Monday, December 26, 2011

man versus machine

I was really upset seeing the combines in the small Chinese village I was staying in. I had just spent half a week harvesting and husking corn by hand. My little wooden pencil tool meant so much to me by the end, as well as the wicker basket I used. I was partaking in a sustainable way of life for the farmers and the land. Mass production with heavy machinery doesn't allow people to use their hands as hands. There is something intrinsically rewarding about farming and hunting/gathering. The metaphors from the holy books have us using our hands in nature. Gandhi:

Faith in my work sustains me, but there is also added to it the conviction that all the other things that seem to challenge my faith are doomed…. I am clear that, whilst this machine age aims at converting men into machines, I am aiming at reinstating man turned machine into his original estate.
(H, 29-8-1936, p. 228 and here)

Aharwon in China: 'over my dead body'
combines
i don't like them
a way of life
replaced by gears
and chewing gum
inappropriate technology
slow down you western 'efficient' machines
: : life : :
to be exploited for gain
or tasted for good

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