Peace to the Waters, Peace to Herbs & Trees
(Yajurveda 36:17) : Forest Day & Water Day
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Rains: A Hate to Love Story
As a child I hated rains, though I did brave
them. In those times, when even an umbrella was a precious possession to
be taken lightly, I lost my umbrella, and received scolding for being
careless. But as a fifth grader I firmly resolved not to use umbrella,
and did manage my time as a school student up to grade tenth, to survive the
heavy monsoons of Keralam, somehow or other, but determinedly not using an
umbrella. I hated rains because they invariably happened whenever we had been
on those very rare trips or tours.
Then I left home to join the order, and chose to
be in the North of India, leaving the green Keralam and returned only after 3
years - it was 1983. As the Kerala Express moved into the evergreen
Kerala border, I was shocked to see coconut palms drooping and their fronds withering
in the waterless summer - it had been an unusually long summer – colleges,
hostels, schools etc. had to be closed down due to lack of water. I
sensed the tragedy arriving and the great blessings the rains were! It took
another two months when the dry spell finally saw its end, with skies opening
up! I got transformed into a lover of rain. Since then, I have never felt bad
about having rain, the channel of elixir of life for our land! Even when it
rained heavily almost obstructing our movement in the open-air basketball
courts, our company of youngsters relished to splash in the waters and continue
our game with relaxed rules.
Water for Life - The Global Scenario
World consciousness collectively responded to
the vital significance of water a decade later, with UN beginning to observe a
world water day since 1993. The scientific world noticed a missing beat. The
normal water cycle is where water in the water bodies and the soil, and the
water stored as ice in the glaciers (oceans 95.5%, lakes, river & soil
1.7%, glaciers & permanent snow 1.7%, water vapour in the atmosphere .001%)
getting evaporated in the sun or escaping from the trees through transpiration,
condensing and getting back to these sources and even get stored in the earth
as ground water. This was getting disrupted thanks to human
intervention. This took the forms of extraction of ground water,
interference with surface cover of trees by felling, and top soil by way of
construction, leading to rapid run-off and displacement of ground water.
It also led to lowering of ground water level. Further, industrial,
agricultural and domestic effluents entering water bodies and ground water have
made waters contaminated and posing health hazard.
This realisation of the urgency behind the issue
has led to SDG (Sustainable Development Goal) 6 - safe water and sanitation for
all. Water is a basic requirement for everyone, affecting all domains of
life, influencing key development issues such as health, hunger, sanitation,
gender equality, jobs, agriculture, industry, transportation, weather,
disaster, migration and peace!! Hence it has been made part of the global
development agenda as the 6th development goal for 2030.
The annual report series on various aspects of
water released on March 22, the world water day by UNESCO is an eyeopener
towards the vital implications of water for the world. So far it has
looked into domains connected to water such as energy (2014), sustainable world
(2015), jobs (2016), waste water as a resource (2017), nature-based solutions
(2018), inclusion (2019), climate change (2020), valuing water (2021), ground
water etc.
Some Water Facts: aapah shantih (Peace to the Waters)
- 2.2.
billion lack access to safely managed drinking water, while 785 million
are denied even access to basic drinking water.
- 3
billion people lack access to basic handwashing facilities – found to be a
most effective practice to combat COVID.
- More than 80 per cent of wastewater
resulting from human activities is discharged into rivers or sea without
any treatment for waste removal.
- Each day, nearly 1,000 children
die due to preventable water and sanitation-related
diarrheal diseases
- Approximately 70 per cent of all
water abstracted from rivers, lakes and aquifers is used for
irrigation
- Floods and other water-related disasters account for 70 per cent of all
deaths related to natural disasters
- By
2030, it is feared that 700 million people will be displaced (climate
refugees) on account of lack of access to water.
- A
typical soft drink per litre is said to be produced at the expense of over
200 litres (or more) of water. Plain bottled water takes 1.39 litres for 1
litre, whereas, carbonated water needs 2.02 litres.
Taking
into account the grave scenario, UN has declared 2018-2028 as Water Action
Decade.
Forests
& Water Connect
As
if it is a prelude to this vital concern, befittingly, UN has introduced
another holiday on March 21st, as International Day of Forests or World
Forestry Day since 2012. And indeed, water cycle is greatly influenced by
forests.
A
recent longitudinal study observed that changes in Amazon rain forests appeared
to have direct impact on the Himalayan Tibetan plateau, a store house of water
for almost 2 billion population. It points to the significance of the
protection of forest cover wherever possible, as they all contribute towards
the world wide web of water and natural resources.
Studies
have also found the several zoonotic diseases are kept under check and control
thanks to the presence of forests - mindless destruction of forests, displacing
diversity by monoculture etc. besides impacting the climate and water-cycle,
may also release organisms that would be a threat to several other species
including the humans. Scientists point out that viruses such as HIV-AIDS,
Nipah, Corona, H1N1 etc. are likely to be the impact of such human interference
with the ecosystems.
A
Healthy Heritage for Harmony
The
ancient Indian literature has ample proof indicating an insight into this vital
link between water and trees. A salutation to trees goes thus: namo
vrukshabhyo hari keshebhya. I salute the trees which are the hair of
God. This can be linked to the ancient legend where the torrential waters
of Ganga brought down to earth by Bhagirath was tamed into a life-giving
channel on the land by shivjata, the hair-locks of
Shiva, the ascetic dweller of Himalayas. The symbolic 'shivjata' is
the tree-cover of the mountains that makes running water walk and crawl and
stop on the earth to form reservoirs below.
This
linkage is also found in another aphorism from Matsyapurana (also cited in
Vrkshayurveda) where goddess Parvati justifies her equal care for a Deodar (Cedar) sapling as much
for her son: “Dasa Koopa Samo Vaapi Dasa Vaapi Samo Hridha Dasa hridha Sama
Putra Dasa Putra Samo Druma”, which means, ten wells = one
pond; ten ponds = one lake; ten lakes = one son; and ten sons = one tree. The
cultural insight into the link between forests and water, and the consequent
need for conservation, are seen in the saying.
There is a
sacred conservation tradition of micro-forests in the South of India linked to
water, especially, in the once-water-rich Keralam: Don't tread the Sacred
Groves (kaavu), the ponds will dry up, and adversity will befall the
family.
Poet
Joyce Kilmer wrote: I think I shall never see a poem lovely as a
tree. Poems are made by fools like me, but only God can make a tree.
All
these religio-spiritual and poetic traditions point to the need to re-look at
the human interference with nature, especially, water resources and forests.
Combinedly, the two days are an invitation to individuals and communities to
revere the Mother Nature we too are part of, once again examine our life-styles
and initiate appropriate action.
BE A WATER
WARRIOR
Against
the alarming loss of almost 32000 million hectares of forest annually, United
Nations proposes these annual holidays to revere, restore and recreate our
forest and water resources.
In
India, we have a modern day Bhagirath, Dr Rajendra Singh, who successfully led
the efforts to bring life back to the farmers around the dead Alwar river of
Rajasthan through a people's movement named as Tarun Bharat Sangh.
In
Keralam, we had Green Peace River Keeper - Mr. V.J. Jose, who led a one man
fight to protect the precious Periyar river from industrial pollution.
People
like them show the possibilities before individuals like us. Before water-wars
set in, we have to act, beginning with ourselves:
- Save
water: Take shorter showers and don't let the tap run when brushing my
teeth, doing dishes and preparing food
- Break
taboos: Talk about the critical connection between toilets, natural
processes like menstruation and water.
- Fix
Leakages to Prevent Wastage & Pollution: of plumbing, taps, flushes
and tanks (storage & septic).
- Stop
Polluting: Don't put food waste, oils, medicines and chemical down the
drains
- Make
it equal: Where still water fetching is required, let it be the task of
all - men, women, boys, girls.
- Buy
& Eat Local: Seasonal and home-grown food; and look for products made
with less water
- Watch
your drink: check if you can reduce on water guzzlers - bottled water,
soda, soft-drinks and packaged juices
- Be
Curious: Find out where my water comes from, its quality, its treatment
processes
- Be a
Water-Warrior: Plant a tree; help water to walk, stop, sleep & sink in
your plot (if feasible) or campus
- Clean
up: Take part in clean-ups of my local rivers, lakes, wetlands or beaches.
(Adapted from UN World Water Day
Campaign)
As
we celebrate these days, let us remember what Mahatma Gandhi told: "What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection
of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another."
Water Day <https://www.worldwaterday.org/> Jan. 30, 2023
Water Cycle <https://climatekids.nasa.gov/water-cycle/> Jan. 29, 2023
Forests and Climate change <https://www.wionews.com/science/climate-extremes-in-amazon-rainforest-directly-impact-those-in-tibetan-plateau-556681> Jan. 29, 2023
Zoonotic Diseases <https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/24/disease-outbreaks-more-likely-in-deforestation-areas-study-finds> Jan. 29, 2023
Zoonotic Diseases <https://india.mongabay.com/2020/04/deforestation-and-disease-how-natural-habitat-destruction-can-fuel-zoonotic-diseases/> Jan. 29, 2023
Water Use in Drinks: <https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/10/28/241419373/how-much-water-actually-goes-into-making-a-bottle-of-water> Jan. 30, 2023
