CULTURAL TRADITIONS OF NATURE CONSERVATION IN INDIA
In Indian culture, living in peace with the environment is a must. Since time immemorial, it has been widely represented in different ancient customs, religious beliefs, ceremonies, folklore, arts and crafts, and in the daily lives of Indian people. The Stockholm Environmental Conference in 1992 and the United Nations Conference on Human Environment and Development (Earth Summit) in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 have lately emerged as worldwide concerns for sustainable development and natural resource conservation over the last two decades. A comparison of India’s lengthy history of environmental protection and cultural etiquette.
Almost every country in the world has a long history of environmental ethics rooted in its culture. Many ancient cultures describe how people lived in peace with nature, the tradition of honouring the elements that make up the environment, and their upbringing from natural resources while also conserving the environment that nourishes them. Tribals are despised by modern man as being primitive, backward, and superstitious. They may be poor, illiterate, and impoverished in other ways, but they have a solid grasp of the ecosystem and the mechanisms that keep it alive. Sitakant Mahapatra (1992) put it like way:
“They still regard life as a gift to be cherished, and they are among the honourable, venerable, and honoured peoples of this ancient world.” And the connection is one of holy faith and loving intimacy since they believe in remembering, worshipping, and celebrating the world in one’s life as much as they believe in celebrating one’s life in this world. A part of mental experience and a part of its spiritual dimension are both presents. The ground, the land, and the village all enter it, protected in ethnic memory, and it is the only one.
In many indigenous societies, the worship of Mother Earth is a worldwide phenomenon. In tribal society, there are several instances of festivals, rituals, songs, and myths that honour Mother Earth’s gifts and express a sense of oneness and fraternity between humans and nature. The Sioux Indians, an American-Indian society, refused to cultivate the soil because they did not want to harm their mother’s earthly body. ‘Should I mutilate her flesh so that her bones are gone?’ they’ll ask. Then I won’t be able to re-enter her body and re-birth.’
Plants, animals, rivers, oceans, mountains, wind, sun, and moon are all given supernatural powers by indigenous peoples in various parts of the world. Many religious beliefs instil a sense of reverence for the natural world. Ascensions are used by several Hindu deities. Sacred forests or holy groves are a feature of Hindu and Buddhist culture. Both Christianity and Islam are based on environmental preservation. The belief is that God created nature and its elements and that humans are responsible for protecting them. Many faiths and moral theories emphasise the interconnectedness of all living creatures on Earth and the human responsibility to protect them.
When people all over the world are suffering from environmental deterioration and its devastating repercussions, traditional conservation ideas can serve as a source of inspiration and direction for the future. No other civilization can possibly compare to the Indians in terms of rich cultural practises and a good relationship with nature. This chapter compiles some of the material on this part of Indian culture that is accessible from various sources.
For the people of India, environmental protection is not a novel concept. Conservation of nature and wildlife has long been a deeply held belief, mirrored in people’s daily lives and enshrined in mythology, folklore, religion, art, and culture. Some of the fundamental ideas of ecology, such as all life’s interconnectedness and interdependence, were envisioned in Indian folklore and represented in the ancient scriptures, the Isopanishad, around 2000 years ago. ‘This universe is the supreme power’s creation for the welfare of all creatures,’ it says. As a result, by becoming a part of the system in close interaction with other species, each individual life-form must learn to enjoy its benefits. ‘No one’s caste should infringe on another’s rights.’
The oldest visual representation of human desire, love, and respect for nature in India can be found in the 10,000-year-old cave paintings of Bhimbetka in central India, which depict birds, animals, and humans coexisting. The Indus Valley culture demonstrates human interest in wildlife, as seen by seals portraying rhinos, elephants, oxen, and other animals. Conservation of nature and natural resources has long been ingrained in the Indian psyche and beliefs, as evidenced through religious activities. Folklore, art, and culture are present in all aspects of people’s lives. Most of the Indian subcontinent’s developed religions have scriptures and teachings that show concern for nature and conservation. Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Christianity, and Islam are all religions. Other values, beliefs, and attitudes related to the cross-cultural sovereignty of respect for nature and the elements that make up the universe are also highlighted. Various religious traditions had the concept of sinning against nature. There are many parallels between man and the environment in Indian mythology. Many rituals that seem pointless and superstitious to modern culture were customary tactics to preserve the internal interaction between man and nature. The worship of trees, animals, forests, rivers, and the sun, as well as the earth as the mother goddess, were all part of Indian culture. Various religious traditions had the concept of sinning against nature. There are many parallels between man and the environment in Indian mythology. Many rituals that today’s society considers superstitious and pointless were once considered necessary to maintain the internal bond between man and nature. The worship of trees, animals, forests, rivers, and the sun, as well as the earth as the mother goddess, were all part of Indian culture. Various religious traditions had the concept of sinning against nature. There are many parallels between man and the environment in Indian mythology. Many rituals that today’s society considers superstitious and pointless were once considered necessary to maintain the internal bond between man and nature. The worship of trees, animals, forests, rivers, and the sun, as well as the earth as the mother goddess, were all part of Indian culture.
SUMMARY
In Indian culture, living in peace with the environment is a must. The Stockholm Environmental Conference in 1992 and the U.N. Conference on Human Environment and Development (Earth Summit) in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 have emerged as concerns for sustainable development and natural resource conservation. Religious beliefs instil a sense of oneness and fraternity between humans and the natural environment. The Sioux Indians, an American-Indian society, refused to cultivate the soil because they did not want to harm their mother’s body.
Sacred forests or holy groves are a feature of Hindu and Buddhist culture. Both Christianity and Islam are based on environmental preservation.
When people all over the world are suffering from environmental deterioration, conservation ideas can serve as a source of inspiration and direction for the future. This chapter compiles some of the material on this part of Indian culture that is accessible from various sources. For the people of India, environmental protection is not a novel concept. Conservation of nature and natural resources has long been ingrained in the Indian psyche and beliefs. Some of the fundamental ideas of ecology were envisioned in Indian folklore and represented in the ancient scriptures, the Isopanishad.
‘This universe is the supreme power’s creation for the welfare of all creatures,’ it says. Conservation of nature and wildlife has long been a deeply held belief, mirrored in people’s daily lives and enshrined in mythology, folklore, religion, art, and culture. There are many parallels between man and the environment in Indian mythology. Folklore, art, and culture are present in all aspects of people’s lives. Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Christianity, and Islam are all religions.
Other values, beliefs, and attitudes related to the cross-cultural sovereignty of nature and the elements that make up the universe are also highlighted. The worship of trees, animals, forests, rivers, and the sun, as well as the earth as the mother goddess, were all part of Indian culture.