Earth day is celebrated on April 22 every year. It started in 1970, and 20 million Americans participated in the inaugural event (www.earthday.com). In 2022, as we witness the impacts of climate change daily, there are a number of ways you can participate but what if you are an earth-based spirituality practitioner? Or a Pagan? How do you honor this integral aspect of your spirituality?
In my experience, Earth Day has not been an especially spiritual day. But what if we shifted that? What if this day was a day of reverence? Here are few ideas to create a spiritual earth day for yourselves and your community.
Land offerings. Land offerings can be local appropriate seeds, nuts or dried berries for small animals of the land. It can be a song, a poem or a reading from your favorite books. It can be silent reverence or meditation. It can be lots of things, just be sure it does not cause environmental damage (ie non-native/invasive seeds.) Take a moment to say a gratitude to the land you are honoring, imagine the trees, shrubs, grasses and all the animals hearing your silent sentiment. Then lay your offering in place that can be absorbed by the surrounding area and animals.
Provide service. Join a "Stream Team" that cleans up specific environmental areas. Join a trail maintenance group that up-keeps local walking trails so that people do not trample vegetation but stay on easily followed trails. Do road-side garbage pick-up. Join a clean-up team in parks or greenbelts. Plant trees. Plant native species and remove invasive species.
3.Honor the Elements. The elements Earth, Air, Fire, Water, are essential aspects of life on earth. Create a ceremony honoring these elements. Consider your personal relationship with each element. Write in your journal about how you feel about each element and consider each elements positive and negative impact on our world and how we can live in harmony with each element. Consider how you might increase your respect for each of these primary elements.
4.Make a sacrifice. Make a commitment that facilitates an earth honoring practice such as significantly limiting or removing plastics from your purchases. Or reducing the amount of animal products you eat, (look into the ecological diet). Commit to buying only organic foods. Remove pesticide use or other harmful chemicals from your home. Commit to buying used before purchasing a new item. Walk or bike places instead of driving.
5. Commit to local. Grow Your Own Food. Start a compost bin. Buy from small local businesses. Support local farms and farmers markets. Eat at restaurants that feature local food systems. Purchase foods that are grown closer to your location rather than from another country or state. Eat foods as they are in season. Choose small shops or big box stores. Reuse and recycle rather than buy new whenever possible.
Karin Olsen is a healer, a seer and a teacher. She has been a massage therapist for over 25 years. She has been studying plants for more than 20 years, owning a herb shop and metaphysical store for 15 years. She teaches classes on earth-based spirituality through Moonhill Mystery School in the Salish Sea area. She earned a Master of Ecopsyhcology from Naropa University in 2021.
For more info on class and events go to www.moonhillmysteryschool.com