Nature is the Portal to the Soul

Nature is the portal to the soul – a gateway to the Self. It is through the portal of Nature that we can access higher levels of consciousness, becoming more aware of ourselves and our existence along the way.

If we are to prevent the further self destruction of our species and planet, and transcend out of the darkness of fear, shame and guilt towards the light of love, joy and peace, then the spirit of Nature is the divine force that is going to save us.

Despite our years spent wandering through the darkness in the world of ego and identity, none of us have completely forgotten what we truly are. If you think about your own ventures away from the busyness of society and structure into the world of Nature, I am sure that you, too, will recall feelings of deep peace and tranquillity; a sense of ‘returning home’, perhaps.

Those feelings of appreciation towards Mother Nature are ones that we all share. Beyond race or religion, our nervous systems react in the same way when we walk through a silent woodland at sunrise, and the same emotions arise when we feel the salty sea envelop our weary bodies at the end of a long and tiresome week. Nature is the only thing that unites us all, and it is towards its’ beauty that we must look as we journey towards a collective healing.

Given our natural and innate negativity bias as human beings, we tend to spend so long focusing on the ugliness of ourselves and our own existence that it is all too easy to look past the beauty that comes with being human. The same beauty and innocence that we witness whilst outdoors walking in the natural world, is also innate within every human being.

With every step that we take outdoors, so, too, we walk one step along the path within our inner worlds. Everything that exists outside of us, also exists within. When we learn to recognise the true perfection within Nature, so, too, we can recognise the perfection of our own creation. We see ourselves, after all, through the same lens that we see the natural world. The more sensitive we become to the beauty of Nature, so, too, we become more sensitive towards ourselves, and, in turn, each other.

Mother Nature is our divine mirror. She is our greatest teacher. The further that we look into the soul of Nature, the further we can see into our own souls. When we can recognise the soul within ourselves, we can recognise the soul within other people, too. When we learn to open our inner eye to really ‘see’ whilst we are looking into Nature, we learn to ‘see’ ourselves, too. In turn, we can begin to really ‘see’ other people, leading to a much deeper compassion, understanding and empathy towards them.

As we look towards the seasons outside in Nature in pursuit of further understanding, so we can better understand the seasons within our own selves and others. Maybe then, we will stop applying labels that limit what and who we are, and we will realise that every patch of darkness in our own lives is just a storm that is passing through the open expanse of our inner worlds.

Instead of gazing up at the stars in wonder, allowing our minds to wander far away in a dream state, we humans can easily develop tendencies to hide away indoors within the safe confines of our self-containing prisons to protect the fragile shells that transport our consciousness.

This kind of behaviour is common amongst those of us who are, or have been, disconnected from our soul. I speak from experience having been someone who spent two decades hiding away from the world behind a screen as a child, teen, and young adult.

When we take a walk outdoors into Nature, we witness the boundless nature of this existence — we learn that we, too, are boundless in our own potential and capacity for growth.

By opening our hearts and minds through our interactions with the natural world, we begin to undo many of the beliefs that we hold about our limitations and incapability’s.

When we look towards the trees for guidance and wisdom, and learn to breathe in harmony with them, we begin to realise our true nature which is that of the spirit, and not merely physical matter, as modern science might have us believe.

When we stand atop the mountains and gaze out over the vast, empty expanse, we, too, turn one eye inwards to marvel at the open expanse that is our internal landscape.

The ultimate journey of the human being is one towards the nothingness of this great void. It is a journey to forget all thoughts about what we have been told we are. When we frequent the world of Nature, we are given an opportunity to escape our own minds and the tragic world of thought that is, all too often, responsible for our descent into chaos and destruction.

By allowing our thoughts to wander far away from the four walls that we have built around ourselves within our own minds, we can transcend our egocentric identities and remember what we truly are.

When we stand amidst the force of Nature, we, too, become limitless and boundless because the same love that flows gently between the rocks within the river also flows through our veins. The same rage that the ocean unleashes on the headland in pursuit of constant change and evolution, also exists inside of us. The same ancestral wisdom that is kept safe and guarded by the trees is also innate within the human being.

Nature is the great awakener of the human being. The open, non-judgmental space, similar to that which a therapist would provide, gives us an opportunity to look deep within ourselves to access this divine wisdom and knowledge. When we rekindle our relationship with the natural world, we repair the broken links in the chain of consciousness that reaches back as far as the dawn of time.

When we surrender all thought of who we are, come back to the breath of Nature, look out with one eye, whilst keeping the other lens firmly fixed inside of ourselves, we can recognise the symbiosis between the outer world and our own inner world. When we understand that relationship, we become aware that the same symbiosis is also occurrent within everyone else.

It is with this understanding that we see, despite the egos desire to separate and isolate itself, that we are the same heart beating and the same soul transcending towards the light. We are all so deeply connected, our hearts woven together with ancestral twine, and true connection with others is what we all so deeply crave. With deepening understanding of this knowledge, comes a depth of compassion, particularly for those souls that have drifted further away from the source.

In pursuit of ‘more’, of newer technology and further business and economic growth, we constantly spout the word ‘evolution’, but it is, in fact, this very devolution from our true nature that is the cause of humanities collective despair and psychosis. It is, in my belief, that our disconnection from Nature, and the repression of our own wild nature and tendencies is what causes much of our compulsive behaviour and the resulting guilt and shame that follows.

If we are to escape the prisons of our own feelings of guilt and shame, freeing ourselves to ascend towards a state of unconditional love and self-acceptance, then it is imperative that we take a walk from the known into the unknown (but not quite yet forgotten); through the portal into the world of Nature.

It is through this portal that we learn how to sit with ourselves and feel into our own unique inner worlds. We begin to understand how to navigate our own complex, emotional landscapes. By meeting ourselves like this in the mirror that is Nature, connecting with the trees, and coming home to the breath, we learn the art of presence. When we are truly present, we can really begin to see ourselves for what we are, and connect to that which is beyond the limitations of our own ego and identity. By finding true presence in Nature, we connect back to the soul – the one soul of this Earth that exists to unite us all.