Ecological and Sustainable Education - A CMI perspective

ECOLOGICAL AND SUSTAINABLE EDUCATION – A CMI VISION FOR 2030

 

 1.       Common Home in Christian Spiritual Tradition

A recent doctoral thesis in English Literature by a Malayali nun (Rev. Sr Alphonsa FCC) studies the Christian tradition of environmental sensitivity as seen through the Christian spiritual literature - starting with the first book of the Bible to the writings of modern saints like St. Theresa of Lisieux and other Christian authors through the centuries. She presents a very rosy picture of the Christian literature, almost proving that there has been a consistent ecological (under)current as part of Christian spirituality throughout. However, the lived history of Christian societies often diverged from this theological ideal.

Though the thesis proves a point, an objective survey of human history, especially with the establishment of Christianity as the official religion of many nations, reveals that human and common home interface had been one of 'exploitation' of non-human elements as resources for human material benefit, leading to endangerment and disappearance of many species.  It often lacked any reflection regarding the other beings as fellow creatures, with humans as the crown of creation (Ps 8) having the vocation and responsibility  (call and command) to take care of them as faithful stewards with the task to ‘till and keep’ (Gen. 2:15; LS 67). 

A radical rethinking of Christian life as a creation spirituality is seen with St. Francis's thinking and living in the 12th century. However, that was more of an exception to the norm of ruthless control and exploitative use of the earth's resources as the ones given the mandate to 'be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it...rule over ... every living creature...They will be yours for food' (Gen 1:28-29).  Whether it was the scriptural mandate that led to the unbarred exploitation of the rest of the created world by humans (even of other human populations by the invading dominant cultures to the extent of promoting the slave trade), or whether that merely endorsed the human tendency for the same, is debatable. Parallel to this Western trajectory, other civilizational traditions evolved markedly different relationships with nature.

1.       Human Interface with the Common Home: Dominant Western Culture and Other Cultures

This culture of exploitation, which historically evolved as a predominantly Christian-European industrial culture, could be contrasted with the culture of indigenous communities across the planet, which ensured that the rest of the creatures are not used wantonly, using them rarely beyond the limits of their needs. Even very established civilisations like that of India, as seen from the Indian scriptures (Sanskrit-Hindu; Pali-Buddhist), indicate a culture of reverence and awe, and a less invasive approach to utilising them as resources. 

Two Vedic texts are indicative of this spirit, though the majority of Indians might be unaware of them: 

• "यत्ते भूमे विखनामि क्षिप्रं तदपि रोहतु | मा ते मर्म विमृग्वरि मा ते हृदयमर्पिपम् ||"
• (yatte bhūme vikhanāmi kṣipraṃ tadapi rohatu | mā te marma vimṛgvari mā te hṛdayamarpipam ||)  (Atharva Veda 12.1.35)
• What of thee I dig out, let that quickly grow over, Let me not hit thy vitals, or thy heart”. 

While accepting the need to extract from the planet, the action is accompanied by the prayer so that the process may not be fatal, and that the wound or gap thus created may be healed or filled soon with new growth. 

ॐ द्यौः शान्तिरन्तरिक्षं शान्तिः
पृथिवी शान्तिरापः शान्तिरोषधयः शान्तिः ।
वनस्पतयः शान्तिर्विश्वेदेवाः शान्तिर्ब्रह्म शान्तिः
सर्वं शान्तिः शान्तिरेव शान्तिः सा मा शान्तिरेधि ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः || (Atharva Veda 19:9:14-15)

This prayer seeks peace on all realms of the common home - its atmosphere, earth, water, vegetation, energy sources and in human subjects, almost implying the interconnectedness of all beings for sustained peace!

Though the majority of the Indians remained excluded from the knowledge mainstream, the dominant culture of frugal living had percolated down to all realms, with the likely exception of the very small minority of ruling and, in some cases, priestly classes.  When the Sanskrit tradition articulated such lofty sentiments, the vast majority of society performed the function of making the earth productive, leaving provisions for its rejuvenation. The indigenous communities followed a pattern of sustenance bordering subsistent living by harvesting the abundance of the Mother Earth, hardly ever taking more than what they needed. 

2.       Education and Alienation from the Common Home – Indian Experience

It can be observed that the more educated (in the conventional sense of the term) the more alienated the individuals and community from the common home.  This can be very well observed in the Indian context.

3.1. Introduction of Western education (early 19th century)

With Lord Macaulay’s Minute on Education (1835) and the establishment of English-medium institutions:

• Education in India, whatever its spread or status, shifted from local knowledge (agriculture, crafts, Ayurveda, philosophy) to Western science, literature, and rationalism.
• Practical, nature and faith linked learning was replaced by bookish, abstract education.
• Manual labour and indigenous technologies were devalued in favour of clerical, urban professions.
• The idea of “progress” became tied to industrialisation and consumption, not harmony or balance.

A gradual cultural detachment from traditional ecological wisdom and a rise in aspiration for Western-style modernity and material comfort became mainstream thinking, with a swelling educated middle class becoming the ambassadors of the new culture as the beneficiaries of the new education system.

3.2. Economic and lifestyle transitions

• Ashis Nandy (1983) shows how Western education restructured Indian consciousness, leading to self-alienation and a craving for Western lifestyles. It helped Indians enter colonial bureaucracy and professional classes, drawing people away from village-based, low-impact livelihoods.
• This encouraged urban migration, the use of imported goods, and dependence on the cash economy.
• Handicrafts and handlooms declined, while industrial goods rose, leading to ecological and social disruption.
• Education created a mindset of comparison — seeing the West as the model, leading to consumerist aspiration. Local knowledge systems lost prestige; the “educated” became alienated from the rhythms of the land. By the mid-20th century, economic success became the new virtue, displacing contentment and moderation.
• Madan (1997) and Varma (1998)  discuss how Western-educated Indians developed urban, consumption-oriented lifestyles detached from rural realities. Frugality, a trait of the Indian lifestyle,  came to be seen as “backwardness”, while abundance and ornamentation were linked to modernity. 

3.3. Paradoxical outcomes — reformers and revivalists

However, Western education also produced critics of modern excess:

• Mahatma Gandhi, educated in Western law, used that exposure to critique industrial civilisation (Hind Swaraj, 1909), advocating “simple living and high thinking” and an education (Nai Talim)  for skill-based self-sufficiency (Iyer, 1973). Tagore’s Santiniketan and Aurobindo’s philosophy (leading to the experimental commune in Auroville) sought to blend scientific rationality with ecological and spiritual rootedness. 
• Thus, the same Western framework that disrupted traditional sustainability also generated awareness and intellectual tools to defend it.

• Since the late 20th century, the rise of environmental movements and sustainability studies (ironically again influenced by Western thought) is creating a slow rediscovery of the significance of the traditional Indian frugality.

3.       The Ecological  and Educational heritage of the first Indigenous Christian Religious Society in India (CMI)

Against this background of dominant Christian (western) culture with its 21^st century critique by Pope Francis, and the modern Indian development agenda influenced by Western education imposed upon the Indian people, I would like to examine the CMI Christian spiritual tradition of India. Now on the threshold of completing two centuries as a 'spiritual movement', it is worth looking at the CMI heritage of sustainable living.  

Starting with Mannanam, CMIs held a tradition of having a life dependent on the wise management of the land, hardly ever treating it as a spiritual core, rather as a reasonable response to the needs based on the culture of the time; at the best treating it as response to the predicament to 'earn one's living by the sweat of one's brow' (Gen 3:19). They built land assets and while engaging in the ministry of the word in various modes, made their engagement with the land earning a living by that. 

It synced well with the Carmelite spirituality of 'orare et laborare' (literally, to pray and to labour), implying a combination of contemplation and action, including cultivating the land. Their monasteries always remained centres of biodiversity, fruit trees, shade trees and areas demarcated for vegetables and paddy, making the term 'Carmel' (garden of God) a lived reality. 

However, the reflection of the material progress and consequent culture of India was seen within the CMI circle as well - diversity had easily been substituted by monoculture, as that appeared more affordable and lucrative. The development of CMI institutions had led to the CMIs being more focused on educational and social welfare-oriented institutions, and gradually moving away from the conventional engagement with the land in the production of food.  Even the floral biodiversity of the campuses became more ornamental than sustainable (read, indigenous). The movement from lived ecology to institutionalized education mirrors the broader Christian journey from stewardship to managerial modernity.

The CMI educational institutions in the post-1950s (post-independence period of India) registered remarkable growth in terms of number and quality, and have been rated well for the same. However, the ecological movement or education emerging in the late sixties and mid-seventies did not find the CMI educational institutions becoming any exception to the general lackadaisical response to this scenario by the mainstream educational institutions.  The middle of the 2010s saw CMI institutions waking up to the demands of energy transition, safe food, etc. Some institutions initiated efforts to tap renewable energy sources, generally inspired by its economics, and some models or tokens in the direction of biodiversity, organic farming, food production, etc., were also initiated. 

While Mitradham energy centre at Chunangumvely launched as an extension centre of Sacred Heart College became a model and pioneer in sustainable energy education (1997), Rajagiri College of Social Sciences, through its extension services, established several replicable models. Mundanmudy solar village (where 390 families were supported to have solar energy for lighting and running water supply based on gravitational force requiring no pumping - 1998), biodiversity register, wealth from waste (vermicomposting) project leading to income generation, bio-gas unit to manage domestic toilet and kitchen waste etc. Both Rajagiri and Sacred Heart campuses were recognized with awards by the state government for their contributions in biodiversity and energy management.  Similar efforts in the direction of community education were pioneered by the Social Service Centre of Preshita province, Coimbatore at Palakkad. 

4.       The Laudato Si Challenge for Education for Sustainability

The Catholic Church had been making token utterances regarding the importance of a sustainable lifestyle as a Christian duty from the time of Pope Paul VI, who is said to be the first Pope to use the term 'ecological crisis'.  He did use forceful language in 1971 in Octogesima Adveniens, warning that humanity "by an ill-considered exploitation of nature," risks destroying it and becoming "in turn the victim of this degradation."

Pope John Paul II, in his World Peace Day message on January 1, 1990, called Christians to a life of 'Peace with God the Creator, Peace with All of Creation'.  He termed ecological crisis as a 'moral crisis' leading to the 'uncontrolled exploitation of nature' and destruction of 'the earth's varied forms of life'.  He designated St. Francis of Assisi as the patron saint of Ecologists in 1979.  Pope Benedict was called the Green Pope. In his encyclical Caritas in Veritate (2009), he emphasised that the environment is part of “integral human development” and established ecology as 'the grammar of creation' through his teachings. He introduced solar panels in the Vatican, leading to it being made 'carbon neutral' in 2008-09.  However, the Church mainstream never took it seriously as a matter of Christian education or Christian spirituality.  There were exceptions to it, and some exceptional works were being accomplished by Catholic agencies, especially those in the field of social development. 

Then came Pope Francis, and his encyclical 'Laudato Si'. It was a 'glasnost' in the Church towards the reality of environmental issues, ranging from global warming to climate change, always having a reference to the suffering humans, especially the poor. In 2015 (June), this work stood as a light leading the world nations to the path of the 2030 goals for sustainable development (September 2015). The encyclical stands out with a chapter devoted to Ecological education.  While what Pope Francis did was that of a comprehensive re-presentation of the ecological thinking since the mid-60s, with an aligned re-reading of the Biblical texts, he did manage to make the mainstream Church to start talking about the ecological crisis and introduced insightful terms such as 'integral ecology' and 'ecological conversion'.  All the same, after 8 years, he realised that this aspect has yet to get integrated into Catholic spirituality as he expresses in Laudate Deum. 

It is worth the while exploring the key elements of 'ecological education' as proposed in Laudato Si (chapter 6). 
5.1. Education for Sustainability and Human Solidarity

Laudato Si’ views education as the seedbed of ecological conversion — a lifelong process that reshapes our relationship with ourselves, nature, others, and God. The present ecological crisis cannot be addressed by any single discipline.

• Holistic humanism and interdisciplinary learning: “We urgently need a humanism capable of bringing together the different fields of knowledge, including natural sciences, economics, ethics and spirituality in the service of a more integral and integrating vision” (LS 141). For this, education must integrate local knowledge, cultural diversity, and community-based innovation in addressing environmental challenges.
• Freedom for research: Continued, open scientific inquiry is vital to understand ecological realities and develop solutions (LS 140). Such integration promotes innovation and entrepreneurship grounded in ethical and ecological responsibility — creative solutions serving the common good rather than profit alone.

5.2. Solidarity with Local Cultures and Indigenous Cultures

Solidarity as an ecological virtue: As Caritas in Veritate (2009) notes, “Every violation of solidarity and civic friendship harms the environment.” Hence, ecological education must form people for solidarity, cooperation, and civic friendship. Such solidarity demands dialogue with local cultures:

• “A consumerist vision of human beings, encouraged by the mechanisms of today’s globalized economy, has the effect of levelling out differences” (LS 144).  Imposing one “dominant lifestyle linked to a single form of production” can easily consume cultures which are on the periphery and may be as destructive as damaging ecosystems themselves which may be culture-dependent (LS 145). 
• This requires solidarity with indigenous communities that teach that the land is sacred — a gift from God and the ancestors that must be protected while lived upon (LS 146).

5.3. Education for the Common Good and Intergenerational Solidarity

Education should form consciences to recognize that the Earth is our common home, and that sustainability involves justice between generations:

• “Sustainability and intergenerational solidarity are inseparably linked” (LS 159).
• Education must help people to recognise the world is a gift, not a possession. It must pose the question before the learner: Do we hand it over richer or poorer? Our dignity depends on this moral accountability (LS 159–161).
• The unsustainable pace of consumption and waste “can only precipitate catastrophes… The effects of the present imbalance can only be reduced by our decisive action, here and now” (LS 161). Education must train the learners to start with their lifestyles, rightly presented by the Indian Prime Minister as Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment – Pro-planet People - https://missionlife-moefcc.nic.in/aboutLiFE.php) at COP26 in Glasgow in 2022.

Thus, education for sustainability is education in responsibility, gratitude, and hope — empowering individuals to act today for the well-being of tomorrow.

5.4. Education to Counter the Culture of Consumerism

Laudato Si’ identifies consumerism and postmodern individualism as roots of the ecological crisis:

• “Mass man accepts the gadgets and technics forced upon him… they are the forms of life itself” (Romano Guardini, cited in LS 203).
• “The emptier a person’s heart is, the more he or she needs things to buy, own and consume” (LS 204).
  Education must therefore cultivate interior freedom — the capacity to find joy in simplicity, not in possession.
• It should lead the learners to accept “Purchasing is always a moral – and not simply economic – act” (LS 206); and going further to engage in the unavoidable act of consumption  as a spiritual act tinged with a spirit of sacrifice, as enunciated in the ancient Sanskrit wisdom tradition of Isa Upanishad:

Īśāvāsyam idaṃ sarvaṃ yat kiñca jagatyāṃ jagat,
tena tyaktena bhuñjīthā mā gṛdhaḥ kasyasvid dhanam (Isa Upanishad 1:1)

“All this — whatever exists in this changing universe — is pervaded by the Lord.
Enjoy (or protect) it with renunciation.
Do not covet, for whose is wealth, really?”

5.5. Education for Ecological Citizenship

Laudato Si’ proposes a broad vision of ecological education that:

• Begins with scientific information, leading to moral and spiritual awareness.
• Critiques myths of modernity: individualism, instant gratification of needs, unlimited progress, unregulated markets, and utilitarian thinking.
• Promotes harmony within ourselves, with others, with nature, and with God (LS 210).

It calls for forming simple habits of care:

“Avoiding the use of plastic and paper, reducing water consumption, separating refuse, cooking only what can be consumed… planting trees… reusing something instead of immediately discarding it, when done for the right reasons, can be an act of love” (LS 211). The Mission LiFE presents a set of such simple habits under energy, water, food, waste management - single-use plastic, e-waste, bio-waste, etc.

Education must lead beyond “information” to habits and virtue, forming ecological citizens who act out of love and responsibility towards every member of one’s Common Home (vasudhaiva kutumbakam – the earth indeed is the family).

5.6. Spaces and Agents of Ecological Education

Ecological formation is a shared task of family, school, media, community, and Church (LS 213–214):

• Family — the “first platform” of environmental education, nurturing gratitude and moderation and learning to live accommodating others.
• Schools & Universities — learning the fundamentals of environmental education, and practices and attitudes that lead to sustainable lifestyles, developing aesthetic appreciation of the world around, fostering interdisciplinarity in research and innovation in problem solving, and a sense of moral responsibility.
• Political institutions — to promote awareness and accountability, but also to nurture self-discipline and moral motivation through sound policies and community education.

• Pope Francis says, “Good education plants seeds when we are young, and these continue to bear fruit throughout life”(LS 213). Such education of the people to form ecological citizens with changed lifestyles, even through consumer movements and boycotts, can exert “healthy pressure” on power structures (LS 206), as has been amply demonstrated by the Indian independence movement.

5.7. Aesthetic and Spiritual Formation

Pope Francis includes Churches and seminaries as spaces for aesthetic and spiritual formation — to form the people in “responsible simplicity of life, grateful contemplation of God’s world, and concern for the poor and the environment” (LS 214).  It implies:

• On-going catechesis of the community  - appreciating the human position as embodied, and thus being part of the physical environment, and having responsibility for its care and conservation for future generations, “not optional or secondary” but integral to a life of virtue (LS 217).
• An education ensuring aesthetic sensitivity and spiritual depth (LS 215–217) with the ability “to admire beauty in the world around us” that fosters protection and reverence, and for “deep enjoyment free of obsession for consumption” (LS 222) leading to the biblical wisdom that “less is more” (contentment devoid of exploitative accumulation of goods).
• Catechesis must teach that being protectors of creation is Gratitude, gratuitousness, and compassion (LS 220) help us relish our communion with all beings.
• Training of candidates for priesthood and religious life as ministers who would be leaders of a Christian spirituality that extends to human relations with other human beings (especially the poor), and other beings of the Common Home.
• Creating platforms for people of other faiths and people who profess to have no faith in God or religion, where the reality of the Common Home and its sustainability could be a starting point for collective and collaborative action.

“Education in environmental responsibility can encourage ways of acting which directly and significantly affect the world around us” (LS 211).

Laudato Si’ envisions education for sustainability as a conversion of the heart and imagination — moving from consumerism to communion, from isolation to solidarity, and from exploitation to stewardship. It unites science, ethics, culture, and spirituality in forming persons who live gratefully, act responsibly, and hand over to future generations a more habitable and humane world.

In this way, Laudato Si’ presents ecological education as the moral heart of sustainable development, anticipating and complementing the secular vision soon formalized in the SDGs.

5.       The Challenge of 2030 Goals of Sustainability - SDG 4 - Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)

It is heartening to note that the vision of the Church revealed through this official teaching is very much in alignment with the aspirations of the secular world articulated in the light of scientific and economic calculations. It is not certain whether the emergence of both these documents in 2015 was a mere coincidence or if Pope Francis had anticipated such needs in the COP21.

It is pertinent here to examine the global consensus achieved in this regard with the landmark Paris climate change summit of 2015. Among the 17 global goals in the direction of sustainable development accepted by the world nations, the fourth is: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.  It has seven targets as given below:

SDG 4.1. Primary & Secondary Education: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes

SDG 4.2. Early Childhood: By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education

SDG 4.3. Equal Access to TVET & Higher Education: By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university.

SDG 4.4. By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults with relevant technical and vocational skills for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship.

SDG 4.5. Equity and Inclusion: By 2030, eliminate gender disparities and ensure equal access to education and training for vulnerable groups

SDG 4.6. Literacy and Numeracy: By 2030, en.sure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults achieve literacy and numeracy.

SDG 4.7. Education for Sustainable Development & Global Citizenship: By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including:
• education for sustainable development (ESD) and sustainable lifestyles;
• human rights;
• gender equality;
• promotion of peace and non-violence;
• global citizenship;
• appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development.

Indicators:  SDG 4.7.1 – Extent to which (a) global citizenship education and (b) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed at all levels in:
(a) national education policies;
(b) curricula;
(c) teacher education; and
(d) student assessment.

Three additional targets are listed as 4.a. (infrastructure and learning environment), 4.b. (scholarships as part of development assistance) and 4.c. (availability of qualified teachers).  These are targets which each of the institutions in the field of education (basic and higher) ought to examine and ensure that quality is ensured, maintained and possibilities of improvement is sought.

SDG 4.7 stands as the secular articulation of the very educational vision Laudato Si’ calls for. The lead agencies that support monitoring and implementation of this agenda are UNESCO (custodian agency), UNEP, and UNFPA, which could serve as a bridge between the secular and religio-spiritual platforms to ensure and enhance the common good.

The challenge now is to translate these commitments into everyday pedagogical and institutional practice. In this context, the CMI vision and practice can be transformed as an instructive example.

6.       The CMI Pro-active green vision  - The CMI Environment Policy 2022

It is a matter of gladness and pride that the 195-year-old Carmelites of Mary Immaculate (CMI), with a recognisable footprint on the field of education (in India), have taken cognisance of the environmental challenges and have adopted the concern for the common home as a major challenge in their life and ministry. This led to the 2020 policy statement to have 12 items of cross-cutting significance related to ecological challenges facing the world to be addressed through CMI formation, lifestyle and ministry (Chapter 3).

Further, it describes the features expected in a CMI – member or trainee or institution – to be recognised as GREEN (chapter 4) and provides strategies to arrive at these ideals within the structure of the organisation (chapter 5).  The annexures provide a checklist to make assessment of these aspects quantifiable (Annexure 1).

A random assessment in this regard reveals that efforts to spread awareness have taken place in the course of the past four years, and replicable models have been created in certain domains. There have a been a few institutions which have done pioneering work in this regard and have been recognized by the state. However, there is immense scope for further action, and if the CMIs deem themselves to be leaders in the field of education, much more radical steps have to be adopted to resonate the spirit of Laudato Si and targets for sustainability (SDG) as reflected in the CMI Environment Policy. 

With its wide network of over 500 schools and around 50 HEIs, including two universities, 4 engineering colleges, 1 medical college and several institutions and centres for social and cultural development, the CMIs, as the oldest existing indigenous Christian organisation of India, are to take up the challenge to give a Christian leadership for the nation in the direction of sustainability.

The most important aspect is to perceive and accept education for sustainable development as a vital component, interrelated to all other domains, irrespective of the field – candidate formation, theological education, secular education (beginning with early childhood care through higher, technical, professional and research levels) and community (pastoral) education (religious and neighbourhood) (LS 141, 213, 217).

Other aspects to be taken up in this regard could be:

Setting a common minimum agenda applicable to all CMI institutions which themselves form part of ESD – e.g., waste minimisation, waste segregation and effective waste management; rain water harvesting, efforts to increase and maintain biodiversity of the campuses, and documenting the same of the campus and the neighbourhood, creating eco-friendly neighbourhoods as extension programme, etc.

Incorporation of sustainability aspects in terms of graduate attributes and learner outcomes to be incrementally attained through the basic education stage have to be identified and articulated by the individual institutions, and support for the same to be provided by the provincial or general departments.

Forging collaboration with other organisations and seeking affiliation or recognition under the allied schemes by the state and international bodies like UNESCO (adopting the Green School model envisaged by UNESCO).

7.       Concluding:  I feel glad that the CMI ecological vision enshrined in its environmental policy operationalises Laudato Si’ and SDG 4.7 with adoptable measures making campuses educative, the curriculum tuned to sustainability and CMI formation leading to awakening the spiritual core.

Thus, CMI institutions, rooted in India’s cultural soil and the Carmelite tradition, stand poised to embody the integral ecology envisioned in Laudato Si’ and the sustainability goals of SDG 4. In doing so, the CMI tradition re-affirms that faith-based education, when rooted in cultural wisdom and ecological consciousness, can serve as a bridge between spirituality and sustainability.

 

References

CMI Environment Policy. (2022).

Francis, Pope. (2015). Laudato Si.

Iyer, Raghavan. (1973).  The Moral and Political Thought of Mahatma Gandhi 

Madan, T.N. (1997).  Modern Myths, Locked Minds: Secularism and Fundamentalism in India 

Nandy, Ashis.  (1983). The Intimate Enemy: Loss and Recovery of Self under Colonialism 

Varma, Pavan K. (1998). The Great Indian Middle Class.