Audio on deep ecology

Interview: JOHN SEED on Deep Ecological Identity

Fri, 30 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

An interview with John Seed on the For The Wild Podcast

What could our reality look like if we had not grown up in a society so deeply committed to an anthropocentric understanding of cosmos and planet? What would it mean to no longer identify as “the spider in the center, but as a single strand in the spider’s web?” These questions engage our imagination to think beyond what we know and envision a future that is both deeply connected and full of gratitude. Yet mere awareness of this possibility or awareness of the possibility of biological collapse has proven to be insufficient. We know the changes we face, we read the news, we have all the data and statistics to confirm a changing climate or the perils of resource extraction and loss of biodiversity. Yes, we are aware, yet we remain disempowered and continue to engage in the habits causing detriment to what extends beyond our very skin. This week’s guest, John Seed, reminds us that to move forward we cannot simply know, we must honor and engage with our deepest emotions in order to radically change the reality we are living in.

Meditation: “Our Life as Gaia” - Remembering Cosmogenesis

Sun, 26 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The recording below consists of a 45 minute guided meditation and visualisation exploring the story of cosmogenesis also known as “The Universe Story”, “The Great Story” and the “Epic of Evolution”. This version is a little more meditative than some versions, so it contain less in the way of specific dates for events and more cues for embodied awareness. The basic flow is ispired by Thomas Berry, Brian Swimme, Sister Miriam Therese MacGillis, John Seed and others.

Embodied practice: Body Scan and Total Relaxation

Mon, 20 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The following recording consist of a guided body scan and total relaxation. This practice builds on the embodied awareness and breath meditations introduced in previous sessions, cultivating a sensitivity to subtler sensation in the whole body. These practices are beneficial as a way to increase embodied awareness, the capacity to maintain that awareness over a longer period, and for relaxation and stress management. You will also find they are of benefit when you revisit those earlier practices, as they hone the same skills.

Embodied practice: Finding the Full Body Breath

Mon, 20 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

From our birth until our last moment of life, the breath is with us, a rhythmic connection between the inner and outer. While there is a basic function of the breath to provide oxygen to our cells and carry away carbon dioxide, the importance of “respiration” for our health and vitality goes way beyond simply gas exchange, so that spiritual traditions the world over are almost unanimous in emphasising the importance of the breath.

Embodied practice: Breathing Through - Ven. Tenzin

Sun, 12 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The recording below consists of an introduction to the practice of “Breathing Through” developed by Joanna Macy, here guided by Buddhist monk Ven. Tenzin (Dr. Alex Anderson). This practice is often offered in Deep Ecology and especially Work that Reconnects" workshops, as a foundational practice for working with the powerful emotions that can arise in the Spiral phase “Honouring our Pain for the World” such as the “Truth Mandala”. Joanna’s “Breathing Through” has its origins in a traditional Tibetan Buddhist practice used in the cultivation of loving kindness and compassion, known as “Tonglen”, or “Giving and Taking”. This practice is a foundational practice in the Boddhisattva path, and a cornerstone of the Work That Reconnects. See also Macy’s own written instructions for this practice, and her 2005 training video of the same.

Embodied practice: Basic Breath Awareness

Sun, 12 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The following recording follows on from a previous offering which introduced basic postural awareness, helpful in sitting meditation. This practice expands on the base of embodied practice introduced there, bringing in mindfulness of breathing. We draw on the [Sutra on Full Awareness of Breathing,][1] or [Anapanasati Sutta][2] (Mn118). As the name implies these instructions take the breath as the main object of awareness, and constitute a core practice of Buddhist Yoga. They are beneficial in the cultivation of a body and mind which is calm, placing the practitioner in touch with the parasympathetic nervous system, fundamentally down-regulating, and a helpful antidote to experiences of strong flooding emotions. The practice shared here are very general and introductory, suitable for any level of practitioner. They can be practiced sitting on a cushion on the floor, on a chair, or even lying down. The emphasis here is again one of cultivation of relaxation, ease and continuity of awareness.

Embodied Practice: Introduction to Mindful Walking

Tue, 07 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The recording below is a brief introduction to the embodied practice of Mindful Walking, drawing on insights and instructions from the Buddhist tradition. This practice can form a key part of our daily practices for resources and nourishing, equipping us with the presence and stability to work engage wholeheartedly with our lives, relationships, and experiences, even the more challenging ones. The approach shared here is especially inspired by Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village tradition, which emphasises mindfulness in daily life, and the cultivation of ease, peace and joy in all our activities.

Embodied Practice: Introduction to Sitting

Tue, 07 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The following recording is an introduction to the embodied practice of sitting meditation, preliminary to a practice of Mindfulness of Breathing. These instructions draw on the Buddhist and Yoga traditions of meditation with the breath as an object. They are beneficial in the cultivation of a body and mind which is calm, at ease and able to maintain awareness even with subtle sensations and experiences. The practice shared here are very general and introductory, suitable for any level of practitioner. They can be practiced sitting on a cushion on the floor, on a chair, or even lying down. The emphasis is not on forcing the body to persist through pain and discomfort, or developing some kind of lazer-beam concentration, but on cultivation the capacity to enjoy, to be be fulfilled by the simple act of breathing in and out.

Practice: Breathing Through

Mon, 02 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Joanna Macy offers the following practice as part of the preparatory work for the “Honouring our Pain for the world” component of The Work That Reconnects. See also her own 2005 training video of this practice, and our guided audio recording of the same.

Basic to most spiritual traditions is the recognition that we are not separate, isolated entities, but integral and organic parts of the vast web of life. We can open to the pain of the world in confidence that it can neither shatter nor isolate us, for we are not objects that can break. We are resilient patterns within a vaster web of knowing.

Philosophy in the Mountains: ABC radio show about Arne Naess and interview with John Seed.

Sun, 01 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/philosopherszone/philosophy-in-the-mountains—arne-naess/3176186

“Arne Næss, who died in January just a couple of weeks short of his ninety-seventh birthday, was a great mountaineer and part of the history of twentieth-century philosophy. He started out as a member of the great philosophical school the Vienna Circle but was better known as the founder of the movement known as deep ecology. This week, we pay tribute to the man and his work.”

—arne-naess/3176186

Video: The Deep Ecology Movement with Alan Drengson

Sun, 01 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Audio of an interview with Alan Drengson from Greenradio on youtube,

R. Alan Drengson explains the origins and principles of the deep ecology movement, while speaking of its founder, Norwegian philosopher Arne Næss. In particular, Dr. Drengson identifies the importance of contextual knowledge and of engaging conversations at the intersections of difference. Radio interview by Simon R. Watson and Jordan Poppenk for the Green Majority on CIUT 89.5 FM at the University of Toronto. Originally aired June 6, 2008.