A Question of Existential Reality
M.J.Neela

Ideas of non-violence and cohabitation in nature, has been a part of Indian traditions since a very long time. The colonial era and the immediate post colonial era set in motion a process of diverse changes and far reaching consequences. As the nation took up the reigns of development in its own hands and tried to keep up with the west to acquire their standards of development, certain aspects in that endeavour created new circumstances and new problems for the people to face and grapple with. The manners with which the people dealt the new issues reflected their attitudes shaped by history.

Non-violence has been seen as virtue, even in the most ancient Hindu scriptures in India. Hindu religious principles allow man no dominance over God’s creation i.e. Nature in totality because sanctity of life is principle to Hindu religion. For instance, both the ‘Atharmaveda’ and the ‘Rigveda’ states that the earth is not for the races of men alone; it is a place for all the creatures in it (Atharmaveda 12.1-15, Rigveda II-21.6). the spirit of the ‘Vedas’, ‘Upanishads’, ‘Puranas’ and the great epics ‘Mahabharata’ and ‘Gita’ can be found on one quote from the Yajurveda:

"The loving sage beholds that Being, hidden in mystery,
wherein the universe comes to have one home:
Therein unites and there from emanates the whole:
The omnipresent one is wrap and woof in created beings".
(Yajurveda 32.8)

The concept of non-dualism between man and nature is highlighted by the notion of the five great elements in the creation of God - Space, Water, Air, Fire and Earth (created in that order). These ‘Pancha Mahabhutas’ together were essential for peace and tranquillity and hence for human happiness. The division of the Vedic Gods into Celestial Gods, Atmospheric Gods and Terrestrial Gods was based on these categories of creation, and thus established the concept that ‘Purusha’ (man) and ‘Prakrit’ (nature) both emanate from the same creator and therefore equally worthy of respect for flora and fauna of nature in fact resembles forms of nature worship; and this forms a unique contribution of Hinduism to the development of a unique peace attitude, inherent in Indian culture. The gist of this attitude upholds the principle that ‘Dharma’ or right conduct lies in proper utilisation of resources to satisfy only the basic needs of man.

Ideas on ‘peace’ have survived and developed through time in the realm of politics in ideas of a ‘Chakravartin’, the king of righteousness and promoter of universal peace; it has developed in the realm of social norms in the form of the classical Hindu concept of ‘Ahimsa’ meaning non-harming (not just non-killing) of all living beings as a cardinal virtue. The concept of Ahimsa found its fullest development in the principles of Buddhism and Jainism. Further down the history lane, we find the Bhakti movement reviving rich ideas of earlier times. In contemporary times however, the contributions of M.K.Gandhi to the evolution of a better defined concept of peace has been acknowledged not only in India, but far and wide outside the country.

The Chipko Andolan - A Peoples’ Movement to Save Their Forest

Ideas connected with Peace, which were so well understood in ancient India and which was revived by Gandhi in modern India, continue to influence peoples’ attitudes in the contemporary era. The 1970s offered a fine example of a local peoples’ movement carried out through a unique struggle to save the Himalayan forests in Uttarakhand, India. This is popularly referred to as the Chipko Andolan i.e. "Hug-the-trees movement". The Chipko itself is derived from the exact technique used by the people of Uttarakhand in order to save the trees and challenge the lumbermen to saw them off first. The term was originally used by one of the most prominent names in this movement, Chandi Prashad Bhatt, in his local terminology as "angwaltha". It means to embrace a loved one.

Oppressive government policies, shortage of farmlands, reduced access to essential forest resources and repeated occurrence of natural calamities such as landslides, forced local inhabitants to raise questions and make analysis. The year 1970 witnessed devastating and unprecedented floods in the Alaknanda region. As a result of this, the entire village of Belakuhi was washed away, several lives lost and large amount of silt deposited in the Ganga river. Besides, landslides had also started occurring much more frequently. The ecological connection of these events to the large scale deforestation taking place were most obvious to the people who were closest to the land.

At the same time, policies of the forest department were cutting into their own livelihood. For instance, the department declined to supply ashwood (to build yokes etc for agricultural purpose). Instead, large area of ash trees was allotted to a sports company. The first stages of the Chipko movement to conserve local forest-land started here when a few people protested against the government allotment saying they would embrace the trees to save them from being felled. Success at Gopeshwar in forcing the company agents to go back triggered off similar resistance in other areas and it was at Reni where the Chipko movement saw its most mature and popular phase.

The challenge at Reni came not from the leading personalities of the movement, but from the housewives of the village. While the men were away, the women of the village under the strong initiative of Gaura Devi, led the housewives to demonstrate the non-violent philosophy of Chipko Andolan to personally hug the trees and offer self sacrifice to prevent their felling. The women stood their ground and held off the lumbermen. Finally, a concrete solution came from the Reni Investigating Committee who after a two year study, described the Reni forest area as a sensitive area and advised banning of tree felling in large section of the Alaknanda area.

This is a gist of the Uttarakhand peoples’ movement to conserve their forest in the 1970s. It was sparked off as a reaction to an existential reality of the local inhabitants. It build up quickly to become one of the most powerful and well known ecological movements in India. Beginning as a local movement, the messages and activities of the Chipko Andolan spread to national as well as international arenas. It took its shape in the foothills of Himalayas, unaware of global events, yet coincided with the first global environment meet in Stockholm in 1972.

The unique feature of this movement lay in the fact that it arose out of the local peoples’ question of survival, through their own experience and knowledge they acquired as part of their cultural heritage. We need more such local activism to stop the misuse of earth and its resources. Let us put ourselves back together human being and nature.

Credits