“Happiness is possible only when we are kind to others and contented within.”
On Saturday 22 October, Satish Kumar, a former Jain monk and long time peace and environmental activist, poured forth his wisdom on spirituality to an audience of over 70 people at St Augustine’s Church. Mary Sharpe, TRF CEO chaired the afternoon and evening sessions at the invitation of the Edinburgh International Centre for Spirituality and Peace.
“Sometimes I come across a tree which seems like Buddha or Jesus: loving, compassionate, still, unambitious, enlightened, in eternal meditation, giving pleasure to a pilgrim, shade to a cow, berries to a bird, beauty to its surroundings, health to its neighbors, branches for the fire, leaves for the soil, asking nothing in return, in total harmony with the wind and the rain. How much can I learn from a tree? The tree is my church, the tree is my temple, the tree is my mantra, the tree is my poem and my prayer.”
Satish, a spritely 80 year old, is a modern day wonder. As editor of Resurgence and Ecology Magazine for 43 years he has been bringing readers the latest ideas on how to live well in a changing world. Satish answered questions about healthy eating, how to change step by step from working for big corporations to working for oneself. He suggested the happier we are with our work and how it aligns with our values, the less we need material goods to make us happy.
“One was a book I read by Mahatma Gandhi. In it was a passage where he said that religion, the pursuing of the inner journey, should not be separated from the pursuing of the outer and social journey, because we are not isolated beings.”
Originally from India he was inspired by peace leaders Mahatma Gandhi and the British philosopher Bertrand Russell. With E.P. Menon, Satish embarked on an 8,000 mile peace pilgrimage carrying no money, depending instead on the kindness and hospitality of strangers. They walked from India to America, via Moscow, London and Paris to deliver a humble packet of peace tea to the then leaders of the world’s four nuclear powers.
Satish was the originator and co-founder of the Schumacher college, based on the notion that “small is beautiful”.
“Look at what realists have done for us. They have led us to war and climate change, poverty on an unimaginable scale, and wholesale ecological destruction. Half of humanity goes to bed hungry because of all the realistic leaders in the world. I tell people who call me ‘unrealistic’ to show me what their realism has done. Realism is an outdated, overplayed and wholly exaggerated concept.”
He continues to teach and run workshops on reverential ecology, holistic education and voluntary simplicity. Satish was very interested to learn of the work of the Reward Foundation and kindly asked Mary to spend the last 15 minutes of the evening session telling the audience about our work. Everything he said chimes with the philosophy of The Reward Foundation. The way to build resilience to the stresses of life and how to recover from addiction is to be in tune with nature. Walking in the open fresh air, eating healthy food, and seeking to find balance in our lives in all ways.
“The way to healthy living is to shift from quantitative economic growth to quality of life, food, water and air – to shift from craving to contentment and from greed to gratitude.”
