The current socio-economic
and political situation
The
present system of life and living is characterised by the dominance
of commodity exchange in all walks of life; a result of the invasive
and extensive spread of the capitalist-market system into the lives
of ordinary people. This has led to an all round commoditization and
monetisation of all human thought and activity. Our thoughts, words
and deeds are dominated by the imperatives of the commodity-market,
in short, there is an all-pervasive pressure to make monetary profits
in any and all our actions. Nothing escapes this over-arching
'value'; be it family relationships, social relationships,
vocation-related interaction, politics, policy formulation,
education, sport, entertainment; everything. As a result almost the
whole of human society has become bereft of 'human' values ; values
which seem to have sustained human society and the natural
environment thus far.
All parameters of life and
living are, therefore, dictated by the leaders of the ‘first’
world, the nations that comprise G8 and G20. All of them have chosen
a centralised capitalist path of economic development and actively
promote the spread and reach of the globalised market system.
Economic strategies that are pursued are entirely based on (material)
profits and so are all ‘social and moral values’ ; and this has
resulted in a total lack of human values. For the majority of
deprived peoples, this consciousness has permeated their entire beings
and drags them along like zombies. This is evident when we notice
that, today, all developmental strategies are measured and linked to
statistical markers(such as stock market indices, GDP indices etc)
and do not (need or) relate to the human being; modern economic
activity can as well be carried out by a world populated by working
robots rather than human beings except that humans are needed for the
consumption of consumer products!
The
absence of the human being, as being central to all aspects of life
and development(alienation), has for long been seen as being due to
an erosion of faith in the various religious dogmas that pervade
human society. But then, modern Science and Technology has
effectively put paid to all such dogmas. Now solutions to
environmental degradation, wrought by centralised developmental
strategies , are being sought through the intervention of
‘people-oriented’ Science. Such strategies may well suit the
needs and aspirations of the peoples of the developed world and their
followers in the under-developed or developing worlds; however, for
people who continue to live by their knowledge in every corner of the
globe(which could be about 2 billion people out of which about 800
million reside in India), what we have referred to as the Lokavidya
Samaj,
this is the death knell. Their very survival as active, contributing
human beings, is under threat* and their liberation from extinction
depends on their seeking solutions to survival through their
Lokavidya.
*
Note: Every section of Lokavidya
Samaj
faces the threat of ‘extinction’. Farmers, who toil under very
harsh conditions to produce ever-increasing quantities of food, are
being forced to commit suicide because of very adverse market
conditions. Weavers too have been driven into poverty and suicide.
Artisans of all types and small shopkeepers , have all but
disappeared and now are forced to work as unskilled
labourers(coolies)
in large establishments. Dalits and Tribals are under constant attack
even when they carry out their ‘traditional’ vocations.
Displacement from Lokavidya-based
livelihood activities and the collapse of the local economy and
‘culture’ is the widespread feature of the development strategies
of the market economy together with all these very visible horrendous
consequences.
The influence of
Globalization and the Internet on the market-system
During the past 30 years or
so, called the age of ‘Knowledge, Globalization and the Internet’,
the capitalist-market system has undergone radical change .
Alongside
there have been struggles against
the debilitating effect of such changes.
‘Capital’
now refers to finance capital and the ‘Capitalists’ are those
who have control over finance capital. The ‘market’ is now global
and every human is (forced to become) a market-participant. The
Internet has facilitated the growth, expansion and scope of this
globalized, finance-capital dominated, market system and has,
intentionally or otherwise, aided and promoted the commoditization of
all human thought and activity. Some of the ‘values’ that drive
this market, society and media have their roots in old world
consumerism. The political leaders of this system desire, and seem to
be working towards creation of , a uniformly subjugated mass of
consumerist, commodity-ruled , profit-minded global citizens. The
degradation of the natural environment that has resulted from this
path of ‘economic development’ has been unprecedented and now
threatens the very sustenance of life on the planet.
The
Internet has also facilitated the growth of a globalized
‘cyber-society’ and ‘social-media’. This has resulted in an
unprecedented exchange of knowledge and ideas on all aspects of life,
living and nature. It has also brought these globalized citizens
closer to one another; almost within reach of understanding the vast
complexity of nature and human society. The Internet, apart from
altering the ‘terms of trade’ of the market-system, has also
brought into focus the differences in trade practices, social norms
and hierarchies in different parts of the world. One of the fall-outs
of this ‘consciousness’ has been the resistance to globalised
markets, fight for control over local markets, and increased sense of
national and/or local identity. A majority of exchanges in the
social-media relate to various aspects of these differences and their
cognition on a hitherto wider and unknown scale. The wanton
destruction of the natural environment has come in for the most
criticism via the Internet and social-media. It is our
belief,however, that the real resistance to these changes and their
disastrous consequences for human society, can come from Lokavidya
Samaj because
it’s very survival depends on it.
What
we can see today, is the
total absence of ‘dharma’
in human thought and action and/or its subjugation by the dominating
principles of the capitalist-market system. The
task before LJA is therefore to re-establish ‘human values’ ,this
dharma,
in today’s world through
collective social and appropriate political action.
Such action would help the vast majority of its members to survive
the assault on their existence, and their contribution as productive
members of human society. Concomitantly and hopefully, it could
provide an alternate paradigm of development and politics for the
whole of human society.
The
need to establish Lokavidya
Dharma as
a way of living
The
main aspect of this 'dharma'
is that it legitimises only those actions that do
not
i)deliberately(consequentially)
and adversely affect the life and livelihood of human beings and the natural
environment anywhere
and that do not
ii)violate
the principles of equality and social justice.
This
dharma
has continuously ‘evolved’ over the ages, through conscious
social and political action over the ages. The final 'nail in the
coffin'- the dehumanisation of society and thought, however, has
been firmly plunged in by the capitalist-market system. What we see
today as 'corruption' is just a public manifestation of the
all-pervading influence of capitalist-market thought and marks the
distance society has moved away from dharma.
Let
us take a few examples. Terrorists 'entered' Mumbai through a small
fishing village on the beach near Colaba in 2008. Similarly
terrorists entered the Pathankot airbase via a 'un-monitored' part of
the international border in 2015. All these entry points were
obviously routes routinely used by smugglers with the connivance of
the local people/police who routinely accept 'favours' in exchange
for 'unhindered passage'. The 'facilitation' of such access through
the giving and taking of some bribes etc. That is, some rates have
been assigned to avil of such 'permits/licences' in order to bypass
norms, rules, laws, regulations etc and has become a common practice
in everyday life. This is what everyone refers to as corruption and
not a gross dereliction of duty or violation of oath of office. The
blatant killing of dalits and tribals, dowry-related deaths and such
other inhuman acts are also indicative of this ‘degeneracy’. In
reality, we have become 'dharm-heen'
i.e devoid of (or indifferent to) any dharma!
The
main activities of LJA
towards
re-establishing Lokavidya
Dharma
We
shall look at the situation in India. All political parties today are
essentially competing to take control of the leadership of the
capitalist-market system in India. This market system, as we have
seen, promotes a dehumanised path of development and concomitant
destruction of the natural environment. It does not and can never
address the problems faced by Lokavidya
Samaj or
re-establish Lokavidya
dharma.
Lokavidya
Samaj is
comprised of about 800 million citizens distrubuted along the length
and breadth of this country. From times imemorial, they have been
living by Lokavidya.
During this period, Lokavidya
and Lokavidya
Samaj have
undergone innumerable changes – they have never been static or
immutable. However, the existence of Lokavidya
Samaj
has never been under threat as it is today. And since it comprises of
such a vast number of human beings (about 12% of the global
population) its destruction or survival would have great impact on
human society as a whole. The conner-stone of it’s survival,
through the ages, has been it’s dharma;
which is neither static or immutable but seems to have been guided by
principles that mandate the sustenance of all of human society and
the the natural environment. This makes the position and actions of
Lokavidya
Samaj
very important and relevant in today’s world- provided that it is
able to re-establish the pre-eminence of , what we call, Lokavidya
dharma.
All
characteristics of inter-relationships, between various members of
society, are primarily, and in the main, determined by interactions
between individuals and between communities/collectives, and governed
by the evolving
dharma
that determines these relationships. Concepts of equality,
fraternity and collective governance evolve through such economic,
social and cultural exchanges . This dharma
manifests
itself through the method of governance(politics) and the relations
of exchange(market economics) .
We
recognise that every individual is a repository of knowledge and
skills and is inherently capable of contributing to societal
development. There can be no knowledge hierarchy and hence no social
hierarchy. Knowledge equality is the basis of social equality and
social justice. The system of governance that will give life to this
concept of equality and social justice is Lokavidya
Swaraj**.
We have argued for the establishment of Lokavidya
Swaraj
through a bottom-up structure; the village Gyan
Panchayat
upward to the National (Rashtriya) Panchayat.
The
structure and working of the Gyan
Panchayat
will ensure equal participation of and privilages to, all members of
the Gyan
Panchayat
who, by
virtue of their knowledge-identity, are elected as equal members of
this Panchayat.
This fundamental unit of the political structure of governance would
project the needs and promote the aspirations of ordinary people (the
Lokavidya
Samaj)
and seek a ‘path of development’ consistent with and capable of
fulfilling such aspirations.
It
is thus the task of LJA to campaign for a knowledge-based
identity
of the individual rather than any other birth-determined identity
(based on gender, caste, creed, race, religion etc) and the
establishment of Gyan
Panchayats
comprised of such elected gyanis
to deliberate over what needs to be done at each local level to
achieve true development, equality and social justice.
One
of the important means of actualizing the 'ideal of equality'
enshrined in Lokavidya
dharma, would
be the establishment of Lokavidya
Bazar** ;
because the Bazar
is the place (both conceptually and physically) where there is
continuous and purposeful inter-dependent interaction between the
various constituents (gyanis)
of the Samaj.
Lokavidya
Bazar
is a process of supporting and sustaining Lokavidya-based
livelihoods by establishing new concepts of 'value'(price/cost) and
norms of exchange. Where
prices and exchange are guided by the requirement of providing
ordinary needs for the sustenance of a minimal dignified life for all
members of society and not for profit making.
This is the basis and agenda of the movement for the establishment of
Lokavidya
Bazar.
__________________________________________________________________
**Note:
The ideas about Lokavidya
Swaraj
and Lokavidya
Bazar
have been elaborated in our publications; available in Telugu, Hindi
and English at www.vidyaashram.org
_____________________________________________________________
These
then are the main tasks before Lokavidya
Jan Andolan
today and members of Lokavidya
Samaj
and its supporters cannot rest until these are fulfilled. In the
intervening period of normal political activity(elections) and
economic activity(local market), the stress should be on identifying
those resolutions and actions that promote and give fillip to the
principles underlying Lokavidya
Swaraj
and Lokavidya
Bazar.
Krishnarajulu
May
2018
