizable lobby there that presents very very logical proofs backed by data and stats

13:23to prove that first of all climate change is not happening. Secondly, if it is happening,

13:32it is not happening due to human activity. It is just something in the cycle of natural

13:39events. It keeps happening all the time. Thirdly, even if it is happening due to human activity,

13:46it is actually beneficial for the planet because more carbon dioxide means more greenery.

13:57And these are not arguments coming from illiterate or mindless people.

14:04These are arguments coming from seasoned tech professionals.

14:10So, if you want to rationally convince people about the climate emergency,

14:19I am afraid you might not see much success. I'm aware that there isn't much success because we

14:28are stubborn people. We like to stay within our box. But think of the technological perspective.

14:35For example, within algorithms which is trained to feed people what they want.

14:42Do you think that is also part of the problem too of keeping people locked in?

14:48I'm sorry but I lost that word you used in between.

14:52Algorithms?

14:53Algorithms, right. So, what about the algorithms?

14:57So, for example, with algorithms like Instagram, Facebook,

15:02or TikTok, it's trained to keep the user engaged.

15:06Yes, very, very definitely. Right, right, right. So, you can see you are using AI in the worst way

15:15possible. And would you contest it if I say that, I don't know how you would appreciate it,

15:28but if it clicks, it clicks. Instagram, for example, is a lot of climate change.

15:35Instagram is a lot of climate change. All the emotionality that you see in

15:42the general public discourse, be it politics or economics or social welfare, all that is a lot of carbon.

15:53I once said, all our emotions are carbon intensive.

15:59All the natural, prakritic, animalistic emotions that we have, they are nothing but a lot of carbon.

16:06See what you do when you get emotional. And the moment you see that, it becomes amply clear.

16:14In your moment of emotional high, whatever you do, you would find that very surprisingly,

16:21all of that is very carbon intensive. So, definitely, I mean, greed, if you let it

16:30have its way, it would consume everything, this entire planet. And that's what I said,

16:38this might be called as the information age. But the level of wisdom is the lowest we have had in

16:48centuries. First of all, information is there, no doubt, a lot of information is there, but not much

16:56knowledge is there. Otherwise, it's not possible that supposedly very knowledgeable people talk of

17:04the climate crisis as a hoax. So, even knowledge is not there,

17:08and what to say of wisdom, it has completely plummeted.

17:12You give information to the wrong entity, and he will use it in the worst possible way.

17:25The algorithms you talked of are a very good example. That's what I am constantly asserting,

17:31that we need to address the very center of the humanity, the very core of the humanity,

17:40the very center of the human being. If we do not address that center,

17:45then whatever else we say or do or try won't see much success.

17:54I believe that should be everything from me for right now.

17:59But I did enjoy this conversation. I too enjoyed it. And

18:06there's a lot more we need to discuss on this, but to begin with, I think this is a good start.

18:14Hi again. My next question was regarding the human nature of greed and the human

18:23heart need to want to be the best and have the best. How do you personally believe that we can

18:30shift that mindset to minimize the globe's impact on climate change

18:34and essentially change the heart of human nature and want to have greed and be greedy?

18:46We have to begin with observing the facts of life, and we have already made so many attempts

18:53at being the best and being at the highest place possible and achieving the best kinds of objects.

19:03We have been attempting that since long, and today we are attempting that

19:09with more knowledge in our hands, more prosperity in our hands,

19:15mightier technical tools in our hands. We have been trying all that.

19:19Having tried all that, what have we achieved? Where do we stand?

19:26Is the common man more satisfied today?

19:31Are we? Yeah, we are living longer, definitely. Are we living deeper as well?

19:39And if we are not living deeper, is longer life not just a curse?

19:46How about being mentally unwell and continuing to live for 95 years?

19:54I don't think that sounds very attractive, but that's how we are living.

20:02So, that's true. We are born desirous and we want all those things that you mentioned,

20:10best places, best people, best positions, best rewards, best designations, best packages.

20:21We want all those things because there is something inside that refuses to be satisfied.

20:29What is it looking for? Is that not a question worth considering?

20:33Is that not a question worth considering?

20:37If we sit down and very objectively, in a detached way, look at our condition,

20:45and we have a lot of data to process and rationally base our conclusions upon,

20:56we need not speculate about who we are and what are we doing. We have already done a lot

21:01and all that data is available by way of experience and memories.

21:05So, we look at all that, we process the data and won't we see that the way we are proceeding

21:12is simply not taking us anywhere. The way is much the same as it was 10 centuries back.

21:23We are doing what our grand, grand, grand forefathers were doing, just in an amplified way.

21:34They didn't have so much resources at their disposal. We have a lot.

21:39So, we are attempting the same thing in a much bigger way.

21:43They never got anything out of that. How will we get anything as if something has fundamentally changed?

21:52But yes, technical and material progress would happen and material progress does have a value of its own.

22:03So, to the extent that can satisfy us, we will do well. But beyond that, it's all zero. Zero.

22:17Zero. In fact, when you have a lot of material success and you are still empty within,

22:27I fear the situation is worse compared to that of the person who is even materially insufficient.

22:38Because the materially insufficient person at least has a false hope that the day he will get

22:44money he will be satisfied. But once you have a lot of money, and we just said in this very

22:50conversation, I thought I read that the US now has some 22 million millionaires

22:58and other countries are not to lag behind in a big way. Even India, when it comes to

23:08millionaires and billionaires, is trying to keep pace with the richest countries of the world,

23:14even as the average household income is almost stagnant. But the number

23:23of very rich people is exploding even in India. Now, where is that taking us?

23:34Are we going somewhere? Are we reaching somewhere? Or do we just want to blindly believe

23:39that our faith in material prosperity will be rewarded? Has it been rewarded till now?

23:50The answer cannot be in binary. Material prosperity has helped. But where? In which dimension?

24:01We must carefully investigate. Yes, today we have fewer diseases. We don't die of polio.

24:11We don't die of being killed by predators. People are not dying so much

24:20having been bitten by snakes or chased by lions. Those things are not happening, right?

24:30But are we okay the way we are? So, when you question that thing,

24:40then change descends on its own. Then there is a silence. Then the insane flow of energy

24:52towards blind destinations, that flow just tempers down a little. We do not remain very excited

25:07towards all those places we usually are. And in that mellowing down of excitement,

25:19we find a concentration of energy. Because that excitement is nothing but dissipation of our life

25:27energy at 40 useless places. When excitement and energy are withdrawn from those places because

25:36those places are seen as useless, then there is a concentration of energy. And that concentration

25:46then helps us overcome the real obstacles towards right living. That concentration then gives a

25:56meaning and power to life. And then you are not very insistent on making consumption

26:08the bedrock of your existence. Then there are other things. Then you find that there are

26:15subtler pleasures life has to offer. You don't necessarily have to have a million dollars to

26:24burn on a yacht or in a shopping mall or at a jewelry shop or wherever.

26:31See, none of this that I'm saying is idealistic.

26:39It is not spiritual in the conventional sense. It is also not idealistic. I'm talking practical

26:47common sense. I'm talking of something that is very, very applicable. It can be very practical.

26:58It can be executed. It must be executed. And yeah, it's not an idea. It's a blueprint for action.

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