Eco-Fearism: Prospects & Burning Issues

By Bhawani Shankar Adhikari, Osinakachi Akuma Kalu and Desh Subba

In a world full of doubt and despair, we are yet to realize the invaluable importance of societal coherence and correspondence, especially in relation to our planet's ecosystem. Intelligent, empathetic life, such as ourselves, has limitless potential to co-create and edify a new paradigm of smart coexistence, if we manage to get fear under control.

The society that we have constructed has undervalued life's potential because of individualistic separatism that seems to have been born out of fear of survival.

Our fears of going extinct should be, counter-intuitively enough, not only a motivation for us to thrive in meaningful coexistence, but also an inspiration for us to be able to build a future that is worthy of our true capacities.

As we dive deeper into Eco-Fearism, breaking the boundaries of our limitations and striving for excellence, we are enlightened by knowledge and by the hope that we can surpass our own immaturity and take care of ourselves and our planet through careful reflection.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: May 5, 2020
• ISBN: 9781984505804

Bhawani Shankar Adhikari

Bhawani Shankar Adhikari, Ph.D scholar is a senior lecturer of Nepal Sanskrit University in Balmeeki Campus, Kathmandu Nepal. With over 25years (Primary to University) of teaching experience, he is currently doing an LLB Course. Bhawani is a published author with books and over 20 national and international articles. His interest in Fearism motivated him to apply fearism in his Ph.D. thesis. He is an avid reader and critical analyst in the field of Fearism. Bhawani is an academic person who is open to learning from anyone interested in education.

Book preview

ECO-FEARISM:

Prospects & Burning Issues

Bhawani Shankar Adhikari

Osinakachi Akuma Kalu

Desh Subba

Copyright © 2020 by Bhawani, Osinakachi, Desh.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 05/05/2020

Xlibris

1-800-455-039

www.Xlibris.com.au

810210

CONTENTS

Dedication

Foreword

Reviews

Eric Klein

Piergiacomo Severini

Alejandro De la Parra-Solomon | Choose your purpose.

Martin Stark

Tom Ross

Nora Nikolaeva

Joao Abílio Lázaro,

Rachelle Roberthon

Kristen Conklin

Michael Bassey Eneyo

Okey-Kalu, Ozioma

Fadindra Kumar

Govinda Prasad Guragain,

Angela Uloma Nwogu

Kasper Renee Johansen.

William Coburn

Donald Uchenna Omenukor

M.S. Keoma Ferreira

Dr. Rahim Muhammad

Ashok Kumar

K C Sunbeam

Acknowledgements

General Introduction

Chapter One

The Kosmos Prima Causa

1.   Introduction

2.   Understanding Fear

3.   Ontological Foundation of Fear

4.   What is the locus and Meaning of Fear?

5.   Fearocopy

6.   Conclusion

Chapter Two

Fearism

1.   Introduction

2.   Background of Fearism

3.   Fearism and reality

4.   Fear Connected Technical Words

5.   Fear Territory

6.   Fearism as Dephilosphy

7.   Conclusion

Chapter Three

A Move towards Eco-Fearism

1.   Introduction

2.   Importance of Eco-Fearism

3.   Man, as a Microcosm

4.   Life-Consciousness-Knowledge-Eco-Crisis-Eco-Fearism

5.   The functions of Eco-fearism

6.   Why eco-Fearism is essential?

7.   Ecosystem, Human Economy and Fearism

8.   The Stone Age

9.   Age of Farming

10.   Iron Age

11.   The Industrial Age

12.   Technological Age

Chapter Four

Eco-Crisis

1.   Introduction

2.   Misleading Arguments on Climate Change

3.   The evidence of rapid Climatic Changes

4.   Conclusion

Chapter Five

Eco-Fearism: Saving the Ecosystem

1.   Introduction

2.   Life as the Chief Value in the Ecosystem

3.   Ignorance

Chapter Six

Writings On Ecology And Environment

1.   Some Examples of Positive Work

2.   Eco- system of Life

3.   Chronological Classification of Human History

4.   Role of People

5.   Philosophic Implication

Chapter Seven

Living Through Eco-Fearism

1.   Introduction

2.   Ecological Views and Programs

3.   Annihilation and Blunder

4.   Trees and Humans

5.   Vulture Protection Strategy

Chapter Eight

Fear in Eco-Turbulence

1.   Introduction

2.   Fear in Different Fields

3.   Fear of Global Warming

4.   The Human Condition

5.   Quantity of Fear

6.   Differences of Fear

7.   Fear in Population Growth

Chapter Nine

Future Of Eco-Fear

1.   Introduction

2.   Fighting a Fear of Natural Disasters

3.   Relation between eco-Fearism and Philosophy of Fearism

4.   Conclusion

Chapter Ten

Concluding Remark

BIBLIOGRAPHY / WORKS CITED

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

"When we acknowledge that all of life is sacred and that

each act is an act of choice and therefore sacred, then life is a

sacred dance lived consciously each moment. When we live

at this level, we participate in the creation of a better world".

Scout Cloud Lee

DEDICATION

This work is dedicated to all those who must have suffered from ecological crises. It is also a consolation to those who are afraid of the recent climatic changes.

FOREWORD

Fear is basic to human nature and in general to animals’ instinct. Fear has been historically cultivated and used by the religious system of beliefs. In particular around the concept of hell and fear of death to attract more believers. Our first teachers to fear things in our environment are our own parents. But we are often not told how to make our conception of fear more sophisticated and manageable as we grow into adult persons. We stop learning about fear.

Writing this foreword amid the rising fear of Wuhan coronavirus epidemic, fear of death in the endless wars in the Middle East, the rise of artificial intelligence and technological structural ful unemployment, and last but not least the planetary confirmed trend of destruction of ecology, I can hardly overlook the importance of fear in our imagination, calculations, planning, and action.

My key interest in integral futures studies is focused on the identification and discussion of binary oppositions. This is done within the framework of the Persian mythology of the Lord of Wisdom versus the Ignorant Mind. One might name a few binary oppositions such as fearful versus fearless, raw versus sophisticated, simple versus complex, and negative versus positive types of fear.

The authors of this book ECO-FEARISM: Prospects & Burning Issues, Bhawani Shankar Adhikari, Osinakachi Akuma Kalu, and Desh Subba argue that a core parameter which can give us significant leverage in the world complex system is fear. However, we need to use the fear wisely and in a positive way to save the planet.

There is a strong connection between futures studies and fear studies. In science fiction we have dystopian and apocalyptic narratives. In the formal futures research the collapse or disaster scenario is not missing from a usual range of alternative futures that are generated. Existential risk centers and their scholars also deal with and use fear in large scale for policy recommendations.

A great advantage, and unique feature, of this book is that it contains the Western, the Eastern and interestingly the African voices and points of view. The authors also have a deep philosophical approach and even give prominence to a process of dephilosopy that puts the spotlight on fear ontology. Fear is the key driving force which either moving forward the human consciousness or keeping it from flourishing and evolving toward a good future. Understanding the fear broadly and deeply has practical applications. A fearlessness-based social or political movement sometimes is all what we need for large and radical change. For example, large number of human populations are still living in different types of dictatorships, authoritarian and totalitarian states. However, fearlessness is a negative quality too if possessed by the so-called elite class who are governing the world economy and committed to destruct the planet through rampant and careless resource extraction in the name of wealth generation.

Following the mantra of futures studies, learning, un-learning, and re-learning fear is therefore necessary. Insecurity, fear of the jobless future, fear of uncertainty, fear of foreigners or foreign languages are driving us into unwise decisions and actions. Challenging our consciousness by refining and re-framing will enormously help us overcome planetary grand challenges.

We both need futurists and Feariatrists--a new term that you will learn more about after reading this book. Such new category of professionals can help more established experts like analysts who work on risk management, negotiators who develop diplomacy to resolve conflict situations, and even military commanders who imagine the future battleground. They are among the audience of this book. Because they will obtain fresh thinking and imagination about the complex phenomenon of fear.

But the most obvious focus of the book is theory building for the ecology and how to list actionable recommendations about adapting to and mitigating the adverse effects of climate change, global warming, and the rise of Anthropocene. Ecology can be saved and improved by a wise, reasonable and positive cultivation of fear. This book is a call for finding the wise balance or equilibrium between ecology, economy and fear.

One final note. As a professional futurist I continue to wonder a particular scenario. What if the future belongs to smart machines equipped with Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) that have a built-in wise balance between fearfulness and fearlessness in contrast to us humans who cannot keep the balance? Those robots as the new actors and players could be designed by default to have complete freedom from fear or totally constrained by it, or even better to be somewhere in between, enabling Alternative Planetary Futures.

Victor Vahidi Motti

Director World Futures Studies Federation (WFSF)

Author

Alternative Planetary Futures

2 February 2020.

REVIEWS

This well written book addresses the reality of the moment which posse’s great danger not just to man but all species on Earth and all that man preserved from antiquities. Although some tend to see the case of climatic problems as explained by scientists to be somewhat political but that also may not be true. The true politics is among the owners of businesses that emits fuel fossil destroying our mother earth. However, these people may not ready to accept the truth about the danger humanity is facing.

On reading this book I discovered that most of our activities which strive for survival turned out to be a disadvantage to our existence. There is lots of evidence showing that we are in for serious trouble on Earth.

The main thesis of this book is that fear of the danger facing man should motivate him in making this world a better place. I recommend this book to all futurists who are working hard in making this world what it ought to be.

Eric Klein

President

Lifeboat Foundation

Nevada, USA.

Eco-Fearism: Prospects & Burning Issues from Xlibris is a relevant reflection on the global eco-condition and the most striking issues that are affecting our planet nowadays. Bhawani Shankar Adhikari, Osinakachi Akuma Kalu and Desh Subba, the co-authors of the book, try to approach the world eco-crisis from a fearist point of view, in order to «know how to be wealthy and also to save the eco-condition». Fearism is a self-declared existentialist philosophy, which was founded in 1999 from Desh Subba as a literary movement. Desh Subba is the leading fearism spokeperson in the East; in 2009 he has founded the Fearism Study Center in Dharan and in 2015 he has published Philosophy of Fearism, the manifesto of Fearism, which examines both the positive and negative aspects of fear in people life and society. R. Michael Fisher is the theoretical reference in the West, thanks to The Fearology Institute that he has founded and some inspiring books, like World’s Fearless Teachings: A Critical Integral Approach to Fear Management/Education for the 21st Century (2009) and Philosophy of Fearism: A First East-West Dialogue (co-authored by Desh Subba, 2016).

«This book is a catalogue of eco-crisis and it has itinerary». The aim of this work is to generate a positive fear about the degrading situation of the world in the heart of every citizen, leading to a deeper knowledge and a better understanding of our role in/for the planet. The first two chapters of the book try to introduce Fearism from a theoretical point of view. The third, the fourth and the fifth chapter apply Fearism to the global eco-condition, showing that the problem is real and we have to remember our active role in preserving the life on the planet. Chapters six, seven and eight fulfil the theoretical introduction of Eco-Fearism with some practical examples. The last chapter draws conclusions and leaves some duties to the reader.

The theoretical introduction to Fearism stresses the fact that the human person controls what happens in the world out of him and in the world inside him, so he can determine both the macro-cosm and the micro-cosm. Fear boosts our existential struggle and tries to order it in a kosmos: «Whatever shape or form humanity is today had a starting point. What it is depends on our decision to become or be. To be is to survive. To survive is to think out solution(s) towards problems or challenges». One cannot find objects of fear, since human mind dictates which actions are fearful, so «the mind is the ontological-domain of fear» and the locus of fear is consciousness, where one gives subjective meanings to his objects. Psychology is not enough for giving solutions to the diseases caused by fear and this is the reason why a philosophy of Fearism is essential, with his schema «life-consciousness-knowledge-fear-cognition». Dephilosophy is the keyword of this reasoning: «dephilosophy does not mean rejection of philosophy. It is a particular philosophizing process aimed to enhance the highest human potentials by adopting the necessary and right things to focus on and to leave unnecessary things from a philosophy». The conclusion is that fear is not a bad thing if it is used in a creative manner and an education to the positive concept of fear is needed.

From the central part of the book it comes out that Fearism can help in handling eco-crisis philosophically and scientifically. Man is the source of the problem and the solution as well, because the dignity of his power of reasoning demarcates him from other species. This power has the capability of making order in the micro-cosm and in the macro-cosm and Fearism can help in this sense, converting its schema «life-consciousness-knowledge-fear-cognition» in the eco-fearist schema «life-consciousness-knowledge-eco-crisis-eco-fearism». Eco-Fearism has to drive man’s curiosity and wonder in the right direction, through a theoretical analysis of eco-troubles. Eco-fear was not needed in the past, instead today man is more powerful than ever and «now it is time to work out». In a world where «people have become like a working machine», being unconscious and ignorant about the condition of environment, the slogan «more consciousness has more knowledge and more knowledge has more fear» should wake up our conscience and remember that life is the chief value (as it happens in the quoted Allegory of the Cave), in order to find the best way of addressing the issue effectively. Eco-fearism knows well his goal: «Once they learn and fear with the possible misfortune to the humanity, then they try to come in the real action of preserving the eco-condition».

This book, like Fearism and Eco-Fearism, offers a new point of view, so it is full of constructive purposes and fruitful ideas, but it is still moving its first steps and it needs a stronger theoretical argumentation. The importance of a good practice cannot forget the value of a solid reasoning that can make order between the different levels of praxis. The good naivety that works hard in reality for building a wealthy existence can easily become a bad naivety that prefers the extension of intention to its quality, for example when defining Fearism «a philosophy of universals and the greatest road to wisdom». Maybe, Fearism should try to be the long way that Ricoeur and many contemporary existentialists have theorized, building a positive dialectic between the theoretical moment and the practical one. In this sense, Fearism and Eco-Fearism practices could open a dialogue with the concept of cipher in Jaspers (an immanent object that embodies transcendence and has a meaning for a subject) or The Imperative of Responsibility from Jonas, with its heuristics of fear and its strong principle more power involves more responsibility.

Fearism and Eco-Fearism want to give expression to the «unexpressed experienced in day to day affairs of life», developing a «contextualist ethical philosophy» that gives back importance to human condition, its goals, its capabilities. This existentialist aim is remarkable, but, as already said, the history of existentialism teaches that there must be a dialectic between existence and reason, as Jaspers would say. The schema «life-consciousness-knowledge-fear-cognition» (also in its eco-fearist declination) seems to be a good theoretical starting point: if fear is the means through which a simple and objective knowledge can become a subjective cognition, then human existence has the capability of bringing something new in the world, namely the result of a subjective activity that gives meaning. For the moment, Fearism and Eco-Fearism have just chosen the way of existence; now, they have to cross the way of reason, developing or linking better their ideas and giving stronger arguments to their conclusions. These movements are still young and they have already reached some important achievements, so they have a lot of time for finding references, a clearer language and a deeper theoretical point of view. The premises are good and the world really needs a «fearful subjectivity» that comes «to the conscious part of the minds of all», someone that leaves the Cave and contemplates the sun to remember its presence to the other prisoners.

Dr. Piergiacomo Severini

PhD Student at UNICH (G. D’Annunzio

University of Chieti-Pescara), Italy

As indistinct mist shadowing our vision, our cognitive capacities have been often distorted by the blast of emotional distresses in intrapersonal, interpersonal, intersocial, and, ultimately, ecological circumstances, ever since the day our species began to walk the Earth. We humans are yet to fully understand how, like the Butterfly Effect, our mercurial and dystopian conceptions of our future as a species and the relation to our environment are but facilitating confusion, anguish, and outspreading apartheid amid civilization.

By way of insightfulness, the three authors of this manuscript peel away the emotional blurriness and unbearabilities that lie in the misunderstanding of our complex societal reactivity towards climate crisis. The authors venture to unearth, in a weighty and bold manner, a dichotomized dialectic with the goal to involve the reader in objective reflection to further understand the ecological conundrum that we are in, while also addressing the inherent sensitivity that we, as sentient beings, eventually suffer from in the form of fear.

The book Eco-Fearism is, in fact, a work of progressive and humanistic thinkers of gargantuan value, where the reader may reinstate self-awareness by means of connecting our environment, our planet and everything on it with primeval places within the mind, taking the philosophy of fear, Fearism, yet to a broader level of inclusion, holism and reassuring self-reflection and sense of belonging. I very much look forward to the development of this philosophy towards a universal understanding of our relation to the cosmos. Cosmo-Fearism, hopefully, will also include contributions of my own.

Alejandro De la Parra-Solomon | Choose your purpose.

Mexico

I read the book during the Australian bushfire crisis that have burned over 11 million hectares, destroyed thousands of homes, killed over 1 billion animals with many people losing their lives.

In Chapter Four William E. Rees states, Fear, the anticipation of a potentially imminent danger, is taking over most decisions in modern human societies, from neighbourhood watch program to foreign policy decisions. He accurately describes what governments, communities and people should be doing to limit the impact of Climate Change. It is unconscionable to deny that Climate Change increases the likelihood of catastrophic events that can have devastating effect on an entire country. For the best part of a decade Australian governments and Prime Ministers have grappled with the challenge of creating a National Climate Change Policy with inaction undermining Australia’s international reputation.

Everyone wants to feel psychologically safe with fear making it harder to change our behaviours. When leading media publications and journalists are forthright in expressing their opinions that human induced Climate Change is a myth it diminishes the gravity and urgency of the problems it creates. Rees’ articulates the key misleading arguments about Climate Change creating an opportunity for people to broaden their knowledge.

I believe some individuals feel excluded and their voice is not heard with most of the news coverage on Climate Change focused on protest movements such as Extinction Rebellion. Chapter Six Eco-Fearism: Saving the Ecosystem offers the perspective of a politician, ecologist and family providing answers to the question & quot; What is in it for me? " We all need to feel included with empathy for others leading to a common understanding. Most people believe in fairness and are more likely to support Climate Change policies when they understand how it affects them and those they care about. I would like to have seen a few more practical examples of people and communities undertaking positive tasks for the conservation of the planet. I love reading about " The Biggest Bambooplantation in the Philippines & quot; !

Eco-fearism is very thought-provoking book providing insights of reason and courage at a time when humanity and the planet need it most.

Martin Stark

Courage Champion, Inclusive Practitional

Sydney, Austrialia

This book redefined fear for me. I’ve assumed it an amygdala-driven primal trait but now understand it to be a sophisticated tool of consciousness. To dissect fear and rethink its purpose for humanity the way this book and its authors do is the shadow work of a civilization that must be done and this book heeds that call.

Tom Ross

Author of US6|Transhumanist|Speaker

USA

In times of deep existential fears and eco-crisis of the world this book is a true blessing, expected from years. An exciting and successful philosophical attempt to ensure humanity’s survival by protection, prevention practices and denials of wrong doing fear teachings. In a world full of doubt and despair, ithelps to realize the invaluable importance of social coherence and communication, especially in relation to the ecosystem of our planet. This is a fascinating up-to-date handbook who sets the basis for a new paradigm for intelligent coexistence, called Eco-fearism. The authors demonstrate a constant striving to transforming the world through focused research of the fear, fearism and eco-fearism. They prove in an original way that the philosophy of fearism and its peak – the eco-fearism are indispensable conceptual constructs in global ecological decline of multicultural society.

The quot; Eco-fearism & quot; represents new perspective to look at the eco-turbulence because the positive fear of it captures the real picture of the present world and offers an exit. The book