How to Find Your Higher Purpose Through Nature
The world isn’t the same anymore. We’ve all heard these complaints about the state of modern society. Typically, they come from older generations as an insult to the younger ones. These gripes can end up sounding uninspired and unoriginal when heard too often. But as annoying as this may be, they carry some truth, and even the younger, technically inclined generations seem to agree.
With advances in technology and a pull away from traditional belief systems (e.g., religious or cultural), we have become more disconnected—from each other, from ourselves, from our heritage, and from our purpose. When the screens are off, this silent emptiness leaves many searching for purpose. Since almost 30% of Americans check ‘none’ when selecting a religion, they often look towards nature to fulfill their spiritual yearning.
Fyodor Dostoyevsky once said, “The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for.”
The collective awakening that the pandemic gave the world—a sort of slap-in-the-face reset that allowed us to reflect on what’s actually essential—led people to decide they don’t want to merely exist, work, scroll, sleep, and repeat. They want more.
This may not be a spiritual pursuit in a traditionally religious sense or a search for a higher power per se, but a connection to something greater. Mindfulness practices, horticultural hobbies, and outdoor activities have grown in popularity, intersecting personal interests and becoming the perfect sanctuary for self-discovery. Whether you are an atheist or an agnostic, nature has become a spiritual respite for many. If nature is your path to purpose, below are a few ways to forge that connection in an authentic, respectful, and sincere way.
Embrace Wonder and Awe. Take a moment to disconnect from the manufactured world, be still, and marvel at the beauty and complexity of the natural world around you. Whether it’s the delicate intricacy of a color-drenched field of flowers during a hike, losing yourself in the vastness of the night sky, or the power of crashing ocean waves, allow yourself to not know and be inspired.
Practice mindfulness and connect with the elements. Engage in mindfulness practices such as deep breathing, grounding exercises, or mindful walking to cultivate a sense of presence and connection with nature. Tune into the elements and explore how they resonate with your own sense of spirituality. Sometimes, people pour into the micro levels, like plants, trees, and specific activities like gardening and foraging, while others dive into the meditative macro, i.e., wind, earth/nature, the water, etc.
Explore and find what connects with you best. If you want to learn about what other cultures practiced or if you’d rather have the comfort and connection that comes from particular ideologies, now you can open that laptop and do a little research. A good rule of thumb is to search for belief systems that most closely connect with your personal heritage and lineage first. This in no way means closing your mind or your search, but exploring your personal cultural connections first allows you to explore other cultures without indirectly appropriating someone else’s deities or practices.
Whatever you do, don’t be bound by preconceived notions of what it means to find purpose through nature. Everyone’s path is different, and given our modern age, we have the excellent opportunity to pull from various parts of history, culture, and ourselves while being respectful, authentic, and connecting. There are naturalistic religious systems like Druidism, Wiccan, or the various Afro-Caribbean traditions that worship the Orishas, or more abstract practices like Gaianism that connects naturalism with philosophy and meditative practices or indigenous naturalism, connecting nature with the self, including a diverse range of holistic practices.
It doesn’t matter what you do to find your purpose as long as you find it. Frank Lloyd Wright said it best, “Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.”
