A Spiritual Disconnect with Nature
Author: Klaus Mager Issue: 2024-09-18
A Spiritual Disconnect with Nature
by Klaus Mager
As I was writing my latest newsletter: Planting the Rain, it occurred to me that in our modern world, the relationship between humanity and nature has become dangerously fractured. Nowhere is this more evident than in Western science, which has slowly distanced itself from the spiritual and interconnected reality of the natural world. The Earth, once seen as Gaia, a living system teeming with intricate webs of life, is now viewed as a mere machine—an inert resource to be controlled, managed, and exploited. This disconnect has not only led to the degradation of our ecosystems but has put the very survival of our species at risk.
Consider, for example, the role of agricultural science. In the name of innovation, university extension programs—which are tasked with advising farmers—enforce farm bill rules that promote the planting of cover crops as a regenerative practice. On the surface, this seems aligned with environmental goals. However, farmers participating in crop insurance programs are then forced to terminate these cover crops with chemical herbicides, like Roundup, when scientists determine that the cover crop is drawing down water levels for the cash crop—often genetically modified corn or soy. What appears to be a solution to protect the soil instead becomes another act of harm, one that continues to treat the Earth as a mechanical system rather than a living organism. It epitomizes the lack of systems thinking in our science institutions.
This approach—rooted in the materialist, reductionist view of Western science—fails to recognize that soil is alive. It is not merely a substance to be controlled but a living entity that breathes, nourishes, and supports life. The soil, much like the atmosphere and the oceans, is part of a delicate balance that determines the health of entire ecosystems. Yet, the tools of modern science often ignore this interconnectedness, treating land, water, and air as separate components to be manipulated for economic gain.
In reality, this mechanistic approach to the land is a reflection of a deeper spiritual disconnect. We have forgotten that we are not separate from the Earth, but part of it—bound by the same cycles of life and death, growth and decay. The soil’s health is our health. Its ability to hold water, nourish plants, and support biodiversity is directly linked to our own well-being. When we degrade the land, we degrade ourselves.
We need to challenge that narrative, and call for a return to a holistic view of science—one that re-integrates the spiritual and the material, the human and the natural. By understanding the Earth as a living system, we can begin to heal the rift between economic needs and ecological sustainability. Only by seeing the planet as a sacred, living whole can we move toward a future where both humans and the environment thrive.
My newsletter explains the incredible scale of damage we are creating in the ecosystem.
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Related:
- Klaus Mager (author)
- 2024 (year)
- Topics: Climate and Environment, Wisdom Traditions and Ancient Knowledge