By Madhusree Chatterjee, IANS,
New Delhi : After matriarchy and patriarchy, the world is gradually moving towards an age of light or ‘lumenarchy’, says noted Polish philosopher and Indophile Henryk Skolimowski, who considers himself “more Indian”, in his new book “Let There Be Light: The Mysterious Journey of Cosmic Creativity”.
“If we go back 7,000 years ago in time, the society was dictated by god’s essential laws – justice and compassion. But there has been gross violation of the law by patriarchal societies. All patriarchal religions are ungodly and inhuman. Matriarchy was symbiotic. The motto of matriarchy was ‘live and let live’, but the motto of patriarchy was ‘I have to live’. We cannot live with patriarchy any longer and neither can we return to a matriarchal set-up. Where do we go from here?” the 80-year-old philosopher asked.
“Mankind has to transcend matriarchy, patriarchy and anarchy to treat light as the great cosmic mother – the source of all energy and nourishment,” Skolimowski told IANS.
His new book was released in the capital Thursday.
“This is the essence of ‘lumenarchy’, an idea that I propounded for the first time on Feb 18 this year. It is an extension of my theory of ‘lumenology’ or the understanding of light and its role in the entire cosmos and in the human world for millions of years as all-pervading and all-helpful,” he said.
The philosopher said in the long run “the seekers of light would like to establish a ‘Society of Lumenologists’, whose members will come from such diverse cross-sections as sun worshipers, moon and star gazers, students of solar science, philosophers, artists and all the hidden worshipers of light”.
Skolimowski’s work is targeted at overcoming human angst and disconnection caused in part by the “dominance of modern technology sowed by industrial revolution and the imbalance in human relationship with nature”.
He is the author of 40 books and 600 articles, including a book on Indian spirituality and environment, “Dancing Shiva in the Ecological Age”.
“I had always been attracted to dancing Shiva because I felt it was the cosmic dance of light. When I wrote the book ‘Dancing Shiva…’ 20 years ago, the power of the deity in me agreed that light was the solution to the world’s problems – greening of the religious minds and making them enlightened and participatory. I have also written a book on eco-yoga,” the philosopher said.
A doctorate from Oxford University, Skolimowski taught in several prestigious American Universities from 1964 to 1997. He has been visiting India since 1978.
“I am more Indian and Hindu than many in the country. When I first came to India 22 years ago, it was poorer. Now, prosperity has grown and with it the dawning of consciousness,” he said.
The social thinker says his “concept of lumenarchy” will also have a bearing on global geopolitics.
“It will end kali yuga (dark age) and ring in the surya yuga (age of sun) – a process that has already started. People are learning to follow their natural instincts of light in all its manifestations, creativity, madness and exuberance,” he said.
Skolimowski’s book, “Let There Be Light…” captures the life-giving aspect of light in 13 chapters.
At the beginning there was light, says the book. “Pure and distilled. And out of this light came everything that we call cosmos, universe, life and creativity.”
Published by Wisdom Tree, the book was released by Buddhist scholar Lokesh Chandra.