Nor has science sufficient humanity, so long as the naturalist overlooks that wonderful congruity which subsists between man and the world; of which he is lord, not because he is the most subtile inhabitant, but because he is its head and heart, and finds something of himself in every great small thing, in every mountain stratum, in every new law of colour, fact of astronomy, or atmospheric influence which observation or analysis lay open.

—Ralph Waldo Emerson

Formidable waves called "Tsunami" spread a ring of destruction through nearly a dozen countries in south-east Asia the last week of December 2004. Tsunami is a Japanese word; literally translated it means "harbour wave." It is a wave train or series of waves generated by the disturbance that vertically displaces the water column. Earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions and even impact of cosmic bodies like meteorites can generate tsunamis. Unlike the normal wind-generated waves, the tsunami waves are high-speed waves that gain in height—and diminish in speed near the coast, in shallow water.

The tsunami of December 26, that claimed thousands of lives, crippled thousands and caused widespread destruction of property, was caused by an earthquake of high magnitude, with its epicentre off the west coast of Northern Sumatra. In spite of scientific explanations for such calamities we are always left wondering: "Who is responsible for natural calamities—earthquakes, volcanoes, cataclysms, etc.—man or God?" While the scientists attribute them to physical causes, Theosophy has this to say:

It is absolutely false, and but an additional demonstration of the great conceit of our age, to assert (as men of science do) that all the great geological changes and terrible convulsions have been produced by ordinary and known physical forces. For these forces were but the tools and final means for the accomplishment of certain purposes, acting periodically, and apparently mechanically, through an inward impulse mixed up with, but beyond their material nature. There is a purpose in every important act of Nature, whose acts are all cyclic and periodical. But spiritual Forces having been usually confused with the purely physical, the former are denied by, and therefore, have to remain unknown to Science, because left unexamined. (S.D., I, 640)

Nothing in nature happens by chance. Everything that happens is the result of Law—eternal, immutable, ever active. God and Law are identical. The Law of Karma, which is described as the Ultimate Law of the universe, seeks to restore the disturbed harmony, bringing the effects back to the point of disturbance, like the ripples in the pond converge back to the place where the stone was thrown. H.P.B. writes:

The only decree of Karma—an eternal and immutable decree—is absolute Harmony in the world of matter as it is in the world of Spirit. It is not, therefore, Karma that rewards or punishes, but it is we, who reward or punish ourselves according to whether we work with, through and along with nature, abiding by the laws on which that Harmony depends, or—break them. (S.D., I, 643)

Are we really working, through and along with nature? Are we not guilty of disturbing the harmony of nature in various ways? Man is the crown piece of evolution and kingdoms below man look up to him for their evolution. Instead of helping, we seem to hinder the progress of the lower kingdoms. Instead of working on with nature we have only sought to conquer nature for selfish ends. Many nature lovers have expressed serious concern, especially over the melting arctic ice, because of over-industrialization.

Our forests and wildlife are facing a crisis solely due to the uncaring and exploitative attitude of human beings. We are responsible for the vanishing wildlife, and destruction of forests. "We kill and maim without remorse, almost as a form of mob entertainment. The Romans did a bit of that 2000 years ago, but that was less horrific than our blood sport," wrote Valmik Thapar, (Sanctuary Asia, August 2003). He raised a few questions that compel introspection. Thus:

Why does the Inspector General of Forests, Government of India, talk of breeding tigers to kill them? Why do the captains of the business world sit mute as the natural world is torn apart? Why do senior politicians feel that they have a right to plunder and pillage the natural and cultural heritage of our country?...It's an all-pervasive attitude of make-the-quick-buck, hire the right contractor, pocket the commission, bribe and be bribed and violate this nation's natural treasure house.

All forms of life—plants, birds and beasts—display an instinct for globalization, wrote Bittu Sahgal, editor of Sanctuary Asia (Afternoon Despatch and Courier, February 4, 2004), but not a single species ever tried to overpower nature. Sahgal writes:

Never has nature forgiven one species for exercising more power and influence than it deserved, which is precisely what Homo Sapiens is busy doing right now, ignorant perhaps of the fact that the extinction files are full of those who tried to battle nature.

Theosophy teaches that the ancients have always revered Nature, never seeking to conquer it. An article, "Morality and Pantheism" that appeared in the magazine The Theosophist (November 1883), expressed the Theosophical views regarding man-nature relationship thus:

If an individual attempts to move in a direction other than that in which Nature is moving, that individual is sure to be crushed, sooner or later, by the enormous pressure of the opposing force. We need not say that such a result would be the very reverse of pleasurable. The only way therefore, in which happiness might be attained, is by merging one's nature in great Mother Nature, and following the direction in which she herself is moving: this again, can only be accomplished by assimilating man's individual conduct with the triumphant force of Nature, the other force being always overcome with terrific catastrophe. The effort to assimilate the individual with the universal law is popularly known as the practice of morality.

In the light of the above, is it not possible that the recent calamity is nature's chastisement for our disturbing the harmony?

It seems twenty-first-century modern technologies—robotics, genetic engineering and nanotechnology—pose greater threat to humanity than did the twentieth-century technologies underlying weapons of mass destruction. Nanotechnology—which consists in manipulating matter at the atomic level—threatens to destroy the biosphere on which life depends.

Besides undue interference with nature, there is a direct relation between man's thoughts and natural calamities.

Karma operates to produce cataclysms of nature by concatenation through mental and astral planes of being. A cataclysm may be traced to an immediate physical cause such as internal fire and atmospheric disturbance, but these have been brought on by the disturbance created through the dynamic power of human thought. ("Aphorisms on Karma," No. 30)

Mr. Judge describes the power of human thought in these words:

Man is a great dynamo, making, storing and throwing out energy, and when masses of men composing a race thus make and distribute energy, there is a resulting dynamic effect on the material of the globe which will be powerful enough to be distinct and cataclysmic. (The Ocean of Theosophy, p. 128)

We can look upon earthquakes, tidal waves, tornadoes and tsunamis to be like a sickness of the earth. Mr. Judge describes physical illness as discharge of the inner sickness of the inner being on the physical plane. Similarly, "the lives of the earth that have been impressed by the harmful thoughts—the selfish thoughts—of millions of men [and women] have reached a point of explosion, which comes about just as naturally in its own order and cycle, as day follows night. Those...who suffer most from such events have earned the suffering....Man is a part of Nature, and if he makes Nature suffer, he will suffer through Nature." ("Because—" For the Children Who Ask Why)

Occult philosophy holds that all major cataclysms are manifestations of electrical and magnetic changes, proceeding under the rule of cyclic laws. "Not only is man ruled by these laws, but every atom of matter as well, and the mass of matter is constantly undergoing a change at the same time with man. It must therefore exhibit alterations corresponding to those through which the thinker is going. On the physical plane effects are brought out through the electrical and other fluids acting with the gases on the solids of the globe." Further, Mr. Judge explains:

Earthquakes may be brought on according to this philosophy by two general causes; first, subsidence or elevation under the earth-crust due to heat and steam; second, electrical and magnetic changes which affect water and earth at the same time. These last have the power to instantaneously make the earth fluidic without melting it, thus causing immense and violent displacements in large or small waves. (The Ocean of Theosophy, pp. 131-32)

Mr. Judges writes that earthquakes indicate that some souls of use have come into the world somewhere. The doctor makes his calls where there are sick people. In a similar way, earthquake indicates sickness of the earth and it is a sign that Great Souls are needed. It may also be that "the actual disturbance in the earth permits their entrance here." Earthquakes may be looked upon as making the earthly conditions conducive to their entrance. Thus:

It would not even be strange if such a being coming to birth would be the immediate cause of an earthquake....Have you never noticed how the coming of any little baby upsets the household where it comes? Old habits have to be given up by all the members of the family for the little one's welfare; new habits have to be formed; in fact, that baby makes a new world for the family as well as for itself, when it takes the road of birth! ("Because—" For the Children Who Ask Why, p. 137)

Further, earthquake is a means whereby Karma is affording an opportunity to all concerned to learn—earth sufferer his own lesson. During the Bihar earthquake of 1934, Gandhiji said that "behind even this indescribable calamity there is divine purpose that works for the good of humanity."

In the recent calamity, tens of thousands of people missing or dead included those of at least 40 nationalities. "The disaster's reach is an unsettling reminder that globalization has brought the world closer together in unexpected ways so that people now share the pain as well as profit from far-flung places. Even for people who have never left home, otherwise abstract calamities in distant lands now frequently have a familiar face," writes Craig S. Smith. (The Times of India, December 30)

"Inaction in a deed of mercy becomes an action in a deadly sin," so that all of us who were fortunate enough to escape the suffering must do all in our power to help rehabilitate the victims and alleviate their suffering. More importantly, let us take a vow to charge the atmosphere with good and noble thoughts as we take to heart these words from the Bible:

For thou shalt be in league with the stones of the field; and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee. (Job, Chap. V, v. 23)

The fish trap exists because of the fish; once you've gotten the fish, you can forget the trap. The rabbit snare exists because of the rabbit; once you've gotten the rabbit, you can forget the snare. Words exist because of meaning; once you've gotten the meaning, you can forget the words. Where can I find a man who has forgotten words so I can have a word with him?

—Chuang Tzu