4 Nepal Earthquake, Calbuco Volcano… Even Earthquake in Korea?

This posting is supposed to be outlining the past history of global change, in the flow continuing from the previous posting. But I changed my plan for an attempt to go into more detail on the issue of global change. This newly added part of the series will be put under the category of Thinking and Watching the Global Change as well.

A couple of days ago, I was watching evening news on TV showing the ever-growing damage from the earthquake in Nepal on April 26. Then it showed the continuing damage and anxiety of the Chilean people near Calbuco volcano which erupted on April 23. Then I expected some kind of analysis on these tectonic activity issues would be followed. But the TV news show ended there, after only giving reports of what happened.

Recent attitude of reporting on such natural disasters of Korean mass media- and of not the whole but a major part of mass media in the advanced countries including USA- shows exactly the same pattern in which modern West has responded to them. They either hawk their ‘conquest’ of the nature, or blame someone to have damaged the nature. Otherwise they just shut their mouth up after giving minimal reports on it.

But I don’t think this is the way to go. However tricky natural phenomenon may seem, the more we humans must make efforts to understand it fairly and fundamentally and to find out ways to live through it.

None of us, as humans living on this earth ever growing active, seems to be free of anxiety on the possible impact from the unexpected natural disasters. Even countries like Korea, located in hitherto relatively safe area from disasters caused by tectonic movement, begin to feel nervous of impending Baekdu volcano eruption and occasional earthquakes in the nearby marine areas. No need to say about the anxiety by people who have experienced large-scale event of such disasters, as can be seen in a Szechuan expert on the TV news show giving a very brief comment on the possible impact from the aftermath of Nepal earthquake.

Humans will fear more for something they don’t understand. I think it is time for all of us to pay more attention to this issue of growing frequency of natural disasters caused by tectonic movement. Also it has deep relation with the spirituality of our time, the original theme of this series of postings.

As can be seen in the graphs of the previous posting, the whole earth is in the phase of greatly accelerated changes. The earth crust, or the tectonic plate- the most basic structure of this earth biosphere under our feet, is no exception to this Great Acceleration. I would rather put it the other way round: accelerated change in the tectonic plate is causing all the other changes on earth ever accelerated.

Let’s have a look in the following graphs.

Left is a graph on large-scale earthquake occurrence showing the trend from 1974 to present and giving estimates towards 2047. Middle is showing the trend in volcano eruption of varying degrees from 1900 to 2000, the red lines showing the total. Right is on the trend of natural disaster occurrence from 1900 to 2004, red column showing the total including earthquake, tsunami, volcano eruption, etc., blue column showing the windstorms, including typhoon, hurricane, tornado, etc.

The green squares highlights the period from 1970s to present. Let’s compare it like the following.

We can understand that human society is moving almost exactly as the way tectonic plate is moving. And we can also understand, from the graph showing estimation towards 2047,  that such trend of movements will keep going for quite a time being.

Why is this change?

What does it mean for us?

3 Age of Great Acceleration

In what state are we at the moment, in the 21^st century? It is not a simple question, provoking countless versions of answers. Still we can draw out several points for discussion, one of which will be: The world is changing so fast at the moment. This is also one of the major foci on which we will concentrate here in this series.

I have already posted writings on this issue in the category of Watching and Thinking Global Change. But I’ll introduce parts of the postings into this and coming postings if the context requires it. For more detail on this issue, you can refer to postings of the above category.

The graphs above are provided by International Geosphere Biosphere Programme, IGBP, a research institute on the global change. Starting from the year 1750 to 2000, these graphs are telling us that we are not wrong in perceiving the earth going into a vortex of rapid change.

Changing human activities inevitaby lead to changing impacts on the environment.

Here are some of the conclusions that can be drawn from the above graphs.

– Everything on earth is on the accelerated change.

– Such changes are going in the similar pattern in each and every field.

– Whatever field the change belongs to, it’s got accelerated around the turn to the 20^th century, and much more accelerated around 1970s.

– Changes seem to be going into peak at the moment, making the nearest future almost unpredictable.

– Such changes are reflected in human behavior getting more active, consuming more resources, and thereby giving more impact to the environment.

– Apparently, such trend is going to continue for some time being.

Wikipedia, the source of these graphs, put all these graphs under the title of “Great Acceleration”..

Why is this earth changing everywhere, and why are these changes so accelerating? In what way such trend of change is related to discussing ‘spirituality’?

For an answer for the first question, we need to look into the past of the earth. As these graphs are showing that we are in the continuum from the past, perhaps we can have bigger picture by expanding the time span of our inquiry.

3 The End of the World? Human destruction of Environment?

Such Great Acceleration identified, next question coming into your mind will be: “What causes it?”

We already have at least two familiar types of explanations. One, the whole world is reaching The End, the catastrophic end-point of today’s razzle-dazzle. Two, humankinds are creating havoc with their own ground of life, out of none other than their own greed, aggravated within today’s economic system.

Both explanations are persuasive and at the same time unsatisfactory in their respective ways.

The end-of–the-world predictions haunted humankind without exception, whenever humans encounter massive and serious crisis throughout history. But, also without exception, they had faded away whenever such crises were overcome, with situations continuing into next phases. There is no saying that the world will truly come to the end this specific time.

The warning against anthropogenic catastrophe is relatively new, although similar patterns of blaming and demanding repent can be found throughout history, but it cannot explain

Why human beings began to show greed increasing at an unprecedented rate. Either it cannot answer to the question whether the total life crisis will be overcome if only humans reduce their greed.

Let’s make a thought experiment. At a time when it changes from summer to autumn, an alien comes to a certain place in the middle-latitude area, like Korea, with a purpose of reporting what he/she has observed to his/her home planet.

The report might include sentences such as: “Everything is changing very fast. All the leaves are turning into strange colors and then falling from the trees. It is getting colder and colder, parching the grass all over. Even the clothes of people on the street are changing…”

If the alien, probably under some disguise, asks a resident there, “Why all these changes?”, then the person will answer, apparently puzzled by such an obvious question, “Because the fall is here”.

Let’s go back to our original question.

The most natural answer to the question, “Why everything on earth is changing so fast?” may be: “Because we are in such a time.”

In the space environment surrounding the earth, there always have been numberless cycles of change. All these changes on earth comes neither from the impending catastrophe nor from the human greed acutely increased as if coming from unanimous decision by people living on this earth.

It is most probable that we are having all these change fundamentally because we are now in such a phase of a rapid change in a huge cycle the earth is having in the wider context of space environment.

2 Our Changing Earth – Great Acceleration

“Everything changes except the fact that everything changes,” says an ad from a renowned magazine. Truly it does. People who have had enough of living may have the feeling that the world today is changing a lot faster than in those days when they were young.

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And it is not just a feeling.

The graphs above are provided by International Geosphere Biosphere Programme, IGBP, a research institute on the global change. Starting from the year 1750 to 2000, these graphs are telling us that we are not wrong in perceiving the earth going into a vortex of rapid change.

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IGBP has conducted surveys on almost every topic Related to human activities and its impact, besides what is shown in the above. The outcomes show invariably that changes are being accelerated in every sector, on everything.

Changing human activities naturally lead to changing impacts on the environment.

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All other environmental indicators show similar patterns of change to those shown above.

Here are some of the conclusions that can be drawn from the above graphs.

– Everything on earth is on the accelerated change.

– Such changes are going in the similar pattern in each and every field.

– Whatever field the change belongs to, it’s got accelerated around the turn to the 20^th century, and much more accelerated around 1970s.

– Changes seem to be going into peak at the moment, making the nearest future almost unpredictable.

– Such changes are reflected in human behavior getting more active, consuming more resources, and thereby giving more impact to the environment.

– Apparently, such trend is going to continue for some time being.

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Wikipedia, the source of these graphs, put all these graphs under the title of “Great Acceleration”.

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Why is this earth changing everywhere, and why are these changes so accelerating?

How should we live on this rapidly changing earth?

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1 To a Young Couple

(I was asked by a young couple who would get married

To write a message for their marriage life and read it at their wedding party.

I wrote and post it here.)

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Every being is a light in itself.

The one whom I love is a big light.

..

The one with whom I get married

Is a light much bigger than me, much needed for me.

..

Candlelight is beautiful and bright when it goes up in tranquility.

With agitating wind, it loses much of its serene beauty and brightness.

But we do not blame the candle

for being unable to keep the beauty and strength of its light.

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Instead, we think, “The wind is getting stronger”

And rise up to close the window,

To help the candlelight resume its beauty.

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Just like the wind agitating the flare of a candle,

Factors influencing our lives are abundant in forms and numbers

To give us big and small difficulties in this world.

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Why is the world so full of difficulties?

Why is life so hard to go through?

Do not ask questions like above.

It’s because we are living in such a time.

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As summer is for hot sun to glare and winter is for cold wind to blow,

Spring is for new leaves to sprout and autumn is for old leaves to fall,

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We are living on this planet

Just at the time for the destruction of old lives

And for the maturation of new lives.

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Just as it has no point to ask why it is so hot in summer,

It can be also of no avail to complain about the difficulties of living at the moment.

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As it is wisdom of summer

To get clothed thinly and get enough air circulation,

Thus to fill your life with as coolest elements as possible,

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It is wisdom of this time filled with diverse forms of stresses

Not to be affected by such stress-giving factors

And to fill your life with as much energy and happiness as possible.

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One of the most noticeable symptoms of being under stress

Is to have negative feelings towards the person

Who is just at your side.

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Even in the case that a man and a woman meet and live together in love,

if, one, or both of them get severely stressed,

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He, she, or they seldom fail to suspect or hate the person

Who is at his, her, or their shortest distance, physically and emotionally.

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As a matter of fact, it is one of the basic knowhow of survival:

To find out and attack the person

Who is very likely to have attacked him, her, or them first,

Because the stress sign is read as coming from an invisible attack.

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In the remote past when there were few ubiquitous stress-inducing factors,

Electronical and chemical, as in today,

Such must have been very successful strategy.

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But in this complicated industrialized society,

Ridden with diverse forms of unseen hazards,

You do not know where and how stress factors occur to affect you.

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Only, as a result, you become unusually nervous and begin to suspect and hate

The person who happens to be at your side,

Following the guide your time-worn DNA has given to you.

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In the modernized society

With the nuclear family as one of the most significant units,

Sadly, the person who happens to be with you

Probably at the shorter distance and for the longer time,

Is likely to be your spouse,

The person who you chose as dearest to you.

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In the marriage life of our time

That is supposed to be based on the love relationship between a husband and a wife,

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The divorce rate is going higher among couples

Who have reached the goal of marriage once confident of their love.

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Such an irony comes from

The anachronism of our DNA,

The near-ultimate guideline of our lives.

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If your candlelight loses its original beauty,

Do not make a mistake of blaming the candle.

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Do recognize of the wind getting stronger,

And quietly stand up to close the window.

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If you think your spouse is losing his/her original beauty and strength,

Do consider the probable presence of the agitating wind to him/her

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Rather than asking questions direct and aloud,

Try to know it with your heart in your silent prayer.

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For words, by making a person alert,

Has an effect to enhance his/her level of stress.

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If your spouse had to keep a seat until late in a drinking dinner

For him-/herself and for the family,

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Then this morning, do cook and serve him/her

With a bowl of warm dried-pollack and bean-sprout soup

Lightly seasoned with hot Korean pepper.

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It will help his/her body mechanism of detoxification and blood-circulation

Eventually eliminating the toxins from alcohol stuffs from his/her body,

Thereby lowering his/her level of stress.

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If your spouse gets more nervous than usual

For reasons you and even he/she does not recognize

And begins to show a bit of bad habits thought to have disappeared,

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Then just give him/her a warm, loving hug.

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It will make his/her tension much relieved

To make him/her resume his/her beauty and strength.

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Live as a two candles

That will not lose its original beauty and strength

Even in times when wind blows hard.

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Standing on their own, looking separate,

Together they will give light

Twice more bright,

Making the world the brighter.

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Your spouse, standing right in front of you,

Is the one who can give you

The most needed part

To make one brighter light for the world.

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Together,

Go on to the world and light it.