We Humans Are the Destroyers of Nature

It goes without saying that our lives are supported by everything that exists outside of ourselves. In particular, if there were no sun, water, or air, not only we humans but all living beings would be unable to survive. This fact by itself should be enough for us to understand the importance of expressing gratitude for nature.

Even so, we tend to forget to be thankful for the blessings we receive from nature. Furthermore, human beings, with their highly developed intelligence, arrogantly think of themselves as superior and have continued to destroy the earth’s environment in their quest for personal convenience and comfort. From the perspective of nature, we humans are nothing but destroyers.

Hakudo Ayukawa, a priest of the Rinzai sect of Japanese Zen Buddhism, uses the idea of letting animals and plants speak to humorously criticize the arrogance of human beings: “Hey there, humans, for a long time we plants and animals have been thankful to this earth for keeping us alive, and we worked together to take care of it. You newbies are gobbling up everything all by yourselves. . . . Just because you’re a little smarter than us, doesn’t mean you can be so selfish” (https://www.myoshinji.or.jp/houwa/archive/youth/072). Then Ayukawa clearly states that humanity can show wisdom by expressing gratitude to nature and handing down to future generations a beautiful planet earth.
“Plants, trees, and the land will all become buddhas.” “All existence is buddha nature.” In Japanese Buddhism, all forms of existence—even mountains, rivers, plants, and trees—are manifestations of the same life of the Buddha. The philosopher Takeshi Umehara (1925–2019) emphasized the urgent need for this idea to become common to all humanity, so that people fully experience the blessings of nature and regain the mind of reverence.

Human beings have a bad habit of not reflecting deeply until they are really in trouble, but I think that as soon as possible—and before we get into trouble—we all need to realize how thankful we should be for the sun, air, and water, and seriously reevaluate our way of life.

The Joy of Being Able to Express Gratitude

When I went to the Ogasawara Islands some time ago, I remember being moved by watching the beautiful sunrise and sunset above the horizon from the ferry because this cleansed my mind and at the same time made me feel strongly that I was being caused to live by nature. There is nothing unusual about people being moved by coming into contact with plants and flowers growing to their fullest in a garden. Sometimes we find the courage to live from the vigor of dandelions blooming in the cracks of the asphalt, which I believe is also a sign of the oneness of all life. A psychiatrist said that by bringing our minds closer to and feeling oneness with flowers and plants, we often gain a sense of relief and are invigorated. So mentally, as well as physically, we should be grateful to many things in nature, including the sun, water, and air.

When people really understand this, they lead lives of moderation. For example, they realize that the dishes of food on the table are there thanks to the sun and water, so they eat moderately, do not waste food, and leave nothing on their plates, just as they try to use precious resources such as water with care. So even when there are minor inconveniences and shortages, or some time and effort need to be expended, if you have the mind of gratitude, you can accept those things joyfully. And when we maintain the mind of gratitude, we are liberated.

If your mind is full of dissatisfaction or anger, feeling grateful may be quite difficult, but if you reflect on the law of nature (the Truth) and thoughts of thankfulness come welling forth from within you, then even in the midst of hardships, you will be able to express gratitude and find happiness—which will liberate your mind from suffering.

For one thing, we were born as human beings with the capability of realizing the Truth, so we could say that the very fact that we are alive right now is something for which to be truly grateful. Let’s continue to transmit and share with everyone the joy that Rissho Kosei-kai has passed down since its founding and join everyone in protecting the earth that resonates with all our expressions of gratitude.