soul based ethics going beyond the senses

Jayashree Sadri and Sorab Sadri

SOUL BASED ETHICSGOING BEYOND THE SENSES

Professor Jayashree SadriAnd

Dr Sorab Sadri


TWO SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT The soul based school looks upon

spiritualism and the equilibrium between the heart soul and mind to determine values and ethics.

The mind based school looks upon the willingness to be ethical and the ability to be ethical to determine values and ethics.


TWO FUNDAMENTAL ISSUES IN UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL REALITY.

The Phenomena : what we perceive through the five sensory organs.

The Noumena : what we perceive beyond the five sensory organs.


REALITY There is no doubt that we see what we

want to see, hear what we want to hear and understand only what we want to understand.

Hence our perception of reality is by nature subjective and person specific.


The Dichotomy

THE DICHOTOMY BETWEEN SUBJECTIVE AND OBJECTIVE PERCEPTIONS IS FALSE.

We cannot be objective without using a scientific method which only allows us to approximate

objectivity and not attain it fully.

To claim to be objective is itself a subjective notion!


THE LIMITS OF MAN Man’s intellect is too miniscule to

understand the larger reality that is nature. What we understand of the totality is

conditioned by the limits of our own intellect.

Hence at any point of time our knowledge is limited unlike Mother Nature that is limitless.


Is Social Reality A Constant? Social scientists have always said that

social reality is mutable or is constantly changing.

If the social reality is mutable then our perception of it is also mutable.

If our perception is mutable, how can we lay claim to being consistently objective?


The Two Views

Mind based thinkers talk of the rational-ethical view involving the ability criterion and the willingness criterion.

They are restricted to the interplay of the heart and mind.

Soul based thinkers talk of the spiritual-ethical view involving man’s relation with the Higher Being.

They are restricted by their own understanding of this relationship.


The Rainbow Concept

The mind based thinker says that perfection is a rainbow that can never be reached but we can only move towards it.

The soul based thinker says that man can be so evolved that he can be one with the Higher Being and thus attain perfection.


The Difference

Mind Based Thinkers are Epicureans.

Man is an economic, political, social and rational being.

He has relations, wants and needs that are socially determined and that have to be gratified.

Soul Based Thinkers are Stoics.

Man is a spiritual being created for a divine purpose.

His relations, wants and needs are pre-determined by a Higher Self and they have a definite purpose.


Three Views

Charvak Karma Yoga Bhakti Yoga

Man is born to enjoy in a God less world.

Unfulfilled desires need to be satisfied though karma.

Acceptance of reality as it is and living within it in harmony.


Ethics and Man

How man looks at ethics is determined by which of the three views given above has been accepted by that individual.

Ethics is guided by spiritual laws that are constant, time tested and scientific.

Values are inherent to man and is conditioned by the level of his consciousness.


Soul Based Ethics

Man is a spiritual being. Man is governed by the laws of Mother

Nature. Man has to live in harmony with Mother

Nature. This harmony is the fountain head of ethics.


TRUTH

Mind based thinkers say that all truth is relative and that the only absolute truth

is God or the Larger Immensity.

Soul based thinkers say that truth is absolute at all times and under all

conditions.


MIND BASED

Death is the only thing that is absolutely certain in life.

Even birth and relationships are not certain. There is no room for destiny,

karma or anything supernatural.


SOUL BASED

Three things are pre-determined by Nature and so are definite in life:

Birth

Life partner

Death


Their Similarity

Both views believe that man is the beginning and the end of all science. That man is both

the subject and the object of all inquiry.

Both views have an inherent respect for man.


Their Difference

God made man for a definite purpose according to the soul based view.

Man saw God in his own limited image according to the mind based view.

THIS LIMIT OF UNDERSTANDING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MAN AND GOD (FOR

BOTH SCHOOLS) IS DETERMINED BY THE LEVEL OF MAN’S CONSCIOUSNESS.


Mind based view

Man must pursue three things:

Gyan : knowledge

Buddhi: Intellect

Vivek: Consciousness.


Soul based view

Man has to fulfill his ultimate and pre-determined purpose in life.

Man develops himself spiritually i.e. beyond the body, mind and intellect levels.

Man takes along this developed spiritual knowledge alone with him after death to be born again with the same level.


The Kriya Maan Karma

If a man refuses to develop his consciousness he can regress backwards and take a lower form of

consciousness in his next life.

Higher level beings on earth can assist a man in his path of spiritual development.

When a person is fully prepared then the higher level being (guru) seeks him out.

This guru is always prepared to help others.


Mind based thinkers have given man the birth right to live as he/she feels fit as long as he/she does not disturb or hurt

others or acts to impede their freedom.

The concept of “free will” is very much important to life and liberty.


Soul based thinkers say that man has every right to achieve higher levels of consciousness and always live in harmony with nature.

Progressively man can even be one with his Maker. {Ahm Brahmasmi} and declare

the Maker is I {Tatwam Asi}.


The mind based thinker says that rational choice dictates all action including ethics.

Hence man must be both willing and able to act ethically under the

circumstances in which he finds himself at a given moment in time.


The soul based thinker says that all actions are pre-determined but man has the choice of either following nature or going against it.

In either case the results or fruits of the actions will have to be borne by the doer since he/she is ultimately responsible for

what he/she does.


THE INDIAN MANAGERIAL SCENE

The fact however remains that a large majority of Indian managers take the Praxis route when faced with an ethical dilemma. Yet they talk of

free thought and rationality all the time.


POSITIVE ASPECTS OF PRAXIS MANAGERS

THEY ARE GOOD TEAM WORKERS. THEY CONFORM EASILY TO THE

CORPORATE CULTURE. DECISION EXECUTION BECOMES

PREDICTABLE AND HENCE POLICY OUTCOMES ARE KNOWN.


NEGATIVE ASPECTS OF PRAXIS MANAGERS MANAGERS ARE NOT WILLING TO STAND

UP AND BE COUNTED. MANAGERS THRIVE ON MEDIOCRITY AND

PROMOTE ONLY THOSE WHO TOW THEIR LINE.

INNVOVATION AND CREATIVITY GETS SIDE LINED IN THE PERSUIT OF CONFORMITY.


THE CONFUSED INDIAN MANAGER

On one hand the manager is rational, professional and uses the acceptance /

conformity option in daily life.

On the other hand this manager believes in fate, destiny and the supernatural.


Given the Indian Psyche’

It is more plausible and easy to look at managerial ethics in terms of the soul (spiritualism) than in terms of the mind

(objective rationalism).


FUTURE AGENDA FOR SOUL BASED RESEARCH IN INDIA

TO VALIDATE OR REFUTE THE XLRI-NITIE STUDY.

TO SEE IF BEHAVIOUR PATTERNS CHANGE WITH STATUS AND GENDER.

TO NOTE IF BEHAVIOUR PATTERNS ARE INDUSTRY AND PROFESSION SPECIFIC.


Which kind of a thinker are you?

THANK YOU

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