In the struggle of getting familiar with ourselves we need to let go of the consept of culture and grasp for nature. Pure nature.

In a short handful of times in my soon 40 years old life I have felt an undescribable feeling of total overwhelming existence in being. All cultural conditioned so called “rational thoughts” were gone. Replaced by a feeling of pure existence, and with an unexplainable feeling of belonging and understanding. These occasions were, mostly, when I discovered some places and situations in nature, places which instantly made me feel I had just jumped into and discovered a Genius Loci. A kind on pure Zen experience.

I have found this feeling on some locations on all continents I have visited. I don’t search for them, because that is impossible. This is situations which will find you. Almost as other aspects of life, or discoveries you make. No, I am not writing about drug abuse. Not at all. I am talking about real experiences, free from any human impact.

This is a feeling I can partly invoke during my annually autumn ritual when I am out in the mountains hunting for groose.

After walking an entire day from early morning in the darkness, nothing is better than finding a nice stone and sit down. Right in the middle of nowhere, far away from populations and cities. Out there, before the sun goes down, I look at the wonderful colors in the landscape. It is hard to describe the forests and mountains in autumn Norway if you haven’t seen it. But for short: It is an explosion of earth colours. Colours in perfect harmony.

Then, I am listening to the wind. Soon a feeling of happiness and pure existence are approaching. This is the moment before the genius loci are becoming overwhelming. The feeling of letting go of time and space, right there in the middle of nowhere. The feeling of letting it all happen, to let the mind become a part of the wind. It is almost as the brain drains for all concepts and cultural conditioned understandings; until a state of pure listening are reached. Then it feels like the harmony in nature and myself are playing on the same strings. After returning from this state I am in my most creative mood and feel extremely awake.

We are all creatures from the nature, and I do believe that we all need to get familiar with the basics in ourselves, and I strongly suggest that the best way of doing that is to recognize nature as an in-separable part of us. I do believe that our so called modern life are our worst enemy, since we are constantly fighting against nature, withdrawing it from us as best as we can. I believe that culture and nature are not binary oppositions. Without nature, culture can not exist. The opposite is not true. For better understanind of ourselves and culture, we need to listen to nature.