Two processes

Dear Friends. Thank you so much for taking a look at this blog. Our hope is that it will help allow us to achieve greater understanding of the concepts which we learned in our Moral Capabilities Module. There is a very exciting concept which is introduced at the beginning of the book, in fact it is the first thing we learned in our study. That is, the world is going through two parallel Processes: the first being "The Disintegration of an Old Fragmented World", the second being "The Crystallization of a World Civilization". So let's go ahead and, after the jump, explore this concept further and really try to break it down so we get a firm grasp on its meaning.


First off is the word Parallel. Parallel means that two things are happening at the same time.

These Railroad Tracks are Parallel to each other.

So these two processes are happening at the same time, they are both going on right now as we speak. And it should be mentioned, that unlike two parallel lines in Geometry which never touch, the two processes which we will discuss today are destined to meet in the future. Let us now get to the first process.

PROCESS #1: The Disintegration of an Old Fragmented World.

Alright, so Disintegration, maybe we should continue with that. To disintegrate means to be broken apart into tiny fragments or pieces. This video is one way to illustrate what disintegration is.

Ok, so now we understand Disintegration, the next word we will discuss today is Fragmented.

This soil has become fragmented due to lack of moisture

Looking at the above photo, we can see that when something become fragmented it is split into many pieces. And in the case of the dried soil, it is no longer useful for a human to grow anything in, it has lost its qualities that once made it able to provide. So what does the statement "Old Fragmented World" mean? How has our world, which is quite old, become fragmented? There are many examples of this fragmentation which you could probably think of right now. One type is economic fragmentation; the world's wealth is unequally distributed between its inhabitants.

India, a country which is home to 17% of the Earth's population shares only 2% of the world's wealth. While the United States, Canada, and Mexico while having only roughly 7% of the Earth's population shares some 31% of its wealth.

Religious Fragmentation, Caste Fragmentation, Racial Fragmentation, and Language Fragmentation are a few more examples of how the world has become fragmented.

So we can draw the conclusion from the above examples that the first process, that of an old fragmented world disintegrating, refers to the fact that a world which has become divided among many lines is slowly, like the dried fragmented soil, losing its ability to provide for humanity.

Time for PROCESS #2: The Crystallization of a World Civilization

Alright, The first word which we will discuss in this process is Crystallization. Let us first take a look at this video.

The first thing to keep in mind while watching this video is that this is time lapse, meaning that this video takes a period of many weeks and speeds it up to fit into the space of only a single minute. Compared to the relatively quick simulated video of disintegration above we can suggest that crystallization is a relatively slow process when compared to disintegration.

When something crystallizes, it is given a a defined shape which was not there before. So then the question becomes, what is crystallizing? Well the second process says that a "world civilization" is crystallizing. What are some signs of this "crystallizing civilization"? The lesson states that this process is more subtle than the process of disintegration, which means that it is harder to see. So we will have to try harder to find signs of crystallization when compared to signs of fragmentation and disintegration.

One sign of the crystallization of a world civilization is the fact that more than ever before, what one nation does, effects many other nations. A very good example of this is pollution created in China being brought by the wind across the ocean to the coast of America and causing sickness. This is helping to raise awareness that really our actions do have an effect on others, globally.

A 2008 NASA study concluded that Pollution from East Asia is reaching American Shores.

Countries rely on one another to get their energy, to receive their natural resources for industry, for food, and for many other necessary items. It is no longer possible for any country to live independently of others. Another sign of this emerging world civilization is that, for many reasons, huge populations of people are leaving their country and settling in other countries.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the United States resettles more refugees than any other country.

Due to these movements, populations of the world, which may have for no other reason met one another, are coming into contact. They are being forced to become familiar with each other's culture, food, religion, and habits of life.

In Summary, The two processes of Disintegration of an old world, and Crystallization of a world civilization are both happening right now at the same time. It is easier to discern the signs of destruction as they happen relatively quickly. The words associated with those signs, such as: crisis, confusion, fear, and violence are now so commonplace that we are no longer effected by them. The signs of the crystallization are more difficult to see, but are happening. Check back soon for the next topic we will cover: Whose responsibility is it to help build this emerging world civilization?