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Mata Amritanandamayi says
It is religion that helps a person to maintain the
awareness that he or she is separate from nature. Without
religion mankind loses awareness. Religion teaches us
to love nature. In truth, the progress and prosperity
of mankind depends solely on the good which man does
for nature. Religion helps to maintain a harmonious
relationship between human beings, between the individual
and society, and between man and nature.
The relation between man and nature is like the relationship
between Pindala (the microcosm) and Bramanda (the macrocosm.)
Our great ancestors understood this. That is why they
gave so much importance to nature worship in religious
practices. The idea behind all religion acharam (practices)
was to closely associate human beings with nature. By
establishing a loving relationship between man and nature,
they ensured both the balance of nature and the progress
of the human race.
Look at a tree. It gives shade even to the person who
cuts it down. It gives its sweet delicious fruits to
the person who harms it. But our attitude is completely
different. When we plant a tree, or raise an animal,
we are only concerned about the profit we will make
from it. If the animal ceases to make a profit, we will
have it destroyed without a thought. As soon as the
cow stops producing milk, we will sell it to the butcher
to make money. If a tree stops yielding fruit we will
cut it down and make furniture or something else from
it. Selfishness reins supreme. Selfless love cannot
be found anywhere. But our ancestors were not like this.
They new that trees, plants, and animals were absolutely
necessary for the benefit and good of humans. They foresaw
that man in his selfish moments, would forget nature
and would cease to have any concern for her. They also
knew that future generations would suffer, due to man's
dissociation from nature. They therefore linked each
religious rite with nature. Thus, through religious
principles, they could succeed in developing an emotional
bond between man and nature. The ancients loved and
worshiped trees and plants - the Banyan and Bilva trees,
and the Tulsi plant - not because the trees bore fruits
and helped them to make a profit, but because the ancients
knew that they themselves in truth were one with all
of nature.
More than knowledge of modern science it is the deeper
understanding that religion provides, of the truth of
the oneness of all creation, which teaches humans to
love nature and to develop a sense of reverence and
devotion to all. The love that religion teaches is not
the kind of love, which a gross intellect can understand.
It is that of the heart. It can only be imbibed by a
person who's endowed with a subtle intellect born out
of faith.
Everything is pervaded by consciousness. It is consciousness
that pervades the world and all creatures in it. To
worship everything, seeing God in all, is what religion
advises. Such an attitude teaches us to love nature.
None of us would consciously injure our own body because
we know it would be painful. Similarly we will feel
the pain of other people to be our own when the realization
dawns within us that everything is pervaded by the one
and same consciousness. Compassion will arise and we
will sincerely wish to help and protect all. In that
state we won't feel like even plucking a leaf unnecessarily.
We will pick a flower only on the last day of its existence,
before it falls from the stem. We will consider it as
harmful to the plant and to nature if the flower is
picked on its very first day due to our greediness.
Whatever is provided by Nature, the source of flowers
and plants, should be lovingly returned to it. This
is the symbolism behind the offering of flowers to god.
It also helps to enhance our devotion to god. Worship
performed with one-pointedness helps to diminish thoughts
and this in turn will cleanse and purify the mind.
Looking at nature and observing its selfless way of
giving we can become aware of our own limitations. This
will help us to develop devotion and self-surrender
to God. Thus nature helps us to become closer to God
and teaches us to truly worship him. In reality nature
is nothing but God's visible form which we can experience
through our senses. Indeed by loving and serving nature
we are worshipping God himself. Just as nature creates
favorable circumstances for a coconut to become a coconut
tree and for a seed to transform itself into a huge
fruit, nature creates the necessary circumstances through
which the individual soul can reach the Supreme Being
and merge in eternal union with Him.
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