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Strategies for implementing Prout in Brazil

By Ac. Maheshvarananda Avt.

“Despite its advent onto this earth many thousands of years ago, humanity is not yetcapable of building a well-integrated and universal human society. This is in no wayindicative of the glory of human intellect and erudition. You, who have understoodthe predicament, realized the urgency, seen the naked dance of evil and heard thehypocritical and raucous laughter of the divisive forces, should throw yourself intothis noble task without further delay. When the ends are just and noble, success isinevitable.” P. R. Sarkar, “Ananda Vanii” 1975.I would like to share with you strategies that we are using in Brazil and SouthAmerica to implement Prout.Awareness is a key factor in social change. Whenever exploitation occurs, it is themoral duty of good people to raise the consciousness of everyone about it. At thesame time, practical alternatives such as Prout need to be publicized. Manyeconomists believe that the present world capitalist system suffers from fundamentalflaws, that it is dangerously unstable and volatile because all financial markets arehopelessly interdependent. When capitalism collapses, every country desperatelyseek alternatives.The first goal, then, is to inform everyone that Prout is a socio-economic alternative.The most powerful means to do this are through the media: TV, radio, newspapers,and magazines. Though more than 90 percent of the Brazilian media is owned andcontrolled by huge profit-making corporations, they sometimes broadcast or publishprogressive messages if offered interesting interviews or press releases with newangles. At major demonstrations and events, such as the World Social Forum held inPorto Alegre last month, Proutists distribute press releases and organize pressconferences. Another interesting way to get the large newspapers and magazines topublish the ideas of Prout is through one of the most widely read sections, the lettersto the editor. Many readers can be reached by a short message explaining how a keyconcept of Prout could solve a current problem.Another way to inform the masses about Prout is by putting up posters in the area.For example, before a symposium at the State University of Rio de Janeiro, theorganizers printed 500 beautiful full color posters which read “Searching for Solutionsto the Global Crisis: The Progressive Utilization Theory”. Tens of thousands of peoplesaw the inspiring posters with photos of the famous speakers and hands holding theplanet posted in all the metro stations, universities and the downtown area. A similartechnique we have used in some places is wall writing to get our message across.Popular cultural expressions can also create a very positive impact. Street theater,giant puppets, songs and dance are all powerful ways to convey new concepts tomany people in a beautiful and unforgettable way.A second goal is to convince intellectuals, students and moralists that Prout is viable.This process takes more time because it involves explaining the main principles andresponding to questions and doubts. In a two-hour lecture, we can discuss Prout inmore detail and be more convincing than in a mass publicity campaign.

We have had a lot of success organizing symposia and round table discussions atwhich we invite famous speakers, authors or professors to share the platform withus. Newsletters, magazines, newspapers and leaflets are also important, as are morecomprehensive books and study guides. These materials can be distributed at tablesand exhibits set up at universities and at progressive conferences. In everyconference we also set up “thought exhibitions” with large poster boards of photosand text explaining Prout.We also try to popularize our Internet resources such as the Portuguese and SpanishProut web pages (http://www.prout.org). The Portuguese Prout discussion electronicmailing list now has 140 members. These need to be greatly improved, because theyare vital tools to reach the growing numbers of people who have computer access.Another tactic is to meet key leaders, writers and thinkers. The technique I often useis to explain that I write for Prout Globe and New Renaissance magazines and askthem for an interview. I then present them with a copy of “Proutist Economics” by P.R. Sarkar in Portuguese, which has a preface by Leonardo Boff, one of the foundersof Liberation Theology. This is the movement within the Catholic Church that viewsJesus Christ as a liberator of the oppressed, and so combines a spiritual messagewith a struggle for social justice. Boff has often said that there is a Catholic Churchfor the rich and there is a Catholic Church for the poor. He is very famous in LatinAmerica, and his support for Prout has helped us greatly in those predominantlyCatholic countries.I would also add something that I was told on my way to my first posting in Spainmany years ago. One dada advised me, “There are Catholics and there are Catholics.When you meet a close-minded one, excuse yourself and leave. When you meet anopen-minded one, inspire him or her to learn meditation.” In my experience thesame can be said for Protestants, Muslims, Buddhists, Jews, Hindus and atheists. Wemust build bridges with other open-minded activists of all faiths and backgrounds.Carlos Minc is a famous ecologist from Rio de Janeiro, who was imprisoned andexiled during the dictatorship, has written four books and is a now a popular statecongressman with the Workers’ Party. He has joined us in two Prout symposia andwrote the following letter: “When I read the book “Proutist Economics”, somethinginside me changed. It was the first time that I came in contact with an economictheory which elevates the value of the individual on the spiritual level, creatingharmony among the physical, mental and spiritual dimensions. “In the work of P. R.Sarkar, I identified our most difficult struggles and our most generous dream,showing possible paths for a Brazil without injustice, poverty, misutilization of resources and inequality. It is a work for the welfare of all.” We are using the 100-page Prout Study Guide in Portuguese, and also writing a bookabout Prout in Brazil that is now half finished and will be launched this year. It will betitled “Life After Capitalism: Prout’s Plan for Social, Economic and PoliticalTransformation, with case study Brazil” and will be published in both Portuguese andEnglish versions. Brazilian Proutists compiled a list of 50 famous leaders in Brazilwhom we respect, and we will give a copy of the manuscript to each one of them andask them to write a preface or introduction or a blurb for the back or inside cover.Every famous person who makes a positive comment about Prout in a symposium orwho writes some positive words about Prout for our book adds to our collection of support letters and increases the attractiveness of Prout to the public.

In Brazil today a very exciting process is uniting many different sectors of thesociety. A national campaign was organized last year to educate the public about thenational debt. Then various opposition groups, including radical trade unions, theCatholic Church and the Workers’ Party organized a plebiscite vote with threequestions: whether Brazil should continue to repay the external debt, whether itshould repay the internal debt, and whether it should continue to follow thestructural adjustment policies dictated by the IMF. Though the government and thepress first ignored and then ridiculed this unofficial plebiscite, nearly 6,000,000people voted, one tenth of the total electorate, and they voted overwhelminglyagainst further payment of the debt. This is a moral judgment that indicates thatsomeday soon Brazil and the rest of the Third World may refuse to keep paying fortheir old debts. Defaulting on the debt may cause large banks to fail and trigger thecollapse of the capitalist system.Our third strategy is to develop a passion for Prout in young people. The vital energy,enthusiasm and idealism of young people must be harnessed to change the world.The vast majority of young people have been fooled into believing that they arepowerless in the face of an all-mighty and inhuman system of global capitalism.Disillusioned, with little hope of finding meaningful and rewarding work, and with apoor sense of self-esteem, many become cynical and nihilistic, escaping reality withdrugs and sex. The hope and self-esteem of young people must be restored. Theyshould also be shown how to struggle for justice. Thus we also offer empoweringleadership training.We organize intensive Prout seminars, weekly study circles and workshops. We alsoencourage all Proutists to carry out social service, and in this way connect with themasses, experiencing their hardships firsthand. Serving the dispossessed is anunforgettable experience that fundamentally radicalizes one. P. R. Sarkar, in hischildren’s book, “The Golden Lotus and the Blue Sea”, gives what I believe is hisclearest blueprint of how a Prout revolution will grow and achieve victory. In thatbook he tells how the hero was deeply touched by the misery he saw: “The beautifuleyes of the prince were deprived of sleep that night. He was thinking continuously, ‘If I cannot free humanity from such meanness, what is the use of my education, myintellect? My coming to this earth as a human being bears no value.’” Proutists in Brazil have been inspired to offer lectures in prisons and to lead weeklymeditation classes to help prisoners transform their lives. This quiet revolution istaking place in seven different prisons and jails in Brazil. We have receivedinspiration from Bo and Sita Lozoff in the U.S. who started the "Prison-AshramProject" that teaches prisoners to treat their cell like a yoga ashram where they cantrain for their physical, mental and spiritual development.The main obstacles we face come from some prison administrators who refuse uspermission to enter, and from the lack of motivation prisoners feel due to thedepression and despair they suffer in their harsh environment. In these classes, weusually do some yoga postures, chant kiirtan and meditate in silence. Then I share aspiritual story from one of the wisdom traditions and ask questions of each of them.By listening carefully and respectfully to each reply, we demonstrate that theirthoughts and ideas are important to us. We always emphasize that they are greatpeople with enormous potential to become positive examples in the prison, in theircommunities and in the world. The personal transformation participants undergomakes this work deeply gratifying.