Shakthi Worldview: An Inclusive and Expansive Worldview for a Sustainable Future

Abstract

A world renowned spiritual leader and mother Mata Amritanandamayi explained recently to a gathering that “education without any emphasis on values, sophistication without any emphasis on culture, development without any concern for nature, and lifestyle that disregards health” are the root causes of many of the problems faced by humanity today. More and more people are realizing that the problems which face us in current times are interlinked systemically. A compartmentalized approach to solving each problem has given way to looking at it as a whole system. This change in vision and approach has a fundamental transformative effect especially when the worldview is inclusive and holistic. In this chapter, we will present the thoughts and frameworks available in the Indian system to develop an inclusive worldview, which we call Shakthi Worldview, which sees the interconnectedness of things and events around us thereby making us conscious of how we interact with the environment and help us to take decisions which positively lead us to a sustainable future. Shakthi in the Indian context refers to the fundamental energy that permeates all things around us, animate and inanimate. Being in tune with this energy has been the way of life of many indigenous cultures. This chapter highlights the aspects of Shakthi Worldview and how the actions that come out of this worldview can create a sustainable future.

Citation

Adinarayanan, V. and Smrithi Rekha, V. (2017), "Shakthi Worldview: An Inclusive and Expansive Worldview for a Sustainable Future", Integral Ecology and Sustainable Business (Contributions to Conflict Management, Peace Economics and Development, Vol. 26), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 155-166. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1572-832320170000026011