We Need Nature

Trees are the earth’s endless effort to speak to the listening heaven. – Ravindranath Tagore.

Our lives depend upon the other inhabitants of our planet. They give us the oxygen we breathe, the food we eat, and the medicines with which we heal. There are more microbes in a single teaspoon of the soil than there are humans on this earth. Scientists have discovered that even our bodies are not our own; they contain a micro-biome with ten times as many cells from microbes as from a human body. Life is not possible without this symbiotic relationship.

There is also, beyond the merely physical, a connection of consciousness, which we can deepen if we choose. The great American botanist, George Washington Carver, said, “Everything in nature will speak to you, if you love it enough.” Among many others, J.C. Bose, the great Indian Scientist, has demonstrated that awareness continues not only into the animal and plant worlds, but into the mineral as well. These subtle and profound connections form a great web of consciousness.

Studies show that hospital patients heal more quickly and need less medication if they have a window that looks out on nature. Even a photo or painting of a tree can ease pain, lower blood pressure, and quicken healing. Sociologists have shown also that increasing the number of trees in a city results in a lowering of crime. But too often, nature is subjugated or destroyed due to man’s indifference or greed, and , in our isolation from the natural world, we end up breeding disease and unhappiness.

Flowers like people, flourish when we give them love and gratitude. There is also a more spiritual dimension: when we feel a loving connection with the non-verbal world of plants, animals and minerals, we open hidden recesses in our own consciousness. Communication with nature is best done in quietness of body and mind, through feelings or words or pictures. This type of non-verbal stillness is also needed for deep meditation. Inner stillness comes when we calm the body and mind through the techniques of yoga or by withdrawing the life force through pranayama. Only then, when we move beyond our incessant mental chatter and restlessness, can we become aware of the unmoving presence of God. Then we will know that we are part of all that is.

No journey is taken without the first step. Greening the environment is not only laudable, but also essential to health and happiness. Those who help by planting more trees will be producing a much healthier physical and social environment. When we care about nature, we end up expanding our hearts and becoming more loving and sensitive. Small steps can bring great changes.

by Nayaswami Jyotish