The Parable of the Sadhu: Case Analysis Is morality at play or is it reasoning? Kester Collins
Business Ethics Lisa Sinanan March 19, 2022
The most ethical and spiritually sound being is God. This is the highest form of righteousness to which human beings can never attain in this life. It is both a condemning and liberating truth at the same time. Condemning in that it compels us to look at the morality we claim to possess or practice and hold everyone else to as dirty, useless rags. And liberating in the sense that if we acknowledge that all continually fall short of the Glory and Wisdom of the Most High, regardless of how much morality we think we posses, practice or demonstrate at any give time, then how can we persistently condemn others? It then frees us to see our brothers and sisters as we see ourselves. It frees us to love them as we love ourselves. According to 1 John 4:20, for none can claim to love God whom he has not seen and hate his fellow man whom he has seen, he is a liar. In the Parable of the Sadhu, we ind an ethical dilemma played out before us. A true story of a once in a lifetime opportunity posed to would-be adventurers to the summit of the Himalayan mountains in Nepal. The author describes coming across a naked, unresponsive Indian Holy Man along the path at 18,000 ft. su ering from hypothermia, a life-threatening condition. They did only as much as they could, or wanted to for matter of argument, but kept their goal of reaching the summit their primary focus. We ind a plethora of reasons throughout the text of why the actions taken that day were deemed justi iable. Bowen H. McCoy, the author himself describes several logical processes he applied that day. 1. It was a rugged journey 2. They were half-way through a 60-day hike 3. He previously su ered pulmonary edema and was “understandably concerned” for his well being
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4. The Himalayas were having their wettest spring in 20 years
5. The Japanese, the Swiss, the Sherpas, were also in the vicinity and in a position to help. A few of them even showed signs of altitude sickness themselves. 6. Lastly, it was the Sadhu’s fault that he was in that condition and it was considered “out of place” for a Westerner to intrude on a holy man’s wish to die a cold, horrible death.
Mr. McCoy exhausted no e ort in this text to back up or explain reasons why the group’s decision to leave the Sadhu exposed to the harsh elements was the best choice. Regardless of the amount of help they could a ord at the time, essentially they all agreed that the Sadhu’s condition and his life was of less importance than their own, to the point of being left to die as the only course of action. Had Bowen H. McCoy himself been the one “left to die,” I’m sure we would have been given a di erent story. A longing tale of woe perhaps, of how all humanity has eroded to near extinction. A desperate plea to the remaining ounce of humanity in all of us, and one that would particularly turn the cold hearts of those who abandoned him back to compassion. Yes, we would have heard a very di erent story. However, one thing remains true. The exhaustive length at which Mr. McCoy goes to relieve his pervading guilt only heightens, and is evident by the fact, that no one on the mountain that day did the right thing. He wants to apply the lessons he learned from that experience to business practices that would teach us the importance of applying ethics. But ethics has to be applied. It does not exist in a book on a shelf. But I think McCoy is a man desperate to be forgiven for a choice he made that highlighted his own moral decline. It was a moment in which it was put
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most to the test. Somehow, despite his best judgement, he failed and is left to look
back 20-something years later—and take us all with him—to a moment he wished he could do over. Yet, we all have them don’t we? In the parable of the Good Samaritan it tells us of a group of religious men who passed by a man laying unconscious on the road, but the only one who served as a neighbour, the only mercy shown this man came from a stranger. A stranger who was not just all about himself and his a airs. He spared no thought to his plans, or the perilous conditions of the road, or the fact that even the religious people ignored him. When faith is allowed to step in it can do wonderful things. Most of all it pleases God. Too often, however, man’s default button is set to reasoning. Reasoning is the opposite of faith. Was it reasonable for Jesus to su er persecution, to be lied about, to be condemned and to die for all humanity? No. For God’s ways are not man’s ways, and His thoughts are not our thoughts. Love is what compelled God to save His people and Jesus was the only way to accomplish this. In Genesis, reasoning caused Eve to forsake the abundance of the Garden of Eden for this one small thing she had to have in that moment. One more thing that would make paradise more perfect than it already was. Yet this mistake plunged all humanity into the sinful condition we are now in. Reasoning kept the children of Israel from trusting God and caused them to follow after their own way. They remained in the wilderness for forty years where most of them died, never reaching the promised land. It wasn’t God’s way, it’s what they chose. The bystander e ect refers to what happens in an emergency, crisis, or life and death situation in which there are multiple witnesses. Everyone is waiting for someone else to do something leading to no one doing anything. They are more likely to act when there are no witnesses or no one else available to act in that
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situation.
There have been many such occurrences where we are left to look back and wonder, if only someone had done something to change the outcome. I remember the heart wrenching story of the dog, Kokito who boarded a United Airlines light with his owner, and due to poor judgement on the part of the air hostess was shoved into an overhead compartment and the door closed shut. Kokito was heard yelping for over two hours before he su ocated to death. Out of 200 passengers on board the ive-hour light, no one came to the dogs rescue. In light of stories that came out as a result of the tragedy, most of the witnesses said they thought one thing or another. That the compartment had air, that he was probably ine, that the air hostess was the one who put him in there so nothing else could be done. Like in this case of the Sadhu, no one did anything because they thought somebody else would. The passengers who spoke about the incident to news broadcasters showed signs of guilt. Tearful Facebook and Instagram posts were made as a way of relieving the pain from not doing the right thing at the time. Everyone loves the story of the hero, yet no one is willing to step out in faith and be one. It is not uncommon that reasoning be the button that we push in times like these. But to our consciences it can also be the most disastrous. Often as further punishment to ourselves we carry that guilt for many years. Some to the extent of trying to bury that memory with alcohol, drugs or some kind of addiction looking for relief. Others perhaps allow themselves to become numb. Their hearts harden over time from continually following after reason. It isn’t my job, there is nothing I can do, I have to preserve my own interests, protect myself, I am too busy, you are the problem. Meanwhile we ignore the plight of others in a desperate moment, the very testing of our faith arises but seldom do we pass it. To rely on self-righteousness, to rely on education or social status, as a gauge
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to another person’s worthiness or value fails in comparison to the Supreme
Consciousness of all. Human beings have conscience installed in them as a guide. Even to the extent at placing one’s own life on the line. As Jesus Himself says in John 15:13; “Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” If it were argued that the Sadhu had no business being where he was, couldn’t the same argument be true about the hikers who assumed the same risks adventuring to one of the most inhospitable places on earth? If McCoy had had another attack of pulmonary edema, wouldn’t the same inconvenience be placed on another traveller who might have said he “should have known better” than to be in that situation? The most ethical person is God and if He has set a standard by which we may follow Him, why then do we often choose what is more important to us. The most ethical thing was to use mercy and compassion beyond a few scraps of bread and sips of water. In this parable, the most merciful, ethical thing was to abandon personal interest in seeking a little glory in exchange for saving someone’s life. Jesus demonstrated mercy to all of us. Those who wish to follow Him must do the same. God extended His Grace to us, is it not right then that we extend the same grace to others?
References: Case Study: The Parable of the Sadhu, McCoy, Bowen H. How Psychology explains the Bystander E ect; Cherry, Kendra, 2015, verywellmind.com
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King James Bible: Genesis, Exodus, 1 John