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May the whole earth be happy:Loka Samastat Sukhino Bhavantu

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Abstract

Teachings of Vedantic philosophy, developed in India several thousand years ago, are relevant to today's world. The most renowned script, theBhagavad Gita, is viewed as a treatise on management considered as action. Vedantic creation myths are examined for their approach to the creation, recursion, and closure of system: They prefigure these features in contemporary physics. A direct and startling comparison is made between the Vedantic creation model and the viable system model of current managerial cybernetics. Vedic mathematics is examined for its relevance to school teaching and to computers. The role of yogic meditation in management training is briefly considered.

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An edited version of this paper was first published as a tribute to C. West Churchman inInterfaces.

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Beer, S. May the whole earth be happy:Loka Samastat Sukhino Bhavantu . Systems Practice 7, 439–450 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02169364

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