Nature and the Human Soul by
Bill Plotkin. His website, www.animas.org, offers the first
chapter to read. The book describes an
ecopsychological development from birth to death
that beautifully weaves together the work of
Joanna Macy, David Korten, Paul Hawken, among
others.
His premises in writing the book are that a more
mature human society requires more mature human
individuals, nature (including our own deeper nature,
soul) has always provided and still provides the best
template for human maturation, and every human being
has a unique and mystical relationship to the wild
world, and that the conscious discovery and
cultivation of that relationship is at the core of
true adulthood.
Listen to an excellent interview by Janette Merrill
of Birthing Soul:
As many of us move through the second half of
life, we begin to experience our own mortality in the
form of health difficulties from unexpected diagnoses
and/or deterioration of our own bodies. Even the most
vibrant healthy person will eventually be too weak to
take care of themselves, and will rely on others to
meet their most basic of needs. How we prepare for
this depends on our own attitude towards death. And
for many of us, Stephen and Ondrea Levine helped us
explore our own attitudes towards death. They were
leaders in the field of working with the dying and
brought their experiences to teaching about conscious
relationship between couples. They went far beyond
the normal psychological terrain and moved into the
spiritual plane of what it meant to be in
relationship. Stephen Levine is also well known for
his 'soft belly' meditations.
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