If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed.
If you're visiting from Interesting South, the page you are looking for is here. Thanks for visiting!
At Work in the Wild and Cultivated World. Wonderfully written by Wendy Johnson, a 30+ year monastic and head gardener from Green Gulch Farm Zen Centre. Wendy encourages us to enter the world of our physical and mental gardens.
Thich Nhat Hanh is quoted saying “Too many people distinguish between the inner work of our mind and the world outside. But these worlds are not separate. They belong to the same reality.” This reality is a non-repeating universe, “fresh and new every day”, as Wendy says.
With Wendy as our guide, we enter into unfamiliar territory with comfort and fascination. Plants, trees, and vegetables are pointed out. We learn how they grow, inter-connect, and relate with the rest of the garden. We learn how to be with the garden, how to connect with the living earth. We look at the earth and soil, learning it is alive. “In one cup of fertile soil, there are more micro-organisms, than there are human beings on the entire plant…This interconnected web of life…is the soil itself”.
Through the use of compost, lovingly called the “breakdown ball”, we see life into death into life. The technical how-to’s of setting up a compost heap is interlaced with Zen stories that had me laughing out loud, as well as enabled me to set up my own home compost. We learn through Wendy’s mistakes, learning how to heal the earth, and in turn our bodies through organic gardening.
“No cherry leaf is without value”, and Wendy encourages us to garden with all beings. She questions us about animals. Are they Pests, or Guests? We welcome the animals, understanding the various types, and damage that can be done. “Tolerance in the garden is based on mindfulness and knowledge”. We look and “in truth, there is no getting rid of gophers or of the need to be rid of them”.
Our journey continues, looking deeply into the relations of medicine and disease. We learn about seeds and their propagation, about their returning to origin. At the end of our journey Wendy takes us to the kitchen, harvesting the fields of greens, and completes the cycle of inter-being.
I learnt a lot about gardening with this book. Carefully and skillfully, Wendy balances the garden with questions for personal investigation. I finished the book with a new appreciation for the garden in all its forms. The book itself is a joy to read. Sprinkled throughout the poetic text, which had me swept away many times, we find quotes, tips, recipes, how-tos, and simply breath taking illustrations by Davis Te Selle.
Disclaimer; this book was sent to me by the publisher. I made no promise to write a review, but enjoyed the book so much, I highly recommend it (aff)!
Related posts:-
Popularity: 10%
Hey Wade,
Great post! I will definitely check this out now.
Let’s just say you were able to give me a nice “unbiased” review.
Dan
I like how this article grounds us to reconnect with Mother Nature. Afte all, reinforcing our connection to the creator is another way to grow as we make our way back home.
@Dan, Thanks
It’s a mind-blowing learning about the garden/gardening. Some really great Zen quotes too. Will upload a few of them at some point.
It also really make GG come alive for me, which I owe you for big time. Reading, I could see the gardens Wendy talks about, walking through various areas you took me through. Various things you pointed out, she points out. Thank you
@Liara, Thanks, grounding was one of the core concepts of the book always being suggested/mentioned in different ways. Your right, strengthening the connection is the home we forget.
May all beings be happy.
Gassho,
Wade
Sounds like a great combination of information with mindfulness.
@Paul, that’s a very concise and accurate statement. Wish I’d used it in the review, it’s balanced.
May all beings be blessed by the Dharma.
Gassho,
Wade