By SANDEEEP NATH
The complete book, RENEWAL, was relayed to me between 20th Nov 2019 and 2nd Jan 2020. Almost every day, I wrote as directed by a power higher than myself.
In January, as I started to edit, I was struck by the simplicity of the content. In February, as the impact of CoViD-19 starting becoming known, I began to marvel at how most of the habits I was guided to write about were the ones the human species had to embrace, to save itself.
By March, with the lockdowns, a large portion of the world had been forced into living life differently. And the effect of doing this was visible on the ecology of the Planet. The air had become clean. Animals felt safe. Dolphins returned near cities. And to our surprise, we even had peacocks visit our apartment!
On Whatsapp, forwards included several poetic messages about how our habits had, in fact, caused us the most harm… and how (to copy-paste one such note):
The Corona Virus has made us realize that:
1. Humans are the real viruses on planet Earth.
2. A pandemic does not differentiate race, caste, or border.
3. Living a simple life is easy. We don’t need to consume a lot.
4. We can raise billions for the right causes without red-tape.
5. Wealthy urbanites are more vulnerable than rural poor.
6. We – and the kids – can survive without junk food.
7. Oil is worthless in a society without consumption.
8. The majority of people can work from home.
9. We are all connected by cause and effect.
10. We are not the masters of the Universe.
Meanwhile, conspiracy theories also propagated that Corona could be a technology innovation that backfired.
Or a carefully-planned method of warfare. Or even a way of turning the tables of the international economy. All that, however, is not significant.
What is of importance is that CoViD has been a wakeup call. A call that we will soon dismiss unless we cement the lifestyle changes into our routines before this is over. Before there actually is an orchestrated technology attack, the possibility of which has been mentioned in this book. CoViD was akin to a dress rehearsal for all the players to know how prepared they are.
The Pandemic has forced upon us many habits – such as being mindful of wearing a mask and washing our hands. If we use this opportunity to take these habits to the next level – by being mindful of what we eat and how much we consume – we will have a chance at renewing our world. And our preparedness for the future will increase manifold. If not, it will be an opportunity lost.
Therefore, it is my hope that you will appreciate the imminence of the messages contained herein and will do all in your power to reach this book to all the people you can.
This book has been written to be read and re-read. The habits recommended in it are to be discussed and debated in companies and within institutions. Social groups and professional communities need to explore the multitude of ramifications of the messages that RENEWAL carries. And eventually, it will become a movement, the way we early RENEWALists envisage it.
Thank you, dear reader, for starting to be a part of this Movement, to redesign our imprint on the planet.
As a human species, we have fuelled ourselves by our life force energy (Qì) since long before we knew what it was. Likewise, I believe I have been a Renewalist since long before Sandeep Nath coined the word through this book. And that goes to show how fundamental and natural this concept is for healthy human existence.
Renewalism is a concept that has the potential to bring about the most significant change in the trajectory of humanity. It is about the raising of human consciousness through small habit-switches individuals can make at three levels; Self-awareness, Symbiotic exchanges, and Systemic redirection. All of which would result in the Renewal of the human imprint on Earth.
In my lifespan, I have seen technology make a profound impact on human behaviour and choices at all of these three levels. But whether this has raised human consciousness or dumbed it down into becoming part of a systemic matrix is an on-going debate. I am happy that RENEWAL addresses this debate and pushes the envelope into the technologies of inner power as opposed to outer gratification.
The book emphasizes that the world is a mere 30 habits away from Renewal. And those habits are for individuals to embrace… hence each one of us has a role to play. Systematically it enunciates each habit and explains how anyone can effortlessly weave it into their daily routine… making it extremely practical and do-able.
The practice of Renewal can reverse our current state of rising personal illness, mindless lifestyles, social degeneration, environmental degradation, and overall moral decay, in less than a generation. And it bothers me to realize that on the flip-side, the next generation (without Renewal) could be on the brink of self-annihilation.
I believe the message of this book urgently needs to get across to a critical mass of Renewalists who begin to usher in the necessary – and overdue – change. I would urge professionals, organization leaders, futurists, media influencers, and academicians to form Renewal Clubs and ideate further on the messages contained herein. Renewal is an idea whose time has come.
Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming
Director, YMAA CA Retreat Center
August 24th, 2020
Self-Renewal
Symbiotic Renewal
Systemic Renewal
The central graphic on the cover depicts the emblem of the RENEWAL Movement.
I care for myself and for the future of my world.
I embrace the Renewal Habits to make
this caring my karma.
***** To Care Is My Karma *****
This book is dedicated to my mother, Renu Nath.
You might think that is because she is an amazing person. Yes, she is, but that is not the reason for this dedication. Is it because she was the first to provide feedback on the manuscript of this book? Well, she was, but that’s not the reason either. Because… she gave birth to me? Aha… getting close!
This book is dedicated to my mother because she relayed my Purpose in life to me while I was still being nurtured in her womb. She spoke with me while I was there, urging me to live life unchained to standard societal expectations. She instructed me to stay liberated and to teach the world how to do the same. To facilitate the raising of consciousness; by making changes in the way we think of our lives, our priorities, our jobs, keeping busy, raising kids, and all of that.
Forty-two years passed before I could revisit that sounding, deep in my subconscious. It arose through a meditative connection with my inner power. And when my mother reconfirmed that this dialogue had actually occurred with her womb, that was the day I felt released to the world in a real sense. And life has been incredible ever since.
Thanks, Mom!
