The Transformative Power of Indigenous Wisdom: Asking Permission from Mother Earth
We’ve received many teachings that have led us to reconnect with our roots and cultivate a profound relationship with Mother Earth. A key aspect of this journey involves embracing ancient indigenous wisdom, particularly the practice of asking permission before taking from the land.
This is our take on how to incorporate this ancient wisdom into your daily life, whether you're picking fruit, brewing herbal tea, or enjoying cannabis, to create a more meaningful and responsible connection with nature.
The Indigenous Roots of Asking for Permission:
Indigenous communities worldwide, comprising over 476 million people across 90 countries, have long understood the interdependence between humans and nature. For these cultures, the land is a living being with a spirit, deserving of respect and gratitude. Research suggests that indigenous peoples' lands make up around 22% of the Earth's surface but contain 80% of the planet's biodiversity. The practice of asking for permission helps preserve this rich biodiversity, as it fosters an attitude of respect and reciprocity toward the environment.
Why We Should Embrace This Practice:
In our modern world, with global food waste estimated at 1.3 billion tons per year, it's easy to lose touch with the source of our sustenance. Adopting the practice of asking for permission encourages mindfulness and gratitude, fostering a deeper connection with our environment. Studies have shown that cultivating gratitude can lead to increased well-being and life satisfaction, while environmental connectedness has been linked to pro-environmental behavior and reduced ecological footprints.
Tips for Incorporating Permission-Asking in Your Daily Life:
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Be Present: To begin, ensure you are fully present and aware of your surroundings. Research has shown that spending time in nature can reduce stress and improve cognitive function, so take a moment to connect with your environment and the living beings within it.
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Express Gratitude: Before harvesting, express gratitude for the nourishment provided. Being grateful can enhance well-being and improve mental health.
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Communicate with the Plant: Approach the plant with an open heart and a respectful attitude. Silently or aloud, ask for its permission to take what you need, and listen for any signs or feelings that may indicate its response.
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Harvest Mindfully: Studies have shown that humans have a direct impact on plant growth and health. Be gentle when harvesting, taking only what you need and leaving the rest for other creatures and the plant's continued survival.
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Give Back: Research suggests that environmental stewardship can lead to increased personal well-being and more sustainable communities. Consider giving back by planting seeds, nurturing the soil, or engaging in other acts of stewardship to create a reciprocal relationship with the environment.
By embracing the indigenous practice of asking for permission, supported by facts and figures, we can cultivate gratitude, awareness, and respect for our environment. This practice enriches our lives and contributes to a healthier, more sustainable world for future generations. Join us on this journey, and share your experiences as you awaken your connection to the Earth.
Jon Rappaport
NoMoreFakeNews.com
Exit From The Matrix: The Surpassing Power of Imagination
To order my mega-collection, Exit From The Matrix, click here.
Readers who've been with me for a while know I've written a great deal about imagination. My collection Exit From the Matrix puts together more than 50 exercises and techniques for expanding the scope, range, and power of imagination.
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Why? Because imagination is the quality that outdoes reality. Any kind of reality. Imagination is the infinite road.
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Consciousness wants to create new consciousness, and it can. Imagination is how it does it. If there were some ultimate state of consciousness, imagination would always be able to play another card and take it further.
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In any arena of life, and especially when it comes to mind, perception, power, empathy, and so on, there is always a status quo. It's the place where a person says, “Well, that's enough. I'll settle for what I have. I'll stop here.” Sooner or later, this leads to boredom, frustration, problems, and conflict. It leads to a decline.
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Imagination, which knows no bounds, is the source for the most adventurous explorations. It can have great impact on the material world, of course, but one mustn't therefore conclude it is composed of matter or energy. Imagination is non-material. To think otherwise winds you up in using some version of physics to depict imagination—and then you are imposing limits on it. This is an error. Imagination doesn't obey any laws of physics.
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If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, we've flattered reality enough. It doesn't need any more. Imagination creates new realities.
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You can create the same thing over and over, and eventually you'll be about as alive as a table. Inject imagination into the mix, and everything suddenly changes. You can steer that boat anywhere you want to. You can build worlds.
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The lowest common denominator of consensus implies an absence of imagination. Everyone agrees; everyone is bored; everyone is obedient. On the opposite end of the spectrum, there are massive floods of unique individual creation, and then that sought-after thing called abundance is as natural as the sun rising in the morning.
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Sitting around in a cosmic bus station waiting for reality is what reality is. Everything else is imagination.
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There are those who believe life is a museum. You walk through the rooms, find one painting, stroll into it and take up permanent residence. But the museum is endless. If you were a painter, you'd never decide to live inside one of your canvases forever. You'd keep on painting.
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The relentless and obsessive search for all those things on which we can agree is a confession of bankruptcy.
When we re-learn to live through and by imagination, we enter and invent new space and time. But space and time aren't superior forces. They come into being at the tap of imagination.
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With imagination, one can solve a problem. More importantly, one can skip ahead of the problem and render it null and void.
There are a billion murals on a billion walls, and a person chooses one and falls down before it and devotes himself to it. He spends a thousand years trying to decipher it. So be it. This isn't imagination.
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Imagination isn't a system. It might invent systems, but it is non-material. It's a capacity. It feels no compulsion to imitate reality. It makes realities. Its scope is limited only by a person's imagining of how far imagination can go.
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The human race is obsessed by the question: what exists? It appears to be a far easier question than: what do you want to imagine? This comparison explains why civilizations decline.
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Imagination is a path. Walking on that path long enough, you find answers to all the questions you've ever asked. You also find power that people dream of.
Exit From the Matrix is the realization of those clues, fleshed out, clarified, and embedded in techniques and exercises anyone can do on a daily basis.
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Here are the full contents of my mega-collection Exit From The Matrix. You can order it here: