A Practice for Nature Walking
The natural world is a healing space because its complexity lies in the quiet strength of its deep roots and resilient connections. In nature, there is no individual complexity of mind. In a balanced ecosystem, each creature seeks its needs and fulfills its desires while contributing to the health of the whole.
When we bring awareness to this vast network of interconnectedness, it can help balance our minds and bodies and cultivate inner resilience. We realize the futility of human mental projections and gain perspective on the more critical aspects of life. This awareness begins with the mindful intention to step out of the mind and into the heart of nature.
The Practice
While this practice can be done anywhere, it’s best suited for a quiet and expansive place outdoors.
Begin to shift your awareness to the sights, smells, and sounds around you. Notice the birds chirping, finding the ones you never heard before or never quite noticed enough. Birds sing the song of life, and their ballads can bring so much joy to the hearts of those who know them.
Now pay attention to the aromas surrounding you. Can you find the warm scents of blooming flowers, the fresh greens of new sprouts, or the relaxing soft musk of the forest floor? Each is the product of thousands of chemical reactions emerging from new life and biological cycles.
Shift your gaze to all the plants and fauna. Even the most inconspicuous green bush is critical to the health of the whole, providing shade to small mammals and a nest for enterprising bird parents. A large network of mycelium and microbial life have formed nutrient highways between each plant, including this one, gifting the green life its requirements while taking just enough to live and thrive. It is a network of radical cooperation.
Now bring your awareness to the soil beneath your feet. Its contents are the result of thousands of years of history—glaciers moving, melting, and depositing nutrients; countless changing habitats converting light energy into rich organic matter through leaves and sapwood; all of the animal species eating, digesting, and then depositing their microbiome into the network. The fertility you see now is a direct product of these thousands of years of beautiful, hard work. How blessed are we that we get to immerse ourselves in it and reap its benefit?
Reflection
How did that simple meditation/contemplation exercise make you feel? Do your mind and body feel more regulated, and has your outlooked on life improved? When we allow our body and senses to become immersed in the heart of the outdoors, it can awaken ourselves in deep ways.
