Motherly compassion

Today we see infinite number of “green groups” and social cause activists struggling to catch attention in their pursuit of making this world a better place to be in. But how many of us do really walk the talk by living those standards of compassion on a daily basis. Everyday I find people talking big about their concern on green house emission and carbon footprints, while still driving their hummer or other SUV’s. On the other hand we have the developed nations parading their cause of forcing developing nations like India and China to cut their green house emission. I recently heard the Chinese folks suggesting that they are ready to cut back on their green house emissions if the consumers are ready to pay for it. Well isn’t that a fair deal?. We should be having a tax for our carbon purchase.

It is actually this picture that made me write this article. This lady is from a tribe called “ bishnoi” tribe in the northern part of India. This is the same tribe which at one point of time was credited with the most famous “ chipko movement”. The Chipko movement was a non-violent movement started by Indian villagers in the 1970s and 1980s, to protest against the destruction of trees and forests, which were important resources that they depend on. The movement started in the Chamoli district ( northern part of India) in 1973 and spread throughout India. Chipko activists would protest against the cutting down of trees by hugging them and preventing the workers from doing their job. This action represents the name of the movement as Chipko means “embrace”. They are probably Asia’s first treehuggers and probably one of the first organized environmental protection resistance. An interesting thing about the movement was that its leaders and activists were mostly women from the rural villages, as they were directly affected by the deforestation. One major milestone for the Chipko movement was the 15-year ban on the cutting of trees in the Himalayan forests of Uttar Pradesh in 1980, which was ordered by the Indian Prime Minister after protests and appeals by the activists.
Today world across there are many such movement happening, but a lot of them have turned into “economic” games where groups are used to sabotage causes for interested parties. It is at this time that a picture like this makes a lot of meaning for us. In today’s world where parenting has become a burden , this women walks the talk and I am sure she did not even think of having this publicity when she attempted a simple act like this. For her this was an unselfish act, and I am sure each of us can contribute in our own small ways to make this world a better place to be in