lotusinthemud

our sangha's grove of trees

The newly renamed Tree of Life sangha are buying trees in the Scottish Highlands. One of our major focuses is on caring for our planet and :: Trees For Life is an organisation that are working to rewind the Highlands and to restore some of the ancient :: Caledonian Forest 

Our :: grove already has 13 trees and we will continue adding to it

"Braiding Sweetgrass"

"Braiding Sweetgrass" by Robin Wall Kimmerer is a profound exploration of indigenous wisdom, ecology, and the interconnectedness of all living beings. Kimmerer, a botanist and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, weaves together personal narratives, scientific insights, and indigenous teachings to offer a vision of reciprocity and reverence for the natural world.

 

Here are some key lessons from the book

 

1. The Importance of Indigenous Wisdom: Kimmerer highlights the value of indigenous knowledge systems, which are deeply rooted in respect for the land and all its inhabitants. She emphasizes the need to learn from indigenous peoples and incorporate their perspectives into our understanding of ecology and sustainability.

 

2. Reciprocity with the Natural World: Central to Kimmerer's teachings is the concept of reciprocity—the idea that humans should give back to the earth as much as they take. She encourages readers to cultivate a reciprocal relationship with the natural world, honoring and respecting the gifts it provides.

 

3. The Language of Plants: Kimmerer explores the rich language of plants and the ways in which they communicate with each other and with humans. She encourages readers to listen to the wisdom of plants and learn from their teachings.

 

4. Cultivating Gratitude: Gratitude is a recurring theme in the book, with Kimmerer emphasizing the importance of gratitude as a practice for connecting with the earth and fostering a sense of belonging and interconnectedness.

 

5. Honoring Ancestral Knowledge: Kimmerer pays homage to the wisdom of her ancestors and encourages readers to reconnect with their own ancestral knowledge. She suggests that by honoring the wisdom of those who came before us, we can gain insights into living more harmoniously with the earth.

 

6. The Ethics of Gathering: Gathering food and materials from the land is an important part of many indigenous cultures, but Kimmerer stresses the importance of doing so ethically and sustainably. She advocates for practices that respect the land and ensure its health and vitality for future generations.

 

7. Restoring Ecological Balance: Kimmerer discusses the urgent need for humans to play a role in restoring ecological balance and healing the damage caused by human activities. She offers insights into how we can work with nature rather than against it to create a more sustainable future.

 

8. The Power of Storytelling: Throughout the book, Kimmerer uses storytelling as a powerful tool for conveying knowledge and wisdom. She demonstrates the importance of storytelling in indigenous cultures and encourages readers to embrace storytelling as a way of connecting with the land and with each other.

 

9. Finding Beauty in the Natural World: "Braiding Sweetgrass" is filled with descriptions of the beauty and wonder of the natural world. Kimmerer invites readers to slow down, observe the world around them, and find beauty and meaning in the smallest of details.

 

10. Living in Kinship with All Beings: Ultimately, Kimmerer's teachings revolve around the idea of living in kinship with all beings. She encourages readers to cultivate a sense of reverence, responsibility, and reciprocity in their relationships with the earth and all its inhabitants.

 

"Braiding Sweetgrass" is a lyrical and deeply moving book that challenges readers to rethink their relationship with the natural world and embrace a more holistic and interconnected way of living. It offers profound lessons in ecology, spirituality, and indigenous wisdom that are essential for navigating the challenges of the modern world.

 

Book: https://amzn.to/4dpAhv1

You can get the audiobook for FREE by using the same link above when you register on the Audible platform.

10 practical lessons from Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmere

 

10 practical lessons from Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer:

 

1. Cultivate gratitude: Embrace a mindset of gratitude towards nature and the interconnected web of life, recognizing the gifts that the natural world provides.

 

2. Embrace reciprocity: Understand the importance of reciprocity in our relationship with the natural world, acknowledging the need to give back and care for the earth in return for what it provides us.

 

3. Cultivate a deeper connection with nature: Develop a conscious and respectful relationship with the natural world, fostering a sense of interconnectedness and mutual respect.

 

4. Honor indigenous wisdom: Embrace the wisdom of indigenous cultures and their deep understanding of the natural world, recognizing the value of traditional ecological knowledge.

 

5. Foster environmental stewardship: Take proactive steps to care for the environment and advocate for the protection of natural spaces, recognizing our responsibility as stewards of the earth.

 

6. Embrace the teachings of plants: Learn from the wisdom of plants and the natural world, recognizing the valuable lessons they have to offer about resilience, adaptation, and interconnectedness.

 

7. Cultivate a sense of belonging in nature: Foster a deep sense of belonging and connection to the natural world, recognizing that humans are an integral part of the larger ecosystem.

 

8. Practice sustainable living: Embrace sustainable practices and advocate for environmentally conscious living, recognizing the importance of living in harmony with nature.

 

9. Learn from indigenous storytelling: Embrace the power of storytelling as a means of transmitting wisdom, knowledge, and cultural values, recognizing the importance of preserving and sharing indigenous stories.

 

10. Advocate for environmental justice: Stand up for the rights of marginalized communities and the protection of natural resources, recognizing the interconnectedness of social justice and environmental sustainability.

Weatherwatch: Tree-planting campaigns get a lift from Irish guide

Thousands of young trees perish each year in the vital first few months of planting :: link

Ever since the slogan “Plant a tree in ’73” was coined there have been repeated campaigns to encourage increased woodland planting of all kinds in Britain. In the 50 years since 1973, UK tree cover has doubled to about 13% of land area, still well below the 39% European Union average.

Meanwhile the greater understanding of the vital importance of trees in capturing carbon and keeping our cities cool in the summer has made more planting a top priority for many councils and environmental groups.

But despite efforts to green our towns and countryside, the biggest single problem remains the failure to keep the newly planted saplings alive. Thousands of young trees perish each year because in the vital first few months they are not fed, watered and protected. Generally, it takes two to three years for young transplanted trees to get their roots down deep enough for them to fend for themselves.

The Irish, who have even worse tree cover at 11%, down from a once natural forest of 80%, have the same problem. Their practical solution is a new comprehensive guide to tree planting, covering every eventuality from selecting the right species, type of soil required, digging the hole and onwards to proper aftercare.

:: link

things to remember as this world dies

you did not come here to pay bills and die

nor did you come to build the fortunes

of those destroying the Earth

 

Imagine instead

that you came to gather precious things

fallen from the pockets of Ancient Ones

as they fled the desert’s march -

each a reminder of something

they pledged never to forget

 

Things like

how to call birds by name with your whistle

which news to tell the bees

and which to share only with the moon

how to tell a parliament from a conspiracy

a colony from a convocation

 

Things like

Nature has no race or nation, class or creed

except when humans seek to deceive -

division designed to sever you

from kith and kin and buddha-mind

 

Things like:

the antidote to oppression

is not freedom but belonging

the opposite of domination is communion

the medicine you need

is always outside your door

and there’s likely a wise woman

two streets away

to show you how to use it

 

These things were left to help us remember

how each world before has ended

and how each death became a door to new life

and how this world wants to take you in her arms

and make of you a lover

and have you listen to the land

talk to the stream

find meaning in the silence of trees

and wisdom on the singing breeze

 

Listen awhile to discover

the right season for all the ten thousand things

the ninety-nine names we use for our own divinity

how to share power

so it cannot be captured by the vain and greedy

how to step into the flow of life

and make of the Earth a common treasury for all beings

how to map the stars

learn the lesson of each constellation

and still know there is more in heaven and earth

than any of us were ever meant to know

 

So fill your pockets as this world dies

knowing some of it will guide you to the next

and some will fall to the ground

in time to be found

by those who’ll bring the world back to life.

 

~ Chris Taylor, 1/1/24

Everything was possessed of personality, only differing from us in form

 

Chief Luther Standing Bear (Mato Najin) - Oglala ~

 

Children were taught that true politeness was to be defined in actions rather than in words. They were never allowed to pass between the fire and the older person or a visitor, to speak while others were speaking, or to make fun of a crippled or disfigured person. If a child thoughtlessly tried to do so, a parent, in a quiet voice, immediately set him right.

 

Expressions such as "excuse me," "pardon me," and "so sorry" now so often lightly and unnecessarily used, are not in the Lakota language. If one chanced to injure or cause inconvenience to another wanunhecun, or "mistake," was spoken. This was sufficient to indicate that no discourtesy was intended and that what happened was accidental.

 

Our young people, raised under old rules of courtesy, never indulged in the present habit of talking incessantly and all at the same time. To do so would have been not only impolite, but foolish; for poise, so much admired as a social grace, could not be accompanied by restlessness. Pauses were acknowledged gracefully and did not cause lack of ease or embarrassment.

 

In talking to children, the old Lakota would place a hand on the ground and explain: "We sit in the lap of our Mother. From her we, and all other living things, come. We shall soon pass, but the place where we now rest will last forever." So we, too, learned to sit or lie on the ground and become conscious of life about us in its multitude of forms.

 

Sometimes we boys would sit motionless and watch the swallows, the tiny ants, or perhaps some small animal at its work and ponder its industry and ingenuity; or we lay on our backs and looked long at the sky, and when the stars came out made shapes from the various groups.

 

Everything was possessed of personality, only differing from us in form. Knowledge was inherent in all things. The world was a library and its books were the stones, leaves, grass, brooks, and the birds and animals that shared, alike with us, the storms and blessings of earth. We learned to do what only the student of nature learns, and that was to feel beauty. We never railed at the storms, the furious winds, and the biting frosts and snows. To do so intensified human futility, so whatever came we adjusted ourselves, by more effort and energy if necessary, but without complaint.

 

Even the lightning did us no harm, for whenever it came too close, mothers and grandmothers in every tipi put cedar leaves on the coals and their magic kept danger away. Bright days and dark days were both expressions of the Great Mystery, and the Indian reveled in being close to the Great Holiness.

 

Observation was certain to have its rewards. Interest, wonder, admiration grew, and the fact was appreciated that life was more than mere human manifestation; it was expressed in a multitude of forms.

 

This appreciation enriched Lakota existence. Life was vivid and pulsing; nothing was casual and commonplace. The Indian lived - lived in every sense of the word - from his first to his last breath.

 

~ Chief Luther Standing Bear (Mato Najin) - Oglala

Joanna Macy & Chris Johnstone introduce ACTIVE HOPE

 

 

A Hopi perspective

 

“We were told that we would see America come and go. In a sense, Humanity is dying, from within, because they forgot the instructions of how to live on earth. It's the Hopi belief, it's our belief, that if you are not spiritually connected to the earth, and understand the spiritual reality of how to live on earth, it's likely that you will not make it.

 

Everything is spiritual, everything has a spirit, everything was brought here by the creator, the one creator. Some people call him God, some people call him Buddha, some people call him Allah, some people call him other names. We call him Tunkaschila... Grandfather.

 

We are here on earth only a few winters, then we go to the spirit world. The spirit world is more real than most of us believe.

 

The spirit world is everything. Over 95% of our body is water. In order to stay healthy, you've got to drink good water. ... Water is sacred, the air is sacred.

 

Our DNA is made out of the same DNA as the tree, the tree breaths what we exhale, we need what the tree exhales. So we have a common destiny with the tree.

 

We are all from the earth, and when the earth, the water, the atmosphere is corrupted, then it will create its own reaction. The mother is reacting.

 

In the Hopi prophecy, they say the storms and floods will become greater. To me, it's not a negative thing to know that there will be great changes. It's not negative, it's evolution. When you look at it as evolution, it's time, nothing stays the same. You should learn how to plant something. That is the first connection.

 

You should treat all things as spirit, realize that we are one family. It's never something like the end. It's like life, there is no end to life.”

 

~Floyd Red Crow Westerman

Borrowed from All Natives United

"We are all connected; we all belong."

Wasted Food Compounds Climate Change

2.5 Billion Tons of Wasted Food Compounds Climate Change, Study Shows  How about the many ways that food is wasted? There is food loss, which happens between field and fridge; and food waste, prepared food that is thrown out in stores or in our homes. All together, it's 40% of all food produced, taking up land, energy, fertilizer, and transport—and turning into methane in the landfills. And then we eat 30% more than we need, wasting even more! A new study confirms what we've said before: Food waste is a huge contributor to climate change and a host of other problems. READ MORE

Ten Love Letters to the Earth by Thich Nhat Hanh

I

Beloved Mother of All Things

Dear Mother Earth,

I bow my head before you as I look deeply and recognize that you are present in me and that I’m a part of you. I was born from you and you are always present, offering me everything I need for my nourishment and growth. My mother, my father, and all my ancestors are also your children. We breathe your fresh air. We drink your clear water. We eat your nourishing food. Your herbs heal us when we’re sick.

You are the mother of all beings. I call you by the human name Mother and yet I know your mothering nature is more vast and ancient than humankind. We are just one young species of your many children. All the millions of other species who live—or have lived—on Earth are also your children. You aren’t a person, but I know you are not less than a person either. You are a living breathing being in the form of a planet.

Each species has its own language, yet as our Mother you can understand us all. That is why you can hear me today as I open my heart to you and offer you my prayer.

Dear Mother, wherever there is soil, water, rock or air, you are there, nourishing me and giving me life. You are present in every cell of my body. My physical body is your physical body, and just as the sun and stars are present in you, they are also present in me. You are not outside of me and I am not outside of you. You are more than just my environment. You are nothing less than myself.

I promise to keep the awareness alive that you are always in me, and I am always in you. I promise to be aware that your health and well-being is my own health and well-being. I know I need to keep this awareness alive in me for us both to be peaceful, happy, healthy, and strong.

Sometimes I forget. Lost in the confusions and worries of daily life, I forget that my body is your body, and sometimes even forget that I have a body at all. Unaware of the presence of my body and the beautiful planet around me and within me, I’m unable to cherish and celebrate the precious gift of life you have given me. Dear Mother, my deep wish is to wake up to the miracle of life. I promise to train myself to be present for myself, my life, and for you in every moment. I know that my true presence is the best gift I can offer to you, the one I love.

Buddhism and the Climate Crisis ~ a Bright Earth Newsletter

Kaspalita writes:

At the beginning of the week the IPPC released its sixth report. You’ve probably seen the headlines in newspapers and on the radio and television. The headline from the IPPC press release is: climate change: rapid, widespread and intensifying.

This is a longer newsletter than usual. But it's an important topic to address. Perhaps the most pressing issue of the day. I also wanted to share with you the video from last Saturday's practice session, which included our first refuge ceremony since the temple's change of name: Practice, Sh*t, and refuge.

Over the past few weeks the news has been full of flooding in Europe and wildfires around the world, in Turkey, Greece, California, Siberia and so on.  The fire in California now covers 724 square miles. There have always been forest fires there, but the climate crisis means they are bigger, more damaging and more unmanageable.

On Monday morning I sat and watched the beginning of the live-streamed press conference from the IPCC. I listened to a couple of speakers and then I couldn’t listen any more. I stood up and decided to get on with the day’s work. I went into the bedroom to change into my painting clothes, collapsed onto the bed and sobbed.

After a minute or so I picked myself up, got changed and carried on with my day. Throughout the morning the grief and upset sat just behind my other thoughts and feelings.