There’s something really wonderful about spending time outdoors. Outside, is, of course, where we all started, at one time in our cosmic lives, with everything we would need available for our basic survival. Plants for food or healing, animals for companionship or food, wood for structures or fire, water in the streams for hydrating or cleansing, oxygen in the air for vital breath and eventually land for agriculture and stone and ore for reinforced structures or self-protection – all of this was provided for us when we arrived on this planet.
Today, we generally enjoy nature as a space for recreation and not just the necessities for survival. Whether finding large grassy meadows to roam, hills or mountains to climb, lakes and oceans for swimming, overlooks for sunrises and sunsets or parks for places to sit, when we take the time to get out and engage with nature, it doesn’t matter if we are participating in an activity or simply enjoying the warmth of the sun or cool of the rain. What matters is that we are reconnecting with our roots of origin, with our essential being, and grounding back into the rhythms of our natural world.
Rhythms, the internal ‘beats’ which tell our bodies what to turn on/off are embedded in our biology. They are hardwired within us and reflect what happens in nature. We often hear of Circadian rhythms (occurring in a 24-hour cycle) which are intrinsically tied to our diurnal (day/night) rhythms, following the rising and setting of the sun. Our senses are built to detect slight changes in light, temperature and sound and respond accordingly, prompting natural sleeping and waking hours, amongst many other crucial life functions like digestion and immune system repair. Through the seasons, we experience the rhythmic cycle of life with youthful spring, wise and full summer, decaying and slowing autumn and the slumber and rest of winter. Women experience menstrual rhythms, with a similar cycle of ripening, fertility, (sometimes) life creation and ‘harvest,’ followed by waning youth and menopause. Our entire lives are part of larger cycles which occur within and throughout nature.
The Earth itself has a natural rhythm, its own ‘heartbeat,’ known as the Schumann Resonance, a 7.83 Hertz frequency. It is documented that when we connect with this frequency, through spending time in direct contact with nature, it will ‘induce brain states that help us relax, heal, and perceive and experience Earth energies. The system works in the same way as a tuning fork works with sound.*’ With cell phones and wi-fi all around us, we tend to live in a Hertz range of 30,000 to 300 Billion Hertz**, far exceeding our natural tolerances, which causes tension headaches, fatigue, overwhelm and feelings of being scattered. Finding time to exist, to be, to spend time in our natural elements re-grounds us and restores a greater sense of balance in our lives.
Significantly impactful ways to connect with the Earth’s heartbeat, almost like a ‘shortcut,’ is through tree hugging (no joke), earthing and gardening. With these practices, the electromagnetic fields of the Schumann Resonance are delivered through the roots and leaves or bark of plants, grasses and trees, giving us direct connection with the pulse of the Earth. By feeling the Earth through our hands or feet (or lying on your back in the grass), we reground through absorption of negative ions which neutralize free radicals in our bodies and ease the inflammation of our constant response to living in a high-frequency environment. The next time you are feeling disconnected, frazzled, anxious, exhausted or overwhelmed, know there is relief by finding ways to ‘ground’ back into your natural and more peaceful rhythms through the gift of spending time outside in nature.
· Take a walk or hike
· Sit by a river
· Run through the grass barefoot
· Sit beneath (or hug) a tree
· Dig a hole with your bare hands
· Breathe in the smell of fresh rain
· Experience nature with all your available senses
When we reconnect with the natural rhythms surrounding us, those of time, life, space, Earth, we fall back into a simpler and easier way of being, one that is more closely related to how humans have lived for thousands upon thousands of years. By connecting back to our origins, we gain deep appreciation for modern convenience and respect for all that this beautiful planet continues to provide for us. Everything we need to be alive and whole is still available from the Great OutDoors.
References:
* Jaap Van Etten, PhD, “Gifts of Mother Earth: Energies, Vortexes, Lines, and Grids.”
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