IS OUR MOTHER EARTH ALIVE?

In Hinduism Mother Earth is called Bhumi and figures prominently in the Mahabharata and Puranic stories, in which she is often depicted as a representation of the goddess Lakshmi. Mother Earth also figures prominently in the cultures of Native Americans and other First Peoples. However, is this only mythology?

James Lovelock, a British chemist who established a reputation for his work on respiratory infections, air sterilisation, blood-clotting, the freezing of living cells, artificial insemination and gas chromatography,joined with biologist Lynn Margulis in the 1970s to publish a series of articles putting forward a theory about the earth’s ecosystem, which they called the Gaia Hypothesis. Simply stated, the idea is that while the earth is not a living organism as such is commonly understood, it behaves like one since it has self-regulating feedback loops helping to maintain conditions that are conducive to life forms.

Some of the observations in support of this theory are as follows:

“-The atmosphere is in an extreme state of thermodynamic disequilibrium owing to the activities of life, yet aspects of its composition are remarkably stable.

-Present conditions at the surface of the Earth are close to optimal for the dominant organisms.

-Life has persisted for over 3.8 billion years despite increasing solar luminosity and variable exchange of matter with the inner Earth.

-The Earth system has repeatedly recovered from massive perturbations.”
[Quotation taken from T. Lenton in “Encyclopedia of Atmospheric Sciences”(2003).]

While scientists can argue about this theory, we know that from a spiritual point of view the Earth, which is full of living beings, is an energy system. In truth all living things have an energy field that interacts with other beings. When we think of ourselves as a human body only we are unaware of this energy field, but as we grow spiritually we come to realize that everything is energy.

Mother Earth is no different, and as we come to realize the importance of our planet, we hold love and gratitude in our hearts, and pray for its healing.

Nature, Our Planet

TAKE A VACATION DAILY

We think of having to go somewhere to have a vacation, but if we make an effort we can create mini-vacations in our daily routine. All we need to do is tune our dial to Source, which (as the name implies) is the source of all love, joy, energy and fulfillment. (Source is the same as God, except that it is a better term; God is a concept created by religions and is laden with false concepts.)

Source is a judgment-free zone. It does not dole out punishment. After all, you are a child of the universe and are deeply loved, loved so intensely in fact that it cannot be described in words.

Find those spaces in the activities that fill your day. It may be when you are waiting at a stoplight or when you are walking from one place to another. If you can, find a moment to walk through a natural setting or settle down there on a bench.

Express gratitude for something in your day, or for your very life. Tune in to your existential love of Source. Feel the connection and the bliss and healing that ensues.

“Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.”
Excerpt from “Desiderata” by Max Ehrmann.

Happiness, Healing, Nature, Poetry

DIVINE VARIETY

Advaita Vedanta, the philosophy of oneness, states that all is Brahman– the Divine. However, if oneness is the truth, how can we explain the incredible diversity of life?

The universe is multi-layered. On the fundamental level oneness is indeed the truth, and this can be understood and experienced if our intuitive perceptions are awakened. However, on the relative level there is duality, which in many ways enhances our experiential reality.

It is the duality that we crave when we embark upon the adventure of being human. Without duality we could not experience self and other, and thereby learn to manage our emotions and enhance our ability to express love.

In duality the Divine is hidden, but immanent. Gerald Manley Hopkins, a poet as well as a Jesuit priest, captured this idea in his poem entitled “God’s Grandeur”:

“The world is charged with the grandeur of God.
It will flame out, like shining from shook foil;
It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil
…nature is never spent;
There lives the dearest freshness deep down things;

Because the Holy Ghost over the bent
World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.”

In this multi-layered world there is incredible variety. Though each of us is at our core the one pure consciousness, we come into our human lives to be a unique expression. At this level we are all different, and no two are alike. So oneness lives alongside diversity–a beautiful combination.

Nature, Poetry, Unity

WALKING WITH GOD

When I was a young man I met a woman who definitely had a spiritual connection. She had organized a small gathering to meet on Sundays. I would not call it a church, but it included worship.

At one such gathering she sang “He Walks With Me,” a song made popular by Merle Haggard. The song made a strong impression on me, especially the lyrics:

“And he walks with me and he talks with me
And he tells me I am his own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known.”

After the service I asked her if she had the experience, as described by the lyrics, of walking, feeling the presence of God and hearing him. She said yes, she did. She said that she did not hear words, but she felt a presence and a “knowing.” Put differently, instead of hearing words she felt the message.

At this stage in my life I can say that the experience of which she speaks is “normal” for me. However, I also know that it is accessible for everyone. It is only the overactive mind and the “unskillful emotions” that cloud the experience.

We have never been separate from God. It is only our belief in separation and our unsettled mind that impairs the experience. Further we need to understand that God is an energy, a presence and a consciousness, not a personality as we normally think (not to rule out experiences of God manifesting in a form).

Try going to a natural setting, and after finding a comfortable seat, settle your mind in the sounds and sights that surround you. Feel gratitude for your precious life and the gifts you have received. Then open your heart to the divine presence which surrounds you. Speak to the divine in the language of your heart. Feel the love and the joyfulness that surrounds you.

As you settle into this experience you realize that it is accessible at any time during your day. God is just a thought away.

Nature, Prayer

OUR ENERGETIC SELF

In our “normal” state of consciousness we perceive ourselves as separate from everything. However, in truth we are connected to everyone and everything.

Feeling separate we think that we can deceive others, saying one thing and thinking or doing another. We are not being authentic or ”real.”

The sense of separation also makes us feel lonely, unless we have intimate companionship.

As we progress spiritually we can feel energetic connections with all forms of life, and the sense of isolation disappears. There are practices that we can do to become better attuned to these energetic connections.

All living things have energetic fields, as do we, and if we are attuned we can feel another’s energy. If we have developed powers of concentration, we can direct our focused mental energy to the energy of another living thing.

I suggest trying this exercise with a plant that is meaningful to you, perhaps a tree. While standing, place your hands on the tree, talk to it and ask to feel its energy. Ask it to heal you if you feel the need.

As we become more attuned to these energetic fields, we also become more aware of who we are, as our true nature is nothing more than energy.

Healing, Nature
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