Mindful Ecology

Mindful
To be mindful is to be aware of what is happening right here and right now.

Ecology
Right here and right now human activity is threatening the future of our species.

Mindful Ecology
To be aware, right here and right now, of this ecological truth.

If one is convinced that the life we live now is unsustainable and has no future, what is a person going to do with  such knowledge? If even a tenth of the forecasts from ecology’s models come to pass, the day after tomorrow is almost too terrifying to think about.

Mindful Ecology is a way to think about these things.

First the mind teaches the heart when what we learn becomes felt in our body. Then the heart teaches the mind, as what our bodies know begins to inspire our minds. Then we hear, each in our own way, what the lands, skies, and oceans are asking of us.

Introduction                                                     11

What is Mindful Ecology?
     A Few Moments of Concern for the Earth      18
My Story 23
Buddhist Influenced Western Contemplation 26
The Ecological Crisis is a Symptom 32
This is Mindful Ecology 38

Earth’s Ecology
Overshoot 39
Thermodynamics 40
Compost Heap Speculations 45
Carrying Capacity 47
Homo Colossus 53
The Monster in Our Midst 55

Waking Up
Industrialized for all the right reasons 59
1970s Wake Up Call 67

Homo Colossus
Life Under Homo Colossus 77
The End of Homo Colossus 83
A Long Descent 89

Seeing Blindness
Fighting Repression 93
TV, Trance and the Collective Mind 98
Meditative Contemplation 104
At Home in the Unknown 110

Meditation Advice
Forwarning 115
A Word about Cults 117
Pointers Pointing 119
Assimilating Sad News 125
Authority 127
Imprints and the Child Within 131

Mindful Ecology Contemplations
Unhuman 135
Intention, Our Light 138
Molecular World of Deep Time 142
Life is a Door 148
Space Age - Earth Age 151

Perspective and Peace of Mind
Think like a Mountain 155

Notes 159
Bibliography 163