You are Therefore I Am

“Satish Kumar offers us the gift of So Hum - ‘You Are, Therefore I Am’. His mental journey and inspirations need to become everyone’s inspiration, to help us to move from violence to non-violence, from greed to compassion, from arrogance to humility.” • Vandana Shiva, author of Staying Alive.

“Satish Kumar is, for me, the sage of the deep ecology movement.” • Fritjof Capra, author of The Tao of Physics and The Web of Life.

“Satish Kumar is among the most important educators of the 20th century.” • Theodore Roszak, author of The Making of a Counter Culture.

“The life of this vigorous, wise, compassionate and humble man is an example to all of us about how to make the most of our gifts and create our own opportunities to serve humanity’s future.” • Hazel Henderson, author of Creating Alternative Futures.

This book traces the spiritual journey of Satish Kumar-child monk, peacepilgrim, ecological activist and educator. In it he traces the sources of inspiration which formed his understanding of the world as a network of multiple and diverse relationships.

You Are, Therefore I Am is in four parts. The first describes his memories of conversations with his mother, his teacher and his Guru, all of whom were deeply religious. The second part recounts his discussions with the Indian sage Vinoba Bhave, J. Krishnamurti, Bertrand Russell, Martin Luther King, and E.F. Schumacher. These five great activists and thinkers inspired him to engage with social, ecological and political issues. In the third part Satish narrates his travels in India, which have continued to nourish his mind and reconnect him with his roots. The fourth part brings together his world-view, which is based in relationships and the connections between all things, rather than the philosophy of dualism, division and separation which are found in René Descartes’ famous maxim ‘I think, therefore, I am’.

Satish Kumar holds an emergent world-view, encapsulated in a fundamental Sanskrit dictum, So Hum, well known in India but not in the West, which can be translated as ‘You are, therefore I am’. This mantra underpins all the experiences brought together in this book.