Songs of Joy: Nature as Consciousness, Nature as Solace
Greetings!
"Long before humans were converted into
concrete masses of people, they were shamans
of the spirit and were serving the mystery of
life. Every living thing in the universe has
a relationship to service, which must be
discovered and developed. To learn, you must
serve the Pachamama, the Mother Earth, in
some way. All of the practices of the shamans
are ways to heal our relationship to the
cosmic forces and to bring our lives into
balance with the weavings of energies which
are in all things." --Americo Yabar
A few weeks ago our Pacific Chorus Frogs
began to sing their mating song, billowing
their air sacs in and out in unison, and as
quickly subsiding into silence. Just at dusk
our pond would fill with ten or more
chorusing males. When I could, I'd rush down
with a flashlight to watch. Their sound was
deafening. The vibration pounded my ears,
making everything else drop away. I found
myself leaning over and pulling away,
overwhelmed with the excitement and the
intensity.
One night I was lucky enough to observe a
male, with a smaller female clutching his
shoulders, move up and over a wall and into
the pond. The male darted about, stopped, and
ten tiny white blobs dropped onto a stem. He
moved again; she laid again. The female
appeared glued to his back, never letting go
of her mate's shoulders as he swam under
debris or moved away from a competing male
whose territory he entered (there was a short
chase). I thought, "This is like watching
Nature on TV," and the ludicrousness of the
idea made me laugh: nature is all around us,
we've just become accustomed to letting a
cameraperson find it for us.
Now the tadpoles are beginning to hatch from
their eggs, tiny pale beings darting through
the water at the slightest disturbance.
Spring begins to come, then retreats into
more cold--maybe like the pathways of hope
and peace in the world right now!
Nature as Consciousness
I know that not everyone gets excited
watching frogs! However, their beauty and
mystery are gifts of pleasure and connection.
Shifting perspective, "seeing" with the
instinct of frog or bird, fox or deer, are
ways of widening my view and building
conscious connection with the web of life.
One experience of watching radiates into many
threads of awareness: attraction, sex,
rhythms of moon and rain, birth, growth,
survival, all in the backyard. Now, as soon
as I hear the mating chorus begin (see link),
I "know" a whole slew of things about what is
happening outside.
As a child I played in creeks and
make-believe "jungles." As an adult I began
to notice that I felt happiest
outside--gardening, backpacking, just staring
at a stream. Finally I understood that in
fundamental ways, nature was "safer" to me
than people. So I consciously go outside for
solace as well as for connection and pleasure.
Nature as Solace
Some years ago, when our family was in
serious crisis, a pair of White-Tailed Kites
built a nest high in a redwood near our
house. Early on, my partner commented that
they were a kind of substitute family for us,
raising their young so we could watch and
enjoy when our own young were in so much
trouble. This may sound strange, but the
kites became our daily solace, a distraction
from our pain and suffering. When we watched
them fledge--the first left the nest and
got scared and stuck, hanging onto the top of
the tree for a whole day, then backing down
into the nest again; the second flew
out in total exhilaration on first attempt;
and the three other nest mates followed in
close succession--we
felt their gift deeply.
I am lucky enough to have frogs and
White-Tailed Kites as companions. But even in
cities the wild creatures roam--coyotes in San
Francisco, foxes making dens in London--and
it's possible to observe more than you might
imagine.
It also helps, sometimes, to have a more
conscious context for an activity, a
justification, even. (How many times have you
said to yourself, "I'll just look at my
email" and used up a window you might have
had for a short walk, or even a breath of
fresh air?) Here are a few of the ways I
prompt and encourage my own outdoor forays
and consciousness raising:
--Studying morning sunlight on dew, reveling
in the reflecting rainbow colors, reminds me
of the beautiful light that is my essence,
and yours.
--Hiking rests eyes, ears, and psyche; it
takes me away from the barrage of cement,
buildings, and noise that is our urban
environment.
--Walking--concentrating on an element for 15
minutes, saying "earth, earth, earth" with
each step to stay focused on the earth, then
"air, air" to focus on air (and so on), takes
me out of my problems and into an "elemental"
consciousness.
--Observing a particular plant's ecosystem,
the creatures it feeds and is fed by, the
rhythms of its leafing, flowering, and
fruiting, builds a deep and grounding
relationship.
--Learning the creatures who inhabit our
backyards is surprisingly complex and
rewarding (and doing it with a child helps us
remember our innate curiosity!) For example,
in my old suburban yard in Northern
California, we discovered Arboreal
salamanders, an Alligator lizard, a resident
toad, and Baltimore Orioles who returned
every spring for 22 years to nest nearby.
--Watching the cycles of the moon reminds me
of the wax and wane, ebb and flow of all
life. When I am in despair, this is
especially helpful (it won't last forever;
everything changes).
All of these activities, and all the others
that you already enjoy in nature, are
ways of coming into resonance with the living
energy of our world. As the spring winds (or
snows) rise and fall away, as seed buds
fatten, as the migrant creatures begin to
pass by on their way to nesting grounds, I
wish you renewed intent for connecting with
this beautiful earth.
