Contemporary Global Problems: A Gandhian Perspective

The escalating violent conflicts within and among nations of the ‘modern’ world, the vast stockpiles of nuclear weaponry, the rising environmental pollution, massive resources-depletion and irreversible ecological decay, together with the increasing improverishment and poverty of the masses especially in the so-called Third World which constitues about two thirds of all mankind, and the possibilities of a demographic disaster-all these end-products of the present age of industrialism and militarism–have manifestly taken the world to the brink of a global catastrophe which seems well-nigh impossible to avert within the parameters of modernity. The collapse of communism and burgeoning ethnic conflicts have added new components to the global tragedy. Gandhi had the perceptive vision to see this tragic scenario, or these tidings of global disaster as early as 1909 in his Hind Swaraj. In this classic work, he characterised ‘modern civilization’ as a "disease" and a "nine days’ wonder" which (if it continued to advance) was doomed to "self-destruction". Thus mankind stands, as it were, at civilizational cross-roads. And its most urgent task is to ensure human survival and peace. The present work is a comprehensive design–perhaps the first project of its kind–to offer an in-depth analysis of the major, and rather disturbing, global problems in the human-centered, and peace-oriented Gandhian framework.