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The
Himalayas: A Civilisational
Identity
" The
Himalayas are not merely a geographical feature, a range of mountains,.
They epitomise a people's civilisational identity that goes back
to the dawn of history. If these majestic mountains were not there,
the rain clouds sweeping up from the Indian Ocean would have passed
over our subcontinent into central Asia leaving it a burning desert.
The Himalayas have nurtured this land with life-sustaining water
and enabled a civilisation to blossom. Archaeological evidence
reveals that urban civilisation first emerged in the valleys of
the rivers coursing down from these mountains. When man elsewhere
was cautiously emerging from his cave shelters, spectacular cities
flourished at Mohen-jo-daro and Harappa in the
Indus valley. Vedic hymns, some of the oldest spiritual
texts in the world, were composed in the richly wooded valleys
of these mountains which resonated with their chanting by our
forebears. The Upanishads were written here more than three
thousand years ago. The great poet, Kalidasa, in his epic
poem, "Kumara Sambhava" invested these mountain
ranges with divinity. Divine indeed they are because, from the
dawn of human history, the Himalayas have influenced our way of
life and thought. Ours is an "aranakya" civilisation,
a sylvan civilisation born in the verdant lap of these mountains.
The mighty and sacred rivers have their birth in their snowy fastness,
on whose banks our ancient civilisation took root, survived and
flourished.
But
today the entire Himalayan range, with its rich and unique biological
diversity, is facing a deep crisis and is in the danger being
destroyed. It is being relentlessly denuded of its rich forest
cover. Man, in his cupidity and hubris, is posing a threat to
our ancient civilisation by destroying the ecological base that
sustains it. The forests are being exploited for their timber
without realising that trees are only secondarily producers of
timber. Their primary function is to promote rain, absorb moisture
and recharge ground water.
As a
part of our culture, we worship trees because of this vital nexus
between them and the life-giving waters. Our Vedic prayers
are centred round the environment. The 63 verses of the Bhumi
Suktam in the Atharva Veda express a worldview that
highlights the spirituality inherent in nature and stresses a
holistic and harmonious relationship between it and man. Through
the long efflux of time, this magnificent vision has eroded. We
seem to have entered a dark age, which is witness to malign impact
of massive intervention in nature's processes. The Himalayas must
be protected from further damage from human greed and depredation.
They have to be rejuvenated so that their past wounds are healed.
It may then be possible to begin the slow and long march back
to sanity and harmony. The path if a difficult one, like the razor's
edge. But we must walk on the razor's edge to accomplish this
gigantic task."
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Dr.
KARAN SINGH
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