Reconnecting with Nature: the key to creating sustainable corporations
The editor in chief of The Guardian advises CEO's to consider themselves sons and daughters of the Sun and Earth and to regain a sense of the sacred.
Beyond consumerism or the use of non-renewable energies, maybe the central problem our ecological crisis is a deep disconnection with nature. By not considering the Earth, with its forests and seas, as a living being that is intimately connected with our lives, we offset a profound imbalance. That is the thesis of the editor in chief at the The Guardian, Jo Confino, for whom finding a sense of the sacred is the key to developing sustainable businesses and corporations.
Confino describes an interesting exercise. Take a walk down a valley while blindfolded and experience nature through smell and touch. Then, after a while, stop in the middle of the exercise and try to sense how nature is experiencing you at that moment. By inverting the roles, this simple task encourages us to think of nature as a living being and thus fosters an awareness of otherness.
Confino’s sacred-corp vision is inspired by Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh. Recently, the editor in chief went to visit him in his retreat center, Plum Village, in France. For Thich Nhat Hanh, the key to operating a change towards respect and away from an exploitation of the biosphere is in having a simple epiphany –– in recognizing that we are part of the Sun and the Earth. And, we should remember, in reality all of the pieces of our bodies originated in the Earth, which itself came from the Sun.
“We are indeed very intelligent, but we have to learn how to love Mother Earth,” says Thich Nhat Hanh. “When you look at the sun during your walking meditation, the mindfulness of the body helps you to see that the sun is in you; without the sun there is no life at all and suddenly you get in touch with the sun in a different way."
You see the relationship between you and the sun change … Before, you see the sun as something very far away and not having too much connection, but the connection is very, very deep. You are a child of the sun, you come from the sun, and that is something true with the earth also … your relationship with the earth is so deep, and the earth is in you and this is something not very difficult, much less difficult then philosophy.
If you can feel that Mother Earth is in you, and you are Mother Earth, then you are not any longer afraid to die because the earth is not dying. Like a wave appears and disappears and appears again.
The benefits of this planetary consciousness are manifold. On the one hand they seem to offer spiritual support against the fear of death, and on the other they allow us to weave together a sustainable future based on the basic principle of not harming ourselves. Once we truly understand that what we perceive to be a far off conglomeration of things —nature— is in reality ourselves, respect is conjured. Although many may think it to be some sort of extravagant paganism, it would be interesting to see CEO’s of great corporations reconsider themselves as children of the Earth and the Sun.
Related Articles
Why shrinking the size of life is synonymous of well-being
One of the great misunderstandings regarding modern spirituality is that to achieve it requires many things: readings, food, exercise, travel, groups and techniques. But perhaps it should be suggested
What is energy medicine yoga?
Energy Medicine Yoga (EMYoga) is slightly different from other types of Yoga, but it provides the same benefits in addition to a few very specific ones. One of them is that it gives you much more in
Red tea, the best antioxidant beverage on earth
Red tea is considered to be the most unusual of teas because it implies a consistently different preparation process. ––It is believed that its finding came upon surprisingly when traditional green
Is the internet on the verge of self-awareness?
More than 50 years ago, Marshall McLuhan described technology as an extension of our brains, constantly mutating and branching out. “These new media have made our world into a single unit,” the
How art can help us to age, healthy
Perhaps many of us already well know the formula for aging in health and wellness. A balanced diet and, as much as possible, one that’s natural. Keep our brains active and stimulated. Preserve and
Earthanima: documenting the living language of nature
The basic intuition that the Earth is alive and that nature has a language through which it communicates with us is what prompted this wood-art project named Earthanima. For the past couple of years
Dialogue with the Dalai Lama on science and spirituality
The Dalai Lama has been interested in science since he was a child. Over the years he’s visited many laboratories and has attended conferences that discuss consciousness from the scientific point of
Brian Eno's literary recommendations to rebuild society
Artists and authors often get asked what books or records they’d take with them to a deserted island. On principle, this is naturally an extreme anthology: urgency and tragedy guide its selection. It
Bill Mollison, natural ideologue and father of permaculture
Permaculture has established itself as a path towards communitarianism, but one that is in full symbiosis with nature. In practice, it is more than just a combination of agriculture, horticulture
A New Year's resolution for the earth
Worrisome quantities of waste are generated by human populations. Especially in cities, these have reached unprecedented and alarming levels. A largely uncontrolled practice, it affects everything on