How Can We Take Only What We Need from Nature?

Nature has inherently built balance into all living things. Every creature, from a wolf to a bird, takes only what it needs to survive, no more and no less.

But where are we, human beings, in this picture? We have drifted far from such natural harmony.

Unlike ancient times, when we might have hunted a single mammoth that could feed a tribe for months, today we go to the supermarket and are overwhelmed by countless options—thousands of types of cheese, endless products that we do not actually need.

Our consumption habits are disrupting the natural balance, leading us to overproduce and to ultimately destroy the environment around us. Nature itself teaches us a lesson in moderation and necessity. We should thus be asking ourselves, are we taking only what we need, or are we consuming in excess? Also, how can we align ourselves with nature in order to create balance for ourselves and for the world around us?

The solution to the human overconsumption problem, however, is not solely in trying to regulate ourselves at the level of the consumption itself. The source of the problem of overconsumption is that we are made of desires to enjoy that cannot sustain any fulfillment they receive, and also that constantly grow. Therefore, the more we try to fulfill ourselves, the emptier we feel. We can thus only solve the problem of overconsumption by learning what it takes to truly fulfill our desires.

What we need to increasingly understand is that by shifting our focus to positively connect at the human level, i.e., to form harmonious human connections, we will set the conditions for aligning ourselves with nature. Doing so will invite the positive force dwelling in nature into our connections, and we will feel a new fulfillment enter our lives, one that emerges from the very source of nature. When we feel that new fulfillment, we will then see how we “click” into our rightful place in nature, and as a result, we will feel no desire for excessive consumption. That is the solution to overconsumption at its root.