Hi all,
I am currently preparing for the mindfulness in nature holiday retreat I am running in Austria 28th May-6th June (there are still places if you’d like to sign up, just visit: http://www.moaalm.com/english/holidays/special-alpine-nature-retreat/) – and I came across this quote which I wanted to share for your comments:
“We often forget that we are Nature. Nature is not something separate from us. So when we say we have lost our connection to nature, we’ve lost our connection to ourselves”
Any reactions? What do you think? Are humans and nature separate? Are we nature? Are we part of the natural world? Have we lost our connection to ourselves?
Please share any thoughts, reactions and comments that come to mind below… I look forward to hearing from you!
This quotation is usually attributed to Andy Goldsworthy, the British sculptor, photographer and environmentalist. I wonder if he read your book Mindfulness and the Natural World, one of my favourite books of all time, because the quotation reflects your theme so well. On my daily walks – sometimes with your book in my pocket – I often remind myself that my relationship with the countryside is not as a spectator but as a member. Of course human members of the natural world bear the greatest responsibility for its protection and its future, because we are the only members who can destroy it at will.
It is indeed a quote from Andy Goldworthy. Thanks for your thoughts Christopher, lovely to hear as always. I am just always surprised at how many people don’t think that “We are nature” is an obvious fact – which is why I was interested to hear people’s thoughts on here… before I take the message out to Austria!