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Philosophers and social scientists agree that human action can only be fully understood by relating it to the context in which it takes place. Nothing can be understood in isolation from its context, and nothing even exists without a context. It is always the context that gives meaning to what we think and do, and explains why we do what we do.
“And how many years can some people exist
Before they’re allowed to be free?
Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head
And pretend that he just doesn’t see?
How many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky?”
These lines from Bob Dylan’s song – Blowing in the Wind – flashed in my head as I put down another book written on Giordano Bruno, arguably one of the greatest philosophers from the 16th Century. The lines of the song and Giordano Bruno’s quest seem to echo each other – to urge humanity to look beyond the dark sheaths of ignorance, the petty disputes, divisions and one-upmanship, and to explore the true identity of what it means to be human, which is much more than the mode of survival that has become the focus of our ‘living’, today.
Between the Middle Ages in Europe when it was engulfed in darkness, and today where we admire the marvels of human creation, connectedness, technological advancement, and medical progress, have we really become smarter, happier, more loving and caring? Why does it feel that the last few hundred years of progress have largely been about attempts to master the everchanging outside, without ever addressing the real core of the problem? Have we even spent enough time to understand what the core is? Have we made progress towards finding out what our life is about and who we really are?
Science found its place and its legitimacy in the last century with the blossoming of modernity. If in our age, the so-called post-modern era, it still wishes to occupy its rightful place, it needs to reform
itself.
The brief time that I recently spent in Peru’s southern Amazon Forest, really opened my heart to the beauty and infinite wisdom that nature has to offer. The potent combination of heat and humidity makes the Amazon the largest rainforest on Earth, with over four hundred billion trees, 16000 different species, growing in the region1. The unpredictable murky river, and the dense tree cover that envelopes the jungle renders the forest floor almost completely dark. It gave me the impression that beyond the obvious abundance of life, the unique biosphere contained deep mysteries, revealed only to the traveler willing to embark on an inward journey.
Recently, in the United States, the Governor of Georgia asked the state legislature to pass a law requiring that a classical CD be sent to every new mother. Although this bill did not pass, it received a great deal of attention. The unusual request was prompted by exciting new research in the fields of neuroscience and cognitive science regarding the effects of classical music on intelligence and learning.
The cyanotype process is a fascinating analogue photographic printing process that produces distinctive blue hued prints. It was one of the earliest non-silver processes used for creating photographs, and its invention marked a significant development in the history of photography.
There are moments in history, turning points that we could interpret as junctures that change the meaning of life. This pandemic, generated by the Covid-19 virus (Corona Virus), which has spread throughout the planet, will surely generate radical change in our future habits. It would be a serious mistake not to become aware of the need to evaluate our future behaviour by extracting a teaching from this painful experience.
The dystopia seems to have been incarnated into our daily reality and in the film “Contagion”, by Steven Soderbergh, released in 2011, starring Matt Damon, which relates, through fiction, the same reality that we are living today. It’s strange that this film is based on a story published in 1981 by Dean Koontz.
We have made great advances in mainstream medicine, and have at our disposal more technology and research than ever before. This has enabled us to make great strides in diagnosis and treatment. This progress, however, has its pitfalls as well. Specialty and super-specialty are causing doctors to lose a holistic view of patients. Rather than see them as human beings, they are reduced to a disconnected organ that needs correcting, blind sighting its role and function as a single part of a complex body, animated by consciousness. While attention to detail is essential, we must also consider the possibility that by zooming in, we may at times lose the bigger picture.
“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs, but not every man’s greed.” – M.K. Gandhi
Very often I hear from friends, “I want to be one with Nature.” For most people this means visiting some remote forested place rich in wildlife, or vacationing at some scenic location like a hill station or beach. Usually, there is a hope to experience something different, return rejuvenated. And so, the aspiration of ‘being one with nature’ is reduced to getting something from her. But when visiting such places of ‘natural’ beauty can we become more conscious of the relationship between Nature, the Earth, and ourselves? Can there be more consciousness when relating to the Earth, to see the unity amongst everything on Earth, including the Earth itself? Do our actions reflect respect for the Earth? Let us examine this connection. What are we doing to Nature, and can we rectify the situation?
In March 2022, New Acropolis Culture Circle hosted renowned physician, author and Padma Bhushan awardee Dr. Farokh Udwadia at our Mumbai center. Dr. Udwadia has contributed to
many National and International publications, and written several books, one of which is TABIYAT: Medicine and Healing in India. He has spoken out strongly about how humanizing medicine will engender greater empathy and create a stronger bond between the doctor and patient, a vital precondition for optimal healing.
The word ‘Permaculture’ was coined by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in the 1970s to refer to the “consciously designed landscapes which mimic the patterns and relationships in nature, while yielding an abundance of food, fibre and energy for provision of local needs” [1]. What began as an ecological movement towards ‘Permanent Agriculture’, over time, evolved into something far more holistic and all encompassing; a set of principles and values of what it means to be conscious, contributing human beings and reviving a way of living that aims to develop interdependence and personal responsibility in every sphere of life.
New Acropolis India celebrated World Philosophy Day on 17th November with a special event in Mumbai that explored the meaning of Life through symbols.
UNESCO commemorates World Philosophy Day on the 3rd Thursday of November every year, to recognize the contribution of Philosophy as a force of transformation for the development of individuals and societies. To this end it encourages philosophical dialogues, conferences, and workshops with participation from scientists, philosophers and artists from all branches of knowledge, as well as teachers, students and the general public, in order to refine the ethical principles that should guide humanity to build a better world.
armonia, in Greek Mythology, is the goddess of Harmony and Concord. She is the daughter of Ares, the God of War; and Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love. At first glance, this could seem strange: a force of war, and a force of love coming together to create harmony.
Modern scientific research lends credence to the notion that our universe is an inter-dependant, profoundly unified system, infused with an immense amount of energy. Quantum physicists have proven that matter at a molecular level, far from being inert, is an active agent
One of the main characteristics of the human mind is its ability to form concepts, principles and theories for the purpose of understanding the world around us. Einstein used to say in wonder that the most surprising thing about the universe is that it seemed intelligible. It might well not be, but it is. What we do not understand seems messy to us, and stimulates us to discover it.