The Earth as Temple by Sylvie Shaw

Earth, The Forgotten Temple (2004) is the title of a book which addresses the deep religious connection that nature brings. Author Niki Collins-Queen was a counsellor but put her career on hold to explore her deepening relationship to nature and God. Her church is the outdoors, the mountain top and the backyard.

In an article called 'Author finds God and spirituality in nature', Collins-Queen talks about how she unravelled her life on a spiritual quest going hiking, sailing, canoeing, often on lone adventures in wilderness settings. Her quest was answered on a solo trip to the mountain when she called for God to reveal Himself. She says: 'There was no doubt in my mind. ...I had experienced the presence of God, ... a loving energy permeating everything.' Following that experience, she saw God in all aspects of nature, in rivers, trees, plants, and animals (Judd, 1999).

In much of the research on people's wilderness experiences an event such as a spiritual awakening, an epiphany, or a feeling of oneness with the universe and with all things, is a frequent observation (e.g. Frederickson and Anderson, 1999; John Davis, 2006). People report a heightened sense of awareness and insight, a sense of mystery about the world, awe and wonderment in the face of the earth's power or nature's breathtaking beauty, a profound feeling of transcendence (within and without), a belief in a power greater than oneself, and a deep humility.

Nature spirituality, or 'awesome' experiences in wild nature can spark inner peace, hope, joy and empowerment, promote physical and emotional well-being, and bring about significant changes in attitude and behaviour (R. Fox, 1999; Kaplan & Kaplan, 1989). Importantly, as the marvellous Native American author Linda Hogan (1995:3) reminds us, meaningful encounters in the wild can lead to ‘a change of heart, a change of thinking, a change in [the] way of being and living in the world’.

Wilderness is not the only place for such transformative events, in fact, epiphanies or deep spiritual transitions can occur almost anywhere and in everyday life. For transpersonal thinker Abraham Maslow researching in the 1960s, they were 'peak' experiences; Rudolph Otto in the early 20th century might have reflected they were 'ideas of the holy', while for psychology pioneer William James, they were, to use the title of his book, 'varieties of religious experience'.

James argues that the heart of all religious experiences is grounded in subjective, individual experiences of Divinity or God. This definition marked a distinction between religion, often defined in terms of doctrine, dogma, hierarchy, institution, and spirituality, a more personal expression of relationship with the sacred. It is from this individualised connection with the Divine that the myths, rituals, teachings, texts and religious organisation emerge.

South Australian academic and author of The Earth Bible project, Norm Habel has considered the import of spiritual and religious experiences suggesting they can be divided into two streams - the numinous and the mystical (Habel et al, 1993). Numinous experiences are bound up with overwhelming feelings of 'the otherness and power' of the sacred deity, while within the mystical, perceptions of ‘otherness’ disappears leaving a sensation of oneness and interconnection.

But I wonder if this distinction between the numinous and the mystical is made a little too strongly. Rather than a division between them, it might be more of a continuum. Both can be religious, spiritual or peak experiences which can be seen and experienced as moments of supreme transcendence or powerful self-transcendence, even if the people undergoing the experience are non-believers (atheists or agnostics) use religiously-mediated expressions like 'epiphany'.

Throughout my research on nature carers (e.g. see Shaw, 2004) and sea carers (Shaw, forthcoming 2008), I have interviewed several environmental activists and other deeply nature-connected individuals who say they are atheist and yet describe the feeling of oneness from encounters in mountain and ocean wilderness. Some say their experiences are 'real epiphanies' as if, at least in this culture, we lack the poetic, lyrical, passionate or sensuous language to explain the sense of mystery or unity with all things.

Other authors, in explaining these feelings as self-transcendence or transcendent experiences in nature, also define the perceptual limitations of western cultural binary construction which splits human from nature. Instead they describe the permeability, movement and interconnectedness between people and the natural world as an expansion of body boundaries, or as a merging of body into body, the human body with the body of the earth.

This expansive sense of self or identity is termed a variety of expressions, for example, Joanna Macy (1995) and Arne Naess (1988) celebrate the ‘ecological self’, Roger Walsh refers to the ‘transpersonal’ self (Walsh & Vaughan, 1993); for Warwick Fox (1995) it's the ‘cosmological self’; deep ecologist Bill Devall (1988) suggests ‘Gaea consciousness’; Ted Roszak (1992) explores the ‘ecological unconscious'; Adrian Harris (1998) reveres the ‘Goddess consciousness’; Mathew Fox seeks the 'cosmic Christ', while Druid Priestess Emma Restall Orr (1998) simply links ‘spirit to spirit’.

All these terms emerge from varied discourses: deep ecology (Macy, Devall, Naess), transpersonal psychology (Walsh, W. Fox) ecopsychology (Roszak), Paganism (Harris, Orr), and Christianity (M. Fox). All share an understanding that we are part of nature not above or apart from it and all involve some notion of an expansive sense of self that comes about by connecting with nature. They might differ in emphasis but the underlying outlook is the same. If the earth is to be protected and healed, there has to be some recognition of the power of the natural world and our intimate connection with it.

Perhaps then, this blog's focus is to develop a river consciousness, river-self or river identity where the water's flow reflects the movement of our lives and the tidal shifts become a pattern for the changes we experience. An expanded sense of river-self brings a sense of kinship with the river, its creatures and surroundings. Being within the riverscape one finds insight and inspiration, personal renewal, and renewal of commitment to the earth. It is an embodied creative force that weaves and is woven through our imagination, through music, poetry, dance, dreams and experiences of the mystical, numinous and spiritual kind.

References
Collins-Queen N, 2000, Earth, The Forgotten Temple, Impala Press.
Davis J, 2008, Wilderness Rites of Passage: Initiation, Growth, and Healing, http://www.johnvdavis.com/wild/index.htm
Devall B. 1988, Simple in Means, Rich in Ends. Practicing Deep Ecology. Salt Lake City, UT: Peregrine Smith Books.
Fox, M. 1988, The Coming of the Cosmic Christ. The Healing of Mother Earth and the Birth of Global Renaissance. Melbourne: Collins Dove.
Fox R, 1999, Enhancing Spiritual Experience in Adventure Programs”, in JC Miles and S Priest (eds.) Adventure Programming. State College, PA: Venture Publishing, Inc.
Fox W, 1995, Towards A Transpersonal Psychology. Developing New Foundations for Environmentalism. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press.
Fredrickson LM and DH Anderson, 1999, A qualitative explorationof the wilderness experience as a source of spiritual inspiration.Journal of Environmental Psychology, 19, 21-39.
Habel N C, 1993, Religious Experience, in NC Habel et al, Eds. Myth, Ritual and the Sacred. Underdale, S.A: University of South Australia, & Texts in Humanities, University of South Australia.
Hogan L, 1995, [Interview with] ‘Linda Hogan’”, in D Jensen, Ed., Listening to the Land. Conversations about Nature, Culture and Eros. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books.
Judd P, 1999, Author finds God and spirituality in nature, AuthorsDen.com, Forsyth, Monroe County, GA, December 8, 1999
http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewnews.asp?id=9224&AuthorID=1367
Kaplan R and S Kaplan, 1989, The Experience of Nature: A Psychological Perspective. New York: Cambridge University Press.
James W, 1997, The Varieties of Religious Experience, Touchstone Books.
Macy J. 1989, Awakening to Ecological Self, in J Plant, Ed., Healing the Wounds: The Promise of Ecofeminism. Philadelphia, PA: New Society Publishers.
Maslow AH, 1994, Religions, Values, and Peak Experiences, Penguin Books.
Orr ER, 1998, Spirits of the Sacred Grove. The World of a Druid Priestess. London: Thorsons.
Roszak T, 1992, The Voice of the Earth. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Otto R, 1917, 1923, The Idea of the Holy, Oxford University Press.
Shaw S, 2004, Wild Spirit, Active Love, in L de Angeles, ER Orr,T van Dooren, (eds), Pagan Visions For A Sustainable Future. St Paul, MI, Llewelyn.
Shaw S, 2008, forthcoming, Deep Blue Religion, in S Shaw and A Francis, Deep Blue: Critical Reflections on Nature Religion and Water, London, Equinox.

Place: The Sense of Spiritual Home

Sylvie Shaw

Knowing place reflects an intimacy with the elements of that place, the trees, the animals, the human visitors and, in the case of this blog, the Brisbane River. American nature writer, novelist and preservationist Wallace Stegner (1992) says that: 'Your province is not the wilderness, where the individual makes contact with the universe, but the farm, the neighborhood, the community, the town, the memory of the past, and the hope of the future—everything that is subsumed for you under the word 'place'.

Along the river, away from the road and signs of the city, the tall trees shimmer with the song and dance of birds. Flashing past overhead, in colours of red and green, the King Parrots are being pursued by a small gang of Noisy Mynahs. Miniscule pardalotes parade daintily on narrow branches above the water, while the blue-winged Forest Kingfisher fossicks among the leafy bushes, purring and gurgling as it searches for tasty treats. And right in front of me, the jauntily-dressed black and white Willie Wagtail wiggles its tail feathers back and forth as it hops from branch to branch as if leading the way. Watch out! The Brush turkeys scatter as runners zip past. Dogs bark, straining on their leashes to follow them. The river is brimming with life and movement.

Getting to know place is a joyous adventure. It involves making friends with the locals, human and animal, observing the changes in the light, the colour of water, the shifting seasons, the cycle of flowers and seeds, and the changing tapestry of hues. All these events, sights and sounds effectively bring me home to place.

Steven Galliano and Gary Loeffler are landscape architects in the US who have studied the connection between sense of place and attitudes to the ecosystem. In their paper Place Assessment: How People Define Ecosystems (1999), they recognize the significance of place attachment, saying it acts as a link between human and ecosystem as well as between social experiences and geographical regions (bio-regions).

According to Galliano and Loeffler, the concept of sense of place is individualistic, a subjective yet shared experience at once emotional and symbolic, which can define an individual, a community or a culture. Sense of place brings meaning to the lives of visitors and residents alike, affecting them in various ways from the physical to the spiritual. Feelings of attachment, allurement and love emerge as people engage with local places, reflect on their memories of place, tell stories of their childhood connections - the cubbies they built, the fish they caught, the trees they climbed, and track their life changes through the changes to place.

Even if we've never visited a particular place we can still value it for its symbolic resonance, its wilderness quality and its spiritual attributes and join with others to fight for its protection and survival. Yet these values are often bypassed in resource management practices as such practices are geared to defining places as 'resources' rather than, or in addition to, places which have meaning and can make meaning.

Galliano and Loeffler call for a different way for resource managers to make decisions about place. Place management and place attachment seem poles apart when development, mining or logging intervene. Different groups of stakeholders value places from differing and often clashing worldviews but it's not worldviews that are weighed up in resource management decisions. Their focus is on the physical, the objective, the measurable. Thus concepts like affinity and attachment to place which embrace emotional, symbolic and spiritual dimensions are neglected, and in many cases, rejected as being unscientific, subjective and weak.

As a consequence, the social and spiritual impacts of decisions can result in a strengthening of social/community capital as whole communities may decide to join together to defend what they regard as their place, or our place. Shared meanings about place become shared meanings about attempts to despoil that place.

Meanings about place can be classified in four main ways: (i) scenic-aesthetic; (ii) activity-goals, based on conventional resource management practices (iii) cultural-symbolic, representing emotional and spiritual dimensions; and (iv) individual-expressive, reflecting personalised or individualised meanings about place. Galliano and Loeffler suggest these themes can be used to better qualify management decisions and the likely impacts of those decisions. Using holistic principles, resource managers can more effectively map 'the interactive unity of people and place' (Clark, 1971), taking into account the multiplicity of values about places, not only the economic and/or the ecological.

Resource management processes and environmental impact assessments as they are currently structured often fail to address the intangible non-empirical values and shared experiences of individuals and communities. Galliano and Loeffler mention that one of these unmeasurables is compassion for both natural and cultural qualities of the place.

The Brisbane River and its natural environs is a place of values in conflict where management practices are based on conventional rather than holistic methodologies. I call such approaches 'neo-conservationist' as they attempt to conserve with conservativism. Rather than applying the precautionary principle of first do no harm, the neo-conservationist stance conserves use values over their counterpart, the intrinsic, aesthetic, symbolic and spiritual values, even if these values are founded on scientific evidence, indigenous ecological knowledge or archeological research.

What matters most? Biodiversity or a river view? A place to fish or a place where fishers are repelled? A place to clear or a place to log sustainably and look after? Techno-managerial solution oriented approaches may overlook the nuances inherent to these questions. A sustainable community can have both biodiversity and aesthetics, fishing and rivercare, urban forests and sustainable development.

Knowledge and understanding are key characteristics of resource management but perhaps, following Galliano's and Loeffler's research into place attachment, qualities of wisdom, insight and compassion should be added, to forge a holistic method that embraces the interactive unity of people with place.

References
Galliano SJ and GM Loeffler, 1999, Place assessment: how people define ecosystems. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-462, Portland, OR, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. (Quigley, TM, Ed., Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project: Scientific assessment), http://www.treesearch.fs.fed.us/pubs/2980
Stegner W, 1992, The sense of place, a letter to Wendell Berry. In: Where the bluebird sings to the lemonade springs: living and writing in the West. New York, Random House, Inc.
Copy of Blog by Sylvie Shaw, http://rivercityandsenseofplace.blogspot.com

Ecotherapy and City Living

Sylvie Shaw


Walking in nature is good for your health.

In 2007 the UK mental health charity known as Mind released the results of a study into the health effects of nature connecting. The study was conducted specifically on the impact of green exercise among people with mental health problems and involved a comparison between ecotherapy - a walk in the country and retail therapy - a walk in an indoor shopping centre.

There was a startling difference between the two environments, natural, outdoor and constructed, indoor. 71 percent of participants reported a decrease in depression after walking in the country; they felt less tense and had higher self-esteem. In contrast, walking in the shopping centre led to 22 percent reporting an increase in depression, 33 percent felt no change, and half said their levels of tension had increased. Paradoxically, an equal number of respondents, 44.5 percent, said their mood had improved at the shopping centre while the others' mood had worsened.

There is substantial evidence to show that exercise in outdoor environments enhances physical and mental health. In Mind's survey, 90 percent of respondents claimed it was the combination of nature and exercise that made the difference.

In an article titled Conserving Land; Preserving Human Health, Howard Frumkin and Richard Louv (2007) argue that there is an effective relationship between public health outcomes and the provision of green spaces. They outline that connecting with nature is a significant indicator of positive health and quality of life, while a lack of green spaces can lead to poorer outcomes in both health and life quality.s

Making a plea for an increase in public parks especially in urban areas, Frumkin and Louv state: 'We need to promote land conservation as a way to advance public health, both for people today and for future generations.' Theirs is a widespread all encompassing dream that embraces the future for earth and humanity.

'More than anything, we need a vision of healthy, wholesome places, a vision that extends from densely settled cities to remote rural spreads, from the present to the future, from the most fortunate among us to the least fortunate, from the youngest child to the oldest adult. ... Such places will promote our health, enhance our well-being, nourish our spirits, and steward the beauty and resources of the natural world.'

In this picture spirituality and aesthetics go hand in hand with urban planning, resource management, public health policy and the provision of open natural places in urban areas. Its intention is to create healthy cities and healthy populations.

This issue is also at the forefront of a study by the CSIRO into the links between greening the city and a healthy population. Australia is 'one of the most urbanised countries in the world' with most people living in urban and suburban communities (Pyper, 2004) and the recent rush for development has placed 'enormous pressure' on present and future sustainability. The CSIRO study Greener Cities, Healthier People cites overseas studies which demonstrate that greenspaces provide 'environmental, economic and quality of life benefits for individuals and local communities'.

The World Health Organization has predicted that depression will be the second greatest cause of global ill health by 2020. The test is whether planners and politicians in Brisbane and elsewhere take heed of the research and implement the dream of Frumkin and Louv to protect environmental quality and as a result, to protect and promote public health.

Reference
Frumkin H and R Louv, 2007, Conserving Land, Conserving Health, Land Trust Alliance, http://www.lta.org/publications/exchange/special_issue/health_notes.doc
Mind, 2007, Ecotherapy – the green agenda for mental health, London, Mind, http://www.mind.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/D9A930D2-30D4-4E5B-BE79-1D401B804165/0/ecotherapy.pdf
Pyper W, 2004, Do greener cities mean healthier people?, National Year of the Built Environment - 2004, Ecos, Apr-June, 9-11, http://www.publish.csiro.au/?act=view_file&file_id=EC119p9.pdf
This is a copy of the post on Sylvie Shaw's blog River Stories and Sense of Place.

Ecopsychological Spirit

Sylvie Shaw


The Brisbane River is undergoing tremendous changes along its banks. According to criticism from Associate Professor Peter Skinner of The University of Queensland, the state government has been ''suckered into' allowing developers ... to treat the Brisbane River as if it were a 'vacant lot'' (Robinson, 2008).

What I'm reminded of here are the lyrics of the poignant Joni Mitchell song, revived recently by Counting Crows, Big Yellow Taxi:

'Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone?
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot.'

These types of changes to the urban river environment not only alter ecosystem flows, reduce tree canopy, and destroy bird, insect and animal havens, they also create an inner disturbance which the practical and academic field of ecopsychology seeks to assist. Irrevocable changes to the natural environment, especially to places where we may have grown up, can cause psychological trauma, grief and deep deep concern (Bohm, 2003; Windle, 1995).

In recognition of the personal, emotional and even spiritual impacts of environmental devastation, and in contrast, to promote the role of nature in human health and wellbeing, the Australian Psychological Association has developed a position statement, Psychology and the Natural Environment.

Authored by Joseph Reser and others, the document recommends that in light of 'the urgency and magnitude of the environmental issues and problems' ... intervention by 'psychologists requires much greater attention, visibility, strategic cross-disciplinary collaborations, and concerted effort.'

There are a range of practical eco-psychological approaches towards combatting the depressing impacts of environmental despair as well as enhancing human health and wellbeing. The pioneer ecopsychologist Sarah Conn makes a strong connection between personal psychological issues and broader ecosocial concerns. She works with individuals to enhance mental health and wellbeing together with an awareness and action program towards sustainability (of earth and self). This involves an immersion in the natural world.

In David Suzuki's wondrous television program The Sacred Balance, Sarah Conn takes Suzuki into the forest and explains to him the process of connecting simultaneously with forest with self with forest. Conn says: 'The key to motivating environmentally sound behavior, from an ecopsychological standpoint, is to enhance the human experience of connection with the non-human world - creating opportunities for experiencing an expanded sense of identity.'

To unearth this expanded sense of identity, or eco-identity, linked within The Sacred Balance website is a practical exercise called Soul Tracking. First there's a very short questionnaire about place which then leads to some suggestions about how to connect with one's place in order to develop or deepen a relationship with that place.

Initially there is an awakening of the senses, the sounds, sights, smells of the area mixed with deep purposeful breathing. Authors of Soul Tracking, Walter Christie and Cynthia Krum, say that their process is simple. It 'involves paying attention and noticing where you are drawn. It is like following an animal's tracks in mud or snow.' What you follow is what they call a 'fascination', something in nature that you feel drawn to.

'A fascination may be a place of resonance, a feeling of familiarity. There may also be a sense of mystery, a feeling of importance of this encounter. ... Once you are drawn to an image of fascination, observe it carefully. ... While tracking, you may use questions such as: how does what I have been drawn to relate to something going on inside of me? How does my experience relate to a specific theme or issue in my life?'

Following a fascination, or in process-oriented earth-based psychology, following a flirt, and contemplating its significance lacks the notion of reciprocity which an integral dimension of ecopsychological theory and practice. What emerges in this interconnected process of reciprocity is what Sarah Conn terms 'ecological consciousness', which occurs through 'an approach to phenomena [which] is about opening to their manifestation and resonating with them, opening to the intuitive awareness that we share consciousness with plants, animals, and even rocks.'

Conn was speaking at the 2007 Psychology-Ecology-Sustainability conference where she asked the insightful question: 'As we head towards breakdown, what possibilities are emerging for breakthrough? How can each of us open to those possibilities and find our part in the breakthrough?' Part of her answer can be found in the practice of ecopsychology whose task ' is restore the experience of interconnectedness and interdependence among psychological, cultural and ecological systems.'

During her talk, Conn cited the experience of the deep ecology and Buddhist Pullitzer Prize winning poet Gary Snyder whose nature encounter with an Oak tree had a profound effect:

'After years of walking right past it on my way to chores in the meadow, I actually paid attention to a certain gnarly canyon live oak one day. Or maybe it was ready to show itself to me. I felt its oldness, suchness, inwardness, oakness, as if it were my own. Such intimacy makes you totally at home in life and in yourself.'

Opening to another, whether Tree, River, Flower or Bird, can affect us signficantly. Conn says that in the process we slow down, become silent and are more open to and aware of local surroundings. As a result there can be unexpected consequences. One of Conn's students remarked that: 'Presented with unseen complexity, a need for empathy, and the feeling of a greater energy at work, I felt a connection to the grass that encouraged me to give back.' Another commented: 'Being with the water allowed me to hear about movement, change, and constancy.'

The Brisbane River offers opportunities for soul tracking, an inner journey that can effect change in ourselves, and subsequently, in the environment.

Becoming aware of the intricacies of the river's aqua-system, the movement of the tides, the seasonal changes of water flow, the changing colours of plant and water, the sights and sounds of different creatures, and becoming attuned to the constancy of its flow, mesh together in a sense of curiosity and intent where responsiveness to nature leads to responsibility for nature.

Slow down, notice, feel the fascination, connect, reflect, give back. Conn comments that what emerges through an eco-connection with places in nature is an 'ecological identity, a consciousness of one's place in the ecological community' that leads to an active engagement of care.

References
Bohm G, 2003, Emotional reactions to environmental risks: Consequentialist versus ethical evaluation. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 23, 199 - 212.
Conn S, 2007, Psychology in a New Key: Ecopsychology and Ecological Consciousness, Paper presented to the Psychology-Ecology-Sustainability Conference, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, Oregon, June 8, 2007.
Robinson G, 2008, Flood concerns over Brisbane River, Sydney Morning Herald, Jan. 24, 2008, http://www.smh.com.au/news/water/flood-concerns-over-brisbane-river/2008/01/24/1201025080293.html
Windle P, 1995, The Ecology of Grief, in T Roszak, ME Gomes and AD Kanner, Eds., Ecopsychology. Restoring the Earth. Healing the Mind, San Francisco, Sierra Club.
This posting was originally posted on River Stories and Sense of Place, http:rivercityandsenseofplace.blogspot.com

Islam, Hinduism, Ecology and Religion

Article Review by Owen Brown

Richard Foltz (2003) says in his article 'Islamic environmentalism in theory and practice' that the only thing one should take into account when trying to understand the Islamic perspective on ecology is the Koran and, for Sunni Muslims, the Hadith. And such environmentally friendly sources, argues Foltz, abound. For example, the Koran says that man is the steward over the earth, that all the animals of the earth are like people to Allah, it condemns people who waste their food and destroy plant and animal life senselessly. Muhammad is reported to have said in the Hadith to reduce the amount of pain inflicted when slaughtering animals, that mercy shown to creatures is rewarded, and, interestingly, to live in the world as if one were to remain here forever, and for the next world as if we were going to die tomorrow.

Of course, like all the great world religions today, environmental chaos was not an issue at the time Muhammad issued the Koran. Therefore, contemporary scholars have had to use the concept of qiyas -finding the fundamental meaning of an utterance in the Koran in order to apply it to situation or activity that was not explicitly discussed- to reach the Islamic position on environmental degradation. For example, when Muhammad reproached some people for urinating in a water supply, the meaning here could be understood to be ‘do not pollute our water’, providing contemporary Muslims with a religious reason to be environmentally conscientious. However, Islamic apologists and scholars do not usually address the problem of pollution etc. directly, but focus instead of the imbalances within society, seeing any environmental problems as by-product of such corruption. For example, the Koran prohibits interest.

A Muslim apologist would argue, then, that the greed of banks and countries, forcing people into environmentally destructive jobs in order to pay debts, is one of the major causes for the world’s current problems . The scholars emphasize that if the word of Allah had been practiced faithfully, none of these catastrophes would have occurred. After a discussion about how Muslim’s have tried to disseminate these ecological ideas throughout the Muslim, Richard Foltz concludes that the Koran should continue to be used in this skilful way to accommodate change and to deal with the new problems that face the Muslim community and the world at large.

Vasudha Narayanan, in her article ‘Water, Wood and Wisdom: Ecological Perspectives from the Hindu Traditions’, explores Hinduism’s potential for motivating environmental change and also its drawbacks. Narayanan acknowledges that India, with a population of over 800,000,000 Hindus, is facing an environmental crisis. She lists a number of reasons for this and, while acknowledging damaging influence of Western technology and ideology, points the finger mainly at the complacent, fatalistic, selective, materialistic (in the wealth-procuring not the philosophical sense), and environmentally ignorant mentality of many Hindus.

To elaborate, many Hindus are complacent and fatalistic because of the Hindu doctrine of inevitable decline. The world is understood to go through phases, ending in an age of utter degeneration and violence . Many Hindus see the current environmental crisis as evidence that we are in this ‘kaliyuga’, and are therefore disinclined to try and change what will necessarily occur. Hindus can also be very selective of their literature as, besides the Vedas, there is no real doctrine or teaching that is definitive and essential. Therefore, the positive ecological messages found in the Upanishads and so forth are not seen injunctions that must be carried out by any good Hindu, but just more philosophical tenets among many, diverse and sometimes contradictory Hindu codes and practices. Materialism is not something people would normally label as a Hindu characteristic. People generally think of Hundism in terms of its yoga schools of meditation, scholarship, simplicity and transcendence.

However the artha and kama literature is heavily materialistic, teaching adherents how to procure wealth and experience maximum human pleasure during life. These views are just as Hindu as the moksha literature, and just as prevalent in Hindu history and contemporary culture. Even the moksha texts, while being traditions of complete material renunciation, are criticized by Narayanan for their neglect of the world, and therefore passive destruction.

Finally, environmentally ignorant because of views like the ‘Ganges are inherently pure’. The average Hindu, having deep faith in the rivers age and divinity, would not believe that it could ever be destroyed by mortals, yet this is exactly what is happening. To lighten the picture, Narayanan argues that if the ecologically positive Hindu texts are emphasized and greater education about the environment is provided, many aspects of Hinduism could certainly be used to benefit India and the other nations where Hindus dwell.

Bibliography

1. Narayanan V, 2003, Water, wood and wisdom. Ecological perspectives from the Hindu traditions, in RC Foltz, Ed., Worldviews, religion and the environment: a global anthology, London, Thomson Wadsworth, 130-143.
2. Foltz RC, 2003, Islamic environmentalism in theory and practice. In Worldviews, religion and the environment: a global anthology, London, Thomson Wadsworth, 358-365.

Photo from the website from the wonderful environment program in Indonesia, the Sukunan Program, developed by Iswanto, environmental health scientist and educator, and community environmental educator, Lea Jellinick. For further information see, http://www.insideindonesia.org/edit80/p14jell.html http://arts.monash.edu.au/mai/research/sukunan/iswanto-tour.pdf

Worlds Apart

Laura Ennis

I live in a small single story wooden house, sitting on what used to be a dry creek bed at the foot of a small hill. I have called this place my home for all of my life and just like in William Wordsworth's poem, I carry a memory of it with me wherever I go. The garden is spacious, and the house is comfy. Situated behind my home are the leafy hills of Taylor Range; the annexed bushland that forms part of a large Army barracks. My neighbours are beautiful people. One of them used to work for Brisbane Forest Park, looking after orphaned possums, sugar gliders and wallabies underneath her house. She has a frog pond which is filled with Striped Marsh Frogs. In summer when it rains and dusk has past, I fall asleep listening to their soft croaking. Rosellas and galas flitter about in the Grevillia tree outside our kitchen window every morning. Possums constantly devour all my carefully thought out herb gardens (they tend to favour parsley and strawberries). In the afternoons I listen to crickets and cicadas and sometimes I spy a Blue-Tongue Lizard by our back door. For me, it is like Mircea Eliade says “No modern man, however irreligious, is entirely insensible to the charms of nature” (The Sacred and the Profane, 1959, page 151) In the far corner of our property there grows a large Tallow Wood tree that is frequented by crows. It straddles the four gardens that meet there. One of our neighbours wanted to chop it down (because of falling branches) and my mother did everything in her power to stop them. It was a personal move to Biocentrism over Anthropocentrism (as Thomas Berry notes in The Dream of the Earth, 1988, page 165) because for her, the tree was definitely more important than the roof. While talking to an elderly gentleman who used to live in our street, she discovered that this tree is well over one hundred and twenty years old; a relic from the old Tallow Wood forest that once stood here. It is now protected under an order from our local council.

I should now mention that while this place has been my home for all of my memory, it is not where I have always lived.

For a short while I lived in a very old city, one that straddles the river Vltava in the Czech Republic: known as Prague or Praha. Instead of a house, I lived on the top floor of a six storey building at the very centre of the city, and used a rickety old soviet elevator to get from floor to floor. The place stank of cigarettes and there was no colour anywhere, only dull beige, brown and grey. People here live in concrete leviathans known as "the projects". From my bedroom window I could see nothing but rooftops, spires and the skeleton of an old tree. Without knowing it I began to miss open spaces and windows full of greenery, it seemed to me a place without a soul. I was surrounded by people all the time; my dorm mates, the people who worked in the building, the people in the street below, the people in the windows across from mine, the drunk tourists shouting at each other from opposite ends of the street at three in the morning….We were all boxed in together and unable to get away. Peter Cock notes that the removal from nature in a society with a rapid throughput of “things, people and places” contributes greatly to estrangement. “Alienation from people is strongly connected to alienation from nature,” and I think I felt this way (“Towards a village based city” in Fundamental questions paper, no. 11, 1991 page 43 and “Values for sustainability” in Fundamental questions paper, no. 5, 1991 page 3). Eventually summer arrived and the skeletal tree outside exploded into green, and once, I spied a flock of pigeons and my heart fluttered as I watched them dip and soar! One time, we climbed onto the roof, and from there the view was spectacular. The city spread out all around us, like some kind of thousand year old organism growing new brick limbs and loosing old stone ones. A visual chronology of eight hundred years worth of architecture unfolded around us. I realised that while the story of this place was not so brilliantly illustrated in the simple flora and fauna surrounding us (as it had been in my home) it was instead present in the collective memories of the people who dwelled here and the buildings they had left behind. My point is; the sacrosanct can be found in urban settings, and while a lack of nature can be alienating; cities and urban environments can inspire awe and reverence (one might suppose this is why buildings as well as natural places are Heritage Listed). When compared to my home, the city felt soulless, but when looked upon with fresh eyes I could understand the venerated nature of industrialised and urban spaces. I saw Prague's Genius loci.

All the same, I still prefer my little wooden house at the foot of the leafy hills.

My Sacred Place – Can I Go Deeper?

Aleya Abdulla



The ocean is my source of sacred calm, of inner expansiveness, of being able to…breathe. I grew up on the west coast of Canada, and the water has always been a visual part of my life. When I lived there, I saw it almost everyday…so much so that I didn’t even notice how integral a presence it was, until I was contemplating a move elsewhere in the country; upon visiting that landlocked city, I felt energetically choked, as though something crucial and life-giving was missing. All I could feel and see was the colour blue…and I realized that my sense impression of my hometown was just this ‘blue’ – a melding of the sky, mountains, and water, varying in gradation from day-to-day – that I had seen all my life.

The ocean has always been a respite for me. When I’m feeling anxious, I usually make my way down to the water, and seeing it provides me with the relief, comfort, and nurturance I need. Looking at its vast expansiveness, I feel that same expansiveness in my heart and chest – a release of constriction.
Having said that, I paradoxically see myself as a bona-fide city girl who probably spends more time checking her email than in nature. In my hometown of Vancouver, nature and city come together, but I hardly enjoy the natural wonders to the extent that I could. Living in the city is what is familiar to me. A part of me loves the excitement and hustle-and-bustle. And yet…this ‘excitement’ often drowns out the stillness in my mind and replaces it with chaos. When I’ve looked at the computer screen for too long or watched too much television or dodged too many shoppers on the concrete sidewalks, I can feel the effects. I get cranky, anxious…my mind buzzes and just won’t stop buzzing. My body feels on edge.

The answer to my malaise is so simple – more time in nature would alleviate my ‘city blues’. So why don’t I do it more often?

Here’s the thing: I only experience the ocean as a spectator. Getting into the water is another matter entirely. My ability to really breathe, when I look at the water, turns into near choking, when I imagine being engulfed by its massive power. Coupled with my deep appreciation for the ocean’s majesty is a strong trepidation of it. Where does the tide turn from benevolent to threatening? Why do I feel that it will engulf me? That it will submerge me, carry me away? Where does all this come from?

My instinct tells me that it may have something to do with feeling unsupported by the Universe. Respecting it (the Universe), but not trusting fully that it will support and protect me. I am at the ocean’s mercy. It’s not under my control. I see the sea as powerful, almighty…and this scares me! I stop at the edge…why am I scared to go deeper? How does this relate to my life in general? Breathing, choking…the colour blue is associated with the ocean, and also with the throat chakra – our center for expression. Emotional expression, stating our wants and needs…where in my life am I holding back with this? What am I scared of? Where am I scared to go deeper?

In Surfing into Spirituality and a New, Aquatic Nature Religion, Taylor (2007b) writes of the sublime, mystical states many surfers experience when riding the waves – a divine connection that one can only fully appreciate having experienced it themselves (pp. 923-951). I’ve always envied those that seem to be so at ease in the water – their ability to navigate the element that overwhelms me.

In recent years I’ve been feeling my personal spirituality in nature more than anywhere else. But has nature supplanted my traditional conception of a God who is to be revered and respected…but is ultimately judgmental and vengeful, should you make the wrong choice and upset it? If water can be seen as “a manifestation of the divine or governed by divine being or beings” (Taylor, 2007a, p. 864), what happens when a ‘negative’ version of God is transferred to nature, and nature itself becomes a source of both solace and fear?

If we are all life forms that are intimately connected, and if I’m not fully connected with nature, what does it say about my connectedness to others? Sometimes I feel I’m drifting through the physical world, unsure of my footing – my ‘place’ – and not feeling grounded to anywhere or anything. Maybe this translates into my fear of drifting off into a sea of nothingness. Maybe I am using the city walls to shield myself from fully letting go and allowing myself to be entrusted to the Universe – to the Divine, to other humans and other beings. As Cock suggests, “Our human centre ness is reflected in the denial of the rest of nature as a soclialiser, and our biology as a mirror, not only of our humanness, but especially of our kinship with other species” (p. 2). If I stay in my comfort zone (which is not very comfortable), if I am fearful of the sea, how can I feel really connected to – and therefore protective of – those beautiful creatures who live in it?



I think (as always!) Nature holds the answer. It’s time to just take the plunge. Maybe being submerged isn’t such a bad thing after all…maybe I will discover an even deeper joy and affinity for my sacred place. And thus to all other Beings.

Building a trust with the Universe…taking it step-by-step…getting my feet wet.


REFERENCES

Cock, P. (2004). Soul from Place. Retrieved from:
http://www.socialsacredecology.org/system/files/SoulFromPlace.pdf

Taylor, B. (2007a). Focus Introduction: Aquatic Nature Religion. Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 75(4), 863-874.

Taylor, B. (2007b). Surfing into Spirituality and a New, Aquatic Nature Religion. Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 75(4), 923-951.

Sense of Sacred Space: Harmony of Humanity and Nature

Due Date: 17/03/2008

By Raymond Lam



In my paper, I hope to do a short study of the Bodhi Tree at Mahabodhi Temple in Bodghaya and how it brings humanity and nature together in one entity of both symbolic and literal beatitude.

Having spent my life in cities, I have little experience of a sacred space or environment that is completely of nature. This can be a loss to some extent: in the first place, psychologically and physiologically, life in the city can be burdensome. Lynch writes that cities pose a continuous stress by subjecting the inhabitants to unceasing noise; they have a polluted climate; they lack diversity and flexibility, and they are repetitious. (i) Neither is the city the best place to cultivate spiritual growth. Because of transmission of beliefs from older generations, religious beliefs gradually weaken, become less meaningful to the lives of city-dwellers, and perhaps become secularized altogether. Religious observance becomes a social routine and real religious experience dulls. In other words, even ‘sacred spaces’ in the cities can become less meaningful to younger generations. (ii)

But since the religious man cannot live except in an atmosphere impregnated with the sacred (iii), I was forced to look elsewhere apart from the skyscrapers and apartment blocs to discover a physical space to orient my life’s calling. When on pilgrimage to the four sacred Buddhist sites (Lumbini, Bodhgaya, Varanasi, and Kushinara), I found that Mahabodhi Temple in Bodhgaya is a harmony of both humanity and nature. Already surrounded by lush gardens and trees, the ancient Temple is obviously a human structure, but the more important entity is the tall and encompassing Bodhi Tree. It stands proudly behind the Temple and is the object of devotion for many pilgrims. Lovingly tended to by generations of Buddhists, it is the fundamental ‘unveiling’ of the real, under which the Buddha attained the ontological reality. It is also a natural sacred space as the third descendant of the original Bodhi Tree. There are many connections between Buddhist narratives and the tree. When Gautama was challenged by Mara prior to his Nirvana, he touched the soil below the tree and called on the earth goddess herself to testify to his virtue. (iv) The earth quaked, signifying a cosmic event, and the goddess appeared, wringing from her hair a flood of water. (v) At the natural phenomena of the earthquake and flood, Mara fled and Gautama achieved final victory, becoming the Buddha shortly afterwards while meditating under the tree. This narrative is easily interpreted as Buddha’s oneness with nature. The tree has therefore served as an example to future Buddhists, a commemoration of the Buddha’s reliance on the tree, the earth and the cosmic event that occurred there. Therefore despite having built by humans, Mahabodhi Temple contains not only a sacralized Bodhi Tree that relives a cosmic narrative, but also projects a spiritual reality onto a temporal material reality (vi) through natural phenomena like flowers and gardens. For this reason I see the tree as the imago mundi, because it realizes and contains an ontological meaning through a re-sacralization and re-enactment of the Enlightenment. (vii)

Sacred spaces are inevitably grand, requiring homogeneity of space and a hierophany, as well as theophanies and repetition of the space’s cosmogony. (viii) In everyday life one engages in the two existential modes of human existence of the sacred and the profane, and the profane tends to be more common. But at Mahabodhi Temple, where gardens and the Bodhi Tree flourish, a city-dweller can find a balance between human sacralization and an entity of nature that reveals the ontological meaning of the ‘break’ in between profane samsara and the pure universes of the Enlightened Ones – the Bodhi Tree.

Endnotes

i. Lynch (1968) pg. 133
ii. Goodman (1992) pg. 161
iii. Eliade (1959) pg. 28
iv. Harvey (1990) pg. 21
v. Accumulated in the past when Gautama had formalized good deeds by a simple ritual of water-pouring.
vi. Eliade (1959) pg. 28
vii. ibid. pg. 29
viii. ibid. pg. 20 – 36


References

Kevin Lynch, ‘The City as Environment’ in Flanagan, Denis (1968) (e.d.) Cities. New York: Alfred A Knopf

Eliade, Mircea (1959) The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion. (trans. by Williard R. Trask) New York: Harvest

Goodman, Felicitas D. (1992) Ecstasy, Ritual and Alternate Reality: Religion in a Pluralistic World. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press

Harvey, Peter (1990) An Introduction to Buddhism: Teaching, History and Practices. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press

WHAT WOULD JESUS DRIVE?

website review
by stephen s4078770

New car sales figures for 1st century Bethlehem may be hard to find- so we can't be sure what Jesus himself would make of our obsession with the automobile but one web site is doing its best to guide today's Christians in their buying and driving habits.


'What would Jesus drive?' http://www.whatwouldjesusdrive.org/ is an initiative of the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN) based in Wynnewood, PA in the United States. The founder of the movement is a passionate God-fearing and at the same time practical and down-to-earth man, the pollution-hating Rev. Jim Ball.

The Church's website has an environmental message that makes Christians and non Christians alike step back and think about their buying and consumption habits- especially when it comes to transportation. The website is dedicated to informing and guiding the public as to the virtues of environmentally based decision-making. By limiting your impact on your fellow human and on the environment, green decision- making according to the Reverend is just a new way to "love thy neighbour". The website details the purpose of the EEN as follows:

To help Christians and others (1) 'understand that our transportation choices are moral choices that for Christians fall under the Lordship of Christ' and
(2) 'take appropriate actions to address the problems associated with our transportation choices'.

The site has a very simple, user-friendly layout; no annoying ads for skin cream or holiday apartments, no pop ups, no gimmiks or other distractions. The title is the latest take on the hackneyed 'What would Jesus do?' Ball thus cleverly takes advantage of slogan-happy America to target that huge (and constantly growing) demographic of middle America- the evangelicals, credited by many as having been fundamental in putting Bush in the White House.

The website makes us aware that not all evangelicals in the United States are 'global climate change deniers'.
The environmental movement is often portrayed in mainstream and conservative Christian media as a modern day nature worshipping, pagan, liberal movement that (unwelcomingly) challenges a fundamental tenet of Christian doctrine; that God has given mankind charge of all of the earth's resources to do with as he pleases.

Born and raised in the Southern Baptist tradition, Ball, according to Laurie Goodstein of the New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/08/garden/08ball.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin is all too aware that conservative congregations have long been allergic- even openly hostile to environmental issues: passively allowing their leaders to lump greens in with hippies, communists, feminists anti-business groups and the anti-gun lobby. The EEN argues that environmentalism is actually at the core of Christianity.
Ball invites visitors to the site by saying:

'Here you will discover new ways to love your neighbor as we strive together to reduce fuel consumption and pollution from the cars, trucks, and SUVs we drive', adding, 'We believe the Risen Lord Jesus cares about what we drive. Pollution from vehicles has a major impact on human health and the rest of God's creation. It contributes significantly to the threat of global warming. Our reliance on imported oil from unstable regions threatens peace and security. Obeying Jesus in our transportation choices is one of the great Christian obligations and opportunities of the twenty-first century'.


The site provides an array of statistics that show America's obsession with individual car ownership is both environmentally unsustainable and goes against God's desire for us to use the earth's resources responsibly.

To be wasteful is thus to turn away from Jesus. Quoting Bible references that make mention of fundamental Christian virtues such as love, compassion, good-neighbour spirit and charity, Ball asks us to consider the following facts:

The largest source of global warming pollution in the United States is transportation (over 30 percent in 1998), and the United States is the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases.
In 1994, nearly 60% of U.S. households owned two or more cars and 19% owned three or more.
In 2000, 3 out of 4 workers drove to work alone, an increase from both 10 and 20 years ago. In addition, less than 5% use public transportation and less than 3% telecommute.

Ball asks Christians to support the cause by pledging a minimum $5 and by buying a bumper sticker. But much more than that he asks people, especially students, to make a pledge to honour the following:

'If my community is pedestrian-friendly and has good public transportation, I will choose an apartment/home that makes it easy to walk, bike, and use public transportation.
If I need a car, my first (or next) car will be the most fuel efficient, least polluting vehicle that truly fits my needs.
I will discuss the ethics of our transportation choices with others. I will contact government leaders to ask them to support public transportation. I will also contact automobile manufacturers and dealers and let them know my generation wants clean, efficient cars and trucks'.

In sum, Rev. Ball and the EEN urge Christians to organize their lives so that it is both easier and more desirable for them to walk, ride a bike, car pool and use public transportation. For example, if they do need to buy a new car, Christians should purchase the most fuel efficient one available. He targets the gas-guzzling off road market by saying SUVs should be purchased only by those who truly need them, such as rural people. Christian business leaders should encourage their employees to use public transport and participate in car-pools and avoid subsidized parking.

He makes one thing very clear:
Christian organizations should educate their members that transportation choices are moral choices. Ball is aware that this is actually a radical idea for many people, especially many Christians.

Unfortunately the website seems to have not been updated recently and the discussion forums are a bit thin on the ground. However there is a downloadable copy of EEN's "Creation Care" magazine-an interesting read.

In addition EEN proudly mentions how their campaign has impacted positively on government policy and public opinion, citing the fall in sales of SUV's since the campaign began and the rise in the popularity of small, more efficient cars. Ball also cites the fact that many Christian leaders have made pledges to support the EEN's efforts to raise awareness across America.

It is worth noting that Ball and the EEN have a great many detractors- often Far Right Christians but also other groups who label Ball and his organisation as crackpots who in fact denigrate not exalt the Word of God. They argue that these Christian environmentalists degrade Jesus to the level of a car salesman. One such website can be accessed at: www.av1611.org/wwjd.html

On the whole the EEN site is a good start for anyone interested in knowing how Christians can and are reconciling the issues of environmental awareness with their religious beliefs. The website shows quite convincingly how the two- environmentalism and Christianity are not at all in conflict but are in fact
complementary. Worth taking a look.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

http://www.av1611.org/wwjd.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/08/garden/08ball.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
http://www.whatwouldjesusdrive.org/

Leisure or Essential Essence by Sylvie Shaw

Shhrrrtumpth, shhrrrtumpth, shhrrrtumpth - a strange squwelchy, hoarsey, staccato call emerges from the tree canopy. I think it must be a fledgling Coucal rasping its call for food as I have not seen a bird like this along the river before. As I peer among the branches an adult Turkey is resting on one of the low branches overlooking the water, while young Turkeys fossick in the leaf litter below.

The early morning rain is lifting and the song of the river explodes in the sound of Kookaburras, Magpies and Noisy Mynahs. People run by with their dogs, both panting in the damp humidity. The personal trainer with a series of water bottles velroed into his belt, stops with his client to do some active sparing. Thwack twack go the boxing gloves. Muffled voices from the rowers echo up the riverbank as their coaches or coxwains urge them into faster and more coordinated rhythms. In the distance the low throaty thrum of peak hour traffic and the growl of planes overhead seems to vanish in the space of heightened awareness and sensitivity.

The river trail is a haven, a refuge from the outer life of the city. It helps people turn inward, so connecting with the river becomes both leisure activity and spiritual experience.

Two New Zealand researchers, Christopher Schmidt and Donna Little (2007) have explored the interconnection between leisure and spirit and found that people who feel their leisure experiences are spiritual experiences say they gain a renewed sense of vitality, awe and appreciation. Being in nature was 'inspirational', 'an escape' from everyday life (235), where they could feel 'more peaceful and connected', where there were 'no distractions' and 'no one to judge you' (236).

Others found an affirmation of their Christian beliefs saying they felt closer to God. One woman described the sunrise and the spreading rays of the sun as 'a great miracle being unveiled... like God stroking your face' (236).

Walking in nature and being connected to nature, even in the city, created meaning in the lives of the informants. They gained personal insight and one Buddhist practitioner said it helped her tap 'into emotions that had been lidded by modern society' (237).

Leisure activities like meditation, yoga, tai chi also enhanced the spiritual. The informants said that these and other ritual practices laid a spiritual foundation for their day, a place for 'spiritual reflection' and 'guidance' for the day; this was in addition to the exercise they gain. Schmidt and Little comment that leisure became 'a composite tapestry with multiple elements and implications' (239-240).

If natural beauty is inspirational, a significant trigger for physical, emotional and spiritual enhancement, what happens in a world where the beauty of nature is being smothered with the entrapments of postmodern society? Governmental predictions show a rise in depression and other mental illnesses, so can nature-centred leisure help?

While nature-based leisure experiences are not the only answer, the culling of trees, the plastering over of river spaces, the consequent disappearance of birds and animals, can give rise to grief and trauma about the on-going loss of place and sense of community (human and nature). As the study by Schmidt and Little has shown, nature encounters can offer individuals guidance, insight and wellbeing, an escape from their busy city-driven lives and a provide a new sense of vitality and meaning.

Reference
Schmidt C and DE Little, 2007, Qualitative Insights into Leisure as a Spiritual Experience, Journal of Leisure Research, 39, 2, 222-247.
Copy of River Stories and Sense of Place by Sylvie Shaw, http://rivercityandsenseofplace.blogspot.com

The Sacred Farm

Andrew Bone

The place that I find that is the most sacred place to me is my Grandfather’s farm in Bundaberg. This is a place where I found that I was most at peace and it is a very nostalgic place for me. The memories of going there for holidays when I was a child are some of the best memories I have. When I feel down and depressed, I just think about the farm and I calm down and centre myself. Thinking about being there gives me power to transcend myself. The serenity and nature from all the different surroundings give me a pastel of emotions that allow me to feel connected to the whole essence of nature (Cook, P. 2008). The various different plants had so many tastes, smells, colours. I felt the power from nature on the farm.

The mango tree that had a tree house was one of my favourite places to be. The cottage that my grandfather built for us was another place where I felt calm and happy. However, the fondest memory I have is when I would wake up most mornings ride the bike around and around the paddock. Being out in the opening in the full sun in the morning felt like it was radiating inside me and giving its energy. All of these memories and experiences are very special to me. They allow me to relax into the essence of nature (Cook, P. 2008). My soul felt at peace being on the farm and being with my family, who also brought a sense of closeness to each other and nature. My connection to nature was restored there.

In contrast to living within the city and being in an industrialised world. I tend to lose my perspective on nature that I used to get when I was on the farm. I live in a metropolitan city which is growing at an astronomical rate. I sometimes think that we might be losing our connection to the earth and our own sacred spaces (Cook, P. 2008). Everything in the city is rush, rush, rush, constantly moving and going places. Sometimes the suffocation of not being able to breath in the fresh air of earth depresses me. The city is metal, black, cold and grimy. I always felt different being in such places of infrastructure (Cook, P. 2008). Looking up in the city seeing how the sky scrapers block out the view to the sun and sky. However, being on the farm in an open space, looking up and only seeing the sun and stars at night cleared my mind.

However, a sacred place is someone’s own place in the world in which they feel perfectly at home. Be they in the country/wilderness or possibly in the cities. My own view is that without escaping to the country and reconnecting to it, I could not stay within the city. Being in the country allows me to think straight and get perspective on life the universe and everything.

By juxtaposing these two different places, my sacred place vs. city life. I cannot help but think both of these different environments are integral to sustaining a connection with my soul to nature (Cook, P. 2008). I would hope that everyone has a sacred place in the world. That everyone can think of somewhere where they are completely at peace and find a connection to something. Hopefully find the power from the essence of nature (Cook, P. 2008).

References

Cock, P. 2008. Soulfulness From Place. Social & Sacred Ecology. Accessed on 12th March 2008 Online available at: http://socialsacredecology.org/system/files/SoulFromPlace_0.pdf

Soul of a Big Black Land - By Carla McNaughton

It was in my solitude as a child that my favourite place revealed itself to me through the process of hierophany (Eliade, 1959) its belonging to the realm of sacred. Despite my lack of understanding exactly what that sacrality was, I was consistently instilled with a sense of wonder and awe whilst passively or actively engaged with the land. This short essay will describe my sacred place, and examine some reasons why it held such importance and finally compare it to the lifelessness of the car parks at my place of employment.

Each afternoon, once school had completed for the day and the number twelve bus had delivered me home again, I would walk north from my house for forty-five minutes before coming upon the spot where I spent much of my free time as a child. Moree is a small country town on a large flat plane and there was no place which revealed this as much as my favourite space. Thick, black soil stretches out as far as the eye can see, so level and empty of trees that it gives the impression that you are desperately alone. Standing in the midst of all that flatness, there is one tall mound of hard dirt which I would climb and sit on to watch the sun sink from the sky. Slowly it would lick the land and then melt hesitantly over the horizon like a scoop of ice cream on warm concrete. It was in this space that for the first time I felt the beginning of my eco-spirituality as described by Cock (2004). I felt connection with nature as a being in its own right; I could feel its presence and recognised it as a distinct ‘other’.

Contrastingly, the built environment of my adulthood bears no resemblance to the breathing, black planes of my younger years. Five days a week I make the pilgrimage to my workplace which is the largest hospital campus in the southern hemisphere. A small city with veins of bitumen and bones of steel, to me it has no breath or spirit. The car parks in particular are the most barren and uninviting. They exist only to serve as a gateway from Brisbane into the hospital and consistently exude a sense of transience and sterility. Lane (2001) explores the transition of a place from being ordinary, with no ability to alter its inhabitants (in Latin, topos) to a space that compels people with ‘its own energy and power’ (Lane, 2001), known in Latin as chora. This change in status is significant and depends almost entirely on the perceptions of the beings which dwell within it. Sacredness is entirely subjective in that way which enables one person’s view of a place as being topos to not impede on another’s perception of it being chora.

It is important then to explore the reasons which cause one place to be topos and the other chora. Obviously, a personal preference for natural as opposed to man-made settings plays a considerable role in determining what one would consider to be sacred, especially when comparing such starkly different spaces like the Australian outback and an inner city car park or hospital. Most importantly however is the time period which hosted the experiences with such spaces. Cock (2001) and Relph (1976) both emphasise the significance of the places in ones life where they have been born, grown up and enjoyed momentous moments in their development. The magnitude of these events has the ability to reshape the way we perceive the places where they transpire, thus creating chora, which is evident in this example.

Interestingly, it is not difficult to imagine that perhaps another person, who has spent their youth in the mountains could find my sacred place stark and frightening in comparison. Furthermore, if they were to experience some other life-changing occurrence then their perception of what is considered chora and topos could assuredly be reversed from my own; such is this most predominant feature of the sacred.

Bibliography

Cock, P. 2008. Soulfulness From Place. Social & Sacred Ecology. Accessed on 14th March 2008 [online] available at: http://socialsacredecology.org/system/files/SoulFromPlace_0.pdf

Eliade, M. 1959. The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion. Harcourt, New York.

Lane, B. 2001. ‘Giving Voice to Place: Three Models for Understanding American Sacred Space’. Religion and American Culture. Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 53-81.

Relph, E. 1976. Place and Placelessness. Pion, London.

Leaf Watching.

Sylvie Shaw

Young leaves along the river trail glow in the aftermath of rain. Crimson. Bronze. Copper.

As the new leaves grow they change colour due to the green pigment that is Cholorphyll. Cholorphyll is a natural molecule engaged in an intimate tango with the sun and the wider ecosystem. It is also a very clever molecule. Its role is to capture the sun's energy so that it can be harvested for use in leaf and plant growth. By absorbing the sun's energy, Chlorophyll is able to synthesise carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water and produce sugars in the form of glucose.

This whole process from energy absorption to flourishing plant life is known as photosynthesis, literally meaning 'putting together with light'. Photosynthesis is the basis for sustaining the life of all plants and, as humans and animals alike consume plants of all varieties, and as humans breathe the oxygen from trees, this wondrous eco-cycle is the basis for sustaining the life of the whole planet.

The young new growth along the river trail, the scarlet of the Callistemons, the coppery leaves of some Eucalypts and the crimsons of other gum species, have not yet been awoken to Cholorophyll's green energy. In contrast, the colour fiesta of deciduous leaves in Autumn has lost its Chlorophyll greenness and as the green fades, bountiful yellows, oranges, browns, reds and purples are revealed.

As the weather cools, the energy exchange between plant and sun begins to grow sluggish. The colour green from Chlorophyll is slowly sucked from the leaves allowing the beauty of the changing seasons to explode into multiple hues. The reds and yellows are present in the leaves all the time but are not visible until Autumn when the green from Chlorophyll slowly vanishes.

When the sun's energy withdraws and the days grow colder, the glucose stored in the leaves is transformed into myriad luscious shades of yellows (known as 'carotenoids') and reds (known as 'anthocyanins'). The brightness and intensity of the Autumn colour fiesta is based on the kinds of weather patterns experienced both before and during the withering away of the Chlorophyll molecules. Cold nights, clear sunny days and adequate soil moisture are the most favourable conditions for the most spectacular display of colour.

Jeffrey Dawson, Professor of Professor of Tree Physiology at the University of Illinois has studied the magical process of photosynthesis and comments almost with a scientifically-embedded religious fervour:

'Leaf pigments behind the flashy autumn display of color ... are much more than cellular trash. Recognizing tree colors not only for their beauty, but also for the complex and vital roles the underlying pigments play in forest function and survival, might just bring new awe and appreciation to the autumnal rite of leaf peeping.'

'New awe and appreciation' can perhaps be interpreted as a new spiritual movement of leaf watching in Autumn. While photosynthesis is the holy ritual of this new spirituality.

Reference
Dawson J, n.d., Why Tree Leaves Turn Color in Autumn, http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/forestry/fall_colors.html

From blogsite, River Stories and Sense of Place, http://rivercityandsenseofplace.blogspot.com

Christian Vegetarian Association

Tara Ruffles

The Christian Vegetarian Association(CVA) are an international, non-denominational ministry of Christians who “respectfully encourage healthy, God-honouring, plant-based nutrition" (CVA,2008). The CVA communicates to followers primarily through its website, which can be found online at: http://www.all-creatures.org/cva/. The website clearly outlines the mission of the Association, which revolves around three main principles.

To support and encourage Christian vegetarians around the world.
To share with non-vegetarian Christians how a vegetarian diet can be a powerful and faith-strengthening witness to Christ's love, compassion, and peace.
To show the world that plant-based diets represent good, responsible Christian stewardship for all God's Creation (CVA, 2008).

The CVA offers followers free online membership to the association, where they can specifically sign on to the mailing and support list. The first page of the website also shows those interested how to best facilitate vegetarian advocacy, and promotes a book entitled 'Good News for all Creation’ by Stephen Kaufman and Nathan Braun. The aim of the publication is to “prove the extreme contradictions between Christ’s teaching and animal-based food production" (CVA, 2008). The book is available for digital download directly off the website.

The main page of the website also provides an interesting timeline of relevant articles, which is constantly being updated with new information and posts. This timeline has some very interesting articles – everything from bible verses and vegetarian recipes, to dairy cancer links and environmental issues concerning the sustainability of the fishing industry. These articles are very effective in promoting the organisations religious/environmental standpoint, providing both hard facts and practical information and advice encouraging the individual on how to make a difference.

The CVA website promotes vegetarianism’s benefits from a wholeheartedly Christian standpoint. Interestingly however, the CVA doesn’t only justify a vegetarian lifestyle through the word of God, but also offers a medical and environmental perspective. The ‘Vegetarian Benefits’ section of the website is a wonderful resource outlining the destructive effects excessive meat, egg and diary consumption are having on the planet. It does so in wonderful detail, providing interesting statistical evidence on environmental concerns such as soil erosion, overfishing, pollution and resource depletion, as well as offering supporting biblical passages on these issues.

Furthermore, the site also discusses the massive toll overuse of animal and animal products is having on our bodies, outlining medical issues such as cancer, diabetes, obesity and heart disease. The site provides very interesting and informative articles and statistics, motivating readers to change their habits not only because of God’s word, but also for their own personal well-being and the welfare of the environment.

The CVA website provides substantial information and advice on religious and environmental issues, with the two issues being fundamentally interlinked. The site also provides several academic essays, delving further into the effect humans are having on the environment, with an essentially religious undertone. The CVA is committed to not only sharing God’s word, but also bringing to light real environmental issues that are impacting the earth as a specific result of the mass production of animal products.

The CVA website is very interesting and informative, and whilst it promotes Christianity, non-Christians would also find many of the scientifically based findings constructive and useful when considering the impact of their daily habits on the environment.

REFERENCES:

The Christian Vegetarian Association http://www.all-creatures.org/cva/ Hoffman Family Foundation, 2008. Visited 14 March 2008

Kaufman, S. & Braun, N. ‘Good News for all Creation – Vegetarianism as Christian Stewardship’, 2002. Vegetarian Advocates Press, Cleveland, OH.

New Moon Over the River*

Sylvie Shaw

The crescent hangs in the pale evening sky. The river breathes. The last carrolling of the Magpie and the laughter of the Kookaburra fade as darkness falls. Flying Foxes perform their sunset exodus up from the river valley and out across the rooftops, flying fast in search of blossoms and fruit. At dusk, the environs of the Brisbane River are indeed alive with movement and sound as night descends.

Being part of the river and connecting with its flow and the life of creatures who dwell here has been a significant factor in getting to know place. Being immersed within its ecosystem, though, has brought mixed feelings - as this beautiful valley makes way for ever-expanding and frequently unthinking development. Sustainable growth is possible, sustainable housing is practical - but both require a determined mindset that brings nature and the needs of the ecosystem as active players into government planning and decision making.

Perhaps too, it requires an awarenss of the benefits of nature connecting or nature-based experience in enhancing (human) physiological and psychological health.

There is a growing body of evidence that being in nature, connecting with green and blue places, from hiking to gardening, from wilderness excursions to sitting in the local park, correspond to increased mental health outcomes and psychological development (Davis, 2004). Active engagement in the outdoors provides opportunities for exercise and other activities beneficial for healthy living (Burton et al, 2007). So a reduction in green space amenity can affect a community's health and wellbeing, and certainly, all around this river city, green and treed spaces are being squeezed.

The benefits of nature-based experiences are felt holistically - touching the physical, emotional and spiritual health and wellbeing of individuals. In particular they are seen to have a formative effect on childhood and adolescent development (Kaplan and Kaplan, 1989; Kellert, 2007). In fact, Stephen Kellert maintains that 'children have an inherent need for nature' for development, learning and stimulation, while Richard Louv (2005), in his book 'Last Child in the Woods', has postulated that children are suffering from 'nature deficit disorder'.

Nature deficit disorder is not only an issue for children. As lifestyles change, as gardens disappear, as trees are cut, as people move into apartments or homes without surrounding green space, the city too suffers along with its citizens (including the animals, insects, frogs and birds), from nature deficit disorder.

If meaningful experiences in nature, even in inner-city spaces, can give rise to improved mental and physical health, then a reduction in green spaces, by extension, could be seen to give rise to decreased opportunities for those improvements to take place. If the society values interior experiences more than those taking place in the exterior, to what extent will this impact on the physical and mental health outcomes for the community?

This is especially relevant in childhood where increasing time spent in indoor activities (e.g. computer games) may deleteriously impact physical health (Thomas and Thompson, 2004). A lack of exercise is already an apparent factor in increasing childhood obesity.

On the spiritual level, nature experiences can trigger peak experiences (Davis, 2004), defined as 'experiences of optimal mental health... characterized... by a sense of tranquility and serenity', personal transformation and insight. Wilderness guide and transpersonal (eco)psychologist John Davis states that it is experiences in the wilderness especially that promote the feeling 'that the world is enchanted, alive, whole and meaningful'. This gives rise, he says, to the realization that nature and wilderness encounters can lead us (humans) 'to feel more enchanted, alive, whole, and meaningful'.

With this feeling in mind, the River is calling.

References
Burton NW, B Oldenburg, JF Sallis and G Turrell, 2007, Measuring Psychological, Social, and Environmental Influences on Leisure-Time Physical Activity among Adults,
CJC Consulting, K Willis and L Osman, 2005, Economic Benefits of Accessible Green Spaces for Physical and Mental Health: Scoping Study, CJC Consulting, Oxford, UK.
Davis J, 2004, Psychological Benefits of Nature Experiences: An Outline of Research and Theory. With Special Reference to Transpersonal Psychology. http://www.johnvdavis.com/ep/benefits.htm
Kaplan R and S Kaplan, 1989, The Experience of Nature: A Psychological Perspective. New York: Cambridge.
Thomas G and G Thompson, 2004, A Child's Place: Why Environment Matters to Children. London: Green Alliance/DEMOS.
* Note: This is a copy of today's River Stories and Sense of Place blog that I write @: http://rivercityandsenseofplace.blogspot.com

River, Morning, Watchful

Sylvie Shaw

The river valley is awash with rain, green growth exploding, birds dancing in the branches, water gleaming in the morning sun.

Where is the spirituality within this place?

For me, spiritual connection is found embedded in place, in the movement of the tidal waters, in the glorious sound of bird song, in the changing patterns of the weather, in the strong plant growth since the rains came, in the possibility of seeing what's often hidden, eels, fish, lizards.

Spirituality emerges in the connection to the place, the reverence for the river and the daily ritual of paying homage to its flow. Spirituality arises too in the knowldge of its plight and the fight to protect it - an ecosystem under threat from development, upstream agricultural runoff and continuous habitat destruction.

For Aboriginal people, the Turrbal and Jaggera peoples, this is, and was, and will be, sacred land and river space. They hold the memory of the time before white settlement when the river was crystal clear, a waterway where fishing was abundant and species bountiful.

Remembering the life of the river and the sacredness of the past is an impetus to recognise the sacredness in the present and venerate the life that flows through this river city.