Transcript of the closing plenary session

A Response …

One of the things that I just thought of when you were speaking is that I have booklists in my head of all the books that I want to read and study; now I have got a whole bunch of new books from the speakers that they referenced. I now have added all those books to my booklist because I think I will grow.

Another Response …

What I like most was the fact that we dare to come together to understand each other and discover our relationships, universal relationships. We are born in a country and a tradition in which this kind of relationships have been given, the kind of ideas with which we have grown. We find that there are other parts of the country (world) where people do cultivate such kinds of ideas.
We come together; we feel the need to come together. We open our hearts in meaningful exchange. And that is something very interesting to me.
I narrate one incidence. At my university, the University of Pune, there was a study abroad program. I was given the charge of teaching classical Indian philosophy. That was what I was doing.
At the end of the term, the students are to be given a topic. I took this opportunity to understand. Being a trained logician, I try to understand more and more. It was in my mind to understand that why is it that in our country (this person was an invited presenter from India, in our society, in Indian society I should say, that a child is not required to be told to address others in kinship terms such as brother, sister, mother, uncle, etc. There were students from Calgary who addressed their teachers by their first names. It was a bit difficult for me to understand. So I gave that topic. The relationship for family, brother, sister etc. even a small child does not have to be told about it to address each other in familial relationships. That was something that I could not understand. To my surprise, the answer that I got, of course I took that opportunity to have a deeper dialog later on, they said that if I come closer to you in a familial relationship, you may exploit me. That was some kind of a shock to me. If I come close to you and establish a familial relationship with you, then how is it that I can exploit you? Then we had a long discussion. Finally they were convinced, but I don’t know that they follow that practice. If you want to make a global family, don’t familial relationships make sense?
If I call her by name or address her as my sister, it makes a lot of difference. We should promote that practice. I do not know whether this is acceptable to the local society or not, but I think it should make a lot of difference. Calling a man of 90 years of age by name is not acceptable in Indian society. I have to use an address such as grand-father.
Another instance in the same context that I would like to share with you is with an group of students from Calgary. At that time in India, there was a lot of conversion (proselytizing) going on. I am frank, frank in sharing our thoughts. We are known for global unity. Conversion was going on in a big way. The pope had taken the position of supporting the activity. So I put another topic to the students.
I said, “You want to help people; is tat right? Then how is it necessary to convert them first?” If I want to help you, should I first ask you to become a Hindu?
Once again, I got a shocking response although I can understand, “Grand-ma says it.” If I want to help some, he/she has to be Christian. This is what I call a misunderstanding, misconception. This has to be addressed and rationality is to be given a proper place than emotionality. I am sorry I have taken a long time; but I feel that has to addressed.

Another Response …

We immigrated to Canada in 1966 and our friend Om Dutt came to the airport to pick us up. He was being driven by a Mexican friend. Our kids were addressing our friend Om Dutt as uncle. Om Dutt’s Mexican friend later asked him whether we were related to him. He of course said, “No”.
Our kids were played in the street. Initially they called their friends’ parents as unless and aunts. Later on, they too started to use first names. That is what they learnt from the prevailing culture. When cultures mix, there necessarily have to be give and take.

Another Response …

Thank you very much. It is very helpful to me. My wife and I about three months ago started corresponding with a wonderful man from Bangalore. We have never met him, but we have seen each others’ pictures on the internet. In his e-mails, he addresses us as, “Dear Sir and Auntie”. Now I understand it.

Another Response …

I just want to add on to this because I think what is really at the core of familial addresses such as brother, sister, uncle, auntie etc. is a build-in respect system. I have never felt comfortable addressing people older than me by their names. No one ever told me that. I always felt that I should use Mr. or Mrs., waiting for them to give me permission to address them differently. When our daughter was little, she had a good friend called Cheryl. Cheryl’s mother and I were really good friends. Cheryl wanted to call me Mrs. Solanki, but she didn’t. She felt although I was Mrs. Solanki, she was being respectful as her mother taught her. She said, “I feel so close to you that Mrs. Solanki does not quite feel right. What can I call you?
I thought you really got me there. I can’t say Brenda; I knew that that didn’t feel right for either of us. Vijay (her husband) had no trouble with that. He tells everybody to call him by his name. Cheryl and I thought and I said, “Cheryl, you mother is like my sister. You can call me Masi. Masi is an Indian word used for mother’s sister (It literally means “like mother”). To this day, this Canadian girl always calls me Masi. Masi in English means auntie, but she didn’t want to call me auntie because that does quite express her feelings. So I am special, I am Cheryl’s Masi.

Another Response …

I am really grateful to Professor Jha because he has given me the first satisfying definition of globalization of the human mind. It makes sense.

Another Response …

Names are so important, but it is a question of what is respectful, what the recipient finds respectful. And that is the hard part, because then you have to engage with that person on what is respectful which may sound disrespectful. We worry about what somebody else thinks.
What I found over this weekend is that when I walked in here, being an introvert thinking I met that person; I met that person; I don’t know any of these people. In the small group sessions, I felt tongue tied, alone and frightened, but this is the thing I should do. I said, “Sit down in the small group and do what you don’t like doing”. And by this afternoon, just because we are here and we stuck it out, we are willing to look at each others’ eye and now I can talk. That is the prayer for the world that we do want.

Another Response …

Very illuminating weekend! All this is inspiring. I got a lot out of it. We need to change our educational system to include holistic teaching.
One thins that inspired me most was the goal orientation of education as explained by the first speaker of today (Prof. Jha). I understood the importance of immediate goals, and ultimate goals.
Another very important point that I got out of the conference is that the present economic mess in which we find ourselves today is the result of unethical and immoral attitudes and ways of doing business. That definitely must change if humanity is to survive. Unless the world incorporates the ethical and moral principles in conducting business and economics, there is no hope for humanity.

Another Response …

First of all, I really want to thank Shiv personally because I have seen him slaving for SHEN. Thank you, Shiv.
I am a person of action. With all heard and said, the passion, the enthusiasm, we have to reach out to the school boards which I think SHEN has tried and of which I may be unaware. We need to reach out to the high schools and the universities along with the educational suggestions by SHEN of which Shiv mentioned earlier. Shiv mentioned that he already has formulated three courses already. I hope more people like our eloquent speakers and the participants of this conference will contribute and add to this effort.
I want to see action. I can help in the action part.

Another Response …

I would like to say to everybody that this has been a fantastic experience.
One of things that I want to express that comes out of Ignatius spirituality too. It is about our relationships. It is about having a relationship with God, or with anybody with which we treat ourselves. This relationship has three aspects. One is trust. The other is fidelity or love. The third is the common purpose.
We have started here. I say thank you, Shiv and thank you all.

Another Response …

I want to reiterate a point that Dr. Jha so ably made in an abstract of his presentation about the goals of education. The immediate and ultimate must be simultaneously pursued otherwise the immediate usurp the position of the ultimate. That is a very important point. Immediate goals are money, power and pleasure. They become the ultimate goals of life if we are unaware of our real ultimate.
Now about action, we need to learn from Kuruvila the virtue of patience. We need to create trust. If we go and beat our breasts about action (like in popular activism), nothing is going to happen except our breasts are going to be beaten.
Let us first grow ourselves, let us first have something to offer, have a clear path, a clear strategy. We go to the high school system, we go to the primary school system, where are the teachers. Who will teach this? Teachers need to be educated first. Where will teachers be educated? Where do we first go to create a padre of teachers for the high school system and the primary school system? We go to the universities. That is where you have to start to affect a systemic change. For high and primary school systems, we need a lot of teachers and only universities can fill that role.

Another Response …

This was quite an inspiring evening. A point is made that to teach the society, we need to begin at the universities. I would say that teachers are not only found in the schools and universities, teachers are all around you. Everybody takes the responsibility to teach, life is for learning, we have taught to learn to do that. We can learn from experiences from others, set up examples. Society as a whole has to teach everybody.
Dr. Jha’s remarks tat we consider and address everybody in familial terms are great. It gives people responsibility and respect. When somebody addresses you as antie or uncle, you automatically get the responsibility that I have to protect this child as and when required.
The inspiration comes from within. First you have to start from yourself. Charity starts from home. You have to start from within. You set up an example, then everybody follows you.
I was exactly like this person over there, not knowing any body. It is my first time in this conference here. Now you can see the results. Thank you for this evening.

Another Response …

I add further that we all have been given eyes now. It is only when we get exposed to the minds and the thoughts of others that we enrich ourselves. In these two days, there has been immense learning for me. There were so many very good presentations. For example, when I was listening to Atif’s presentation on Sufism, I was thinking he was saying the same things as the Vedas say. Then so beautiful presentation that Mark made about his historical perspectives and the conclusions he reached, I found the same thing there. So it has been of great value for me.
Today we are talking about interdisciplinary studies. We have been treated to a tradition that is multidisciplinary. That is what we have been experiencing for two days. We have been experiencing the background in economics, background in business amongst other things. We can talk and we can share. This kind of approach enriching ourselves in multidimensional ways I think is most rewarding. I thank the organizers of this conference for an opportunity given to me to take part in this event.

Another Response …

After listening to all the talks during the conference, I think one can safely conclude that the human mind is already globalized. The only thing that has happene3ed is that this global mind has not reached the world. They need to be educated.
There were six excellent presentations in this conference all about the same thing, unity from different perspectives. My suggestion is that this should be turned into one combined presentation with nice editorial written by all the presenters. How this unity is working for different faith groups. How it should reach human minds all over the world with clear instruction on how it should be conveyed to developing minds, half developed minds and fully developed minds so that they all see the same perspective, same ideas, the same unity coming from different perspectives. That is one way we can bring unity in diversity in oneness in many.

Another Response …

I would like to bring two things to the attention of this group. Professor Jha was saying about the importance of beings in terms of forming relationships. That is the first thing. The second thing is what Kuruvila asked in the beginning, is there anything emerging from this weekend that is bigger than all of us.
Globalization of the human mind is not possible unless we make our minds to come into a relationship with the earth, with every living being that shares this planet with us. In that connection, I am thinking of the work of the thirteen indigenous grand-mothers. These are from all over the world from various indigenous traditions. They meet once or twice a year and they meet because they feel called by the universe to pray, tp pray for the planet. They come together, they pray, they have rituals, and they share. We just found out about the thirteen indigenous grand-mothers this summer. We watched a video on their work. What they have done is that they have names for the other things that live on this planet with us. For instance trees, in instead of saying it, it, it, that, that, that, they are considered as standing people. They were here before we came ad they will be here well after we leave.
I am thinking Jane Goodall who is world renowned how when she was literally dropped off in the … reserve alone, the first thing she did was to name the chimpanzees that she lived with, she named them.
What I see is what is emerging, I was very taken by what you said Professor, because I think it is some sort of path into what I think … I can see tiny sparks up in this gathering that I didn’t see in any of the previous two conferences.
My focus I think is that in subsequent conferences, this will start to emerge, this relationship between all that lives and has its being. That I think is true globalization of the human mind. I just want to say one other thing. This is my pet project. I know that I am just taking this opportunity to say something about it. Three professors out of California are working together to somehow get the UN and all nations to identify the other sentient persons that live on this planet with us, persons not things. So they identify dolphins, some whales, most primates, and all elephants as persons. They meet the standards for what we would call ourselves. It would be murder to kill anyone of there persons. That is true globalization of the human mind.
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The plenary session and the conference concluded after due vote of thanks and a walking meditation led Vicky Garach.