Uniting with Place
Below I offer a short list of some ways that I have found to be extremely effective in creating a deep connection to the place that you call home…or the place you wish to call home. As the root of your being sinks more fully into your place, both the land and your soul will receive immense nourishment. The root will develop more and more, until a sense of true belonging to the earth is established throughout the entirety of your being.
Speaking and listening to your place: When done sincerely, this practice will open you to levels of connection that were once unimaginable. You will also learn to experience each place as a living, sentient being. One that is ever-ready to begin a unique and powerful conversation with you. In each situation, the energy and attitude that you approach with will be mirrored back to you in strong ways. Therefore, gratitude and reverence are always considered essential ingredients in any individual recipe.
To officially open the pathways of communication with the livingness of your place, begin with a greeting of some kind: speaking your full name and offering some symbol of your intentions. Perhaps there is a gift to be given, such as a song or something that you have made. Some form of beauty and blessing to honor the exchange that is taking place. Something that has meaning to you. Weave your words in a way that creates a sense of friendship and goodwill. Speak from your heart, however feels best. Be clear as you declare the “why” in your desire to connect. If you are not sure where to begin, start with asking permission (to enter, to pass through safely, to garden, etc). This will create a beautiful shift within you, and in the world all around you, as well…especially in places that have not experienced conscious human attention and kindness for a very long time.
After you have made the initial greeting and spoken your piece, it is then time to listen. Ideally, this will be the majority of your interaction. It is best done by dropping into a completely receptive state: expanding into each of your senses with as much presence as possible. Here again, it is very similar to the energy needed to communicate authentically with another human being. Imagine the response is coming from someone very important to you, such as a wise elder or a teacher. Someone that you would listen to with every atom of your being. Here you must be careful not to listen with your mind alone, as the mind will often hear exactly what it wants to hear (potentially manipulating the interpretation). Instead, listen with your heart– your intuitive mind– and be willing to receive whatever responses you are given. These could come to you in any number of forms: emotions, sounds, felt sensations, external appearances. Be willing to “hear” anything. Including some statement of the boundaries.
Learning to speak and listen to the more-than-human realm in this way can be a lot like learning a new language. Empathy is one of the most important abilities that needs to be developed in order to become fluent. One technique that I have used to build my empathic capacity is to expand my awareness into the space within which that which I am connecting to is existing. This may require a lot of your imagination, especially in the beginning. But with consistency, it becomes easier and easier to open and direct your awareness with focused precision.
As this practice of communication continues to expand through your consistent effort, a very personalized ritual will take form. It has for me. And I now enjoy this moment of connection more than just about everything else that I do to commune with the livingness of a place.
Deeply immersing within your place: There are so many ways to immerse yourself deeply within the ever-healing fabric of nature. Everyone must find their own best way to do this. For some, this may look like getting out into the garden every day and tending to your own little stretch of the flowering earth: smelling, tasting, touching, seeing, hearing and truly feeling the pulse of life all around you. Taking the time to slow down and quiet yourself long enough to observe the direction of the wind, the moisture in the air, the song of the birds, the approaching thunderstorm, or the evolving cycles of the moon.
Maybe a nearby forest or desert canyon calls to you more than the garden. If so, practice wandering timelessly in this wild place. Get off trail. Let your intuition guide you to wherever you need to be. Let the spirit of this place show you what you need to see. Or what it needs you to see. Trust your gut. Listen with you entire body. Build the lines of connection and communication until you feel that this place is an extension of your being. Or better yet, that you are an extension of it.
The sit-spot practice is a perfect complement to the practice of timeless wandering. With sit-spotting, you need to find one place upon the landscape where you can go and relax your body, mind and spirit. Ideally every day, for at least thirty minutes, or so. As you approach this place, begin to shed the busyness of your day, if any. Once you have settled in, seek an inner stillness. Breath, relax, and simply observe. Set the intention to align yourself with the baseline rhythm that surrounds you. Perhaps by melting your body into the tree at your back, or letting your mind drift within the water of the creek flowing before you. Little by little, day by day, you will notice a profound shift of consciousness take place. One that the wild ones will recognize and honor. In time, they may reveal themselves to you. But the true reward of this practice cannot be measured by anything outside of yourself. It is simply a gift in itself, within yourself.
However you choose to immerse yourself, let it feel so good.
Creating an Outdoor Altar: Creating a special space upon the land where you can anchor your feeling of connection to place is an essential practice for anyone who knows how to connect at the subtler levels of energy and spirit. The directional wheel of life, a labyrinth, or any other kind of sacred geometric configuration that aligns with the sacred geometries of the Universe will work to orient and align your being to the location of your calling: helping you to consciously acknowledge and deeply remember your cosmic-earthen belonging. So long as you return to this altar often, or bring it into your awareness while you are away. It is especially powerful to visit during equinoxes, solstices, full moons, new moons, etc.
Another practice that can be very powerful is to create natural mandalas made from natural materials on your landscape. Weaving the design in harmony with the macrocosmic design of your place: ceremonially creating the most beautiful reflection that you possibly can for your ecosystem, and this entire web of life and light. Such an honoring will not only feed and nourish your sense of belonging, but it will also nourish the spirit of your place…and all the holy ones who call it home.
Whatever you decide to create, make sure that you continue to show up and tend to it: spending time there as often as possible, offering your loving care and attention. Feel free to bring others to this place and share in the magic that you are weaving. This will keep the energy fresh and alive. Both within you, and all around you.
Getting to know the wild neighbors: To be able to walk out across the landscape and feel connected to the many different wild beings that live in the area that you call home is one of the most ancient and original human experiences available to you. This is because you have always been intimately woven into this great web of animals, plants, mushrooms, minerals, and mystery. From the moment you were born, this was true. And it has been true for our entire species since time before time. Even in the modern era, where so many have lost touch with so much that once made us whole. As you learn to find your way back to this wholeness, let the deep satisfaction of remembering guide the way.
The easiest place for most people to initiate this return journey is with the plant kingdom. This is because the plants have a very hard time hiding themselves from us (unlike animals). You can track their cycles through the seasons by simply walking the same path from time to time. With a field guide or two, you can learn which of them offer food, medicine, or utility to you and your loved ones. Finding ways to support these plants in exchange for their many blessings is a natural and healthy expression of gratitude. Perhaps by propagating them into new places, and helping them to flourish wherever they grow. In time, the greatest joy often comes when you get a chance to connect others to these allies, introducing them to people as you would a dear friend (and realizing that it is true).
This same depth of relationship is possible with animals, as well. But you must first learn to track their movements across your local terrain: observing their signs, and following their trails. Perhaps you begin in a nearby woodland, along a creek, or across your own doorstep. A persistent curiosity will ultimately lead you to discover who they are, and why they are doing what they are doing. This along with an understanding of the importance of their presence in your ecosystem. Becoming more aware of these locals is a practice that will bring you into profound harmony with the rhythm of your own wild instincts. Slowly but surely, you will awaken the quiet mind of one who lives in tune with the moment. Many people use motion-sensor trail cameras as a shortcut. This is fine (and fun), but I believe the old way is the best way. Because the moment you finally get a glimpse of whoever you have been tracking and trailing (for however long) will inevitably be full of magic and an immense sense of reward. Perhaps they will feel something similar.
Every single being within the more-than-human realms that surround you are all simply waiting for you to discover them. They are waiting for you to pursue them with curiosity and respect. There may be a bit of a chase at times, as there often is in any courtship, but ultimately they wish to be known. And the more you get to know them, the more you will get to know your own true self.
Seeking the true name of your place: The power of this one became clear to me as a nature connection mentor for children. After many hours of running around out in the forest with the young ones, I began to notice them doing something that I always did when I was a kid, as well: creating names for places that were based upon what we would perceive or experience there during our adventures. For example, Otter Slide Hill is a high angle incline that we sought out after every large snowfall: sliding down its slope upon our bellies, grinning happily, much like the otter seems to do every time it hits a similar terrain. In this same way, we would give names to the many different animals, plants, trees, rocks, and other notable beings that were encountered during our wanders. These personal names were always far more relatable than any scientific name could ever be. Even now, so many years later, I can mention one of these special names to my young friends and they will immediately be able to recall who or what I am talking about in a deeply felt way.
My only recommendation here is to trust the names that you give to your world. Do not overthink them, or get too heady about it all. True names are an elusive thing, and some of the greatest namers on the planet right now are certainly children. So tap into that unadulterated imagination and see what you discover.
Planting in your place: Some people might tell you to go hug a tree in order to ground and connect to the earth. I say go plant one. Actually, go plant as many as you can. Aside from all of the obvious ecological benefits, planting trees is one of the single most powerful ways to feel a true sense of belonging to place. In fact, be careful where you choose to plant your trees, because the second its roots start working their way deeper into the ground, so too will your own. And if you weren’t planning to feel connected to that place in particular, too bad! Some feeling of belonging will begin to form, no matter what. Of course, I am joking about the concern. But I am serious about the effect it will have on you. I feel deeply tethered to every place that I have ever spent time planting trees (which is a really good feeling). If you ever get a chance to talk to some old-timer about the trees that they have planted, you will witness exactly what I am talking about. It is as if a part of their own soul is enmeshed in the wood of those trees that now tower above their well-worn lives.
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This series of writings was born from the observation that the vast majority of humanity is no longer intimately connected to the web of life and light that is nature. We have lost our indigenous connection to the earth, and are no longer native to our own planet. It is not hard to see how this core disconnection has led to every single malady of the modern world, including the modern world itself. Until we remember how to exist as a native-to-the-earth species, the annihilation of all that we know and love is inevitable.