Von Essen’s spiritual ecology reveals how only through a renewal of humanity’s spiritual connection to nature can we effect true environmental healing.
by Carl von Essen, M.D.
Many have been struck by a majestic moment in nature — a sole illuminated flower in a shady grove, an owl swooping silently across a wooded path or an infinitely starry sky — and found themselves in a state of expanded awareness so profound they could feel the interconnectedness of all life.
These trance-like moments of clarity, unity and wonder often incite a call to protect and preserve the earth — to support nature as she supports us.
Termed “nature mysticism,” people from all cultures have described such experiences. However, the ever-increasing urbanization of the world’s population is threatening this ancient connection, as well as the earth itself.
Von Essen explores nature mysticism through the recorded experiences of outdoor enthusiasts as well as scientific studies in biology, psychology and neuroscience.
Citing consciousness scholar William James and a variety of well-known nature lovers, such as Ansel Adams, Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson, he shows how the spiritual transcendence from an encounter in nature — like other mystical experiences — is healing the nature deficit disorder of our psyches and bodies, leading to an expansion of our worldview and a clearer understanding of ourselves and of our natural world.
Offering a solid bridge between spiritual practice and environmental activism, von Essen’s spiritual ecology reveals how only through a renewal of humanity’s spiritual connection to nature can we effect true environmental healing.
$18 — Bear & Company, One Park St., Rochester, VT 05767.
Reprinted from AzNetNews, Volume 30, Number 1, February/March 2011.
April 13, 2012
Book review