The environment is so fundamental to our continued existence that it must transcend politics and become a central value of all members of society.
~David Suzuki
Rocky Coast, Ruby Beach, Washington State – photo by Kris Wiktor, bigstockphoto.com
The Koyukon Indians of north central Alaska live “in a world that watches, in a forest of eyes.” They believe wherever we are, we are never truly alone because the surroundings, no matter how remote, are aware of our presence and must be treated with respect.
~ Duane Elgin
Silver Bay from Bear Mountain, Baranof Island, Alaska – photo by shakzu, bigstockphoto.com
The real ceremony begins where the formal one ends, when we take up a new way, our minds and hearts filled with the vision of earth that holds us within it, in compassionate relationship to and with our world.
~ Linda Hogan
Pond, White Mountain National Forest, New Hampshire – photo by haveseen, bigstockphoto.com
She asks me to kill the spider.
Instead, I get the most
peaceful weapons I can find.
I take a cup and a napkin.
I catch the spider, put it outside
and allow it to walk away.
If I am ever caught in the wrong place
at the wrong time, just being alive
and not bothering anyone,
I hope I am greeted
with the same kind
of mercy.
~ Rudy Francisco, Helium
Lotus Blossoms – photo by kenny001, bigstockphoto.com
We are all bound together in ways that can be invisible to the eye. There is a oneness to humanity; that we achieve by sharing ourselves with others, and caring for those around us. Ubuntu speaks about the fact that you can’t exist in isolation. It speaks about our interconnectedness. You can’t be human all by yourself, and when you have this quality – ubuntu – you are known for your generosity. We think of ourselves far too frequently as just individuals, separated from one another, whereas you are connected and what you do affects the whole world… It is to say, ‘My humanity is inextricably bound up in yours.’ We belong in a bundle of life.
~ Desmond Tutu
Long Island Sound Sunset – photo by Wendy Walker
May you be at peace.
May your heart remain open.
May you awaken to the light
of your own true nature.
May you be healed.
May you be a source of
healing for all beings.
~ Tibetan Buddhist Prayer
Sainte Marie Island, Madagascar – photo by javarman, bigstockphoto.com
The silence of landscape conceals vast presence. Place is not simply location. A place is a profound individuality. Its surface texture of grass and stone is blessed by rain, wind, and light… The shape of a landscape is an ancient and silent form of consciousness. Mountains are huge contemplatives. Rivers and streams offer voice; they are the tears of the earth’s joy and despair. The earth is full of soul.
~ John O’Donohue
Rainforest Waterfall – photo by Engdao, bigstockphoto.com
It is good to know that this industrial paradigm – economy over ecology – is only a couple of hundred years old. Our indigenous brothers and sisters have lived in harmony with nature for thousands and thousands of years. They knew – and know – that nature is not an economic means. Nature is not a resource for the economy. Nature is a source of life. Our planet is a sacred source of life; a living organism that is the common home for us and all the other living species. Economy is a subset of ecology.
~ Satish Kumar
Sunset in Guatemala – photo by Lucy Brown, bigstockphoto.com
Every breath is a sacrament, an affirmation of our connection with all other living beings, a renewal of our link with our ancestors and a contribution to the generations yet to come. Our breath is a part of life’s breath …
~ David Suzuki
Silhouette of Sacred Stones, Chaiyaphum Provice, Thailand – photo by Sira Anamwong, bigstockphoto.com
The spirits of the Earth are awake. They are flying through the cloud painted sky. They are swimming beneath the cold water. They are running over the prairies ahead of the storm. They are watching from the forest labyrinth. They are our siblings in creation, our brothers and sisters of the breath. They help us hold the world in balance. They bring us blessings of wisdom and healing. The spirits are awake to us as we must be awake to them, for only together can the song of creation be sung as it was meant to be sung, a chorus echoing through the long canyons of time.
~ Steven Charleston
Late Afternoon Sky, New York City – photo by Devadana Sanctuary
One of the greatest sovereign powers that we all wield as human beings, although often unknowingly or without awareness, is the power of choosing where to place our attention.
~ Paul Levy
Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica – photo by F.C.G., bigstockphoto.com
If we look at the idea of planetary consciousness from the perspective of an individual, we could describe it as a state of consciousness in which a person identifies on some level with the entire human species and/or the entire community of life on Earth.
~ David Nicol
Thailand Novice Monks and Elephants – photo by Jumpot Tharungsri, bigstockphoto.com
The way you alchemize a soulless world into a sacred world is by treating everyone as if they were sacred, until the sacred in them remembers.
~ Sarah Dunham Wilson
Petroglyphs, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Concho – photo by Terra Tirapelli
There is a kindness that dwells deep down in things; it presides everywhere, often in the places we least expect. The world can be harsh and negative, but if we remain generous and patient, kindness inevitably reveals itself. Something deep in the human soul seems to depend on the presence of kindness; something instinctive in us expects it, and once we sense it we are able to trust and open ourselves.
~ John O’Donohue
Forest Flow – photo by wifesun, bigstockphoto.com
When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people. Know that every deed counts, that every word is power… Above all, remember that you must build your life as if it were a work of art.
~ Abraham Joshua Heschel
Chaba Flower – photo by PJ_JoE, bigstockphoto.com
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