"The world, when looked at without chatter, becomes amazingly interesting. The most ordinary sights and sounds and smells, the texture of shadows ... all these things without being named ... when you don't name things any longer, you start seeing them. Because say when a person says "I see a leaf," immediately one thinks of a spearhead shaped thing outlined in black and filled in with flat green. No leaf looks like that. Leaves are not green! The world of color is infinite! And it is only through stopping fixing conceptions on the world of color ... that you really begin to see it." - Alan Watts
Connecting to Nature is Easy Once You Know How
I’ve felt a mystical connection to nature for most of my life. When I was younger I belonged to a Christian cult that didn’t believe in a human spirit, and when I came out I began to see waves of energy flowing around the trees! My vision woke up as my Spirit came back online and I began to connect to nature’s healing energy!
Another time, meditating in the desert, as I gazed at the swells and dips that make up the desert landscape, I felt the waves of the desert ground moving towards me, like waves in the ocean rolling to the shore. I sensed it as a beautiful poem gifted from the earth. (I’ve never used drugs to have these profound experiences!)
Connecting to nature’s energy not only heals me, it also expands my consciousness and offers gifts of wisdom and beauty.
I recently wrote a book about the healing power of nomadism and how nature’s healing energy affected my life, and in this blog I share exactly HOW to connect to that mystical healing power.
Here are the steps to make your own connection to the mystical healing energy of nature.
1. Find a Quiet Spot
You’ll want to find a peaceful place in nature. Before I was a nomad I would go to a park or find a secluded spot on a nature trail.
2. Relax Into the Present Moment
If you have a meditation practice, get into a light meditative state. Here’s a good way to start: 7 Stress-Relief Breathing Exercises For Calming Your Mind.
You can’t connect to nature if your mind is off somewhere else. Nature’s healing energy is found ONLY IN THE PRESENT MOMENT.
3. Practice Soft Focus
Let your focus soften, with your attention on the view in front of you. The way I describe soft focus is that my eyes feel relaxed, instead of trying to narrow in on anything.
In that soft focus, notice where your eyes are being drawn to. Keep your mind’s eye on what you are seeing. There is a difference between looking at something, and really SEEING it.
For example, if you’re gazing at a tree, at first, you’ll only see a flat version of what your mind RECOGNIZES as a tree. As you gaze, you’ll begin to see rich details, subtle shades of green, the depths of the branches, the ripples of light dappling the leaves, the rhythm of the branches as they sway. Now instead of a preconceived idea of a tree that your brain is filling in, you’re seeing what’s really there.
You may notice waves of wind through the trees, become aware of waves and patterns throughout nature, or delight in sunbeams as they get diffused through the molecules of the tree. You’ll feel your consciousness expand and your body relax.
It can take a few minutes to get into this state, but you’ll know it when it happens!
4. Notice What Nature’s Healing Energy Wants to Bring to You
Observe what gently drifts into your awareness and ideas or feelings as they arise. I often get clarity on life situations when I’m immersed in nature, and almost always feel my nervous system dropping out of “fight or flight” stress. My shoulders relax, my breathing gets deeper, and my perspective of life broadens.
You’ll feel subtle sensations in your body and brain as you join up with nature’s healing energy!
5. Journal Your Experience
When you’re done, write about what you experienced. Journaling slows down your thought process enough to get clarity, and allows your creative mind to continue to form new insights. I’ve created a journal that’s perfect for this that you can find here on Amazon.
When I commune with nature, I contemplate the infinite variety of life’s expressions, see that life wants to thrive even in the most adverse circumstances, and that there are ample provisions to support healing. I see the juxtaposition of light and dark, yin and yang, life and death, and how those seemingly opposing forces create our reality.
"If you're IN nature, nature pulls you toward YOUR nature, and you start to come out of culture ... and then only love makes sense. Period." - Martha Beck
I surrender to the enchantment of light and shadow, hear the pure melodies of the birds, and inhale the rich scents of life. I feel the breeze on my skin, the warmth of the sun, and my senses become saturated with the energy of nature. My heart swells with gratitude for the beauty that seems to be there just for my pleasure!
The consciousness of Nature welcomes our personal consciousness and will “join up” with us if we’re patient. When it happens, you’ll feel your mind and heart expand, and may feel a profound oneness with the natural world. The longer you can commune with nature, the deeper your connection will become. Then, instead of being a passive observer of nature, you’ll become a living part of it. If only we as a species could experience this … we’d be truly pro-life.
"The refreshing moon of the Buddha is traveling through the sky of utmost emptiness. When the pond of the mind of living beings is still, the beautiful moon will reflect herself in it." - Ancient Chinese Poetry as Shared by Thich Nhat Hanh