Fourteenth International Conference on Interdisciplinary Social Sciences

Abstract

Integral humanism is a model opposed to capitalism and socialism, the two models well known for their proven ability to bring economic development globally. However, these two models have brought material development at the extremely high cost of happiness to the human being in form of fractured social system and environmental degradation, in addition to bringing dissatisfaction in an individual’s life, through the overriding inculcation of lower human tendencies such as greed, hatred, violence, and intolerance. Integral humanism, on the other hand, attributes supremacy to individual self through elevating superior human tendencies such as love, compassion, concernedness, and empathy apart from developing all the potentials in inner self. The model links micro entity (individual) with macro entities like society, nation, nature and almighty and has firm belief of organic relationship between the two, micro and macro. To this view, the complete human being (micro) is a bundle of body, mind, intellect, and soul and the macro is composed of society, nature and almighty. To this development model, micro and macro both, with its culturally emanated motives of life and worldview (belief system), ever remain in a harmonious relationship with each other and may yield sustainable development. However, perpetuity of this system needs vigilant and consistent economic, political and educational policy intervention.Based on secondary sources of information, this paper explores strengths and weaknesses of the development model and policy adopted in India ever since its Independence and suggests due changes in policies based on the ideology of integral humanism.