The Role of Spirituality in Sustainable Development

Since the past few decades, the concept of sustainable development has emerged as a new goal for international development in the wake of a host of changing environmental, social, and economic conditions. The central idea of sustainable development is one of the oldest in economics which says that to live beyond the moment, one must consume income rather than drain capital or the ability to produce future income. However, a universally accepted definition of sustainable development has yet to emerge, because some consider it to be a goal while others prefer to view it as an organizing principle and a process. To understand this process on a micro level, we need to first understand the human perspective, because ultimately this whole process is more a human driven process and hence it is necessary to look at it from a common man’s point of view.

We all know that whenever a human being engages into an action, he does so with some motive or some intention. Right? Even when a person explains, at the end of an action, that he had no motive in doing it, he did, in fact, have a motive at the back of his mind when he did that action though he did not have any clear awareness of it then. His explanation should not thus lead us to believe that he, really, had no motive at all, because every action must, as a rule, have some motive behind it. In fact, the very explanation offered by someone to convince others that he had no motive, clearly proves his intention of getting absolved of the accusation of having had a bad motive. Considered in this light, the intentions of groups, as compared to an individual’s motive, have much greater significance. We find that the impact of these actions is generally, if not in exceptionably, proportionate to the social, economic, political or religious power or the scientific and technological know-how operative behind them. Thus, if religion and politics or science and politics align together with a noble intention or motive, the result may either be a great social and moral improvement and the establishment of law and order in the first case or a great scientific development in the latter case.

Conversely, if they align together with an inferior motive, the result can be disastrous also. The alignment of the political and economic power with the power of science and technology with an unholy motive becomes obvious when we consider the use of nuclear technology for the invention and manufacture of nuclear weapons which is right now threatening the very existence of a large part of mankind. The result of the negative intention behind the alignment of religion and politics can be witnessed in what has been happening in many middle east countries for some years now. If we thus realise the importance of motives or intentions, we should be able to realise the importance of spirituality also, for the very object of spirituality is to harmonize the intentions of human beings so as to achieve higher social goals, thereby achieving sustainable development. We must remember this very well that the thing which brings about the happy unity of wills and motivate human beings for building a better society, characterised by love, unity, peace, co-operation, etc. is the real spirituality which is highly needed in today’s time when science and technology, in alignment with political forces, have gained tremendous power which may be destructive as well as constructive. So, let us all understand very clearly that, behind the political force and the power of science is the motive force and, of all the forces at work, it is this, which needs to be empowered through the power of spirituality.