Religion and Theology

There is a growing concern of ecological crisis due to detrimental activities of mankind, which has uprooted trees, caused soil erosion, polluted the groundwater and rivers through toxic discharge of industrial chemicals, and made the ambient air unfit for hygienic living. As a result of deforestation, the ecological balance has been disturbed, thereby, leading to extinction of species from the forests and the danger of global warming. Moreover, the wars that have been fought on planet Earth have caused significant loss to the environment (World Wildlife Fund, n.d.). Similarly, the groundwater gets polluted when landmines are used and nuclear explosions are carried out by the nations worldwide to test the technological advances in warfare. Besides, the impact of emissions from the industrial chimneys and the vehicles has contributed to the air pollution, which causes allergies and several respiratory diseases, such as asthma, eosinophilia, and lung cancer. The combined effect of these eco-destructive activities by the people has resulted in climate change and global warming, which has caused increase in temperature, melting of glaciers, and rise in sea levels. Based on the data of the Environmental Protection Agency, it was reported that the sea-levels in the US had risen by 25 to 30 centimeters over the past century (University of Wisconsin, 1999). The knowledge of religion, especially, the karmic philosophy of Hinduism and Buddhism can be utilized to purify the mind and check ecological crisis. However, it is pathetic to realize that some religious traditions and rituals also lead to contamination of rivers and ambient air. For instance, the Hindus cremate the dead bodies in open air and disperse the ashes of dead bodies into the rivers because of superstitious beliefs. Hence, religion must be used to explain the causes of ecological crisis and devise effective strategies for solving it, rather than worsening the ecological imbalance.

The Buddhist Hindu Belief of Karma
All living creatures, including human beings, have to face the consequences of their actions. These actions are also known as karma, which is derived from the word karman in Sanskrit language (Ross, 2000). Religion emphasizes good moral conduct for achieving happiness, success, satisfaction, and prosperity in life. Hinduism and Buddhism regard bad karma as the root cause of crisis in a humans life. According to the Hindu belief of Karma, a person gets rewards if the past actions were good, and the person gets punishment if the past actions were bad (Jayaram, n.d.). Similarly, Buddhism uses the philosophy of karma for explaining the discrepancies in the standards of living of people on planet Earth (Sayadaw, n.d.). When Mahatma Buddha attained enlightenment, he concluded that the chief cause of differences among the people for being rich or poor, healthy or diseased, and weak or powerful was the difference in the karma of those people. If some people are born blind, then the cause is the bad karma in their past birth if some people are criminals, then the cause is the bad karma in their previous birth if some humans are rich, then the cause is their good karma performed in the past birth if some individuals are endowed with good health, wealth, and power, then the root cause is the good karma done in the previous birth. Hinduism also uses the law of karma to justify the differences in the standards of living of people as well as the countries. Moreover, the natural disasters, such as hurricanes, typhoons, tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanoes, and global warming can be attributed to the karma performed by the people living in those affected areas. Destiny brings the people with bad karmic record into the zone with imminent natural disaster that claims the lives of people, including children, youth, and elderly. Likewise, global warming and a rise in temperature can be witnessed in some Asian and African countries where economic development is low and crime rate is high. It is because of the bad karma of the people living in these nations.

The Law of Karma and Ecological Crisis
The Earth is witnessing pollution and global warming due to the detrimental activities performed by the people. For instance, people are throwing industrial waste into the rivers that is a source of drinking water. According to the Hindu and the Buddhist philosophies of karma, the humans had performed a bad action (karma) by throwing the toxic industrial waste in the river. As a result of their bad karma, a bad effect was produced that polluted the river water and made it unfit for human consumption. The effect is realized when untreated water is consumed by ignorant people who catch fatal gastric diseases, such as cholera, typhoid, and gastroenteritis. Similarly, it can be noticed that there is an increase in air pollution due to a rise in the poisonous gases, such as sulphur dioxide and nitrous oxide, which are emitted from the vehicles. The atmosphere is polluted with unhealthy smog that is the source to respiratory allergies and diseases. When people report breathing problems, they forget that the root cause of their suffering is their own actions (karma), which they had performed by emitting fumes of toxic gases from their vehicles. Nobody can evade the law of karma and its consequences.

As a result of a rise in the greenhouse gases emitted by factories and vehicles, there is a rise in the temperature of atmosphere, which is causing global warming and climate change. Who performed the evil karma of emitting the gases in the air Who faced the evil consequences of the karma It was the people who had performed the evil karma, and it was the same people who had to face the evil consequences of their own karma. In 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) forecast that the Arctic might be free of summer sea ice by as early as 2100. It is now apparent that summer sea ice will disappear within five years. (Loy and Stanley, n.d.). Isnt that alarming for us to follow the law of good karma and protect our environment by refraining from eco-destructive activities. Similarly, it was reported that the glaciers in the Himalayan region may vanish by the year 2035 (Loy and Stanley, n.d.). When the snow from these glaciers would finally melt due to the phenomenon of global warming, there would be a rise in the sea-levels, which could lead to devastating floods. Several towns may be completely swept away by these floods. In addition to the global warming, there is a fear of climate change that would lead to extinction of species of the plant and the animal kingdoms (Loy and Stanley, n.d.). Since all living creatures have their natural habitat that is appropriate for survival, any significant rise in the temperature would change the climate and the habitat. For instance, if the temperature of a forest rises by a few degrees, the plants and animals in the forest may gradually die of hyperthermia and accompanying diseases.

Similarly, it can be seen that the temperature in some cities has touched 50 degrees Celsius, and people living in these places are dying because of intense heat, poor metabolism, and deadly diseases. The lives of plants, animals, and humans have been jeopardized by climate change and global warming. It was highlighted that only the Buddhist philosophy of karma can save the planet Earth from an ecological disaster that can happen anytime (Loy and Stanley, n.d.). This ecological disaster has been triggered by the manmade activities, and hence, these evil deeds of mankind must be stopped to save Earth and its inhabitants. How can the disastrous deeds of some people be stopped for preventing an ecological catastrophe Since science and technology have caused these environmentally destructive activities, the solution cannot be completely entrusted upon the scientists, engineers, and politicians. The only possible solution is to understand the law of karma preached by Buddhist and Hindu scholars who live a virtuous life by purifying the mind (Fundamental Buddhism, n.d.). It is important for the people to seek enlightenment by following the teachings of Buddhism and Hinduism, which clearly mention that ones karma is the cause of current effect.

Spiritual Awareness for Preventing Ecological Crisis
The Buddhist and Hindu teachings encourage the human beings to follow the noble path of virtuosity and good conduct. These religions emphasize the truth that by performing good actions (karma), an individual reaps good rewards, while by doing bad actions (karma), an individual gets bad results. As discussed earlier, ecological crisis is the result of bad actions (karma) of the human beings. Since the physical and the mental actions are performed by the mind under the influence of the intellect and metaphysical entity called spirit, the humans must endeavor to elevate their thinking through practice of spirituality. Global warming and climate change can be checked by checking the eco-destructive thinking and actions of the human beings. Some industrialists dispose off their toxic wastes in the river streams because they are not spiritually awakened and are totally bound by their greedy intentions. Had these people used their decision making authority under the guidance of holy spirit, just like Buddhist monks and Hindu saints, they would have made efforts to discard the toxic waste after proper treatment.

Similarly, spiritually awakened industrialists can help in preserving the purity of air by discharging only the treated air into the atmosphere from their chimneys. If every human being starts using the automobile fuel wisely, then there would be lesser emissions into the ambient air. The only attribute that is missing in the contemporary human beings is the will to pursue a virtuous life based on spirituality. The humanity needs to curtail its excessive consumption of natural resources by reducing, reusing, and recycling them whenever possible. The karma of global warming is not nature turning against us- we have turned against ourselves. We are doing something hostile to nature. (Eco-Buddhism, n.d.). Buddhist and Hindu teachings encourage the humanity to overcome ignorance by practicing spirituality, which can definitely prevent an imminent ecological catastrophe.

Need to Check Eco-Destructive Religious Beliefs
Although the law of karma of Hinduism and Buddhism can be practiced for checking the contemporary ecological crisis, it needs to be asserted that an enlightened and spiritually awakened being must not practice eco-destructive activities that are strongly supported by some religions. For example, the Hindus cremate a dead body by piling it on wooden logs and burning the pyre in open air. Since this age-old ritual uses wood from cutting of trees in forests, it is not an eco-friendly practice. Moreover, the Hindus immerse the ashes of the dead body into the river, which causes pollution of river water. This river water is drunk by animals and people living near the river bed, and consequently, they fall victims to fatal waterborne diseases like cholera, gastroenteritis, and typhoid. Isnt the objective of religion to impart knowledge and wisdom to the ignorant population Dont these eco-destructive religious rituals pose a barrier between a learner and the religious teacher who preaches purity of mind, water, and air to the disciples The role of an enlightened spiritual teacher is to elevate the minds of the students and the entire Earthly population by encouraging them to stop the eco-destructive religious practice of immersing the ashes of dead bodies into the river stream. Furthermore, the religious teacher should advise the people to use electric crematorium for burning the dead bodies inside a closed chamber. In contrast to the ritual of cremating the dead body in open air, the electric cremation process does not use woods and does not pollute the ambient air. The spiritual teacher should always give top priority to preserving the purity of the environment instead of following the religious rituals that pollute the air and rivers. The law of karma applies to everybody, including the spiritual teacher as well as the religious priest, and hence, nobody should follow those rituals that involve cutting of trees, pollute the ambient air with greenhouse gases, and cause waterborne diseases through unhealthy discharge of toxic chemicals in the rivers.

Law of Karma as the Panacea to Solve the Ecological Crisis
Religions and theological societies have been functioning for several centuries with an objective to teach morality, good conduct, and social responsibility. All religions preach truth, non-violence, peaceful living, and unity among people from different nations, with different languages, and having contrasting beliefs. However, Hinduism and Buddhism preach the law of karma as the decisive factor that explains the inequality among the people and nations. In simple terms, a good action brings good results, while a bad action brings bad results. If the ignorant human beings are taught and reminded of the law of karma with special reference to ecological degradation, they will stop abusing the natural resources. They will make all efforts to minimize their wastage and use only the necessary resources in required quantity. There are countries that face famine and drought due to the shortage of food and water respectively. Moreover, in case of natural disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, and typhoons, there is scarcity of food and water in the affected areas. The people across the world must be made aware that they can also become victims of such calamities if they continue to misuse the natural resources and indulge in eco-destructive activities. If they do not check the toxic emission from their vehicles and industries, they can become victims of respiratory diseases like lung cancer. Similarly, if they continue to pollute the rivers with industrial waste, they can become victims of fatal gastric diseases. It is the law of karma that guides their destiny. If they live like good citizens by checking pollution of air and water, then they will also reap the benefits of living in a clean environment. When they check the emission of greenhouse gases, global warming and climate change can also be curtailed. It is the law of karma that can act as a panacea for the contemporary ecological crisis. Hence, spiritual awakening and karmic philosophy of Hinduism and Buddhism can help the technology to develop without harming the environment.