Chapter XVI of the Rio Plus 20 Document by Cho Tab Khen Zambuling (Alfredo Sfeir-Younis)
XVI. Individual and Collective Destiny
Global warming is the result of a very limited way of understanding the alternative forms of human collective existence. We still live as if we could survive being separate individual entities. Because of that, we realize that our individual actions per-se do not lead necessarily to a better collective future. Indeed, in most situations the total (collective benefits) is less than the summation of its individual parts (individual benefits). It is clear that we, as a human race, have major difficulties in understanding our unique form of collective existence. The term unique is used here to denote the fact that we are in a well defined and unique ‘collective’ that has its nature, scope, character, personality, and lots more, of its own.
Every human being and every living being comes to earth with a specific mission. Our lives are not the result of some form of random parachuting to do something unknown or to become part of the realm within an unorganized order. Our existence and our mission are part of a ‘macro order’ in which nature and humans are undistinguishable, interdependent, and interconnected. Unfortunately, a great deal of attention is paid to us as individuals and little is said and taught about us as a collective. This is why, for example, it is very difficult to agree on treaties, protocols and many instruments of international law for the collective. Individual countries still believe that our collective existence can be controlled by a few, or even, one country, and that leadership from the top will do for the rest of the world. Also, this is why most international organizations are failing to adequately manage the collective.
They are still dominated by the interest of individual countries and many of our collective goods and elements of our collective existence are disregarded or mismanaged. In our view, even the top international organizations are not embodying the collective nature of living existence on Earth. At best, these are ‘world organizations’ attempting to generate consensus on some issues that, eventually may nurture the collective.
However, and despite the situation we are living today, we should know that individual existence is not separate from collective existence. They are two sides of the same coin. While there is a foundation for your own individual mission, your own self, this mission is always defined in terms of all human beings, all living beings, and nature. This suggests that your material transformation and spiritual transformation have both an individual and a collective component. Thus, I cannot really accelerate or improve my individual process of material or spiritual transformation without, at the same time, addressing the challenges of the collective. In other words, individual and collective transformations are in the same plane of existence. This is why it is not possible to think about “salvation” (a Christian concept) if one is only on the side of individual salvation. Individual transformation takes place within collective transformation. This is why the Commandments are always related to “the other”.
Furthermore, it is not possible to think about “enlightenment” (a Buddhist concept) without providing the foundation for the enlightenment of everyone. There are many Buddhist prayers that clearly exalt the relationship that exists between individual and collective enlightenment. Spirituality does not make any sense if it is only for the benefit of the individual. This is why spirituality is understood here as the instruments, behaviour, actions, interventions that help us to remember our individual and collective missions on Earth. The nature of spirituality is collective because our mission on this Earth is in itself collective. One may also bring this conversation to a very pragmatic level. We are over 6.2 billion people and in 2008 we will experience for the first time that there are more people living in cities than in rural areas. The levels of interconnectedness are increasing as the transport and communication revolutions reach every corner of the world. Technologies like the Internet represent an example of this interconnectivity.
From an environmental perspective, pollution of water and air in one place of the planet is affecting the whole planet. Destruction of our biodiversity is also another example of collective existence. Cutting the forests and eliminating wildlife affects us all in many ways.
So, we are now in the era of collective existence, and global warming is just one example of an issue that must be addressed as a collective and not just the summation of individual nations. Global warming represents a fundamental manifestation of the negative effects resulting from collective mismanagement. It is our inability to identify ourselves with our collective mission. It is a failure of our inner memory to recognize that part of the mission that is collective. The time has come to reflect upon our collective existence, bring this identity back in all we do, and act collectively and, thus, expand our collective consciousness and coherence. Out of such a process we will eliminate global warming.
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