‘Without glaciers and life-giving water, our planet has no future’
INDIAN SPIRITUAL LEADER EXPRESSES ALARM AT SPEED OF CLIMATE CHANGE DURING ICELAND VISIT
AN INFLUENTIAL Indian spiritual leader travelled to Iceland last month to see first hand the impact of climate change upon glaciers.
His Holiness (HH) Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji (HH Pujya Muniji) is the president of the Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh, north India, and a co-founder and chair of the Global Interfaith WASH Alliance (GIWA).
HH Pujya Muniji visited Iceland in August to assess technologies for green energy and environmental protection.
He said, “Seeing the glaciers in Iceland melt right in front of my eyes, it is impossible to deny climate change and impossible not to engage in action.
“I want to urge and inspire everyone across the world, and particularly in India, to understand the importance of our glaciers and water, and [make efforts] to protect our Himalayas.”
The Vatnajökull glacier in Iceland, where HH Pujya Muniji visited, is said to be the third-largest glacier in the world, after those in Antarctica and Greenland.
He undertook the trip after he saw for himself the Gomukh glacier melting in the Himalayas during a yatra [pilgrimage] from Rishikesh in north India.
The Himalayan mountain range forms a natural defence barrier in India’s north, as they protect the country from the cold and dry winds of central Asia, and prevent the monsoon winds of the Indian Ocean from crossing over to countries north of India.
Some of India greatest rivers originate in the mountain range, while the plains benefit from monsoon rain.
However, melting Himalayan glaciers can lead to increased flooding and weather changes, which in turn affects agricultural yield.
HH Pujya Muniji visited a key location in Iceland where the Vatnajökull glacier meets the ocean. He saw the ice breaking off the glacier and melting into the water in a short span of time. Within two days, he saw how the landscape changed.
On his first day there, HH Pujya Muniji saw huge pieces of ice on Iceland’s Diamond Beach, which is covered with large pieces of ice that look like diamonds in the sunshine.
The following morning, when he came to see them at sunrise, there was almost nothing left on the beach. By the third day, all the ice had completely melted – there was nothing but sand and rock left on the entire beach.
HH Pujya Muniji led an hour of meditation with a group and they set a timelapse video in order to see the change in just one hour.
Among his recommendations to save the Himalayan glaciers are a commitment to a carbon-free energy sector in India and increase in subsidies for solar, wind and other alternative energy sources.
He also suggested conducting emission checks for all cars entering the Char Dham region, a group of four pilgrimage sites in north India, so that they comply with existing rules.
Limiting the number of cars allowed in Himalayas will help to keep emission levels in check, HH Pujya Muniji said.
Educating people to prevent the burning of rubbish and the provision of improved livelihoods, as well as increased law enforcement, will also help, he added.
And finally, he suggested planting more trees in order to keep rising temperatures in check.
Last month also marked 75 years of India’s independence, so HH Pujya Muniji planned to be in Iceland on August 15, when he raised the Indian flag on Europe’s largest glacier.
On Independence Day, he led pledges in Iceland as well as with devotees across the world, to protect and preserve nature and the world’s water bodies.
“Tiranga (the Indian tricolour) and the climate jhanda (flag) need to go hand in hand. We need to raise the flag of our nation and the flag in order to protect our climate (paryavaran) together,” HH Pujya Muniji said.
The GIWA group aims to protect and preserve the world’s water.
“Without glaciers, there is no future. Without water, there is no future. Without
Himalayas, there is no future,” the spiritual leader said.
“We must wake up and use our hearts, hands and minds to stop life-giving water, which is our planet’s future, from disappearing right in front of our eyes.”