The term refers to the implementation of a socialism that moves away from Western socialist theory and instead embraces the ancestral, communitarian knowledge and lifestyle of Quechua people.
The Maya Tsotsil and Tseltal peoples pursue Lekil Kuxlejal (a fair-dignified life), which is considered equivalent to buen vivir and has influenced the development Neozapatismo.
[5] Since the 1990s, sumak kawsay has grown into a political project that aims to achieve collective wellbeing, social responsibility in how people relate to nature, and a halt to endless capital accumulation.
[6] Buen vivir proposes the collective realization of a harmonious and balanced life based on ethical values, in place of a development model that views human beings as an economic resource.
[2] Indigenous movements in Ecuador and Bolivia, along with intellectuals, initially used the concept to define an alternative paradigm to capitalist development with cosmological, holistic, and political dimensions.
Diverse theorists, such as economists Alberto Acosta and Magdalena León, say that sumak kawsay is not about a finished and completely structured theory, but rather an unfinished social proposal that can be improved.
[citation needed] The Andean philosopher Javier Lajo understands sumak kawsay as thinking well and feeling well in order to do well, with the ultimate goal of achieving harmony with the community, family, Nature, and universe.
[6] This principle, rooted in the Andean indigenous cosmovision and ancestral knowledge in general, is based on:[8] Sumak kawsay, living well, or splendid existence clashes with the idea of infinite progress.
Esta mirada no es antropocéntrica y ni siquiera egocéntrica: formamos parte de la misma unidad y así como “nosotros somos montañas que caminan, los árboles son nuestros hermanos”, según Choquehuanca.
Tal cosmovisión en búsqueda de la armonía exige, como es obvio, la renuncia a todo tipo de acumulaciónEnglish translation: In this context, the concept of Buen Vivir is introduced, which can be summarized as living in harmony with other human beings and nature, based on unity, solidarity, and empathy, drawing from the ancestral principles of the peoples of the region.
Such a worldview in search of harmony requires, obviously, the renunciation of all forms of accumulation.Luis Macas, Quechua lawyer and ex-president of CONAIE, wrote:[11] …el Sumak, es la plenitud, lo sublime, excelente magnífico, hermoso(a), superior.