With ascendancy of disruption at the world stage, question that arises is that what can Dharma contribute to our collective thought and emerging order in these critical times? What insights President Trump and other world leaders can derive from the eternal wisdom of Dharma.
The rise of so-called far-right, nationalist, conservative, ethnic, xenophobic or fundamentalist political leadership across the world, indicates that Western Civilization and its world order is crumbling (or changing). This is a strong denouncement of materialist capitalist elitism that has been its key foundation. Nothing demonstrates this change better than the ascension of President Trump in America, which is also a culmination of a pattern.
It is not a problem of Western democracy as China has recently suggested. Nor does it show the struggle between conservative White Christian values and liberals alone. Ascendance and acceptance of Recep Tayyip Erdo?an in Turkey, Shinz? Abe in Japan, Narendra Modi in India, and improving future prospects of Marine Le Pen in France, Geert Wilders in Netherlands and Jimmie Akessonin in Sweden etc follow a pattern.
The weakening of monarchies and dummy democracies leading to unmanageable instability in Africa and Middle East has already hinted about coming instability. Perhaps habitual of seeing things in parts and linear cause-effect relationship we failed to realize how much inter-connected everything is!
That West led world order’s Moral–Ethical rationale and creativity (that bound countries with diverse civilizational histories and experiences in an order) has degenerated into quagmire. This is not at all unusual. In the cycle of evolution the laws of growth often turn into the seeds of degeneration. Since America leads us all, let us focus on how President Trump sees the world; for him:
1. NATO is obsolete
2. US should restrict support to the UN which is unruly.
3. NAFTA is useless and Brexit was good.
4. US needs to revisit its relations with Russia, EU, China, Israel, Middle-east etc.
5. EU policies on multi-culturalism, Climate change and Russia don’t help US. The order built by US over years assiduously, gives too much to other players and interest of US citizens are compromised. US should renegotiate with all to regain its rightful share.
US foreign policy expert Thomas Wright sums up Trump’s views in three components:
1) opposition to U.S. alliances;
2) opposition to free trade; and
3) support for authoritarianism
It is not difficult to imagine the diffusion of power and structural disturbances President Trump's working will generate. What I find most important development is the fissure in the materialist capitalist consensus in American society. As said earlier people are already thinking on these lines. Economic strength, political power and stability have kept US and other rich nations insulated from the suffering, anxieties and responsibilities but the masses find no benefits in US Largesse.
It indicates the conflict of materialist greed of individual and capitalistic order based on such values. The struggle between humanism (previously championed by communism) and amoralist scientific advancement of capitalism (backed by big corporations) is fake one because being rooted in consumerist materialism, both are interdependent and complimentary. Both support Internationalism and multi-culturalism which in reality promotes a homogeneous locally-disconnected consumerist individual at one end and all powerful State and/or corporation at another.
It has sapped essence from natural life of man. It has degenerated Morality-Ethics and Creativity and has created an environment that has lead vacuous self to utter selfishness. The European’s psyche stands fragmented today. The Eastern and Middle Eastern mind is already searching for relevance in religion and history. Now this is very dangerous as the histories and religions of this part of world is very violent and genocidal. Things appear moving towards Huntington paradigm.
The changes would be monumental and effects too would be tragic.
I think Dharma can help us evolve our advancements. Dharma means ‘that which supports, sustains, maintains order in consonance to the cosmos’. Dharma creates a most natural, scientific and holistic ecosystem. That we are entering into uncharted territory perhaps of conflict and disintegration, it is important to check our compass and re calibrate our moves. President Donald Trump is out for new and radically different journey. He can take a couple of tips from Dharmic darshana.
The political-social and ideological divide, so much evident in US, is for garnering scarce resources, Dharma says struggle should be for maintaining sustainable ecology. Weakening of international consensus development measures and paradigm, climate change and democratic aspirations of people can be used to promote a holistic-sustainable, ethical, nature friendly developmental order.
The greedy consumerist-capitalist paradigm is marked by energy consuming, chemical dependent, synthetic non-natural, and environment degrading technology. This all has worked well because environmental loss was limited; the spread of technology across globe is worsening the situation incrementally. The commitment shown by America and the West on global warming and environment protection issues has been anything but satisfactory. But If President Trump negates this whole concern thinking that America will remain insulated from its effects, then it is very immature.
As greed and consumption is antithesis to holistic Morality and ethics. It will disintegrate individualism in society. This makes such society further dependent upon greed gratification, fear and external control mechanism for order. The extension of current Adharmic policies will make the West rely further on legalistic and technological dependence.
Lastly President Trump needs to make the US psyche introspective. Unless President makes people check and re-calibrate their personal ethical values, there is no way they can touch the fountain of creativity that has made them leaders of this world for almost half century.
This is just a wishful thinking as President Trump in all probability will be dragged on path against the spirit of dharma that will lead to a destruction for next phase of evolution.
