8 min
Interview
Satish Kumar on the future of the Resurgence and Ecologist magazines
A short Guardian interview in which Kumar discusses bartering with E.F. Schumacher and James Lovelock's Gaia hypothesis, and the merger of the two magazines.
About the teacher
Satish Kumar
Satish Kumar became a Jain monk at age nine and left the monastic life at eighteen to become a peace activist, inspired by Vinoba Bhave and Bertrand Russell. Between 1962 and 1964 he walked roughly 8,000 miles without money, from New Delhi to Moscow, Paris, London and Washington, D.C., carrying tea to the leaders of the world's nuclear powers as a gesture for peace.
He went on to found the Small School and, in 1991, Schumacher College, an international centre for ecological studies near Totnes, Devon (its physical campus closed in 2024, with the Satish Kumar Foundation now carrying its work forward). He edited Resurgence & Ecologist magazine from 1973 to 2016 and remains active as a writer and speaker, living in Hartland, Devon.
“Human happiness, true prosperity and joyful living can only emerge from a life of elegant simplicity, embedded in the arts and crafts.”Satish Kumar
Upcoming events
Meet Satish Kumar in person.
Talks, day programmes and retreats currently listed in the Paths Are Many calendar.
No upcoming events are currently listed.
Talks & videos
Watch before you attend.
Short introductions and longer conversations, to hear this teacher in their own words.
18 min
Talk
Soil, soul and society: Satish Kumar at TEDxExeter
A TEDxExeter talk in which Kumar argues that ecology, spirituality and social justice belong together as one trilogy.
13 min
Meditation
Satish Kumar leads a short meditation
The short guided meditation Satish Kumar led at the opening of his Earth Talk at Schumacher College in July 2014.
36 min
Talk
Earth Talk: Soil, Soul, Society - Satish Kumar
Satish Kumar's Earth Talk given at Schumacher College on 15 July 2014, setting out his trilogy of soil, soul and society.
Listen
Recordings from Satish Kumar.
Talks, guided meditations and podcast conversations, playing from the platform this teacher publishes them on.
Satish KumarThe Path of Interconnectedness
↗ theosthinktank.co.uk
Satish Kumar on Life as a Jain Monk and Lessons from Decades of Peace Activism
Elizabeth Oldfield interviews Satish Kumar for the Theos think tank's podcast about becoming a Jain monk as a boy and what decades of peace activism taught him.
From the podcast The Sacred
Listen on theosthinktank.co.ukSatish KumarThe Path of Interconnectedness
↗ investinginregenerativeagriculture.com
Satish Kumar – Be humble, you can't outsmart nature
Koen van Seijen interviews Satish Kumar about soil, the limits of technological control over nature, and why people protect only what they have come to know.
From the podcast Investing in Regenerative Agriculture and Food
Listen on investinginregenerativeagriculture.comSatish KumarThe Path of Interconnectedness
↗ bbc.co.uk
Desert Island Discs: Satish Kumar
Sue Lawley's castaway is Satish Kumar, who talks about his years as a Jain monk, his 8,000-mile peace walk and his editorship of Resurgence, choosing eight records along the way.
From the podcast Desert Island Discs
Listen on bbc.co.ukSatish KumarThe Path of Interconnectedness
↗ besharamagazine.org
Satish Kumar: Peace Is Possible
Nick Yiangou and Jane Clark talk with Satish Kumar about peace as inner, social and ecological harmony, his 1962 peace walk, and the founding of Schumacher College.
From the podcast Beshara Magazine Podcast
Listen on besharamagazine.orgPath
The wider context.
∞
Nothing exists apart
The Path of Interconnectedness
The recognition that no self, body or living thing exists in isolation, and that healing, for a person or a planet, begins by remembering our belonging to the whole.
Explore the path →
