We often think of compassion as extending kindness towards others in an attempt to alleviate suffering. I want to zoom out and explore compassion towards the earth, then start to zoom back in and focus on the ways in which we are interconnected with non-human life, how we are connected to other humans and finally explore the importance of self-compassion in our interconnected world.
Compassion is a step beyond empathy. When we empathize with another being, we seek to feel and understand their feelings. Compassion is action motivated by empathy. Action that seeks to alleviate the suffering of another.
We live on a wild and beautiful planet that gives and sustains life, and to which we are intimately connected. Unfortunately, we are living in a time of large scale disconnect to the Earth and the Earth is hurting because of it. As a species, we are out of alignment with nature and life around us. We seek to control, destroy and use whatever we want without any regard to the rest of the Earth’s inhabitants. However, all life is interconnected. What hurts the planet hurts us. We do not stand separate from nature. We are part of nature. When microplastics fill our waterways, is it any surprise that they start to fill our own veins and arteries, higher levels of which have been associated with increased risk of heart attack and stroke? It should not shock us that when we continue rampant deforestation, hacking away at the very lungs of the earth, that we hasten climate change, experience more wildfires, heatwaves, and longer allergy seasons, all of which strain our own lungs and lead to higher rates of respiratory illnesses. It follows that the large scale use of herbicides and pesticides, which destroy the rich soil microbiome, in turn, decimates our gut microbiome, which impacts every single organ in our bodies. We cannot be healthy when our planet is sick. We can only be truly healthy when our rivers, soils, fellow humans, plants, animals and air are healthy. Deep healing, truly requires that we widen our lens beyond the individual and also focuses on healing our entire ecosystem and our human societies.
Sometimes it can feel as if nothing we do at an individual level is going to have a significant positive impact on the Earth, when billionaires and solely profit driven corporations who view land as just another commodity, value humans solely for their productivity and plants and animals just as resources, are causing harm on such a large scale. We become overwhelmed and retreat into further disconnect: soothing ourselves with our smart phones, TV shows and social media. But I promise you, even the smallest actions matter. If we all focus on what we can do on the local level, it can have significant impacts.
In my experience, we are going to be more compelled to take action when we feel more connected to the plants, animals and humans around us. When we separate ourselves from people who are different to us, or non-human life around us, we isolate and disconnect. However, when we feel connected to others, human and non-human alike, we are more likely to care about each other. A starting point for fostering compassion towards the earth is taking time to connect with it. Maybe that looks like walking a section of the Olentangy trail again and again. Seeing the same family of raccoons snuggled in the hollow of their dead tree, being chipped at by the same chickadees and woodpeckers, watching the flora of the forest floor shift and change with the seasons, and sometimes being lucky enough to see an elusive beaver swimming by. Perhaps these moments of connection stir within you a desire to pick up trash you see on your walk, in case it is ingested by the local animals. Perhaps you are more motivated to plant a rain garden to help filter road run off before it ends up in the beaver’s waterway or perhaps you go home and plant native trees to expand the habitat of the birds you so often see on your walk. Maybe you even dabble in some guerilla gardening or push for more biophilic initiatives to create more habitable spaces for non-human animals in our urban environments, which incidentally has also been shown to be associated with numerous positive health benefits for humans, including improved mental health, reduction in air pollution, and lower rates of violent crime.
In your garden, perhaps you forge a connection with the little treefrog who takes up residence in your blackberry bush who then inspires you to start making plans for a pond to expand a livable habitat for it and inspires you to actively encourage others not to spray herbicides, such as glyphosate, which poses significant risks to both human health, the soil microbiome and animals, like your little garden tree frog friend. You may find yourself starting conversations with strangers about the arbitrary societal desire for immaculate lawns and discuss that perhaps instead embracing edible weeds, converting lawns into productive gardens, or implementing natural weed control methods are viable alternatives that not only promote environmental stewardship but also support a healthier lifestyle. Perhaps the people you inspired to stop using herbicides on their own lawn are, in turn, gifted the plant medicines of dandelion, plantain and chicory. Maybe you decide to leave the leaves, and you see that, with that one small action, you have provided a habitat for insects that are key players in our ecosystem, and an important food source for the birds you love to watch from your window while drinking your morning coffee.
We can also act compassionately as consumers, if and when it is within our financial means. For example, opting to purchase bird friendly coffee preserves forest habitats, which protects birds and biodiversity. Not only that, but coffee is meant to be shade grown, so the use of pesticides that are often heavily sprayed on coffee that is sun grown is not needed. The result is a cup of coffee that protects bird habitats and isn’t laden with microbiome and liver damaging pesticides and instead is just full of anti-oxidants and the anti-depressant pick me up that is often so needed on these grey winter days. Also, us meat eaters, can choose to buy meat from animals that have been ethically raised. It not only significantly lowers animal suffering in the world, but also healthier for us.
While I could go on and on about how compassion for the earth and all its inhabitants is going to come back around and also have a positive impact on us, I think it’s clear that we live in an interconnected web of life. That web extends to our human family.
True compassion in my line of work means that beyond an individual, I consider how the systems in which they are living, such as discrimination based on race, gender and sexual orientation, intergenerational and historic trauma, geographic location, systems of oppression, and lack of privilege may be impacting their health. If I am to call myself a root cause, whole systems focused physician, I cannot only focus on the biological systems within an individual. Often the root cause is intertwined with factors beyond an individual’s body and choices. The root cause of dis-ease includes factors beyond an individual’s control. While I cannot change things like systemic racism, environmental pollution, contaminated water, lack of access and the control of women’s bodies, to give recommendations for care out of context is naive and unhelpful.
I want to end with a word to sustainability. Specifically, how to sustainably act with compassion. To do so, we need to empathetically plug into suffering. We need to know what is going on. We need to stay informed. However, we are not meant to stay plugged in. Plug in. Then unplug, because staying plugged in is not sustainable. If you are drained and overwhelmed, you cannot be a force of change in the world. Take care of yourself so that you can be a force of compassionate care for others. When we plug in, things can feel heavy and may cause us to feel anxiety, grief, fear and rage. While we should not ignore those feelings, we cannot let them completely consume us.
We are living in a time of really needing to lean into practicing emotional intelligence around duality. It's a time where we are both deeply horrified about what is going on in the world and can (and need) to allow for joy, play and rest. We need to both feel the horror, do what we can with all we have to give, and then return back to our inner light. Maybe we do that by spending time with loved ones, connecting with nature, hugging a tree so hard you feel your heart beat echoed back to you, lying on the earth and letting her hold you, or maybe for you it is making art or music, or just doing nothing, you know realizing you are a humanBEING who needs to be nourished alongside all your humanDOING. Whatever it is, make it a conscious, constant practice. This is not the place for spiritual bypassing or avoiding. The world is out of alignment, but this is not the time to spin out. Feel it. Grieve it. Do something about it in whatever way that you can. We all have our own unique medicine to offer the world, and we are here to give it and light up our little corner of the Earth. And we are also here to spend intentional time with our loved ones, connect deeply with ourselves, experience joy, give love, receive love, get lost in wonder and awe, appreciate beauty, have fun, celebrate the small things and do whatever it is that excites and lights us up.
