The Sanctuary idea is very simple. Taking action is more complicated.
Nevertheless, making an efficient and peaceful transition to a better world for everyone presents an exciting challenge. It presents opportunities for new ideas, new ways of solving problems, new ways of interacting. We’ve got skills and experience, and we’ve got what human beings have had for years: intelligence, imagination, and creativity. But the most important thing we still need is a philosophical and moral framework for action, a life purpose that unites rather than divides.
In recent years, several charters have been drawn up that present positive guidelines for individual human behaviour and for international relations:
Declaration Toward a Global Ethic (1995)
Blue Mountain Lake Statement of Essential Values (2000
Charter for Compassion (2009))
All are admirable, comprehensive documents. But we need something simpler and more direct. And a universal framework can be found in the ecological context of human life on this planet.
The philosophical background to the creation of the Sanctuary and exploration of the issues related to the transition from a world of conflict to a world of peace are outlined in Chapter Five: Forerunners. (
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- A realistic view of humanity: Humans are part of nature, not separate from it, nor superior to it.
- A spiritual view of life on Earth: The essential sources of human life—the land that feeds us, the water we drink, and the air we breathe—are sacred, but not sacrosanct.
- A necessary goal of social and economic progress: The common good of all of humanity must come before individual and national profit.
In practical application, these three principles provide a complete moral framework for all our actions and behaviour.
They embrace environmental action, social justice for all, and a spiritual philosophy wider and more inclusive than any existing religion.
They apply to everyone—rich and poor, financiers and wage earners, farmers and computer programmers, industrialists and peasants, inventors and consumers, politicians and the unemployed.
They don’t require belief in an extraterrestrial divinity, but can still be applied by those who do. They reflect humanism rather than atheism.
Realistically, they are aspirations for today; with any luck, they’ll be guidelines for the generations of the 22nd century.
Sanctuary of the Morning Light was never intended to be a discussion of the future of humanity. It doesn’t provide simple answers to the questions raised in the previous pages. But with this website, it may present a useful starting point for discussion of the possible paths to a better world.
Aspirations and possibilities for the future expansion of natural sanctuaries are described in Chapter Eight: Mandala. ( (364Kb)
The fundamental human challenge is still pretty much what it always has been: to improve our lives as best we can. The future challenge is still to do that, not just for ourselves as we’ve done for the greater part of human history, but for the good of everyone and the planet. Because "everyone" includes "us." In future, conflict is going to kill us. We have to find a peaceful alternative. It will take a long, long time to achieve, but all we’ll need is what human beings have always had: intelligence, imagination, creativity, and willpower.
A future based on the principles described above won’t be perfect. It’s not a dream of Utopia. Fate, karma—whatever you want to call it—works in ways we may never understand. Certainly, a change from a world shaped by competition and religion to one guided by co-operation and spirituality would normally take centuries. Do we have time to make that change?
Perhaps humans are destined to go the way of the dinosaurs. But even if they are, we can in the meantime make the world a better place for all of us in a multitude of ways, big and small. If we can change ourselves, one by one, voluntarily, and not by force of circumstances, then we can use our strength, confidence, and optimism to change the world. In that better world—imperfect, with inevitable resentments and injustices, shortages, emergencies, and yes, some lingering conflicts—we’ll simply be more comfortable in ourselves, in our natural surroundings, and in human society as a whole. We’ll be better equipped to deal with the issues and problems that arise as we work together towards a vision of a more equitable, compassionate, and satisfying way of living on our crowded planet.
Sanctuary of the Morning Light started out as a small, simple project. But the eventual subject matter is huge, and the story now seems much too frail to adequately bear the philosophical load I eventually placed on it. Nevertheless, the foundations are solid. Every month, every week, almost every day I see an item in the news or on the Web that deals with the issues I discuss in the story. Many items support the views and actions of the creators of the Sanctuary, and they serve to remind me of what I knew from the start: that very little of the story is new. The insights are as old as the millennia of human existence; similar calls for action have been made for decades.
What is different is the concept of natural sanctuaries, and I’d be happy to learn of many other ways to strengthen and use our spiritual connection to the natural world for the good of everyone and every living organism. Every new—or old—idea will help. Similarly, while it’s not new to see the world in ecological terms, the three ecological principles mentioned above are simpler and more accessible than any other set of goals or guidelines I’ve seen anywhere else.
Perhaps one daySanctuary of the Morning Light will be a trigger for discussion of new ideas, and I’ve added below, and will update from time to time, a random selection of relevant news items that I’ve come across.
In the meantime, I try to live lightly on the earth with an open mind, a light heart, and a generous spirit. Que les vayan bien.
There are a huge number of magazines and websites dealing with the environmental, social, and spiritual issues discussed in Sanctuary of the Morning Light. Regular sources of thoughtful and interesting articles for me are:
These are just a small number of items I noticed in the early part of last year:
In Yoga Journal, May, 2009, Lauren Ladoceour’s article "Into the Wild" describes a four-day trip in Yosemite National Park that focused on yoga, meditation and physical activity (hiking) in a natural setting—the key inputs to the synergy of mind, body, spirit, and nature at the heart of the Sanctuary experience outlined on Connecting.
The Economist, April 11th, 2009, has an article "Sin aqua non" about global water supplies, inefficiency and waste in global water use, and the likely impact of water shortages on food production.
In The Vancouver Sun, on March 28, 2009, Douglas Todd has a column on Earth Hour, in which he discusses environmentalism, religion, and spirituality. The full article and accompanying comments can be seen at his blog The Search
In the same issue of The Vancouver Sun, Darah Hansen writes about finding serenity in the Vancouver area and includes a short list of "serene spots." One is the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden and six of the other seven places are in parks or natural areas. Hansen writes "These days, it seems, everyone is in search of ... a moment to slow down, breathe deeply, and reflect on the world." That is exactly what the Sanctuary of the Morning Light is for.
On Bill Moyer’s Journal, on Mar 13, 2009, Bill interviewed Karen Armstrong. They discussed the role of compassion and the Golden Rule in major religions and Karen described the efforts being made to make compassion a central part of modern religion. You can read a transcript of the interview here.
Scientific American Mind, Feb/Mar 2009, has an item titled "6 Brain boosters." The first is exercise and the sixth is meditation, two elements at the heart of the Sanctuary experience.
In Orion Magazine, January/February, 2009, Auden Schendler's article "Climate Revelations" raises the issue of religion as a force that should be considered in relation to climate change, and discusses spirituality in terms not very different from our view of it.
In The Globe and Mail, Friday, Feb. 6, 2009, an item page A3, describes a recent example of fundamentalist religious views being imposed on an activity, in this case, yoga and healthy exercise, that few people regard as a religious practice.
In The Globe and Mail, Friday, Jan. 30, 2009: "The downward dog may help your performance—but so could a pep talk" discusses research studies of yoga and other forms of exercise.
From Canadian Wilderness Fall-Winter 2008 (A publication of CPAWS): A new future for parks. To better protect species and ecosystems, we need to expand parks and protected areas.
Scientific American Earth 3.0, Volume 18, Number 4, 2008:
Special Issue on Energy vs. Water: Why Both Crises Must Be Solved Together.
From The Globe and Mail, Saturday, Nov. 22, 2008: "Religion—what is it good for?" An anthropologist studies how religious belief fits in with evolutionary theory.
From The Globe and Mail, Saturday, Nov.8, 2008: "Ecological Debt." The Living Planet Report 2008 calculates that we use each year 30 per cent more resources than the planet can regenerate. The estimate cost of that ecological debt is more than $4 trillion, double the cost of the current financial crisis.
From The Globe and Mail, Friday, Nov.7, 2008: "House cooling: ‘It’s a party with a purpose.’" Sierra Club BC members and others get together to discuss climate change issues and look at practical ways to make a difference.
