What do you think?
Rate this book
Harmony: A New Way of Looking at Our World
For the first time, HRH The Prince of Wales shares his views on how our most pressing modern challenges—from climate change to poverty—are rooted in mankind's disharmony with nature, presenting a compelling case that the solution lies in our ability to regain a balance with the world around us
With its holistic approach, this provocative and well-reasoned book takes the discussion of sustainability and climate change in a new direction. Prince Charles shows how the solutions to problems like climate change lie not only in technology but in our ability to change the way we view the modern world.
For decades, the Prince of Wales has been studying a wide array of disciplines to understand every aspect of man's impact on the natural world, and in that time he has examined everything from architecture to organic farming to sustainable economics. Now, for the first time, he speaks out about his years of research, presenting a fascinating look at how modern industrialization has led us to a state of disharmony with nature, created climate change, and pushed us to the brink of disaster.
From the rice farms of India to the prairies of America's corn belt, from the temples of Ancient Egypt to the laboratories of industrial designers, Harmony spans the globe to identify the different ways that contemporary life has abandoned the hard-earned practices of our history, a shift that has spurred a host of social problems and accelerated climate change.
Drawing on cases from farming, healthcare, transportation, and design, the Prince of Wales also offers solutions for change, creating a new vision for our world, one that incorporates the traditional wisdom of our past with the modern science of our present to avert catastrophe. In the end, Harmony paints a holistic portrait of what we as a species have lost in the modern age, while outlining the steps we can take to regain the harmony of our ancestors.
Illustrated with lush, four-color photographs and charts, this intelligent, practical, and well-reasoned guide is an indispensable weapon in the battle to save our planet.
With its holistic approach, this provocative and well-reasoned book takes the discussion of sustainability and climate change in a new direction. Prince Charles shows how the solutions to problems like climate change lie not only in technology but in our ability to change the way we view the modern world.
For decades, the Prince of Wales has been studying a wide array of disciplines to understand every aspect of man's impact on the natural world, and in that time he has examined everything from architecture to organic farming to sustainable economics. Now, for the first time, he speaks out about his years of research, presenting a fascinating look at how modern industrialization has led us to a state of disharmony with nature, created climate change, and pushed us to the brink of disaster.
From the rice farms of India to the prairies of America's corn belt, from the temples of Ancient Egypt to the laboratories of industrial designers, Harmony spans the globe to identify the different ways that contemporary life has abandoned the hard-earned practices of our history, a shift that has spurred a host of social problems and accelerated climate change.
Drawing on cases from farming, healthcare, transportation, and design, the Prince of Wales also offers solutions for change, creating a new vision for our world, one that incorporates the traditional wisdom of our past with the modern science of our present to avert catastrophe. In the end, Harmony paints a holistic portrait of what we as a species have lost in the modern age, while outlining the steps we can take to regain the harmony of our ancestors.
Illustrated with lush, four-color photographs and charts, this intelligent, practical, and well-reasoned guide is an indispensable weapon in the battle to save our planet.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
About the author
Charles III
126 books55 followersAs the oldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, King Charles III is the king of the United Kingdom. He ascended to the throne after the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth II on September 8, 2022. He is the oldest person ever to assume the British throne.
Under public scrutiny his entire life, Charles graduated from Trinity College before embarking on a military career which culminated with him commanding the HMS Bronington. He married Diana Spencer in the summer of 1981 to huge media fanfare, though the couple would eventually divorce in 1996 after years of gossip and scandal. Charles later wed longtime love, Camilla Parker Bowles, some time after Princess Diana's death. He is the father of Princes William and Harry and is also a grandfather. Among his many philanthropic and environmental endeavors are the Prince’s Trust and the Prince’s Rainforest Project.
Under public scrutiny his entire life, Charles graduated from Trinity College before embarking on a military career which culminated with him commanding the HMS Bronington. He married Diana Spencer in the summer of 1981 to huge media fanfare, though the couple would eventually divorce in 1996 after years of gossip and scandal. Charles later wed longtime love, Camilla Parker Bowles, some time after Princess Diana's death. He is the father of Princes William and Harry and is also a grandfather. Among his many philanthropic and environmental endeavors are the Prince’s Trust and the Prince’s Rainforest Project.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 29 of 68 reviews
June 8, 2021
There are a few harsh reviews of this book which I think are mostly unfair. I listened to the audiobook version which is read by HRH himself. As such it comes across more a series of talks. I could see why some might wish the printed version were better edited as the way the arguments flow isn’t always as ordered as it could be. But what does come across in hearing it read is that this is a man that genuinely cares about human beings living a harmonious existence with each other and nature.
Let’s just look at his motivations for a moment. He is independently wealthy. He doesn’t need to sell books ,or organic food produced on his farm for that matter. He is not subject to the forces of short-termism of politicians seeking re-election, or business leaders seeking a return for their shareholders. I think it is pretty fair to say that his motivation comes from a sense of duty to use his role and influence to examine a bigger, longer term picture than many are willing to consider.
The idea of harmony that runs through this book is a consideration of that bigger picture. Some have suggested that the book is anti-science which is not my experience of it at all. What it is against is the kind of narrow, mechanistic thinking that loses sight of the bigger picture.
So the discussion is of harmony as a way of looking at the whole and how everything in nature is interdependent. This isn't new age nonsense. It is the pollination caused by bees, the continuation and purity of our water supplies, our long term ability to feed ourselves.
He also discusses harmony in terms of the urban environment and the effects of harmony/disharmony on human well being. Again, there is no doubt in listening to him that he is concerned about the big picture here. Not just quaint architecture but social degradation and unrest arising from soul-less living conditions. And as another reviewer has given credit for, his model village of Poundbury does look like it’s genuinely designed with a community in mind. Add to this his influence in trying to attain financial incentives for keeping the rainforests protected (with some success in the Norway / Guyana agreement), and various other farming and cultural initiatives, I think he is a man who is actively using his position for the good of the many, is independent of many vested interests, and should therefore be commended for his efforts.
Let’s just look at his motivations for a moment. He is independently wealthy. He doesn’t need to sell books ,or organic food produced on his farm for that matter. He is not subject to the forces of short-termism of politicians seeking re-election, or business leaders seeking a return for their shareholders. I think it is pretty fair to say that his motivation comes from a sense of duty to use his role and influence to examine a bigger, longer term picture than many are willing to consider.
The idea of harmony that runs through this book is a consideration of that bigger picture. Some have suggested that the book is anti-science which is not my experience of it at all. What it is against is the kind of narrow, mechanistic thinking that loses sight of the bigger picture.
So the discussion is of harmony as a way of looking at the whole and how everything in nature is interdependent. This isn't new age nonsense. It is the pollination caused by bees, the continuation and purity of our water supplies, our long term ability to feed ourselves.
He also discusses harmony in terms of the urban environment and the effects of harmony/disharmony on human well being. Again, there is no doubt in listening to him that he is concerned about the big picture here. Not just quaint architecture but social degradation and unrest arising from soul-less living conditions. And as another reviewer has given credit for, his model village of Poundbury does look like it’s genuinely designed with a community in mind. Add to this his influence in trying to attain financial incentives for keeping the rainforests protected (with some success in the Norway / Guyana agreement), and various other farming and cultural initiatives, I think he is a man who is actively using his position for the good of the many, is independent of many vested interests, and should therefore be commended for his efforts.
September 18, 2013
I enjoyed this book and I think the message and content is more than important. The message of the future King of England is critical to the survival of human beings. Al Gore in his book 'An Inconvenient Truth' warned about our human activities harming the earth. I think our activities will temporarily disrupt the earth, but the planet will heal itself of our damage and it will survive until our sun dies.
In 'Harmony' H.R.H. Prince Charles informs us why and how we, and especially the business world, need to work in harmony with nature rather than raping nature for short term profits. I often get discouraged by the careless and greedy decisions made by business and politics regarding, deforestation, strip mining, bottom trawling fishing and countless other ways by which we choose short term profits over long term finite resource management.
We are all so fortunate that someone like Prince Charles, who has the notoriety and power to put his education and fame into establishing foundations and programs that can and will truly be of positive benefit to millions of people around the world for many years into the future. Prince Charles' message, his book, and his living example can be of great value unless the corporate world is successful at turning him into a cartoon buffoon like they did Al Gore. They did that with their eyes wide open for the purpose of short term profit.
If we can learn from the leadership of great and good people like Prince Charles to live in Harmony with nature, each other, and ourselves, the gifts of the earth will last longer and we will live happier and healthier lives for many more years.....mgc
In 'Harmony' H.R.H. Prince Charles informs us why and how we, and especially the business world, need to work in harmony with nature rather than raping nature for short term profits. I often get discouraged by the careless and greedy decisions made by business and politics regarding, deforestation, strip mining, bottom trawling fishing and countless other ways by which we choose short term profits over long term finite resource management.
We are all so fortunate that someone like Prince Charles, who has the notoriety and power to put his education and fame into establishing foundations and programs that can and will truly be of positive benefit to millions of people around the world for many years into the future. Prince Charles' message, his book, and his living example can be of great value unless the corporate world is successful at turning him into a cartoon buffoon like they did Al Gore. They did that with their eyes wide open for the purpose of short term profit.
If we can learn from the leadership of great and good people like Prince Charles to live in Harmony with nature, each other, and ourselves, the gifts of the earth will last longer and we will live happier and healthier lives for many more years.....mgc
October 15, 2012
This book starts slowly but introduces amazing concepts and ideas. HRH touches on important foundations regarding our disconnection with nature and our past connection with a more natural way of living, which is something I agree with and he puts it brilliantly. I found this book difficult to put down as I was constantly stimulated with new concepts and information that are not mainstream. I thoroughly recommend this book to everyone especially those that feel there is a better was for us to move forward as a global community. This book has important messages about mother earth and sustainability. HRH focused on town planning as an important aspect to the peoples well being and inspiration. Its a life changing book...
March 1, 2011
A very interesting and different approach to what we should do as a society to avoid major problems coming...
HRH the Prince of Wales relates the way ancient societies like the antique Egypt and Greece and others were connected to nature and natural patterns and lived their lives according to those principles. He then explains how we lost that along the way to become a mechanistic and materialistic society. He then gives examples of what could be done.
Having read many books on sustainability, the real new thing I found was how physical patterns are related to the way we see the world.
A really good book overall. And, also I didn;t realise how active the Prince was!! OMG, very impressed by him!
HRH the Prince of Wales relates the way ancient societies like the antique Egypt and Greece and others were connected to nature and natural patterns and lived their lives according to those principles. He then explains how we lost that along the way to become a mechanistic and materialistic society. He then gives examples of what could be done.
Having read many books on sustainability, the real new thing I found was how physical patterns are related to the way we see the world.
A really good book overall. And, also I didn;t realise how active the Prince was!! OMG, very impressed by him!
December 15, 2012
I had to read this book in chunks, not because it was boring but because it was so insightful -- I needed to let what HRH was saying simmer a bit within my head. The seven basic chapters (Harmony, Nature, Golden Thread, Age of Disconnection, Renaissance, Foundations and Relationship) cite the mess we're living in, why we're in this mess, the history of the mess and how we can get ourselves out of the mess.
HRH: "Science can tell us how things work, but it is not equipped to tell us what they mean. That is the domain of philosophy and religion and spirituality." He begs the reader to consider philosophy, religion and spirituality as three separate thought patterns -- perhaps like the divine trinity? Are we created in balance and challenged when that balance shifts? He gives many examples of types of shifts that are affecting us, from the decline of bee colonies to industrialized farming techniques. I never thought of the lack of birds following and tractor plowing the field is due to the lack of earth worms in the nutrient-stripped soil but it all makes sense now.
"What Nature does to nurture the human spirit, inspiring art and literature and embodying intrinsic values" is a concept that I've been wrestling with -- do our creativity levels decrease as we are pulled further and further from the land? HRH seems to think so and I'm in agreement. He tells the reader that architecture strikes a chord in our hearts that we are forever trying to balance. The further we sway from equilibrium the more we become hardened to accepting hopelessness.
The book reaches a point of questioning about half-way through and then begins to bring back hope in the form of examples from HRH's own experiments and those that he has witnessed through his travels. I enjoyed reading about these places and added a couple of sites to my bucket list. These places are harmoniously vivid; filled with history and tradition that makes one stop and acknowledge why. Take a look at great architecture ask 'feel' the building, you'll get what he's trying to say between the pages.
I want to read more of his philosophy, visit the places he's mentioned in the book and meet this man!
HRH: "Science can tell us how things work, but it is not equipped to tell us what they mean. That is the domain of philosophy and religion and spirituality." He begs the reader to consider philosophy, religion and spirituality as three separate thought patterns -- perhaps like the divine trinity? Are we created in balance and challenged when that balance shifts? He gives many examples of types of shifts that are affecting us, from the decline of bee colonies to industrialized farming techniques. I never thought of the lack of birds following and tractor plowing the field is due to the lack of earth worms in the nutrient-stripped soil but it all makes sense now.
"What Nature does to nurture the human spirit, inspiring art and literature and embodying intrinsic values" is a concept that I've been wrestling with -- do our creativity levels decrease as we are pulled further and further from the land? HRH seems to think so and I'm in agreement. He tells the reader that architecture strikes a chord in our hearts that we are forever trying to balance. The further we sway from equilibrium the more we become hardened to accepting hopelessness.
The book reaches a point of questioning about half-way through and then begins to bring back hope in the form of examples from HRH's own experiments and those that he has witnessed through his travels. I enjoyed reading about these places and added a couple of sites to my bucket list. These places are harmoniously vivid; filled with history and tradition that makes one stop and acknowledge why. Take a look at great architecture ask 'feel' the building, you'll get what he's trying to say between the pages.
I want to read more of his philosophy, visit the places he's mentioned in the book and meet this man!
June 30, 2013
Frankly, I'm impressed. I had heard that Prince Charles was into architecture, city planning, gardening and was against GMOs, but I had no idea that he was such a forward-thinking advocate for the preservation of Nature, a turning towards Harmony in how we think and act and what we create, and a sort of Revolutionary calling us to join him in his attempt to save what's left of the planet. This book incited my rage, sadness, a feeling of helplessness and an overwhelming desire to rail at the injustice of all we've done to ourselves and Planet Earth. At times I needed to put the book down and take a deep breath. There were other moments when I was filled with hope and gratitude that he was able to cite examples of how we can do it better, perhaps repairing the damage we've done and move forward in a more sustainable way. We're at a turning point right now and it's imperative that we understand the dire necessity of changing our way of thinking. We need to look at Nature not as something to be used and abused for our benefit but as the source of our existence and solution to our problems and as an entity of which we are a part. And we also need to recognize the vital role Harmony plays in all of it. Thank you, Charles, for putting all those ideas into words.
January 17, 2012
I never thought much of The Prince of Wales. I do now. This man rocks!
I knew that Prince Charles has a strong dislike for modern architecture and that he is ridiculed for his statements on the subject. I didn't know, however, that he was a great environmentalist! Holy Moly!
I liked this book very much. Now that I've read this book, I feel that I have developed a stronger appreciation for nature, good architecture, good living practices, and so much more.
I hope you'll read it, and more importantly, I hope it will inspire you to do "something" for this little planet of ours.
I knew that Prince Charles has a strong dislike for modern architecture and that he is ridiculed for his statements on the subject. I didn't know, however, that he was a great environmentalist! Holy Moly!
I liked this book very much. Now that I've read this book, I feel that I have developed a stronger appreciation for nature, good architecture, good living practices, and so much more.
I hope you'll read it, and more importantly, I hope it will inspire you to do "something" for this little planet of ours.
January 1, 2011
This book will make you into a Republican.
Whilst Prince Charles is to be congratulated on his model village of Poundbury, which is a great example of how to implement sustainable and human-centred architecture, this book is the *exact* opposite. 'Harmony' is the worst kind of trite, new-age, vague nonsense, and has no place in any serious discussion of sustainability. However, its misleading views of science will probably sell well with the hippie middle-class crowd who've never had to live in a world without the benefits of mass production and modern technology, and who have a misplaced sense of unease about the fact that the village shop has been replaced by a Tesco Metro. Make no mistake, this book is dangerous crap, and if Prince Charles got what he says he wants in this book, we would be all using homeopathic remedies (sold by his Duchy Originals company, by the way) instead of proper medicine. People with wood-burning stoves will quite like it I think.
Books like this only really get away with saying what they do because they never make specific enough statements that can be adequately challenged. Instead, they hubristically make feel-good assertions without evidence (and which are for the most part plain wrong in this book). They also pander to the ignorant by setting up a false - but widely-held - view of scientists and the scientific method. It's the classic straw-man method: set up a weak opponent by ascribing false opinions to it, then knock it down with empty rhetoric. If you think this book is saying something valuable, I think that's a strong sign that your head is empty.
This book is worse than Dan Brown, and that's saying something. I'd like to give it zero stars, but it appears that this is not possible on this website. You can probably tell that reading it made me angry.
This book is paternalistic claptrap of the worst kind.
Whilst Prince Charles is to be congratulated on his model village of Poundbury, which is a great example of how to implement sustainable and human-centred architecture, this book is the *exact* opposite. 'Harmony' is the worst kind of trite, new-age, vague nonsense, and has no place in any serious discussion of sustainability. However, its misleading views of science will probably sell well with the hippie middle-class crowd who've never had to live in a world without the benefits of mass production and modern technology, and who have a misplaced sense of unease about the fact that the village shop has been replaced by a Tesco Metro. Make no mistake, this book is dangerous crap, and if Prince Charles got what he says he wants in this book, we would be all using homeopathic remedies (sold by his Duchy Originals company, by the way) instead of proper medicine. People with wood-burning stoves will quite like it I think.
Books like this only really get away with saying what they do because they never make specific enough statements that can be adequately challenged. Instead, they hubristically make feel-good assertions without evidence (and which are for the most part plain wrong in this book). They also pander to the ignorant by setting up a false - but widely-held - view of scientists and the scientific method. It's the classic straw-man method: set up a weak opponent by ascribing false opinions to it, then knock it down with empty rhetoric. If you think this book is saying something valuable, I think that's a strong sign that your head is empty.
This book is worse than Dan Brown, and that's saying something. I'd like to give it zero stars, but it appears that this is not possible on this website. You can probably tell that reading it made me angry.
This book is paternalistic claptrap of the worst kind.
July 9, 2011
This is a lofty book with lofty ideas. Are they all bad ideas? Definitely not. I think most of us can agree that on our current trajectory as earthlings with regard to how we treat the earth, we're going to be in trouble. We face a lot of issues: pollutions, limited resources, unplanned growth, etc. Prince Charles tries to tackle a lot of these issues in this book and while there are some very good sections (the architecture and urban design sections were particularly interesting to me), much of his argument seems to meander a bit too much to keep me hooked to this book.
There are some very interesting sections that are worth a read though. As I mentioned Prince Charles argues strongly for "smart growth," a subject that I care deeply about. "Smart growth" means planning growth in such a way that it is conducive for people to live in while ensuring that the growth makes sense environmentally. Prince Charles has worked a lot to create awareness for "smart growth" principles.
The other thing that I loved in this book are the photographs. They are absolutely gorgeous.
Bottom line: this book would have served well with a little more editing. There's some interesting information, you just have to be willing to look for it.
There are some very interesting sections that are worth a read though. As I mentioned Prince Charles argues strongly for "smart growth," a subject that I care deeply about. "Smart growth" means planning growth in such a way that it is conducive for people to live in while ensuring that the growth makes sense environmentally. Prince Charles has worked a lot to create awareness for "smart growth" principles.
The other thing that I loved in this book are the photographs. They are absolutely gorgeous.
Bottom line: this book would have served well with a little more editing. There's some interesting information, you just have to be willing to look for it.
August 7, 2012
"well argued philosophy for survival"
Would you listen to Harmony again? Why?
I almost certainly will, because it is a reminder of the philosophical underpinnings for my 20 year striving to live a sustainable life and respect the Earth and all her creatures.
What did you like best about this story?
As well as articulating a philosophy for the survival of the Earth and our species and others, I appreciated the descriptions of the various educational and environmental initiatives that so many people are undertaking. They were inspiring. Though I believe we have gone too far down our current path of greed and destruction to avoid catastrophe, it is a moral imperative for each of us to do what we can to reverse the headlong rush to destroy this planet that sustains us.
Which character – as performed by Charles, HRH The Prince of Wales – was your favorite?
Charles! He has striven for decades to improve the world, and has mostly been criticized for it. I admire his persistence.
Would you listen to Harmony again? Why?
I almost certainly will, because it is a reminder of the philosophical underpinnings for my 20 year striving to live a sustainable life and respect the Earth and all her creatures.
What did you like best about this story?
As well as articulating a philosophy for the survival of the Earth and our species and others, I appreciated the descriptions of the various educational and environmental initiatives that so many people are undertaking. They were inspiring. Though I believe we have gone too far down our current path of greed and destruction to avoid catastrophe, it is a moral imperative for each of us to do what we can to reverse the headlong rush to destroy this planet that sustains us.
Which character – as performed by Charles, HRH The Prince of Wales – was your favorite?
Charles! He has striven for decades to improve the world, and has mostly been criticized for it. I admire his persistence.
September 23, 2022
I'm not a follower of royalty nor celebrity, but after the recent passing of Queen Elizabeth, I heard about this book, written a decade ago by then-Prince Charles, focusing on topics that have been of interest to me for at least as long. It was more than surprising to hear His Royal Highness discuss how detached the modern world has become from nature and even more so to hear expressions such as "the end of cheap oil"--a topic rarely heard in the main stream--and the need to abandon factory farming and shift towards more local food production. Additionally, this book offers many solutions citing successful programs already in use! It is a very hopeful message, but only if these ideas spread. While listening to this book, I felt like we have a true philosopher-king! Note, too, that HRH acknowledges how privilege he has been to have been able to explore these topics over decades. This book puts all the exploration into one volume.
December 7, 2013
Currently "listening" to this book. I began it as a Vanity Fair podcast & was instantly intrigued. Who knew Prince Charles was so thoughtful? I admit wholly I have only begun the somewhat tedious process of wading through his prose. But I am delighted to hear any world leader speak with so much awe & respect for nature. If only more people could slow down & be still. Or course it help to be a royal for sure.
June 5, 2013
I picked this up out of curiosity, and was quickly drawn in...it's well-written, wide-ranging, and beautifully designed and illustrated. Within a few pages, for example, there are insights on the importance of bee colonies, why GDP is a bad way to measure a nation's health, and how ancient architecture was inspired by the movements of the stars.
June 4, 2023
God save the King.
Listened to this book through Hoopla. There’s a lot to like about Harmony. HM Charles III narrates his own work, and he begins with the loss of religious faith as a crucial source in the upending of humans' relationship to the natural environment. Specifically, he speaks on liberalism and scientific rationalism as products of the Enlightenment, leading to atomization from the Industrial Revolution and a radical separation of science and faith, respectively.
Most of Charles III's views are very traditional and contrary to modern living, and he's put these ideas into practice. For instance, in desiring more local commerce and farming practices that are actually sustainable (rather than the heavily mechanized and chemical-based farming that occurs though Big Ag), he started his own organic farming venture. To counteract modernist architecture, he started his own institute for the promotion of traditional arts. And he shows off New Urbanist ideas by creating his own walkable town of Poundbury.
For all these high regards, however, Charles III is thoroughly modern in two aspects:
1. I think he is extremely naïve when he praises companies which have shifted to investing in "sustainably," as most times these companies do this for personal gain (either economically or socially), rather than a true desire to better harmonize their practices with stewardship of the Earth's resources.
2. The second and most significant mark against HM's thoughts is the encouragement of limiting population growth to curb our footprint on the environment, as it violates the principles established in the Biblical tradition in which he was raised. This also fails to take into account that the population rate in developed countries is dropping, rather than rising. This collapse in national populations will be extremely devastating. Alongside this, if we were to take Charles III's other recommendations to rely on subsidiary, restraint, and more sustainable practices, then each person would leave a smaller carbon footprint.
King Charles III is clearly well-educated; one might even call him a "Renaissance man." And although I disagree with him on (a few) major points, I agree that a return to religious practice, the formation of communities, relying on local agriculture and commerce, and building more tight-knit towns physically will do a lot to help us return to harmony with the natural environment.
Listened to this book through Hoopla. There’s a lot to like about Harmony. HM Charles III narrates his own work, and he begins with the loss of religious faith as a crucial source in the upending of humans' relationship to the natural environment. Specifically, he speaks on liberalism and scientific rationalism as products of the Enlightenment, leading to atomization from the Industrial Revolution and a radical separation of science and faith, respectively.
Most of Charles III's views are very traditional and contrary to modern living, and he's put these ideas into practice. For instance, in desiring more local commerce and farming practices that are actually sustainable (rather than the heavily mechanized and chemical-based farming that occurs though Big Ag), he started his own organic farming venture. To counteract modernist architecture, he started his own institute for the promotion of traditional arts. And he shows off New Urbanist ideas by creating his own walkable town of Poundbury.
For all these high regards, however, Charles III is thoroughly modern in two aspects:
1. I think he is extremely naïve when he praises companies which have shifted to investing in "sustainably," as most times these companies do this for personal gain (either economically or socially), rather than a true desire to better harmonize their practices with stewardship of the Earth's resources.
2. The second and most significant mark against HM's thoughts is the encouragement of limiting population growth to curb our footprint on the environment, as it violates the principles established in the Biblical tradition in which he was raised. This also fails to take into account that the population rate in developed countries is dropping, rather than rising. This collapse in national populations will be extremely devastating. Alongside this, if we were to take Charles III's other recommendations to rely on subsidiary, restraint, and more sustainable practices, then each person would leave a smaller carbon footprint.
King Charles III is clearly well-educated; one might even call him a "Renaissance man." And although I disagree with him on (a few) major points, I agree that a return to religious practice, the formation of communities, relying on local agriculture and commerce, and building more tight-knit towns physically will do a lot to help us return to harmony with the natural environment.
February 20, 2016
Once revolutions swept across Europe, many countries have willingly lost the crème de la crème of their societies and now painfully miss the culturally and conceptually rich layer that they no longer have: people of good taste, education and manners. Their place instead is taken by celebrities, who mimic the luxury living but sadly lack sufficient substance..Yet British people do have the aristocracy and that layer of society bears fruits.
Who else if not a man of leisure that has access to the best resources, minds and ideas the world can offer is to speak his mind? Someone who doesn't have new money to fall ill to pretentious luxury, but instead an individual in a unique position with doors open to the historical artefacts, the finest works of art, who can travel the world and meet whoever he would like, uninfluenced by the agenda of big corporations and big money, able to develop and form his own ideas on life and freely express them without damning repercussion to personal security. Uninfluenced by mainstream and consumerism is able to follow through the calling for the finer, more harmonious way of living; being placed in such a unique position is able to trace our path from tradition to modernism and in some way light the path ahead.
The measured approach of this book - tactful language that avoids accusing large corporates for misdirecting world population and instead asks you to take a look at a larger picture, at the core of the modern outlook on life. It is a breeze of fresh air to see a person of influence who in the mainly secular Western world braves speaking about the soul, calling Nature "she", calls for not throwing away, uncovering and keeping the traditions that we should have inherited from our ancestors.
Millions of teenagers find their parents "old-fashioned" and "out of touch with the real world", only in more mature years to realise the wisdom of their parents and blush about the foolishness of their actions/thoughts. In the same way, this phenomenon takes place over longer time periods. New generations throw away the learning of their ancestors, deeming it unfounded and unnecessary, without realising that in the history of time they act as teenagers themselves. We play with nature with our GMOs, pesticides, synthetic clothing and in return receive allergies, poor nutrition, decreased diversity of species, destruction of soil and clothes that can't keep us warm and cold the way silk, cotton and wool clothes do.
We destruct the soil for poorer harvest with weaker nutritional value, the soil that in turn needs intensive chemical pesticides - lose-lose situation overall. Whilst traditionally there was simple crop rotation and soil was able to recover by planting the crops that would reinstate its mineral richness. Multitude of examples when instead of taking on the sensible approach of life that existed and improving on it, we have thrown the water out with the baby.
Most importantly, this book time and again asks to look at a greater picture, at a larger question - what we are made of and what makes us happy, our place in Nature, that we do have a soul and how our souls respond to beauty and sacred geometry - the mathematical basis(think Golden Ratio and Fibonacci sequence you learned at school) which are universal and have not changed throughout human history.
This goes hand in hand with the beliefs of the modern philosopher Roger Scruton - that beauty is an eternal concept - its a perfection in music, poetry, architecture, art which every human subconsciously recognises instantly and responds to it with delight. Thus much of the modern "art" (read abstract art that needs prolonged "intelligent" explanation to make any sense) and "architecture" (steel and glass scrapers with a lifespan of about 40 years, what a waste of resources!) is alien to our "design" the way we are made. Now we are being surrounded by unremarkable buildings that make us aesthetically starved.
It is indeed remarkable what an exquisite taste Nature has, look at the colours of any flower or animal - how they go together perfectly well, how wonderfully made all creatures are, of what grace. And instead of trying to mimic those designs, we try to invent our own way, infinitely inferior and sadly so basic, unsightly. All under the guise of "modernity" and "progressiveness", yet hiding the truth of chasing a quick buck and cutting corners to reduce the costs of production. Ironically we create unsustainable, disposable goods that make a greater drain on society as they harm us and the environment and don't last... (research planned obsolescence -inbuilt design that artificially limits the life span of a product)
I rather like this quote: "If people are encouraged to immerse themselves in Nature's grammar and geometry they are often led to acquire some remarkably deep philosophical insights", if all aspects of our modern culture aspired to be closer to the concept we would have less of the Emperors New Clothes syndrome..here, there, everywhere..
Read this book and see for yourself at what heights we have stood (Renaissance) and understand how going through the industrial revolution made our culture the way it is now, rekindle the fire of hope by discovering the beauty of the way all creatures are made and with that spark look at the world in a new light :)
Who else if not a man of leisure that has access to the best resources, minds and ideas the world can offer is to speak his mind? Someone who doesn't have new money to fall ill to pretentious luxury, but instead an individual in a unique position with doors open to the historical artefacts, the finest works of art, who can travel the world and meet whoever he would like, uninfluenced by the agenda of big corporations and big money, able to develop and form his own ideas on life and freely express them without damning repercussion to personal security. Uninfluenced by mainstream and consumerism is able to follow through the calling for the finer, more harmonious way of living; being placed in such a unique position is able to trace our path from tradition to modernism and in some way light the path ahead.
The measured approach of this book - tactful language that avoids accusing large corporates for misdirecting world population and instead asks you to take a look at a larger picture, at the core of the modern outlook on life. It is a breeze of fresh air to see a person of influence who in the mainly secular Western world braves speaking about the soul, calling Nature "she", calls for not throwing away, uncovering and keeping the traditions that we should have inherited from our ancestors.
Millions of teenagers find their parents "old-fashioned" and "out of touch with the real world", only in more mature years to realise the wisdom of their parents and blush about the foolishness of their actions/thoughts. In the same way, this phenomenon takes place over longer time periods. New generations throw away the learning of their ancestors, deeming it unfounded and unnecessary, without realising that in the history of time they act as teenagers themselves. We play with nature with our GMOs, pesticides, synthetic clothing and in return receive allergies, poor nutrition, decreased diversity of species, destruction of soil and clothes that can't keep us warm and cold the way silk, cotton and wool clothes do.
We destruct the soil for poorer harvest with weaker nutritional value, the soil that in turn needs intensive chemical pesticides - lose-lose situation overall. Whilst traditionally there was simple crop rotation and soil was able to recover by planting the crops that would reinstate its mineral richness. Multitude of examples when instead of taking on the sensible approach of life that existed and improving on it, we have thrown the water out with the baby.
Most importantly, this book time and again asks to look at a greater picture, at a larger question - what we are made of and what makes us happy, our place in Nature, that we do have a soul and how our souls respond to beauty and sacred geometry - the mathematical basis(think Golden Ratio and Fibonacci sequence you learned at school) which are universal and have not changed throughout human history.
This goes hand in hand with the beliefs of the modern philosopher Roger Scruton - that beauty is an eternal concept - its a perfection in music, poetry, architecture, art which every human subconsciously recognises instantly and responds to it with delight. Thus much of the modern "art" (read abstract art that needs prolonged "intelligent" explanation to make any sense) and "architecture" (steel and glass scrapers with a lifespan of about 40 years, what a waste of resources!) is alien to our "design" the way we are made. Now we are being surrounded by unremarkable buildings that make us aesthetically starved.
It is indeed remarkable what an exquisite taste Nature has, look at the colours of any flower or animal - how they go together perfectly well, how wonderfully made all creatures are, of what grace. And instead of trying to mimic those designs, we try to invent our own way, infinitely inferior and sadly so basic, unsightly. All under the guise of "modernity" and "progressiveness", yet hiding the truth of chasing a quick buck and cutting corners to reduce the costs of production. Ironically we create unsustainable, disposable goods that make a greater drain on society as they harm us and the environment and don't last... (research planned obsolescence -inbuilt design that artificially limits the life span of a product)
I rather like this quote: "If people are encouraged to immerse themselves in Nature's grammar and geometry they are often led to acquire some remarkably deep philosophical insights", if all aspects of our modern culture aspired to be closer to the concept we would have less of the Emperors New Clothes syndrome..here, there, everywhere..
Read this book and see for yourself at what heights we have stood (Renaissance) and understand how going through the industrial revolution made our culture the way it is now, rekindle the fire of hope by discovering the beauty of the way all creatures are made and with that spark look at the world in a new light :)
March 23, 2016
While I am familiar with some of the interests and writing of His Royal Highness Charles Prince of Wales, this book is remarkable for its scope and interweave of the many interests and projects he has guided, and allowed to guide him, over much of his life.
His mother Queen Elizabeth took a progressive approach to education by schooling her boys in different countries, to both expand their awareness of the world and retain British sovereignty by such inclusion of their best offerings back into the central power base. Such an education for Prince Charles necessarily brought him in contact with nature in a way he may never have developed from an English garden setting. Timbertops as a bush camping experience from the exclusive Geelong Grammar School where he boarded through his teenage years, must have impressed itself upon him profoundly.
No mention is made in this book of such an influence. But as an Australian reader, I am drawn by that continuing undercurrent of presence and influence as a mutual understanding between The Prince and I. I feel a spiritual link through place and time that brings edges into focus in a way that a purely centralised government could never achieve. (I also appreciate his inclusion of indigenous wisdom in this book from Australia as from many other places on Earth.)
It is because of this understanding that I can read about European history and architecture by someone of the calibre of the Prince of Wales and his advisors, and gain some insights that I do not appreciate through other writers of more limited world experience. It is because of this willingness to go out into the world and value everything that it presents, that I can feel valued even with my own limitations of experience as well as will to explore all that others have to offer.
My own sense of overwhelm at the riches and variety that abound as the world become more integrated through immigration shifts and broader access to tourism opportunities, is settled to some degree by the capacity of such a writer to balance and parallel developments and influences throughout history.
Architecture and grand monuments are brought into perspective through human experience of proportions and digestibility of cultural flux. Stories and mythologies are used to humanise expansive possibilities and bring them into alignment with daily living. Challenges are met with appropriate questioning that make them worth tackling, stage by stage, step by step, question by further question, not limiting answers to a preconceived idea of perfection that can never be reached or even agreed upon.
The two co-authors of this volume -- Ian Skelly of the BBC and trustee of the Temenos Academy, and Tony Juniper an independent sustainability and environment advisor with particular involvement in The Princes of Wales’ Rainforest Project and through Cambridge University -- may seem insignificant under the first person narrative of the Prince himself. But there can be no mistake in the work achieved by these men through the teams of people around them over many years for this volume to bring so much together into one stream of applied thought and concern.
Lesser people may criticise such a work by trying to unpack the privileges of royalty, or by claiming that the Head carries off the work of the many as if it is all their own. Princes Charles does not take this approach. He acknowledges the work as jointly observed and responded to, and acknowledged the criticisms he has personally received over many years while finding more and more people abroad with perspectives and actions to offer to the grander scheme of all things. He thus places himself as a focal statesman (statement maker) who can connect dots and people in ways that they may not be able to connect themselves to each other without such a traveller and observer to introduce themselves to each other.
Perhaps the most telling photograph of all in the book is the final one where Charles is squatting beside chickens with a smile spread across his face as he turns to the camera behind him. His shoes are remarkably polished for such a rural setting. But he is wearing a woollen coat which reminds of a dressing gown and the suggestion of a fresh breakfast, while obviously being well-tailored and ethnically embroidered at the same time. His formal suit under this unique overcoat is offset by the open collar of his business shirt.
It may be a well-constructed publicity photo. The smile seems too genuine to say anything more than he feels totally at home here. While royalty may bring many privileges, it also carries much responsibility. The Prince of Wales speaks throughout this book about such concepts as natural capital and community capital but in this final photograph he demonstrates that far more subtle responsibility of home duties. It is a harmony that economics has done little to recommend or appreciate. This book goes far beyond any single discipline, yet finds a place for all of them to work with each other fro a greater good.
After you have finished reading, or more likely in between chapters, there are plenty of projects to connect with for taking action. And that is what makes living worthwhile – all the things you can do.
His mother Queen Elizabeth took a progressive approach to education by schooling her boys in different countries, to both expand their awareness of the world and retain British sovereignty by such inclusion of their best offerings back into the central power base. Such an education for Prince Charles necessarily brought him in contact with nature in a way he may never have developed from an English garden setting. Timbertops as a bush camping experience from the exclusive Geelong Grammar School where he boarded through his teenage years, must have impressed itself upon him profoundly.
No mention is made in this book of such an influence. But as an Australian reader, I am drawn by that continuing undercurrent of presence and influence as a mutual understanding between The Prince and I. I feel a spiritual link through place and time that brings edges into focus in a way that a purely centralised government could never achieve. (I also appreciate his inclusion of indigenous wisdom in this book from Australia as from many other places on Earth.)
It is because of this understanding that I can read about European history and architecture by someone of the calibre of the Prince of Wales and his advisors, and gain some insights that I do not appreciate through other writers of more limited world experience. It is because of this willingness to go out into the world and value everything that it presents, that I can feel valued even with my own limitations of experience as well as will to explore all that others have to offer.
My own sense of overwhelm at the riches and variety that abound as the world become more integrated through immigration shifts and broader access to tourism opportunities, is settled to some degree by the capacity of such a writer to balance and parallel developments and influences throughout history.
Architecture and grand monuments are brought into perspective through human experience of proportions and digestibility of cultural flux. Stories and mythologies are used to humanise expansive possibilities and bring them into alignment with daily living. Challenges are met with appropriate questioning that make them worth tackling, stage by stage, step by step, question by further question, not limiting answers to a preconceived idea of perfection that can never be reached or even agreed upon.
The two co-authors of this volume -- Ian Skelly of the BBC and trustee of the Temenos Academy, and Tony Juniper an independent sustainability and environment advisor with particular involvement in The Princes of Wales’ Rainforest Project and through Cambridge University -- may seem insignificant under the first person narrative of the Prince himself. But there can be no mistake in the work achieved by these men through the teams of people around them over many years for this volume to bring so much together into one stream of applied thought and concern.
Lesser people may criticise such a work by trying to unpack the privileges of royalty, or by claiming that the Head carries off the work of the many as if it is all their own. Princes Charles does not take this approach. He acknowledges the work as jointly observed and responded to, and acknowledged the criticisms he has personally received over many years while finding more and more people abroad with perspectives and actions to offer to the grander scheme of all things. He thus places himself as a focal statesman (statement maker) who can connect dots and people in ways that they may not be able to connect themselves to each other without such a traveller and observer to introduce themselves to each other.
Perhaps the most telling photograph of all in the book is the final one where Charles is squatting beside chickens with a smile spread across his face as he turns to the camera behind him. His shoes are remarkably polished for such a rural setting. But he is wearing a woollen coat which reminds of a dressing gown and the suggestion of a fresh breakfast, while obviously being well-tailored and ethnically embroidered at the same time. His formal suit under this unique overcoat is offset by the open collar of his business shirt.
It may be a well-constructed publicity photo. The smile seems too genuine to say anything more than he feels totally at home here. While royalty may bring many privileges, it also carries much responsibility. The Prince of Wales speaks throughout this book about such concepts as natural capital and community capital but in this final photograph he demonstrates that far more subtle responsibility of home duties. It is a harmony that economics has done little to recommend or appreciate. This book goes far beyond any single discipline, yet finds a place for all of them to work with each other fro a greater good.
After you have finished reading, or more likely in between chapters, there are plenty of projects to connect with for taking action. And that is what makes living worthwhile – all the things you can do.
May 1, 2021
Prince Charles has been worried about the cost of convenience since he was a teenager in the 1960s. Since then he has crusaded for preserving architecturally unique buildings, and against soul-sapping steel, concrete and glass monoliths. Le Corbusier is cited throughout as a particularly villainous proponent of this style of architecture. (He sagely points out many Pritzger prize-winning architects have their own offices in old buildings).
The main theme of “Harmony” is getting people to trust their instincts; that holistic living can be found in observing and mimicking nature. An “enlightened deference to nature” in all facets of human life is discussed throughout this long and well-written book.
Prince Charles is a proponent of “inquiry by design,” wherein “community capital” is garnered by developers sitting down with citizens to decide how cities and towns are laid out. As an example, his Prince’s Trust is involved in the planning of Poundsbury, a village on the Devon coast set for completion in 2025.
I loved this book, and listening to Prince Charles himself read it was an added treat.
The main theme of “Harmony” is getting people to trust their instincts; that holistic living can be found in observing and mimicking nature. An “enlightened deference to nature” in all facets of human life is discussed throughout this long and well-written book.
Prince Charles is a proponent of “inquiry by design,” wherein “community capital” is garnered by developers sitting down with citizens to decide how cities and towns are laid out. As an example, his Prince’s Trust is involved in the planning of Poundsbury, a village on the Devon coast set for completion in 2025.
I loved this book, and listening to Prince Charles himself read it was an added treat.
December 9, 2010
After reading more than half of this book, I finally decided I didn't want to waste anymore time reading something I was not enjoying. I was excited to read this book because of it's author, but this is just not written well. It seems to ramble on without getting to the point. Some really random stuff about shapes and perfect angles. Really not at all what I was expecting. Also, unrelated to the content of the book: it's super heavy, making it difficult to hold for long periods. It seems to me that it would be more suited as a coffee table book. Especially given that there is a picture on almost every page. Given the design of the book, it's hard to take the content seriously, even though I do agree our planet is in serous peril and it may already be too late. I guess I just had my hopes too high for this one.
September 27, 2011
I would never call myself an environmentalist by any stretch (I work in motorsport for Christ's sake) but the underlying message of this book really touched me. I have always considered my self as environmentally aware but this book not only exposed just how little I knew, but what an incredible depth of knowledge The Prince of Wales has.
The way this is written does come across as what can only be described as a rambling rant, and is written in a manner that I have never come across before which is the reason it didn't get four stars. Even so I am glad I picked it up.
While I believe what is written on its pages should be seen by everyone, the way it is written means that it will not be which is a shame.
The way this is written does come across as what can only be described as a rambling rant, and is written in a manner that I have never come across before which is the reason it didn't get four stars. Even so I am glad I picked it up.
While I believe what is written on its pages should be seen by everyone, the way it is written means that it will not be which is a shame.
February 2, 2023
Theological arguments for organic fertiliser, anti-corporate while anti-marxist, ecological architecture ... absolutely mad and a lot of fun.
January 12, 2011
Very Inspirational.. and I am a fan of the Monarchy anyway... But it has inspired me to create
the greatest garden this spring... I can think of a few people who would really enjoy this book
(Tracy T) ... he also has a book on elements of organic gardening, and a book (also Harmony)
for children, 4-8,
the greatest garden this spring... I can think of a few people who would really enjoy this book
(Tracy T) ... he also has a book on elements of organic gardening, and a book (also Harmony)
for children, 4-8,
February 11, 2013
The information presented here is not new material, but HRH Prince Charles eloquently discusses these topics seriously, respectfully, and with the assumption that we can, together, do something to fix these social-environmental problems, to restore harmony with earth and humanity. EVERYONE should read this book.
July 5, 2012
I am currently reading this book. This book contains information we all know is true, most people want to ignore and is certainly scary when read.
March 19, 2023
I actually listened to this as an audiobook. Wow. Just because someone has money or royal blood does not mean they are smart so I was not sure what I was getting into with this book. I knew Charles & Camilla had been doing some amazing things at their Highgrove house in Wales. Organic farming. Super eco. Camilla even sells honey from her bees. Really, that’s ALL I knew. I had no idea exactly what I’d be getting when I got this audiobook on sale.
Well, let me tell you… Charles is freaking BRILLIANT. He’s a man of science and a man of the planet. He also gets human beings which surprised me.
Yes. I was a kid when Princess Diana married Charles. I was “Team Diana.” I’m older now and realize things aren’t so black and white. Charles had always loved Camilla. It was bad for everyone. It was a bad situation. A divorce before being truly back with Camilla would have been better, but I know divorce simply was not to be considered back then. It was a lot of pain for a lot of people. Poor Diana. Also though, poor Charles. It took me decades to understand that his love for Camilla is unwavering and has gone the distance. There’s much good about that. Besides, it’s not my business. Besides, it’s been a long time. Perhaps it’s time to forgive.
Camilla. I saw a list of books she loves & shared during the covid lockdowns. She’s a multi-genre reader. I had read many of the books she had read and loved them. Her list was so great that I put the books I had not read in my TBR list. Plus, she has BEES. My daddy had bees and made his own honey. I’ve a soft spot for bees.
Now. The actual book. Finally, here’s what I think of the book. It’s genius. My God, Charles is smart and understands how things are interconnected. I heard him say things I think and know (I read a lot of climate change stuff and sociology stuff) along with a lot of things I didn’t know. He throws facts out like learning from butterfly wings could change our need to use dye and eyes of a fly caught in amber taught us to adapt solar panels so they are 10% more efficient.
People like Charles and scientists are our best chance at making a difference in the destruction that’s happening to our climate, planet, and to humanity. Everyone should read/listen to this book. Harmony, the title of the book, is a theme that is woven throughout the book. How we need to get along with each other instead of being so polarized. How we need to feel responsibility for future generations, nature, and the welfare of the planet. How all of us flourish with harmony and balance. We ignore these things at our peril.
He mentions Al Gore with a great deal of respect. I’ll be adding Al Gore’s books to my TBR.
Yes. This review was effusive. I couldn’t help it. It’s a shame that as a king, Charles is no longer supposed to be so opinionated and passionate about climate change, organic sustainable farming, etc. He has some excellent things to say. Sadly, I think nobody is listening.
Well, let me tell you… Charles is freaking BRILLIANT. He’s a man of science and a man of the planet. He also gets human beings which surprised me.
Yes. I was a kid when Princess Diana married Charles. I was “Team Diana.” I’m older now and realize things aren’t so black and white. Charles had always loved Camilla. It was bad for everyone. It was a bad situation. A divorce before being truly back with Camilla would have been better, but I know divorce simply was not to be considered back then. It was a lot of pain for a lot of people. Poor Diana. Also though, poor Charles. It took me decades to understand that his love for Camilla is unwavering and has gone the distance. There’s much good about that. Besides, it’s not my business. Besides, it’s been a long time. Perhaps it’s time to forgive.
Camilla. I saw a list of books she loves & shared during the covid lockdowns. She’s a multi-genre reader. I had read many of the books she had read and loved them. Her list was so great that I put the books I had not read in my TBR list. Plus, she has BEES. My daddy had bees and made his own honey. I’ve a soft spot for bees.
Now. The actual book. Finally, here’s what I think of the book. It’s genius. My God, Charles is smart and understands how things are interconnected. I heard him say things I think and know (I read a lot of climate change stuff and sociology stuff) along with a lot of things I didn’t know. He throws facts out like learning from butterfly wings could change our need to use dye and eyes of a fly caught in amber taught us to adapt solar panels so they are 10% more efficient.
People like Charles and scientists are our best chance at making a difference in the destruction that’s happening to our climate, planet, and to humanity. Everyone should read/listen to this book. Harmony, the title of the book, is a theme that is woven throughout the book. How we need to get along with each other instead of being so polarized. How we need to feel responsibility for future generations, nature, and the welfare of the planet. How all of us flourish with harmony and balance. We ignore these things at our peril.
He mentions Al Gore with a great deal of respect. I’ll be adding Al Gore’s books to my TBR.
Yes. This review was effusive. I couldn’t help it. It’s a shame that as a king, Charles is no longer supposed to be so opinionated and passionate about climate change, organic sustainable farming, etc. He has some excellent things to say. Sadly, I think nobody is listening.
May 19, 2023
While some of it had the potential to be interesting, it came across as far too patronizing, self aggrandizing and muddled to be readable.
September 10, 2016
The book is didactic, pedantic, and verbose. Not easy reading. Had his majesty managed to express himself more succinctly he might have reached a wider audience.
Charles, Prince of Wales is heir to an antiquated, ancestral fiefdom and reputedly talks to his tomatoes. Many would see his position in the world as irrelevant and his opinions as suspect. This book has been around for 6 years and escaped my notice until recently. I borrowed an electronic copy out of curiosity and will confess that I am mightily surprised and impressed. Of course a future King of England can afford the world's best ghost writers but this combination of Eastern philosophical thought and theology resonates with my own thinking.
My own first contact with the empiricism of the scientific method in high school was an uncomfortable one. As HRH asserts we cannot empirically prove the existence of God or demonstrate the appearance of thought or love but the fact that they cannot be measured does not mean they do not exist.
This dichotomy has led to assertions such as the impossibility of fighting global warming because the effort would damage the economy. The belief that continued economic growth can be sustained indefinitely. Turning a chicken into an egg-laying machine incapable of turning around in her cage may be the most efficient means of producing eggs but is not healthy for the chicken and produces eggs with fragile shells and less than optimal nutritive content. We have resorted to industrialized farming to feed a world that is over-populated and could not be supported by traditional methods but the very methods used to maximize food production have rendered our soil incapable of self-fertilization and thus made us dependent on the petro-chemical industry to supply us with fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides. Of course it is only coincidence that one class of pesticides is decimating the insects that pollinate the flowers that grow our food. The use of fertilizer and diesel fuel to blow up the Murrah Building in Oklahoma and the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas bring into question the safety of fertilizer production and its relationship to high explosives.
The above is by way of demonstrating the interconnectedness of all things. The cancellation of 250 and growing Delta Airlines Flights because of a breakdown of computer systems serves to illustrate our dependence on modern technology. A crack in an insulator led to a hydro pole fire that knocked out power to 7500 people in Oakville including myself Friday August 5th. The failure of signal lights at 6PM snarled traffic on Trafalgar Rd for hours.
This book is heavy on philosophy and beats its arguments to death but I agree with its conclusions despite all that. Paying farmers not to farm and using the over-production of wine in France to produce fuel seem foolhardy. I was not aware that sheep had been bred that do not need shearing.
The American Constitution talks of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; the latter being a euphemism for the accumulation of wealth. The manner in which we acquire and define that wealth has a direct bearing on our well-being and the planet on which we live. The wealth of nations is in part defined as its GNP. If the only factors taken into account are the goods and services produced then we ignore the environmental costs of that production and the services nature provided to make it possible. Rainforests provide rain through the transpiration of moisture produced by trees and in the process sequester carbon that is released into the atmosphere when those forests are destroyed. We must remember that the Sahara was once a vast rain forest.
If our wealth is defined only in terms of income and the accumulation of material possessions then we ignore the value of health and well-being along with the happiness that comes from self-fulfilment and self-worth.
“On Earth as it is in Heaven.” The earth is not simply a resource to be exploited. It is a living whole of which we are an integral part. Just as “The Word was made flesh” the spirit creates matter, not matter the spirit. We ignore this connection at our peril.
Charles, Prince of Wales is heir to an antiquated, ancestral fiefdom and reputedly talks to his tomatoes. Many would see his position in the world as irrelevant and his opinions as suspect. This book has been around for 6 years and escaped my notice until recently. I borrowed an electronic copy out of curiosity and will confess that I am mightily surprised and impressed. Of course a future King of England can afford the world's best ghost writers but this combination of Eastern philosophical thought and theology resonates with my own thinking.
My own first contact with the empiricism of the scientific method in high school was an uncomfortable one. As HRH asserts we cannot empirically prove the existence of God or demonstrate the appearance of thought or love but the fact that they cannot be measured does not mean they do not exist.
This dichotomy has led to assertions such as the impossibility of fighting global warming because the effort would damage the economy. The belief that continued economic growth can be sustained indefinitely. Turning a chicken into an egg-laying machine incapable of turning around in her cage may be the most efficient means of producing eggs but is not healthy for the chicken and produces eggs with fragile shells and less than optimal nutritive content. We have resorted to industrialized farming to feed a world that is over-populated and could not be supported by traditional methods but the very methods used to maximize food production have rendered our soil incapable of self-fertilization and thus made us dependent on the petro-chemical industry to supply us with fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides. Of course it is only coincidence that one class of pesticides is decimating the insects that pollinate the flowers that grow our food. The use of fertilizer and diesel fuel to blow up the Murrah Building in Oklahoma and the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas bring into question the safety of fertilizer production and its relationship to high explosives.
The above is by way of demonstrating the interconnectedness of all things. The cancellation of 250 and growing Delta Airlines Flights because of a breakdown of computer systems serves to illustrate our dependence on modern technology. A crack in an insulator led to a hydro pole fire that knocked out power to 7500 people in Oakville including myself Friday August 5th. The failure of signal lights at 6PM snarled traffic on Trafalgar Rd for hours.
This book is heavy on philosophy and beats its arguments to death but I agree with its conclusions despite all that. Paying farmers not to farm and using the over-production of wine in France to produce fuel seem foolhardy. I was not aware that sheep had been bred that do not need shearing.
The American Constitution talks of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; the latter being a euphemism for the accumulation of wealth. The manner in which we acquire and define that wealth has a direct bearing on our well-being and the planet on which we live. The wealth of nations is in part defined as its GNP. If the only factors taken into account are the goods and services produced then we ignore the environmental costs of that production and the services nature provided to make it possible. Rainforests provide rain through the transpiration of moisture produced by trees and in the process sequester carbon that is released into the atmosphere when those forests are destroyed. We must remember that the Sahara was once a vast rain forest.
If our wealth is defined only in terms of income and the accumulation of material possessions then we ignore the value of health and well-being along with the happiness that comes from self-fulfilment and self-worth.
“On Earth as it is in Heaven.” The earth is not simply a resource to be exploited. It is a living whole of which we are an integral part. Just as “The Word was made flesh” the spirit creates matter, not matter the spirit. We ignore this connection at our peril.
Read
February 20, 2023You could take this book, and nit pick flaws about it (which there are a couple minor ones) but to do so would be to mostly miss the point, a point made well enough that if you were to do so it would probably serve as evidence that you really didn't understand the argument itself. This book, although it is a rational argument, backed by the experiences of our sovereign and the findings of his research team, is not primarily so - it is a spiritual argument. After all, His Majesty Pisimwa Kamiwohkitahpamikohk isn't just our King - he is the head of the Church of England, one of the world's, and especially the commonwealth's major religious factions. It is distinctly religious a book that appeals to what would be our soul, a cry out to those who are 'spiritually' capable of acting rightly, to do so. It is a manifesto, and a call to action -- even a call to arms -- not just on individual issues (though it is that too) but to come together as a nation, and a world. It is obviously an artefact of King Pisimwa's journey to understand his role, and to make sense of both himself, his position in society, and the society itself and its broader context. To help what he's presumably going to do, as our new sovereign, make sense to the rest of us. Which he's going to need, as we are failing very hard to guide ourselves right now, and we will probably resist doing the right thing, even if he tries to lead us into doing so.
There's a bunch of little traditions, OLD traditions that have been highlighted in the book - Pisimwa Kamiwohkitahpamikohk has deep, well informed respect for old traditions, and this book in part is an argument to respect and at least keep on life support the oldest of our traditions. The "magic carpets" serve as a good case in point here: something in the muslim world, that is unmistakably ancient, human, beautiful and serves as an example of how we can see the world and which has clearly moved King Pisimwa deeply. He is trying, with this book, to share the beauty and wonder of these carpets and what they represent to him, and to those who make them. Some of us might react with incredulity that something as basic and mundane as a carpet can be so meaningful but His Majesty 's infectious awe clearly comes through across the pages - the carpets *are* an important part of our world, one facet of many worth living and working to have a chance to see and understand.
As a book, it is beautifully done - it definitely shares more in common than medieval manuscripts than most modern polemics. Yet it is unmistakably modern in its content - concurrent to this book I am currently listening to Joe Rogan(Caution: Spotify link) and No Agenda podcast episodes of roughly the same era this book was published (2010-2011), and all 3 of them went into some of the same current events(the bank bailouts at Goldman Sachs during the Great Recession). His Majesty is up to date and isn't in this tome just writing a timeless book that will be outdated a decade later: it was relevant, then, and it is just as relevant now. It was packed full of information, presented carefully and thoughtfully, much of it new to me. It is the product of a world class intelligence and information system - the best the United Kingdom offers. It is the rare kind of book where the author has clearly taken time to reflect, in a cloister kept 'apart' from the hustle and distractions of modern life for awhile.
It is also a mathematics book - one of the things that King Pisimwa has learned is that you can actually teach maths, clearly both to children and to adults if you do it in an underhanded way - by giving them the math attached to something tangible - he offers proof of its working in this book (which does teach a thing or two about vesicae). As such, we could do a lot worse than to make this mandatory reading material for, say, grade 12 students (perhaps swapping out some americana and a math class or something). Surely many adults in Canada should read this book, now that its author is our King, if they haven't by now. I wouldn't put it as a must-read for everyone (surely many people have important work to do the things described in this book that would take precedence), but if any Canadian finds themselves say, enjoying our legal marijuana, watching Curling, NHL hockey on TV, or taking time out to visit OnlyFans or something -- reading this book would be a much better use of your time.
That all being said: there is one topic within it that, while it doesn't undermine the rest of the book, I would hope that His Majesty eventually does seek more guidance about : Homeopathy. He views homeopathy as a pre-scientific, un-scientific or not-yet scientific field of endeavour, one that shows promise to leading us towards a more 'wholistic' view of health. This is a misreading of the its history. It is actually part of the mechanistic, scientific worldview - just an older part, and one that does not work at all. Occultae Veritatis does a relatively good job of explaining this topic in detail for those who are interested in understanding the backdrop here. That Homeopathy, in fact, doesn't actually work is actually beside the point though -- the issue is that Homeopathy, as part of science, is detached from Nature in the same way as so many other things this book carefully describes. I hope that His Majesty understands this is only a minor mis-step in the context of this book, though, perhaps best left in to prove that, as King, he is still human and part of the human drama, and we human beings (as opposed to gods like Ma'at and Thoth) occasionally get details wrong and -- here's the important part -- learn from them.
This book is explicitly a book of and for the "alternative", not the mainstream. It's a statement along the lines of 'yes, you may be outsiders now ...but when I am King you will be given power, as God as my witness'. It's kind of weird seeing a King (then a Prince) view himself as such an outsider, but that's how it was in 2010. And as part of the British Monarchy ... King Pisimwa is pretty much right-wing by definition. This makes this book fundamentally an alt-right book . Written before that became a dirty word, but roughly around the same time when the right wing was waning, globally before it would wax again later in this century. It offers an alt-right worldview that *isn't* the one that, say, Donald Trump or Richard Spencer might offer. An image of what our politics *could* look like, if identitarians (and reactionaries opposing them) hadn't used much of the oxygen.
There are immediately actionable consequences of this book.
One example of this, is that the Governor General and Lieutenant Governors are in a unique position in Canadian history; they can and can be made to reassert royal prerogatives. We as Canadians have a choice: do we ignore the potential that this King offers, and tread our own path (probably towards disaster at this rate) or do we work with our new Sovereign to obtain the goals so clearly elucidated in this book?
Another is that positions like the ombudsman for the environment would definitely have support from the Crown -- provinces, like Ontario, that have removed them with prejudice can probably be pressured, by the Crown, to reimplement the position and empower it with some authority. This is just a taste of the definite political consequences that the ascension of our new King has, that are made clear in this book - those who ignore this book in Canada do so at their own risk.
There's a bunch of little traditions, OLD traditions that have been highlighted in the book - Pisimwa Kamiwohkitahpamikohk has deep, well informed respect for old traditions, and this book in part is an argument to respect and at least keep on life support the oldest of our traditions. The "magic carpets" serve as a good case in point here: something in the muslim world, that is unmistakably ancient, human, beautiful and serves as an example of how we can see the world and which has clearly moved King Pisimwa deeply. He is trying, with this book, to share the beauty and wonder of these carpets and what they represent to him, and to those who make them. Some of us might react with incredulity that something as basic and mundane as a carpet can be so meaningful but His Majesty 's infectious awe clearly comes through across the pages - the carpets *are* an important part of our world, one facet of many worth living and working to have a chance to see and understand.
As a book, it is beautifully done - it definitely shares more in common than medieval manuscripts than most modern polemics. Yet it is unmistakably modern in its content - concurrent to this book I am currently listening to Joe Rogan(Caution: Spotify link) and No Agenda podcast episodes of roughly the same era this book was published (2010-2011), and all 3 of them went into some of the same current events(the bank bailouts at Goldman Sachs during the Great Recession). His Majesty is up to date and isn't in this tome just writing a timeless book that will be outdated a decade later: it was relevant, then, and it is just as relevant now. It was packed full of information, presented carefully and thoughtfully, much of it new to me. It is the product of a world class intelligence and information system - the best the United Kingdom offers. It is the rare kind of book where the author has clearly taken time to reflect, in a cloister kept 'apart' from the hustle and distractions of modern life for awhile.
It is also a mathematics book - one of the things that King Pisimwa has learned is that you can actually teach maths, clearly both to children and to adults if you do it in an underhanded way - by giving them the math attached to something tangible - he offers proof of its working in this book (which does teach a thing or two about vesicae). As such, we could do a lot worse than to make this mandatory reading material for, say, grade 12 students (perhaps swapping out some americana and a math class or something). Surely many adults in Canada should read this book, now that its author is our King, if they haven't by now. I wouldn't put it as a must-read for everyone (surely many people have important work to do the things described in this book that would take precedence), but if any Canadian finds themselves say, enjoying our legal marijuana, watching Curling, NHL hockey on TV, or taking time out to visit OnlyFans or something -- reading this book would be a much better use of your time.
That all being said: there is one topic within it that, while it doesn't undermine the rest of the book, I would hope that His Majesty eventually does seek more guidance about : Homeopathy. He views homeopathy as a pre-scientific, un-scientific or not-yet scientific field of endeavour, one that shows promise to leading us towards a more 'wholistic' view of health. This is a misreading of the its history. It is actually part of the mechanistic, scientific worldview - just an older part, and one that does not work at all. Occultae Veritatis does a relatively good job of explaining this topic in detail for those who are interested in understanding the backdrop here. That Homeopathy, in fact, doesn't actually work is actually beside the point though -- the issue is that Homeopathy, as part of science, is detached from Nature in the same way as so many other things this book carefully describes. I hope that His Majesty understands this is only a minor mis-step in the context of this book, though, perhaps best left in to prove that, as King, he is still human and part of the human drama, and we human beings (as opposed to gods like Ma'at and Thoth) occasionally get details wrong and -- here's the important part -- learn from them.
This book is explicitly a book of and for the "alternative", not the mainstream. It's a statement along the lines of 'yes, you may be outsiders now ...but when I am King you will be given power, as God as my witness'. It's kind of weird seeing a King (then a Prince) view himself as such an outsider, but that's how it was in 2010. And as part of the British Monarchy ... King Pisimwa is pretty much right-wing by definition. This makes this book fundamentally an alt-right book . Written before that became a dirty word, but roughly around the same time when the right wing was waning, globally before it would wax again later in this century. It offers an alt-right worldview that *isn't* the one that, say, Donald Trump or Richard Spencer might offer. An image of what our politics *could* look like, if identitarians (and reactionaries opposing them) hadn't used much of the oxygen.
There are immediately actionable consequences of this book.
One example of this, is that the Governor General and Lieutenant Governors are in a unique position in Canadian history; they can and can be made to reassert royal prerogatives. We as Canadians have a choice: do we ignore the potential that this King offers, and tread our own path (probably towards disaster at this rate) or do we work with our new Sovereign to obtain the goals so clearly elucidated in this book?
Another is that positions like the ombudsman for the environment would definitely have support from the Crown -- provinces, like Ontario, that have removed them with prejudice can probably be pressured, by the Crown, to reimplement the position and empower it with some authority. This is just a taste of the definite political consequences that the ascension of our new King has, that are made clear in this book - those who ignore this book in Canada do so at their own risk.
August 6, 2013
Tentatively, I award this volume 4 of 5 stars. It is a vast collection of information pertaining to the detrimental effects of our culture of convenience upon the planet and various insights, examples and suggestions of ways to offset and undo the damage we've caused - none of it particularly original, but still worthy of our consideration - the problem I have with the text is its author.
I have nothing against HRH Prince Charles and commend his work in organic agriculture, conservation and traditional crafts (to name but a few of the range of activities he supports) but, and this is my starting point, he is not actually an expert in sustainability. Whilst certainly a keen proponent of positive, sustainable change and someone who has been involved in the establishment of many worthwhile institutions and trusts over the years, he isn't really in a position to preach - yet preach he does. The worst part of the entire book are his anecdotal references to all his worthy work, not because they are individually self-indulgent or congratulatory but because they occur, on average, every page or so and the same applies to the many experts, incidents and locations he has visited or with whom he has had an audience, almost solely on account of the fact that is he heir to the throne. The book suffers for this all too personal style as we are reminded, time and time again, how long Charles has been fighting the good fight (despite fierce resistance, as he notes on MANY occasions) and it descends into a proselytising, holier-than-thou account of his good deeds.
Unfortunately, I found that this personally rendered several of the chapters positively soporific.
I don't mean to detract from my rating or my initial point, it is a genuinely well considered piece of writing that deals with the issue of sustainability across the spectrum of human activities, but to present my perception, truthfully.
There were three other, relatively minor, issues I found: the 'spiritual' aspect upon which HRH insisted (as one of those privileged few, "chosen by God," I suppose this was inevitable) and the claims of legitimacy that homeopathy and osteopathy gain as a result; the poorly rationalised explanation of his assertions concerning architecture and the 'sacred geometry' (particularly having dismissed Le Corbusier as an agent of faceless Modern mechanisation alone, despite his various experiments with human geometries); and the lack of substantiating facts, figures or textual references to affirm any of his statements. The latter, I hope, is a case of there being too many to reference and their readily available existence elsewhere - I shall keep hoping.
I have nothing against HRH Prince Charles and commend his work in organic agriculture, conservation and traditional crafts (to name but a few of the range of activities he supports) but, and this is my starting point, he is not actually an expert in sustainability. Whilst certainly a keen proponent of positive, sustainable change and someone who has been involved in the establishment of many worthwhile institutions and trusts over the years, he isn't really in a position to preach - yet preach he does. The worst part of the entire book are his anecdotal references to all his worthy work, not because they are individually self-indulgent or congratulatory but because they occur, on average, every page or so and the same applies to the many experts, incidents and locations he has visited or with whom he has had an audience, almost solely on account of the fact that is he heir to the throne. The book suffers for this all too personal style as we are reminded, time and time again, how long Charles has been fighting the good fight (despite fierce resistance, as he notes on MANY occasions) and it descends into a proselytising, holier-than-thou account of his good deeds.
Unfortunately, I found that this personally rendered several of the chapters positively soporific.
I don't mean to detract from my rating or my initial point, it is a genuinely well considered piece of writing that deals with the issue of sustainability across the spectrum of human activities, but to present my perception, truthfully.
There were three other, relatively minor, issues I found: the 'spiritual' aspect upon which HRH insisted (as one of those privileged few, "chosen by God," I suppose this was inevitable) and the claims of legitimacy that homeopathy and osteopathy gain as a result; the poorly rationalised explanation of his assertions concerning architecture and the 'sacred geometry' (particularly having dismissed Le Corbusier as an agent of faceless Modern mechanisation alone, despite his various experiments with human geometries); and the lack of substantiating facts, figures or textual references to affirm any of his statements. The latter, I hope, is a case of there being too many to reference and their readily available existence elsewhere - I shall keep hoping.
January 6, 2024
Amazing! I am of the generation that grew up believing Diana was the only thing good about the royal family. This year I read a book about her that made me realise how tough the marriage had been for Charles. And far from being some irrelevant tea drinking conservative cad, this book reveals Charles as the best kind of caring intellectual. A monumental amount of thought has gone into this book. Many of the ideas Charles previously received ridicule for are now becoming mainstream.
Overall I find myself thinking how lucky we are to have a King who hasn't just lounged around in the decadence of royalty, but cares deeply about our world and is passionate enough to put ideas into action.
Some quotes and thoughts I noted from this book:
Regards what he calls the ‘deifying of science’, Charles says:
‘Empiricism … is a language not able to fathom experiences like faith and the meaning things, nor can it articulate matters of the soul… Don’t get me wrong, it has a very valuable role to play, but the trouble is empiricism now assumes authority beyond the area it is capable of considering, and consequently it excludes the voices of those other levels of languages that once played their rightful part in giving humanity a comprehensive view of reality. That is the philosophical and spiritual levels of language. It conveniently elbows the soul out of the picture…
Science can tell us how things work but it is not equipped to tell us what they mean. That is the domain of philosophy and religion and spirituality… Empiricism has its part to play but it cannot play all the parts. But because it tries to, we end up with the general outlook that now prevails. … I want to show how this came to be, from the 17th century onwards… For not only has it prevented us from considering the world philosophically any more, our predominantly mechanistic way of looking at the world has also excluded our spiritual relationship with nature… Such ideas are dismissed as outdated or irrelevant because a thing can not exist if it can’t be weighed and measured. We live in an age that claims not to believe in the soul… Empiricism has proved to us how the world really works and on its terms this has nothing to do with God. There is no empiricial evidence for the existence of God, so therefore God does not exist. That seems a reasonable, rational argument, so long as you go along with the empiricial definition of God as a thing.
I presume the same argument can also be applied to the existence of thought. After all, no brain scanner has ever managed to photograph a thought, or a piece of love for that matter, and it never will. So, by the same terms, thought and love do not exist either… This is the consequence of doggedly following Galileo’s line that there is nothing in nature but quantity and motion. Over time it has added up to a serious situation where we are no longer able to view the world much beyond its surface and appearance. We are persuaded instead to follow a way of being that denies the non material side to our humanity… This is why I have long felt alarmed that our collective thinking and predominant way of doing things are so dangerously out of balance with nature.’
Research team led by Robert Constanza, 1997, published in the journal Nature, title: ‘The value of the world’s ecosystems and natural capital’.
‘The figure they arrived at suggested the annual value of nature in bald bottom line financial terms was then about 33 trillion dollars. They said this was a minimum estimate. What is more significant about this finding is how it was almost double GDP at the time – 18 trillion dollars. The part of the economy that we measure and obsess about day after day in the media, is only about half as valuable financially as the part about which we place almost no financial value at all, and give little attention to and yet which is the ultimate source of all our wealth. The term ‘market failure’ hardly does justice to the scale and profundity of this oversight. But that is what it is. An economic failure of epic proportions.’ A similar study went on to say the world is incurring a loss of 2 – 4.5 trillion dollars every year because of our destruction. To put that figure into perspective … the GFC lost us 2 trillion dollars.’ [See 2.32 hours for more]
‘One problem with GDP growth as a sole measure of progress, is that it only measures certain things… eg. Much of the welfare enjoyed by society is derived from the quality of people’s relationships and the pleasantness and security of their neighbourhoods. GDP does not measure … how happy we are or whether our lives are fulfilling. Neither does GDP reflect the huge costs that come with clearing ancient forests, depleting fisheries or loading carbon dioxide into the earth’s atmosphere. Worse still, all these are the result of activities which at the moment increase economic growth… We are measuring the wrong things… This is a fundamental and remarkable oversight.
On science’s break from religion:
‘With God separate from his creation humanity likewise became separate from nature. Nature came to be seen as something outside of us. We were still part of creation but we were no longer creation itself. Leading thinkers began to stress the role of humanity as the instrument of the will of God… free to pursue a mastery of will over other things in nature. This seems to me to have been the great fracture in thinking that prepared the ground for all that was coming in the turbulent world of the 17th century. The seeds took a while to germinate but in the end they sprouted and so our modern culture was born, and has since created a general attitude in society that has little problem with the view that we live in an inert, purposeless, mechanistic universe.
Descartes:
‘Descartes famously said that animals are mere machines devoid of feeling or sensation. That seems to remain the main justification for the horrific way millions of chickens, beef cattle and pigs are manufactured to specific weights and standards of meat in developed nations… Millions of farm animals today never see a farmyard, let alone a field.’
‘People with access to green spaces tend to live longer… One well known study investigated the recovery rates of patients who had access to a view of trees in a Texas hospital courtyard, compared with those who only had sight of a concrete wall. All patients had had the same gall bladder surgery so were in a comparable group… The findings were remarkable. Those with the view of trees spent fewer days in hospital, used fewer drugs, had fewer complications and registered fewer complaints with the nurses… Subsequent research found even nature related imagery such as paintings and photographs on the wall reduced blood pressure, cut anxiety levels and reduced pain. The reverse proved to be true as well… That was quite a finding and should have implications for how we plan healthy societies.’
Gandhi:
‘The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems.’
One part of the book talked about primary cultures deifying – and thus paying extra regard to – the earth. Western thinking by contrast has reduced it all to a machine. I found myself asking what then, is the Christian way?
Overall I find myself thinking how lucky we are to have a King who hasn't just lounged around in the decadence of royalty, but cares deeply about our world and is passionate enough to put ideas into action.
Some quotes and thoughts I noted from this book:
Regards what he calls the ‘deifying of science’, Charles says:
‘Empiricism … is a language not able to fathom experiences like faith and the meaning things, nor can it articulate matters of the soul… Don’t get me wrong, it has a very valuable role to play, but the trouble is empiricism now assumes authority beyond the area it is capable of considering, and consequently it excludes the voices of those other levels of languages that once played their rightful part in giving humanity a comprehensive view of reality. That is the philosophical and spiritual levels of language. It conveniently elbows the soul out of the picture…
Science can tell us how things work but it is not equipped to tell us what they mean. That is the domain of philosophy and religion and spirituality… Empiricism has its part to play but it cannot play all the parts. But because it tries to, we end up with the general outlook that now prevails. … I want to show how this came to be, from the 17th century onwards… For not only has it prevented us from considering the world philosophically any more, our predominantly mechanistic way of looking at the world has also excluded our spiritual relationship with nature… Such ideas are dismissed as outdated or irrelevant because a thing can not exist if it can’t be weighed and measured. We live in an age that claims not to believe in the soul… Empiricism has proved to us how the world really works and on its terms this has nothing to do with God. There is no empiricial evidence for the existence of God, so therefore God does not exist. That seems a reasonable, rational argument, so long as you go along with the empiricial definition of God as a thing.
I presume the same argument can also be applied to the existence of thought. After all, no brain scanner has ever managed to photograph a thought, or a piece of love for that matter, and it never will. So, by the same terms, thought and love do not exist either… This is the consequence of doggedly following Galileo’s line that there is nothing in nature but quantity and motion. Over time it has added up to a serious situation where we are no longer able to view the world much beyond its surface and appearance. We are persuaded instead to follow a way of being that denies the non material side to our humanity… This is why I have long felt alarmed that our collective thinking and predominant way of doing things are so dangerously out of balance with nature.’
Research team led by Robert Constanza, 1997, published in the journal Nature, title: ‘The value of the world’s ecosystems and natural capital’.
‘The figure they arrived at suggested the annual value of nature in bald bottom line financial terms was then about 33 trillion dollars. They said this was a minimum estimate. What is more significant about this finding is how it was almost double GDP at the time – 18 trillion dollars. The part of the economy that we measure and obsess about day after day in the media, is only about half as valuable financially as the part about which we place almost no financial value at all, and give little attention to and yet which is the ultimate source of all our wealth. The term ‘market failure’ hardly does justice to the scale and profundity of this oversight. But that is what it is. An economic failure of epic proportions.’ A similar study went on to say the world is incurring a loss of 2 – 4.5 trillion dollars every year because of our destruction. To put that figure into perspective … the GFC lost us 2 trillion dollars.’ [See 2.32 hours for more]
‘One problem with GDP growth as a sole measure of progress, is that it only measures certain things… eg. Much of the welfare enjoyed by society is derived from the quality of people’s relationships and the pleasantness and security of their neighbourhoods. GDP does not measure … how happy we are or whether our lives are fulfilling. Neither does GDP reflect the huge costs that come with clearing ancient forests, depleting fisheries or loading carbon dioxide into the earth’s atmosphere. Worse still, all these are the result of activities which at the moment increase economic growth… We are measuring the wrong things… This is a fundamental and remarkable oversight.
On science’s break from religion:
‘With God separate from his creation humanity likewise became separate from nature. Nature came to be seen as something outside of us. We were still part of creation but we were no longer creation itself. Leading thinkers began to stress the role of humanity as the instrument of the will of God… free to pursue a mastery of will over other things in nature. This seems to me to have been the great fracture in thinking that prepared the ground for all that was coming in the turbulent world of the 17th century. The seeds took a while to germinate but in the end they sprouted and so our modern culture was born, and has since created a general attitude in society that has little problem with the view that we live in an inert, purposeless, mechanistic universe.
Descartes:
‘Descartes famously said that animals are mere machines devoid of feeling or sensation. That seems to remain the main justification for the horrific way millions of chickens, beef cattle and pigs are manufactured to specific weights and standards of meat in developed nations… Millions of farm animals today never see a farmyard, let alone a field.’
‘People with access to green spaces tend to live longer… One well known study investigated the recovery rates of patients who had access to a view of trees in a Texas hospital courtyard, compared with those who only had sight of a concrete wall. All patients had had the same gall bladder surgery so were in a comparable group… The findings were remarkable. Those with the view of trees spent fewer days in hospital, used fewer drugs, had fewer complications and registered fewer complaints with the nurses… Subsequent research found even nature related imagery such as paintings and photographs on the wall reduced blood pressure, cut anxiety levels and reduced pain. The reverse proved to be true as well… That was quite a finding and should have implications for how we plan healthy societies.’
Gandhi:
‘The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems.’
One part of the book talked about primary cultures deifying – and thus paying extra regard to – the earth. Western thinking by contrast has reduced it all to a machine. I found myself asking what then, is the Christian way?
Displaying 1 - 29 of 68 reviews