Ninash Foundation Annual Report 2012—2013

During December 2012 and January 2013, Ashok Malhotra, Founder/President and Linda Drake, Treasurer of the Ninash Foundation visited the Foundation’s 5 Indo-International schools established by the SUNY Oneonta Learn and Serve participants (1996-2008). At present these schools are providing education to more than 1200 female and minority children of India. They were accompanied by Dr. John Young, {Emeritus Professor of Anthropology, Oregon State University, USA} and Dr. Jean Fang, {Retired Professor of Foreign Languages, Oregon State University, USA}. Dr. Kevin Brien {Philosophy Department, Washington College, Maryland, USA } also joined them during their visit to one of the Indo-International Schools that is situated in Mahapura, Rajasthan.


Visit to the Indo-International School in Kuran, Gujarat

During their visit (Dec 31, 2012-Jan 2, 2013) to the Indo-International School in Kuran, Gujarat, they were accompanied by Principal Ram Gusai and the teachers. The 280 children who in 2001 could speak only the local dialect of Kachhi, now showed their proficiency by reading, singing and reciting poetry in the four languages of Kachhi (local), Gujarati (regional), Hindi (national) and English (international). They also presented their skills in the use of computer by sending emails as well as in educating themselves by learning and speaking English through the use of various internet programs. The children also danced and sang songs for the visitors.Another highlight of the visit was the meeting with the local Panchayat (the political governing body) of the village that provided entertainment for the New Year’s Eve celebration. During an open forum with the Sarpanch (mayor), Panchayat (mayor’s council), Principal Gusai, Ashok, Linda, John and Jean discussed the basic issues of importance to the village. Following issues were put forth for discussion and implementation:To make the remote village of Kuran as a Model of Rural Educational Center for the State of Gujarat, India and the World, the following items were discussed:
1. The village needs to explore a source of fresh drinking water: To do so, the village needs to hire an agency that would check the possibility of digging an electrically operated well for fresh water and will provide an estimate on price, depth of the well and the time period within which it could be constructed. The Panchayat fixed April 30, 2013 as the deadline to get all the information on the project.
2. The village needs to clean up the rubbish: cleaning work to be divided among the children of the school and the people of the village. Cleaning to be done in four different steps: children should clean up the area around the school by carrying out the rubbish to a hole dug up for burying the garbage; people living in the village to clean up the area around their houses and to carry the rubbish to a hole dug up for that purpose; the head of the Panchayat should check on the surroundings of each house; award the cleanest three houses; and reprimand the owners of the dirtiest ones.
3. Furthermore, the Panchayat requested the Ninash Foundation in cooperation with the local governing body of the village to help finance the building of a road connecting the present elementary school with the newly built high school. The road will be lined with trees, bushes and lights for safety.
4. Principal Gusai of the Indo-International School (IIS) will appoint a couple of teachers to write down the oral history of the village in terms of its beginnings, folk lore, medical practices, art, artifacts religion, marriage, birth and death practices. The oral history would be written down and translated into English and the book would be put in the Kuran library as well as a copy will be presented to the state of Gujarat.
5. IIS would create a new shelf in the existing library in memory of Bertil, a poet friend of John and Mimi Koller and Milton Forman. This shelf will contain poetry books in Hindi, Gujarati and English. Also a mobile library with poetry books would be put in each class room. Furthermore, a poem would be read in the morning at the school assembly and a teacher would read a poem appropriate to each class; and prizes will be set up and given annually for reading and writing the most poems by a student and a teacher.
6. Students of IIS will follow the slogan of “each one teach one” by going back to their homes and teaching at least one sibling or a parent how to read and write as well as impart computer skills to other children from the school. The goal would be to have the entire village of 1400 people to become fully literate, which would be used as a model for the state of Gujarat, India and rest of the world.
7. Sakuba, a teenage girl who was born crippled and could not use her hands/fingers/arms, came to IIS when she was 4 years of age. She has been using her feet/toes to read and write. She has turned out to be such a bright teenager that she showed her computer skills by using the mouse through her toes/feet. A local NGO will be offering financial assistance to get her crippled arms x-rayed and surgery to be performed so that she would be able to get a use of her arms up to 80 % of their capacity. By getting the use of her arms, she would be able to finish high school and then go to college, get a job and might be able to get married and raise a family with dignity. This touching human story might be the focus of the next Ninash Video!
8. A student who lost one eye to an accident and could barely use the other has been declared as almost technically blind was thankful for being given the opportunity to get an education at the Indo-International School. This incentive might help him to finish high school and college education leading to completing his further studies. This could also be another touching human story that might be the focus of the next Ninash Video!
9. We also visited with Raju Kapadhya (a local NGO), who showed us a school for the underprivileged children serving a tribal community (near the village of Khawda) that was teaching 9^th and 10^th graders. The school needed three new rooms: one for computers and two for class rooms. The local NGO requested the Ninash Foundation to provide funds to build a computer room whereas two classrooms would be built through the village Panchayat, teachers and a local trust.

Visit to the Indo-International School in Dundlod

From January 3-6, 2013, our group of four visited the Indo-International School in Dundlod, accompanied by Director Dr. Ganga Singh (President of READS), Principal George, and teachers where we met with 580 children from both the primary and high schools.The school ran an open forum to discuss various issues of interest: children and teachers asked about the festivals, foods, climate, schools, education, teaching, snow, sports, games, etc. as well as the size of the airplane, number of passengers, time difference between India and the USA. The wonderful exchange of ideas with the children and teachers lasted for more than 2 hours.
10. Linda ran a session with teachers and staff to discuss the various uses of computers and how this knowledge could be used leading to better jobs for teachers and children. We also proposed the setting up of two awards for teachers and children who would be mastering the computer skills during the next year and sharing them with other teachers and students. Moreover, as incentive for the teachers and students, two I Pads will be given away to the best qualified computer teachers who would impart knowledge to others.
11. It was proposed that the IIS to create a new shelf in the library in memory of Bertil, a poet friend of John/Mimi Koller and Milton Forman. This shelf will be full of poetry books in Hindi, Rajasthani and English. Moreover a mobile library for each class room will be created where some of these poetry books would be put so that they will be available for children. Furthermore, a poem to be read at the start of the school each day; each teacher would read a short poem appropriate to each class; and prizes to be set up and given annually for reading and creating the most poems by a student and a teacher.
12. On January 5, Linda gave away 25 goats to the 25 poorest of poor people of the community with the following instructions: each goat is given as a gift from an American family who cares about the families in India. When each donated goat is fed well like one’s own children, it will give a good quantity of milk, which should be used by the family for its own consumption and extra milk to be shared with the neighbors; the goat should not to be sold or slaughtered; and each person receiving the goat will either sign their names or give a thumb print indicating that they received the goat. The goat giving ceremony lasted from 4-5:30 PM. Before these goats were given away, Linda and Ashok visited 5-6 families that received the goats to check out their living conditions. Since 2006, a total of 178 goats had been given away helping more than 700 poorest of poor people of the Dundlod village. As in the past, most of the money to  buy and give away 25 goats was raised by children and teachers of the Riverside School as well as the members of the Oneonta community.
13. At the Indo-International School in Dundlod, a local businessman donated six new computers to the IIS computer Center and promised to give more in the coming years. The inauguration of the computer room was done by Dr. John Young and Dr. Ganga Singh. This inauguration ceremony was followed by children performing various dances and singing songs for the visitors. Ganga, Linda and Ashok gave inspirational speeches to the children and teachers spreading the message of service and learning through the slogan of “each one teach one.” Children were excited to share their future plans of getting into police academy, becoming teachers, lawyers, doctors, computer specialists, politicians, taxi drivers, nurses, and even the Prime Minister or President of India.
14. Ashok also met with a couple of members of the Panchayat (members of mayor’s council) of Dundlod who promised to plant flowers, trees and bushes in the newly built park across from the Dundlod Fort. The idea to create such a park was the brain child of Ashok, which has been in the making for the past few years. The members of the Panchayat promised to have the park ready to be used for the recreation of the people of the village as well as for special social/religious ceremonies and political gatherings of the local community. They would have the park completed by next year and will open it with the next year’s goat giving ceremony.
15. The 580 children and 30 teachers as well as Principal George of the IIS were thankful for receiving a gift of the water well through the generous financial support of the Empire Toyota of Oneonta that helped build the well. They also thanked Raj and Christina Malhotra for providing financial support to fund the salary of a music teacher. They were also grateful to the donors of the Ninash Foundation that provided funds to build Jack Finestone Music Room and Hari Chand Chopra Culture room to be used for the High School classes.
16. The principal and teachers proposed and discussed with us the need for a playground and a park cum eco-garden for the children. A piece of land in the back of the school that is not being utilized for any productive purpose is to be used for creating such a playground/park to serve as a  recreation place  for  the  children,  teachers and local community. To build the play ground and the garden, funding was requested  from the Ninash Foundation.

Visit to the Indo-International Culture School in Mahapura (January 6-8, 2013)

17. John, Jean, Linda and Ashok were joined by Kevin Brien during their visit to the Indo-International Culture School in Mahapura. Our group of five along with Pushpendra Rathore (Artist); Yatan Rathore (Superintendent), Saroj Rathore (Principal), Mahavir Singh, Rashmi Singh (Advisors) and Liaqat Bhatti (Reporter and Photographer from a local newspaper) drove to the Indo-International Culture School in Mahapura where we were greeted by children with garlands and Tilak on our foreheads. We were also joined by a group of 30 visitors from the USA who had adopted a number of Indian children in the past. The children of Indo-International Culture School performed dances and sang songs for us. Inspirational speeches were given by Ashok, Yatan and older children regarding the value of education, culture and art. Children promised to follow the slogan of “each one teach one” by teaching at least one of their illiterate parent or sibling or neighbor.
18. John, Jean, Kevin, Linda and Ashok ran an open forum with children and teachers. Children asked Ashok to show them some meditation exercises, which they could do at the beginning of each class as well as after the recess. Ashok taught them a number of breathing and meditation exercises along with how to stand on their heads.
19. Children wanted to learn a few phrases of Chinese which Jean taught them. Kevin and John played basket ball and soccer as well as other sports with the children whereas some wanted to learn about the use of computer on which Linda gave an informational talk, on its uses and benefit toward getting a good job in the future.
20. After the children were gone, we held a conference with the teachers and the principal where the needs of the school were discussed. Two laptop were needed: one for the use of the school and the other for the use of the superintendent to keep the lines of communication open between the teachers, children and us in the USA. Through the Ninash Foundation, these two lap tops were bought for the school. These computers will be used to teach other teachers as well as children. A printer was also bought for record keeping of the school such as its enrollment, teachers’ names, salaries, budget, expenses, email, internet etc.
21. It was proposed that the IIS to create a new shelf in the library in memory of Bertil, a poet friend of John/Mimi Koller and Milton Forman. This shelf will be full of poetry books in Hindi, Rajasthani and English. Moreover a mobile library for each class room will be created where some of these poetry books would be put so that they will be available for children. Furthermore, a poem to be read at the start of the school each day; each teacher would read a short poem appropriate to each class; and prizes to be set up and given annually for reading and creating the most poems by a student and a teacher.

State of the Schools and Theme for Future Documentary

All the schools in Kuran, Mahapura and Dundlod were newly painted, the bathrooms were clean, eco-gardens were green, and libraries with books and computers supplying the necessary embellishment to teaching through the equipment and beautiful surroundings, were a sight to watch.At the end of our 2 weeks visit to the Indo-International schools in Kuran, Dundlod and Mahapura, we discussed possible ways of highlighting their accomplishment by creating a documentary that includes the touching story of the crippled Sakuba who might be able to get surgery to use 80% of her arms, to go to college and get married with a job that supports the family as well as depict the story of the partially blind student who could go to school and express his talents. This wonderful opportunity provided by the Ninash’s IIS schools to the disabled children to flourish with their talents in spite of the handicap, could be a central theme of the next Ninash documentary. Overall, the visit to the schools and their facilities, computer centers, libraries; water well and park for the community; art, music and culture rooms along with children speaking 3-4 languages and being computer literate was a joy to behold.

Learning through Immersion into India’s Culture (January 9-18, 2013)

After spending 10-12 days at the Indo-International Schools, we went on to immerse ourselves during the next 8-9 days into the historical, religious, philosophical, social and everyday culture of India through visiting Varanasi (ancient Hindu city of love, life and death); Sarnath (Buddhist city where Buddha gave his first sermon after enlightenment); Khajuraho (a city of Love and Erotic temples); Agra (Taj Mahal depicting eternal love) and Delhi/New Delhi (Capital of India and blend of nine cities).This trip would be used as a future model of for the SUNY Learn and Serve Study Abroad Program where the first 10-12 days will be used to visit and serve in the Indo-International Schools and the remaining 8-9 days for learning through immersion in the culture of India. 
Since these Indo-International schools serving the underprivileged minority children of India depend on the contributions from the generous donors, your tax-deductible donation can be sent to the Ninash Foundation, 17 Center Street, Oneonta, NY 13820, USA or visit the website at www.ninash.org and donate through PayPal. 

Bertil Haggman

Cultures, Cycles and Philosophy of History - Less Known Civilizationists

Introduction

2001 saw the publication of two important books in German casting light on a number of less known civilizationists (Axel Schwaiger, Christliche Geschichtsdeutung in der Moderne - Eine Untersuchung zum Geschichtsdenken von Juan Donoso Cortés, Ernst von Lasaulx und Vladimir Solov'ev in der Zusammenschau christlicher Historiographientwicklung, Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 440 pages, and Michel Grunewald, Moeller van den Brucks Geschichtsphilosophie, "Ewige Urzeugung" "Ewige Anderswerdung" "Ewige Weitergabe", Bern: Peter Lang, 2001, 153 pages). Lang's work is one volume of two with the second a reprint on van den Bruck's historical.philosophical works (Volume 2: Rasse und Nation, Meinungen über deutsche Dinge, Der Untergang des Abendlandes, 375 pages)

Juan Donoso Cortés

Spaniard Cortés (1809 - 1853) is today mainly remembered as a conservative ideologist, fighting the liberal movement in the 19th century and a believer in the authority of the state. But he is also an important historical-philosophical theorist. Much of his writings were not treated in detail until after World War II, much of it in Germany as Donoso Cortés had been Spanish ambassador in Berlin. In relation to Oswald Spengler he was regarded as a precursor (see for instance Th.P.Neill,"Juan Donoso Cortés: History and prophecy", The Catholic Historical Review 40, 1955, pp. 385 - 410) in warning that the West was ezperiencing a decline. The catastrophe of the two world wars seemed to many the realization of Donoso Cortés apocalyptic views, which were part of his historical-philosophical world view. The ideals of liberalism and socialism meant a disastrous future for the European peoples.

Donoso Cortés saw revolution as a disaster and predicted: "The revolution will be victorious everywhere, but in Germany more complete and profoundly than anywhere else." (p. 174). History to this Spanish diplomat is "the biography of mankind" from Adam and forward but there is a difference between 'historia sagrada' and 'historia profana'. There are three world historical periods and the modern period is also the end of history. He sees world history being the history of rebellions. They are the result of the guilt of man and is at the same time God's punishment of human society. But he was (like Spengler) really not a pessimist. The coming catastrophe would only make God's intervention more magnificent.

In European tradition many conservatives, mainly continental, have been critical of the French revolution, seeing it as the beginning of catastrophic events, resulting finally in the totalitarianisms of national socialism and marxism-leninism. The freedoms of 1789 threatened to end in anarchism and bringing despots to power. Against this stood a Catholic civilization: "Catholicism is a complete system of civilization, so complete" that it encompasses everything: the science of God, the science of the angels, the science of the universe, the science of man." (p.202) according to Donoso Cortés. Thus all political struggle against revolution was aimed at postponing the catastrophe. Liberalism and socialism threatened the Christian civilization. History's end was the success and world power of Antichrist. Revolutionary theories of progress thus helped the forces of Antichrist. The French socialist Proudhon (Cortés was after Berlin Spanish ambassador inParis) was the Antichristian type. He represented all Cortés was fighting: "That is my philosophy, that is the complete philosophy of history, to which I am confessing." (p. 217).

It is also interesting to note that Donoso Cortés, like de Tocqueville, predicted the rise of the United States and Russia: "Today only a few nationas are capable of what could be called foreign policy; Only three nations have it, one is America, to in Europé: England, Russia and the United States of America." (p. 219). But also Lasaulx and Solovev predict at least the rise of Russia. Around 1850, however, Donoso Cortés was the only theorist to express the belief in a revolutionary development in Russia and a total change from monarchy to revolutionary despotism. The prognosticist was also correct in believing that socialism would add religious features.

In 1850 Donoso Cortés wrote: "Before Russia is able to unleash a general war, to force its will" on the continent several things must happen (among them socialist solutions in society). After 1945 one can for a period identify a 'Donoso redivivus' in the writings of Berdajev, Dawson, Guardini, Pieper, and Toynbee.

Ernst von Lasaulx

Like Donoso Cortés the Rhinelander Lasaulx (1805-1861) can be regarded as a forerunner of Oswald Spengler. In his main work, Neuer Versuch einer alten, auf die Wahrheit der Tatsachen gegründete Philosophie der Geschichte (1856), he presented a view on the birth, growth, and decline of peoples and states. According to Lasaulx the dynamic of history was created by antagonism between Europe and Asia/Africa, between east and west, south and north. It appeared in the struggle between the Muslim Turks and the Christian Europeans. But the antagonism could also be found in the struggle between England and China during the 19th century. Thus his philosophy of history was more based on geographical determination than on the struggle between civilizations in the works of Donoso Cortés.

Lasaulx described the growth and decline of peoples and states in a biological sense. Peoples and states became ill and had to be pruned and replanted. It was part of a natural process. The time of such processes was 2000 to 4000 years of which half of the period could be seen as an era of growth and blooming. The development of world history passed from Babylon and Assur to the Greek and Roman civilizations. Lasaulx borrowed, however, much of the description of the period of decline

from the German Karl Friedrich Vollgraff.

The prognoses of Lasaulx for the Europeans was pessimistic. Man stood at the same threshold in the 19th century as in the 4th century. It could be regarded as a prelude to the coming catastrophic events.

Vladimir Solovev

The Russian Solovev (1853-1900) is not well known in the West. Also his prognoses were pessimistic. In history of man there was a division. Only a minority would choose God and opt for good. The majority would fall for the power of evil. Solovev differed from Donoso Cortés and Lasaulx in that he more in detail predicted historic-political development during the 20th century (Three Conversations on War, Progress and the End of World History, 1899/1900). In the beginning of the 20th century Japan would conquer Korea and China establishing a strong Asiatic military power. After having conquered the European colonies in Asia (Vietnam, Laos, Burma and others) these became part of the new Japanese-Chinese empire. The huge Asiatic army would attack Russian Central Asia, cross the Urals and spread over Russia's western lands. The conquerors would move to capture Germany andFrance while England avoided occupation. The Asiatic empire would also send naval expeditions against America and Australia. After 50 years of occupation,however, the Europeans rose in revolt and liberated themselves. Around 2000 the liberation struggle led to the forming of the United States of Europe, a union of states that were more or less democratically governed. Solovev predicted the rise of a global culture, the fall of the Russian czars and the establishment of an independent Jewish state in Palestine.

Solovev also foresaw a digital technological revolution (in the foreword of his main work, in which he wrote: "The magic and mechanic technology of this we cannot predict in detail and we can only be sure, that it will in 200 or 300 years vastly surpass present technology") which we are experiencing today, but which must have seemed like magic for the readers of his work on the treshold of the 20th century. He also wrote about the resurgence of Islam.

In details, of course, Solovev was incorrect. He missed both World Wars, the Russian revolution and the Cold War bipolar confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union. But some of the predictions of Solovev did actually become reality. Schwaigers reintroduction of this Russian civilizationist is both timely and important.

Moeller van den Bruck

The works on the Weimar Era German conservative van den Bruck (1876 - 1925) have generally taken little notice of his interest in the philosophy of history. He did not believe in the decline of the West and thought it necessary to refute Oswald Spengler in his historical-philosophical works. It was important, he believed, to popularize a "metaphysics of reality", which implied synthesis of the main traditions of western philosophy. Van den Bruck was a nationalist and therefore primarily saw the different peoples as the agents of history.

Das Recht der jungen Völker (1919) established a new outline of history. It was not only a struggle between young and old peoples. There was also a spiral movement without end. Van den Bruck based his new model on older ones. One of these was Geschichte der Farbenlehre by Goethe, who also claimed that there was a spiral development in world history. But the most important influence was that of the German historian Kurt Breysig (for more on Breysig see section 7 below).

The rotation of world history resulted in geopolitical changes. Van den Bruck's model also provided indications of spatial migration of history northwards, which gave it a spatial, geopolitical essence. After 1914, however, van den Bruck expressed the belief of migration toward the east(in which he differed from a general myth of history that it had from Babylon migrated in a westerly direction, eventually to America). But the view of the easterly direction had taken root among 'conservative revolutionaries' inGermany after World War I. It was a pretty common understanding among them that after the Russian revolution the center of gravity of world history would be placed in the European east. In the coming decades development would be based on what was happening in the western part of this area (Germany was after World War I still a country to a great extent based on its eastern territories: Pomerania, Brandenburg, Silesia and East Prussia).

The rotation had gained speed and the south had already joined the west as periphery. The rotation was turning into revolution. In the pessimistic climate of Weimar Germany it was important to the conservatives to instill confidence in the future. Thus Germans and Russians were described as "young peoples" of the future. The Germans had a great will to life. This would be important in the coming era of the world revolution. Overpopulation was working to the advantage of Germany and would strengthen her during the 20th century. The decline of the West was not Germany's decline. The future was determined by the "young peoples" which were throwing of their shackles. Thus the Germans were described in reality to be in the same category as the colonial peoples.

In his important work Grunewald has thrown light on a philosopher of history less well known than Spengler and Toynbee. Grunewalds books have also opened the road to rediscovery of Kurt Breysig.

Kurt Breysig

Kurt Breysig (1866 - 1940), whose main work was republished in 2001 (Die Geschichte der Menschheit, 2nd edition, introduction by Arnold Toynbee from 1955, 4 volumes, 1776 pages) in his book Der Stufen-Bau und die Gesetze der Weltgeschichte (1905) first brought up the theory of the spiral movement of history. He later made it the main theory in his monumental history of mankind. This latter work is a cultural history of mankind from the Stone Age to French impressionism.

The spiral ethnological-anthropological theory by Breysig is also used to describe European culture with the same consequences as for the non-European peoples.

This German world historian was already in 1896 professor of history at the University of Berlin. In 1932 he left his chair and devoted all his time to publishing on cultural history based on the spiral theory (Stufen-bau) of 1905.

Conclusion

The Biblical-Christian historical world view was for centuries important. This has been described as an historical interpretation based on views of the Middle Ages. But there are civilizational approaches in the 19th century that view civilizations in theological terms. The Spanish, German and Russian philosophers of history presented by Dr. Axel Schwaiger in his recent work are important also in the 21st century. Their prognoses were often accurate and they deserve renewed study on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, especially after the collapse of Soviet communism in 1991 as the most extreme form of socialism Donoso Cortés warned of.


The less known philosophers of history of the 20th century, van den Bruck and Breysig, also deserve rediscovery. The publication of Professor Breysig's main work in 2001 and Dr. Grunewald's reintroduction of the often forgotten aspects of the writings of van den Bruck is a welcome addition in the expanding field of civilizational theory. It is important that the field of macrohistory is further developed in the 21st century, but this should be combined with study and research of many less known civilizationists. A good start was made by the publication in 2001 of the works reviewed in this report. They deserve to be translated into English and published in theUnited States and England.

Urban-Rural conflict

The Urban-Rural Conflict is Central to Today’s Global Dysfunction.

Laina Farhat-Holzman

Sentinel

January 5, 2013

Civilization began with the rise of cities (civilization means city building), some 5,000 years ago. To have such institutions as irrigation systems, professional armies, specialized priesthood, and professional artisans, population concentration is essential. Villages cannot produce such specialization.

Cities have always appealed to the ambitious, who love the colorful energy of city life, and refugees from the no-longer viable countryside. Successful cities attract talent; unsuccessful ones attract crime and anarchy. Both kinds have existed throughout human history, and are with us today.

Until the mid-20^th century, the vast majority of people in the world were rural: mostly engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry, some in migratory life on the fringes of society. Today, most human beings live in cities, increasingly in mega-cities with populations 10 million and up.

Village or nomadic life has always depended upon a timeless rhythm of nature and unchanging culture. Survival depended on luck and total obedience to competent leadership and a long-tested culture. Community mattered; the individual did not.  Because of ever-present danger coming from outside, the strongest had to rule. Ancient tribes never had enough child bearers, which was one of the earliest reasons for raiding and warfare.

Cities, the original “civilizations,” have depended on good leadership and complex systems. Nomads never worry about human waste or unpolluted water because they are always on the move. Cities, however, depend upon setting up systems for bringing in water and disposing of waste. Ancient Rome owed its longevity to its expertise in handling water and waste. Dark Age cities that failed to do this suffered from constant population decline from plagues or invasion by better led predators

Leadership must either be perceived as fair or have means of oppression at their disposal. This is so even today in the obvious difference between civilizations with participatory governance and those with authoritarian or totalitarian thugocracies.

Pressing elections on countries with a majority living in rural communities and educated minorities only in cities has had unforeseen consequences, the most obvious case being Egypt. Moreover, even cities with some educated populations (like Cairo) are being overwhelmed by migrants from the countryside---who vote. These migrants are alienated, no longer nurtured by a community of relatives as they were in their villages; however, Islam’s latest mode, militant and aggressive, has filled the role of community that these migrants have lost.

The demographic shift from rural to urban is now visible in the badly named “Arab Spring.”  An electorate that is largely illiterate overwhelmed the secular urban vote, giving Egypt an Islamist government. The cries of Islamist street demonstrators: “Bread, Freedom, and Sharia (Islamic law)” has nothing to do with freedom; “Sharia law” does not provide “freedom” nor do the shouting men plan to give “freedom” to their women and children. They do not know better.

While the disparity between urban and rural life is deadly in the under-developed world, it plays a role even in our own country. Those who idealize small town life exaggerate its virtues and also disparage great cities. Even the college- educated who work in such cities have moved to provide suburban life for their children. Fortunately this is beginning to change, as well-run cities attract families back. For those like myself, who remember our childhoods in wonderful cities, this is a welcome development.

Part of the still existing hostility against urban life comes from those fearful of immigrants manifested in anti-immigration hysteria. Floods of immigrants take some time to acculturate, and they do bring with them spikes in crime, a problem that can be mitigated with good governance.

Many of us are children of immigrant parents who wanted nothing more than to become American in every way. Those who succeeded become the philanthropists, doctors, musicians, and geniuses who make our culture shine. Today, much of our new economic vitality is the gift of hard working immigrants or foreign students whom we educate. This kind of immigrant we should welcome. Those with a violent agenda we should not welcome.

It took 9/11 to make us love New York. Let’s not continue the urban-rural dislikes. We are one country, not two worlds.

William Butler Yeats and World History

WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS AND WORLD HISTORY

Betill Haggman

bertilhaggman@hotmail.com

”Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.”

William Butler Yeats

Historical inquiry, philosophy and myth are important and vital parts of the writings of William Butler Yeats and Oswald Spengler. The latter’s main work, published in a first volume 1918 and a second volume five years later, The Decline of the West, was an exhibit of literary power and beauty.

Yeats connection to Spengler has not been sufficiently researched. This short essay is an attempt to point out a few possible directions for such a research.

For the Nobel Prize winner 1923 history had a position as symbol. Yeats commented that it was a remarkable coincidence between his own ideas and Spengler’s in the fact that his 1925 edition of A Vision, appeared so close in time to The Decline of the West.

Spengler’s vision was described by him as:

”In the Destiny-idea the soul reveals its world-longing, its desire to rise into the light, to accomplish and actualize its vocation. To no man is it entirely alien, and not before one has become the un-anchored ”late” man of the megalopolis is original vision quite overpowered by matter-of-fact feeling and mechanized thought. Even then, in some intense hour, the lost vision comes back to one with terrible clearness, shattering in a moment all the causality of the world’s surface.”

In A Vision, Yeats can possibly be said to fulfill the desire of the soul that Spengler describes. Both Yeats and Spengler believe in the cyclic movement of human history. It is a scheme emerging from the vast unconscious of the human race. It unites the opposing forces in the universe.

In Book V of A Vision Yeats interprets the history of western civilization in terms of his cyclic view. The expanding cones, in a great dance of spheres, reduce history to perennial and predictable cyclic movements. ”…one must consider not the movement only from the beginning to the end of the ascending cone, but the gyres that touch its sides, the horizontal dance.” (Yeats, p. 270).

All of history is encompassed in a ritual of turning and widening, winding and unwinding, disintegration and rebirth.

William Butler Yeats view of history is mythical. In A Vision he presented an opposing view of history:

”The historian thinks of Greece as an advance on Persia, of Rome as in something as rather an advance of Greece, and thinks it is impossible that any man could prefer the hunter’s age to the agricultural. I, upon the other hand, must think all civilizations equal at their best; every phase returns, therefore in some sense every civilization. I think of the hunter’s age and that which followed immediately as a time when man’s waking consciousness had not reached its present complexity and stability. There was little fear of deatch, sometimes men lay down and died at will, the world of the gods could be explored easily whether through some oriastic ceremony or in the trance of the ascetic. Apparitions came and went, bringing comfort in the midst of tragedy.” (Yeats, pp. 205-206).

Further on he wrote:

”A civilization is a struggle to keep self-control, and in this it is like some great tragic person, some Niobe who must display an almost superhuman will or the cry will not touch our sympathy. The loss of control over thought comes towards the end; first a sinking in upon the moral being, then the last surrender, the irrational cry, revelation – the screm of Juno’s peacock.”

Thus history for Yeats is personal, tragic, and heroic.

Poems of Yeats that have strong visions of the future are for instance ”The Second Coming”, ”Nineteen Hundred and Nineteen” as well as ”Meditations in Time of Civil War”. Before the predicted return of past ages, the established order must ”fall apart”. Before any rebirth must be destruction.

Other poems that would need to be interpreted are ”Sailing to Byzantium” and ”Blood and the Moon” as well as ”The Gyres”.

It is no wonder that Oswald Spengler choose Heraclitus for his doctoral dissertation. The essence of The Decline of the West is that world history performs a magnificent cosmic spectacle. There is a grand harmony of perpetual struggle, of becoming and degeneration. Spengler regarded the great achievement of Heraclitus the idea of the eternal never-ending struggle. This struggle forms the essence of life in the cosmos, in which a master law governs and is upholding a harmonious, elegant proportionality. There is thus, in my opinion, a direct line between Heraclitus, Yeats and Spengler.

The question of the permanent value of Western civilization is once more under debate after the horrible crime of September 11, 2001. It coincides well with the myth of heliotropism, that civilization is moving from East to West from Babylon, via Greece, Rome, England-Scotland, Wales and Ireland, across the Atlantic to America.

Myth now is increasingly secular. The happy optimism of Enlightenment which ended in horrible slaughter in the 20th century is opposed by counter-enlightenment. World historians and futurists have not been able to avoid the pressing questions of the eternal alteration of empires: William Butler Yeats in A Vision, Oswald Spengler in The Decline of the West, Arnold Toynbee in A Study of History, Mancur Olson in The Rise and Decline of Nations and lately Samuel Huntington in Clash of Civilizations.

Archibald MacLeish wrote:

”We wonder whether the great American dream
Was the singing of the locusts out of the grass to the west
And the West is behind us now:
The west wind’s away from us:

We wonder whether liberty is done:
The dreaming is finished.”

But that is not so. On what is now the global frontier the dream is alive. The West is a dream that can transform itself.

Book Review: “Beyond Religion: Ethics for a Whole World,” by the Dalai Lama

In “Beyond Religion: Ethics for a Whole World,” Dalai Lama, the beloved religious leader, provides an insight into spirituality for the 21st century. A political head without a country, Nobel laureate professing peace and Buddhist monk practicing non-violence, proposes a universal ethics for the whole world that transcends all religions, conceptions of god and yet offers a moral plan for all humanity. Since globalization has brought people out of their isolation by creating interconnectedness and multicultural societies, ethics based on a particular religion, would not appeal to some of us or not be meaningful for all.” Instead, our century needs an ethics that “makes no recourse to religion” and yet appeals to all faiths and those without any: a secular ethics that will serve the inner needs of all humanity.

Dalai Lama says: “This book may seem strange coming from someone who from the very early age has lived as a monk in robes. Yet I see no contradiction here. My faith enjoins me to strive for the welfare and benefit of all sentient beings, reaching out beyond my own tradition, to those of other religions and those of none.”
He proposes a secular ethics inclusive of all people with or without faith, because “all human beings are basically inclined or disposed toward what we perceive to be good, appreciate kindness of others and oriented toward basic human values of love and compassion.” It is his “firm opinion that we have within our grasp a way, and a means, to ground inner values without contradicting any religion and yet, crucially, without depending on religion.”

He proposes the development and practice of a new vision that promotes “the need for secular ethics and inner values in the age of excessive materialism.” Since grounding ethics on a particular religion is no longer adequate in the 21st century, we need to think about spirituality and ethics beyond religion.

He has been the most unusual guest in India, residing there since 1959 when the Chinese took over Tibet. Dalai Lama admits that he had been brought up both physically and spiritually on Indian food and the writings of the Indian Buddhists.

In order to find the most inclusive secular ethics for the 21st century, Dalai Lama delves into the Indian and Western views on secularism. He models his secularism after the Indian King Ashoka, who in 261 B.C. emphasized the importance of interfaith dialogue by regarding all human beings as the children of one god. Following its unique historical background, today’s India adheres to secularism that implies “mutual tolerance and respect for all faiths as well as for those of no faith.” In contrast, the Western secularism developed as a scientific rational movement clashing with religious superstition where the two regarded each other “as belonging to opposing positions—leading to considerable suspicion and hostility.”

As a man of religion, Dalai Lama opts for the Indian view of secularism, which is inclusive of all human beings, and thus closer to his heart. He believes that though human beings can manage without religion, they cannot without inner values or spirituality. Spirituality has two dimensions: first relates to our innate human nature predisposing us towards compassion, kindness and caring for others and second hails from religious beliefs and practices towards life here and now and life after. The difference between the two dimensions is like between water and tea. Ethics and inner values without religion are like water that is essential for life whereas with religion it is like tea that garnishes the water. We can live without tea but not without water. Thus Dalai Lama asserts: “we are born free of religion but not born free of compassion.” Therefore more fundamental than religion is our basic human compassion or spirituality.

How do we cultivate spirituality? Dalai Lama believes that our shared humanity of aspiration to happiness and avoidance of pain and our interdependence as human beings are the two pillars of secular ethics.

Our desire for happiness depends upon wealth, health and companionship. When pursued selfishly, these bring about only temporary external gratification. However, for lasting inner fulfillment, one needs to cultivate these by sharing one’s riches with others, promoting others health and offering them friendship.

Such personal qualities as patience, contentment, self-discipline, generosity and the delight of charitable giving that enrich the inner values could be cultivated through daily meditation in action. Dalai Lama’s hope is that these qualities belonging to the heart could be infused in the education of the younger generation of the 21st century, thus leading to a moral world for all humanity. During this time of religious turmoil where more people are turning to spirituality by getting away from organized religions, it was a breath of fresh air to read “Beyond Religion: Ethics for a Whole World” by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Dr. Ashok Kumar Malhotra

New Book: The Modern Transformation

I have a completed manuscript, 55,300 words, that is finally good enough to show to the public. “The Modern Transformation”. It describes the world-wide process of change from traditional to modern society, which began in western Europe about 500 years ago and is still continuing around the world today. The Arab Spring is the most recent chapter in this evolutionary and revolutionary transformation of human society. I really want to thank the ISCSC for helping me to get started with this project over four years ago in New Brunswick, Canada and again in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was the first time I was ever treated as a bona fide scholar. Your warmth and acceptance helped to give me the confidence and courage needed to push this project through to a conclusion. I especially want to thank Matt Melko, God rest his soul, for taking the time and effort to enlighten me about some of the ways and wherefores of academic writing. Matt also told me to contact John Hord. It was John who told me to start by reading Jacques Cauvin The Birth of the Gods and the Origin of Agriculture. He also recommended that I ditch the term modern revolution and use modern transformation instead. Thanks also to Andrew Targowski and to everyone in the ISCSC. Those who read this manuscript will find something new and different to think about. By David Maurer

Ninash Foundation News Release

Dr. Ashok Kumar Malhotra and Ms. Linda Marie Drake just returned after a fabulous 3 week long trip (March 12-April 2, 2012) to India where they visited all of Ninash Foundation’s 6 Indo-International Schools educating more than 1200 female and minority children. They were accompanied by 10 members of Ashok’s family from India who enjoyed being part of this educational venture to spread literacy among the poorest of poor children. Six members of Ashok’s family made commitments to support six children yearly at the Ninash's Indo-International Schools!

During their visit to the Indo-International School in Dundlod (Rajasthan), a sister city of Oneonta, they opened Hari Chand Chopra Culture Room , Jack Finestone Music Room and a newly built electrically operated well (funded by the Empire Toyota of Oneonta) to provide water to 550 children and 30 teachers They also held an assembly at the school where 550 children and teachers participated by asking questions of the visitors.

They also visited the Indo-International Culture School in Mahapura where the teachers and students displayed their recent art work in stained glass windows. They went to the classes from nursery to the ninth grade where children recited poems, sang songs and read their lessons in Hindi and English. They also held an open assembly with students and teachers to receive and answer questions.

Their last visit was at the Indo-International School in Kuran, where children performed dances and music as well as showed their acumen in using and understanding the basics of computer skills. Linda gave a demonstration of different kinds of things that could be done with the recent version of the IPAD. They held assembly at the school where 280 children and 6 teachers participated by asking questions of the visitors.

A special session with the local government (Panchayat) of Kuran was held. The entire day was spent visiting the families, their art and crafts as well as the new houses built for the community through the financial help of the local government. In the evening, the community got together to present a folk musical performance for the visitors. They also saw the completion of the High School building that will be in full operation by the next academic year.

Ashok and Linda met with an NGO group that provided free computer service to the children and teachers at the school in Kuran. They proposed to help tie up the six Indo-International Schools in Kuran, Mahapura and Dundlod by holding conferences through SKYPE and other means to share information on technology use, obtaining grants from the government and other items to help the schools to coordinate activities.

They also met with the staff of each school and held discussions with them regarding their needs and suggested direction and vision for the future. They suggested to the staff that the schools needed to provide more extensive computer skills so that AKAASH tablets (similar to IPAD) be bought and provided to the teachers in each school who could master the use and then teach these skills to others teachers and then teaching them to the children. To lure the teachers to learn about the AAKASH Tablet, two awards for the teachers were proposed for acquiring mastery of the tablet. Also teachers were asked to make commitment that they would have mastered the basic skills regarding the computer use during their next visit.

Moreover, since the water filtration unit at Kuran school was successfully providing clean water to 280 children, it was suggested and proposed to explore the possibility of first digging a bore well for sweet water and then providing a filtration unit to clean it for the entire village of Kuran. This would make the village self-sufficient as well as provide clean water to the entire community. A firm was consulted to check out the quality of water and come up with recommendations. Ashok and Linda promised to raise funds in the United States from generous donors like the Empire Toyota of Oneonta that provided financial assistance for the newly dug bore well in Dundlod.

This International Education Effort of the Ninash Foundation in cooperation with the SUNY Oneonta “Learn and Serve” study abroad program that built the first one-room school house with 50 underprivileged has now grown to 1200 children getting education in the six state- of- the-art schools. Founded by Dr. Ashok Malhotra, Distinguished Teaching Professor of Philosophy and co-directed by Linda Drake, Director of Center for Social Responsibility and Community, the “Learn and Serve in India” is one of the longest running SUNY study abroad programs in the SUNY system. Since 1979 the program has brought to India more than 300 participants consisting of students, faculty and members of the community by immersing them into India’s culture.

The Ninash’s six schools educating 1200 female and minority children are dependent on donations from generous people of the community. Please donate to the Ninash Foundation, a 501 © (3) charity, by going to the website at www.ninash.org and through PayPal. Donations are tax deductible.

Dr. Ashok Malhotra