What do you think about this quote?

Question

Please I'd like intellectual comments from people and if you feel there is any truth to this or as to why you disagree.
Thank You

"Modern man has burned his hands in the fire which he himself kindled when he allowed himself to forget who he is. Having sold his soul in the manner of Faust to gain dominion over the natural environment, he has created a situation in which the very control of the environment is turning into its strangulation, bringing in its wake not only ecocide but also, ultimately, suicide."
"Living on the periphery of his own circle of existence, he has been able to gain a qualitatively superficial but quantitatively staggering knowledge of the world. He has projected the externalized and superficial image of himself upon the world. And then, having come to know the world in such exteranalized terms, he has sought to reconstruct an image of himself based upon this external knowledge. "

and this?
"Realize thy Simple Self. Embrace thy Original Nature." For the goal of man cannot but be the knowledge of himself, of who he is.
He who knows others is wise;
He who knows himself is englightened.
Tao Te Ching, XXXIII.

I guess i should add the quote is from an Muslim scholar his name is Sayyed Hossein Nasr and teaches at GW in D.C. I guess wanted to point out a side of Muslims people dont see and not knowing where it came from people generally agreed to it. It heartens me to know that knowledge is universal no matter what the source is. Thank you.

Answer 1

Bla..Blah Blah... Why didn't they just say man is stupid and is destroying the planet and ultimately himself with his folly.

Answer 2

WOW!! talk about deep but completely honest. I agree with the quotes in the sense that humans have become too proud of what they have accomplished and with what they "know" to be true. Unfortunately, there are many things that we have said are true which later on we find out are not. It makes us seem as if we don't really know anything but just rationalize or subjectify everything. As for the quote on nature, I agree as well. As stated, there are many things which we think we know when we really only partially understand. I'm not one of these "tree huggers" but I do understand that we are eliminating a lot of land and a lot of animals throughout the world. In the process, what knowledge or experience we have about the land or the environment is changing because of outside stimulations we have brought in. There is a thin line in nature and humans have tendency of stepping over the line just enough to influence changes that probably should not happen.

Answer 3

what I think the author is saying is that, for the entire existence of man, until basically the last century, it has been Man Vs. Nature - Kill or be Killed. Now it is truly come to the point where man has won. We have shown that we can defeat nature - subdue it and bend nature to our will. Unfortunately, as a race, we are not mature enough, yet, to understand this, and are at risk of destroying ourselves and our planet. The author of these quotes sees us at a point where we will destroy ourselves, and sees us moving towards learning our true power in this situation.
But, I think the author does not see two things: 1, That man, as a species, is growing to understand our power, and responsibility, and moving in the right direction as a whole (See the Kyoto treaty, and California's move to partner with Britain on some environmental issues) and 2. That mother nature is much more powerful and resilient that he gives her credit for.

Answer 4

Yes. Man will likely become the first species on Earth to actively bring about it's own demise ... by destroying the very environment upon which it is dependent on for survival ... and we'll tak most everything else with us too.

What's most interesting ... the cause can likely be attributed indirectly to the same aspects of humans that have made them such a dominant population.

Answer 5

We have become so knowledgeable that we are stupid,no common sense,in the quest for power we have now created a power that can kill us all .the human race no longer thinks for it's self the media,the movies,the games the music we have to have,has shaped us into unfeeling,self center,money hungry robots,what every is the new thing,everyone will do anything to fit in with the in crowd,starve themselves to death and take drugs to be so thin just because Hollywood says its the new thing,no one can be an individual any more if you are ,you are consider a outcast,or weird,or crazy.and we elect people to be our voice and then we don't do anything when they do their own agenda,we have become robots,controlled by TV,radio,the politicians,we are not free,we just are to stupid in our designer,jeans,and big cars,and what ever we think will make us happy,sex,drugs ,and the next new gadget...we the human race don't have a clue as to whats going on ,and majority don't really care.

Answer 6

Vaguely useless. The speaker doesn't address the misunderstanding of the term 'dominion', which also means 'responsibility', as in a king having dominion over his kingdom (kings domain). Man hasn't achieved dominion, he has achieved domination, which is different.
The quote is also too long to get to the point. Here's a better one: "Man's infatuation with growth and conquest through the incorporation of competition has isolated the societal mind from the required cooperation with the living soil, the source of all Life."

Answer 7

It's exceedingly pessimistic. While each answer leads to questions, it doesn't make knowledge qualitatively shallow.

And quite honestly, I think the evidence for humans imposing their image on God is at least as strong as the imposition of human images on the environment.

Answer 8

i am not sure whether what i am goin to say is intellectual..but, the stress and claustrophobia brought about becoz of man's giant strides in 'evolution' is an issue close to my heart.....we have recklessly put our intellect to breaking every single of nature's law in our greed to harness it.

It hurts to know that if one has to see an open patch of sky or land n have some peace n quiet, u have to take a 'holiday'.......u dont have the safest or the most beautiful of environs to pass on to coming generations.....u dont have a second when a hundred n one things dont weigh down on ur thots............we have resurrected very many walls n means of escape in the name of faith, society,countries n race.....

is this all worth it??

Answer 9

Mankind through his knowledge of science and his lust for greatness....least we forget greed, has place himself as an equal to the Almighty and creator of the universe. This is an indisputable path to destruction. The carnality of man has blinded his eyes to this abomination.

Answer 10

When man tries to do things his own way, it only leads to pain, suffering, and a superficial life style. Stupidity shines though. Man is left with the same thing that he started with...nothing.
There is only one way for one to have an abundant life, and that is through Christ Jesus.

Answer 11

There is much truth to this statement. In my opinion it especially applies to America in the fact that the hunger and innovation that has made AMerica so strong has turned to contempt for what we have and not looking for further advancement.