Zion National Park – A Gallery of Photos
Tag Archives: Nature
A Sanctuary of Peace and Refuge
Zion. The word evokes a place of sanctuary – of peace and refuge. The majestic red rocks of Zion National Park are in a state of continual change. The feeling of ancient wisdom, calm, peace, and movement – of evolving – are so palpable here. A deep knowing energy pervades the air, the earth, the rocks.
“Has joy any survival value in the operations of evolution?
I suspect that it does…”
-Edward Abbey
Large Cathedrals and Small Chapels
Here immersed in these extravagant wonders formed over millennia, are cathedrals of stone so immense they cover an expanse as far as the eye can see. Within these grand cathedrals, in every nook, are small chapels of amazement. Every glance a testament, a long look a revelation. An acknowledgement.
“A weird, lovely, fantastic object out of nature like Delicate Arch has the curious ability to remind us—like rock and sunlight and wind and wilderness—that out there is a different world, older and greater and deeper by far than ours, a world which surrounds and sustains the little world of men as sea and sky surround and sustain a ship. The shock of the real. For a little while we are again able to see, as the child sees, a world of marvels. For a few moments we discover that nothing can be taken for granted, for if this ring of stone is marvelous then all which shaped it is marvelous, and our journey here on earth, able to see and touch and hear in the midst of tangible and mysterious things-in-themselves, is the most strange and daring of all adventures.”
-Edward Abbey
Stone Poetry
The ranger at the entrance station for Bryce National Park provides a brochure that explains the science behind the majestic spires, cathedrals, layers of colors, sculptures… but the facts can’t prepare you for the wonder of it all. The scale, the quiet, the sacred feeling that pervades – all are immense. Travelers talk in whispers. We glance at each other with a sort of shrug that says, “How can we take in all this?” It is sacred, it is all encompassing, it is peace.
“If a man knew enough he could write a whole book about the juniper tree. Not juniper trees in general but that one particular juniper tree that grows from a ledge of naked sandstone near the old entrance to Arches National Monument.”
-Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire, A Season in the Wilderness
Traveling the Inner & Outer Roads
“I soon realized that no journey carries one far unless, as it extends into the world around us, it goes an equal distance into the world within.”
-Lillian Smith
“Wandering re-establishes the original harmony which once existed between man and the universe.”
-Anatole France
“Tourists don’t know where they’ve been, travelers don’t know where they’re going.”
-Paul Theroux
“Not all who wander are lost.”
-J.R.R. Tolkien
Earth Mother
“The earth is the mother of all people, and all people should have equal rights upon it.”
-Chief Joseph
“Happy day to all those who mother- whether or not you have ever given birth. Some of the best mothering I have received has been from friends, some of whom do not have children. They have fed me, held me, listened to me (endlessly! ) & given me strength. I bow to all those who tend & befriend. And I bow to our shared Mother, the Earth- who supports & sustains us.”
-Oriah Mountain Dreamer
Nature’s Art – A Gallery of Photos
“What is art but a way of seeing?”
-Saul Bellow
“What I see in Nature is a magnificent structure that we can comprehend only very imperfectly, and that must fill a thinking person with a feeling of humility. This is a genuinely religious feeling that has nothing to do with mysticism.”
-Albert Einstein
Seeing the Spring Come In
“One attraction in coming to the woods to live was that I should have leisure and opportunity to see the Spring come in.”
-Henry David Thoreau
“Sit quietly, doing nothing, spring comes, and the grass grows by itself.”
-Zen Saying
“The force of Spring – mysterious, fecund, powerful beyond measure.”
-Michael Garofalo
Walking Meditation
Walking, rambling, wandering in nature, creates an absorbing meditative state. Interconnections are felt as a natural presence and awareness is sharp but relaxed and calm.
Cultivating a mindful state too while walking is restful and peaceful. A day begun in this way sets the energy for all that will follow.
In this calm, meditative state there is also stimulating brain benefits.
Your brain after a walk!
“Wildmind” provides resources for walking meditation. Learn the “how to do it” and the “whys” of walking meditation’s benefits by checking out the link below:
http://www.wildmind.org/walking/why
“In beauty may I walk.
All day long may I walk.
Through the returning seasons may I walk.Beautifully will I possess again.
Beautifully birds . . .
Beautifully joyful birdsOn the trail marked with pollen may I walk.
With grasshoppers about my feet may I walk.
With dew about my feet may I walk.With beauty may I walk.
With beauty before me, may I walk.
With beauty behind me, may I walk.
With beauty above me, may I walk.
With beauty below me, may I walk.
With beauty all around me, may I walk.In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, lively, may I walk.
In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, living again, may I walk.It is finished in beauty.
It is finished in beauty.”A Navajo Indian Prayer of the Second Day of the Night Chant (anonymous)
May you walk in beauty and calm attention today, breathing sweetness and wonder with every step.
Enjoy the Passage of Time
“The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time.”
-James Taylor
The hurry sickness has left me. The ease of the morning to contemplate life, nature, the day, fulfills a longing to sit with the purity of being here now. Hearing those words, there is a knowing, a real knowledge, that being fully present, attentive, focused, and aware truly does bring peace. The gift of life is acknowledged in these moments – and these moments expand to hours and inform the days.
The house still needs to be cleaned, bills paid, the plants tended… with the awareness of the morning extended, these small tasks take on a sacred feeling. Every movement a prayer. This is not a constant state of course – for me. The periods of time though are extended more and more…. I need so much less to feel full. Less activity, less doing, more be-ing is a grace filled way.
“Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.”
-John Lennon