RESTORING BALANCE AND HARMONY IN OUR LIVES BY CONNECTING WITH NATURE

If you are a typical, successful, busy urban professional in any field, what words can describe your daily life …. Speed of life, busy, technology, success, wealth, stress, uncertainty and so on. Among these, “Uncertainty” is troublesome; it just does not leave us, regardless of how hard we work, and what station of life we are at!

Now take a step back and think of the words that come to your mind to describe things missing in our lives …. There are many, but the ones I often found acutely missing in my life were “balance” and “harmony”. I think all of us realise it; it is right there, hidden-in-plain-sight.

But sometimes, it takes a lifetime to just acknowledge it and then try to do something to regain it – “balance” and “harmony”.

Almost seven years ago, after decades in the Army and Corporate world, I started my journey as an entrepreneur in the space of natural farming, almost intuitively. It has not been smooth sailing at all. Success, as we are used to measure, has been elusive and very slow in coming.

?But then again, we work with nature directly. It took time but a gradual realization dawned that every time I moved among our plants and trees, working directly with soil under our feet, there is a beautiful feeling …. It is as if the plants and trees want to speak to us, gently connect with us.

The more we connect with nature, the more it grows on us; it helps us see our lives in ways we usually cannot. Nature defines and is defined by “Harmony”.

The joy of tending to trees and plants that grow slowly, but with almost a divine certitude, has the power to transform our attitude toward life.

Just as nature’s ecosystems thrive when their smaller elements function in harmony, so too do we find balance by addressing life’s challenges step by step. It guides us to remain calm, patient, and focused on solutions rather than becoming overwhelmed by the complexity.

The other thing that we learn when we are amidst trees and plants is “the Power of Gentle Strength”.

There is a famous teaching from Lao Tzu that "The softest things in the world overcome the hardest things in the world". It is easy to associate strength with toughness and force, but this wisdom invites us to see that the most effective power often comes from being gentle, flexible, and adaptable.

In nature, this concept is evident everywhere. Water, though soft and fluid, has the ability to carve through solid rock over time. A gentle breeze can erode mountains, and tiny roots can break through rocks. Nature shows us that softness, when persistent and patient, can overcome the hardest obstacles.

Finding harmony in life means embracing the balance between strength and softness. It’s not about being passive or weak but about using gentleness as a form of strength. Just like water, we can flow around obstacles, adapt to change, and patiently work through challenges without force or resistance.

By connecting with nature, we can learn how to take a gentler, more patient and flexible approach, and overcome difficulties with grace and resilience.

There are many ways that we can gradually connect with nature. Let the experience grow on you. But it does need some investment – of time, effort and money. But, when we do it sincerely, Mother Nature’s ROI to us is immensely high! (I use “ROI” deliberately since most of us are conditioned to look at everything in our lives from the prism of ROI).

There are many ways by which we can make a start. If you have small land, even one or two acres, there are ways we can grow our own personal micro-forest, replete with special trees with medical benefits, flowers, fruits and herbs. Such a place can be a personal wellness retreat for us and our families.

There are ways with which we can convert barren, unused land to rich natural farming practice and grow over 100 long-life trees – each with a special medicinal value and over 2000 plants and flowers in every acre – designed down to each square foot – a visual and experiential delight.

There is nothing new in what I am writing; thousands of people find solace and peace in consciously connecting with nature and recalibrating their lives without leaving their regular jobs.

But for most of us, often, the question is how to start without abruptly changing our lives.

Through these blogs, I intend to share my learnings and ways to help people like me with similar seeking. If you want to be part of this journey in your own life or have your comments and feedback, please write to me at [email protected] .

My next blog will be on our ongoing learnings in the deep science of Vriksh Ayurveda and Nakshatra Vanam.

#NatureConnection, ?#WellnessJourney, ?#HarmonywithNature?

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