When I was asked to write something with the theme of “Green” from a mental health perspective, a multitude of words and images popped into my head, from ecopsychology to living a “green” life to honoring the earth to Michael Pollan’s book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma.  From there my mind jumped to Eckhart Tolle’s new book A New Earth and Oprah’s resounding endorsement of what he offers. Apparently it is a message whose time has come. Over half a million people have signed up for the interactive online class with Tolle which will be webcast on Mondays from March 3 through May 5.

Tolle’s message revolves around the concept of changing one’s inner consciousness and that as a result, the outer realities, such as politics, war, poverty, even the climate, will change.

Let me relate this to the concept of living a “green” life. Ken Wilber, in his intriguing book, No Boundary, discusses the fact that we have put up many artificial boundaries around ourselves that have alienated us not only from nature but from parts of ourselves. As long as we perceive “nature” as being outside of ourselves, we won’t feel much sense of ownership or connection. This makes it easy for us to not think about the ramifications of our energy consumption, i.e., driving large vehicles that use lots of gas, or leaving lots of lights on in our homes when we aren’t there, or eating foods that have been shipped thousands to miles to us. We think of all of that as “out there” instead of as “within.” Once we start changing our perception of our relationship to nature, and realize there truly are no boundaries between “us” and “them” or in this case, “it,” (nature), we can no longer look at anything as being outside of us. The more we understand and know we are connected to all of life at a deep level, our world will change, both internally and externally. And it will be effortless.

Try this exercise in expanding your personal boundaries. Get into a comfortable seated position. Close your eyes. Take a few deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth. Feel your individual awareness. What does it feel like to be you? To be inside your skin? Feel your heart pumping blood throughout your body. Become aware of the sensation of breath filling your lungs and being expelled. Now become aware of your energy body that surrounds you. Imagine it all around you. It might be a certain color, it might seem to be pulsating, it might seem fluffy or solid or with holes in it. You may be aware of some buzzing or lightness or heaviness around you as you focus on this energy body. Gently keep your focus on this energy body of yours, and simply be an observer of it. If there are thin areas, imagine puffing them up, filling them in, making them more substantial, like the rest of your energy body. Now imagine extending that energy body out farther from your physical body than it was originally. What does it feel like? Can you feel the expansion occurring? Imagine your energy body expanding and expanding until it encompasses a loved one. Play with this image of your energy body melding with that of another person. What does it feel like? Are there any new sensations arising in your physical or energetic body? When you feel ready to return to your everyday consciousness, slowly become aware of your surroundings, the sensation of the chair supporting you, the temperature of the air, any sounds you might hear. As an observer, watch what happens to your energetic body, if it needs to be brought back in close to your physical body, or if it is comfortable leaving it more expanded. What are the sensations as you return to your everyday consciousness? Is there a shift in how it feels? Experiment with expanding your energy body as is comfortable for you and see what happens over time. Your perception of where you “start” and “end” may start shifting. Try this out in nature sometime, sending your energetic body into a plant or a flower or a tree.

The more freedom you allow yourself to perceive your world from a broader, more inclusive perspective, the “greener” or richer your life will be.

For further reading, I highly recommend Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Ken Wilber’s No Boundary and his newest book, The Integral Vision. You will never see the world in the same way again…