Nature experiences

Trust and faith...100%....is what works. Even give up your involvement in the results. Just trust.

I've had what I consider to be many...some were exciting, some were funny, some were creepy, and some were calming.
I think where you are depends on what kind of experience you have.

One of my favorites is to go outside on a summer night (much like tonight actually), and listen to the thousands of crickets singing in chorus while watching the fireflies flashing in the dark.

Most of the experiences I consider to be "genuinely" spiritual involved animals in some way; ducks, turkeys, turkey vultures, squirrels, hawks, cats, deer, an occasional unusual insect, etc. I'm not sure you can intentionally induce such an experience, but being outside at different times of day, and learning about the environment around you probably improves your chances

When I was into druidry I had some cool experiences with the moon.

The path of the Druid is a good one if your interested in nature type mysticism. In the end it wasn't for me, but it's a cool path to check out.

I've had experiences similar to, yet different from awitch.

One of my favorite things that I can possibly do is have pleasant weather (for me, usually early Springtime) so I can lay in bed at night and listen to the chorus of nature. I live right on a forest line so I really enjoy hearing the rustling of the trees in the wind, the animals moving about going on their nightly activities.

I often mediate right before bed as part of the order for my rituals so I usually burn a soft incense as well for focus but many times I can pick up the scent from the forest. It's really quite a liberating experience, to feel the Earth rotate beneath you. To feel the atmosphere and clouds swirl by you and to know your position in the world. It is a very spiritual feeling. These aren't something that someone can just re-create artificially but sometimes you just have a moment where you realize the scale and scope of it all and have a moment of waking lucidity as you reach out in your daily life.

I have some specific rituals that I perform with groups that line up with the witch's Sabbaths and Esbats. We just performed a short rite for Lughnasadh/Lammas last night (August 1st in the northern hemisphere) and Mabon is next on the Autumn Equinox. They typically are honorifics of nature and nice times for a few pagan friends to gather around for a meal, a good drink and some fun.

As a nurse I have experienced the birth of a life and the death of a life. Each event a spiritual awesome happening reminding me that life is a precious but fleeting thing, it's longevity in Gods hands but the human soul is eternal, present before birth and after death

MehGuy said:

Has anyone here had any spiritual nature experiences? Any notable stories? Has any of the experiences changed you?

Any tips for people who may want to engage in nature mysticism?

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Interesting avitar change. The nature theme - lion - king of the jungle huh?

My experiences did change me. Fellowshipping with plants and nature, not a glamorous way (unable to comprehend segments of it) but a science way for me. Many dreams and visions, those who don't understand the way things are this would sound un-real to them. We are here to survive not to just be given a handout, although that's nice if Mother Nature will.

This all ties into my current topic and inquiry btw about what language God speaks - is God Mother Nature...

None that I would call 'spiritual', but I very much enjoy nature. I especially like hiking. I've heard about studies being done that show people tend to be less depressed when they are out in nature on a regular basis.

I did have one unpleasant experience while camping once that I attribute to a combination of meds and alcohol, which caused a disturbing visual and auditory hallucination (something I've never had before or since). I woke up around three in the morning to trek to the toilet and it was like tribal drumming going on (like in the movie Jumanji). It immediately stopped when I walked into the bath house. Then, when I came out, I swear my shadow moved entirely on its own, and it freaked me out for real. A snake also crossed my path, but it was Florida, so… Then, when I got back to the camp site and went back in the tent, I swore someone walked in a complete circle around our tent (it could have been a raccoon because we had issues with them that trip- but that time didn't seem like a raccoon). I woke up my husband and he was not amused with my story.

I had an unpleasant camping trip experience once, but it didn't involve any meds or alcohol. Just waking up in the morning and seeing the silhouettes of about 50 giant daddy long legs on the tent. Realizing they were on the outside was insufficient to restart my heart.

awitch said:

I had an unpleasant camping trip experience once, but it didn't involve any meds or alcohol. Just waking up in the morning and seeing the silhouettes of about 50 giant daddy long legs on the tent. Realizing they were on the outside was insufficient to restart my heart.

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NOPE. That would definitely freak me out!

Right now, its way too hot at night for me to keep the windows open. I have to run my bedroom's window unit which is noisy and annoying.

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awitch said:

I had an unpleasant camping trip experience once, but it didn't involve any meds or alcohol. Just waking up in the morning and seeing the silhouettes of about 50 giant daddy long legs on the tent. Realizing they were on the outside was insufficient to restart my heart.

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daddy long legs are sooo cute! and bad luck if you squish one.

No, the racoon that stole our marshmallows was cute. The blue tailed skink that was hanging out on the log was cute. Even the skunk that wandered through the camp ground was cute. DLLs are not cute. I'd never squish one though...that would require getting close to it.

awitch said:

No, the racoon that stole our marshmallows was cute. The blue tailed skink that was hanging out on the log was cute. Even the skunk that wandered through the camp ground was cute. DLLs are not cute. I'd never squish one though...that would require getting close to it.

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I recently had a raccoon problem at my house. They're not nearly as cute when a mama raccoon breaks into your attic by tearing a hole into your eaves so she can have her kits. Then, when you think you've finally managed to run them off, she comes back a few months later with the juveniles and they fight each other. We had to spend way too much money to fix the damage. Also, groundhogs are not cute either. We've been trying to catch the same one for a few years now, but it's trap shy. I opened my front door one day to see it chewing the wood away around it. It needed to be repaired it was so bad. It then decided that a perfect spot for a new hole was in our new retaining wall next to our front porch. That's my new battle. I don't even.

I feel like I live in a wildlife sanctuary. Hawks, skunks, foxes, persistent squirrels (had a squirrel problem we had to fix a few years back), raccoons, rabbits, deer (nothing like finding these in your front yard when getting ready to leave for work), and other people's cats. I wish the cats were more successful in their endeavors.

I haven't had any problems like that...the closest thing I guess was an encounter with a BIG wild turkey. He ran out in front of the car as I reached the end of the driveway and he refused to move out the way. I rolled down the window and he wandered over and was looking in (that's how tall he was) but when I tried to go again, he quickly ran back in front. He seemed to enjoy this little game and I had to throw a cookie out the window to get him to finally get out of the way. Now there's a bunch of them living in the backyard. They leave some pretty feathers behind though.

More years ago than I care to remember, while camping with Boy Scouts I awoke one morning to feel something very wet on my face. It was a Hereford cow licking me. During the night the boys dragged me in my bag half out of the tent!!!

awitch said:

DLLs are not cute. I'd never squish one though...that would require getting close to it.

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Oh, come on. They are perfectly harmless. I used to play with them as a kid.

I don't know if I'd call it spiritual but running in the mountains is very centering for me. But I'm hopeful that I might take it further. A runner once said 'If you want to run, run a mile, if you want to change your life, run a 10k, if you want to talk to God, run a marathon '. I ran a road marathon a while back, but didn't connect, so I'm trying a mountain trail ultra marathon. ..that ought to be somewhat spiritual

smaneck said:

Oh, come on. They are perfectly harmless. I used to play with them as a kid.

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Agreed, me too. But I think I'd be freaked out by seeing fifty of them at once myself.

Mountain_Girl406 said:

I don't know if I'd call it spiritual but running in the mountains is very centering for me. But I'm hopeful that I might take it further. A runner once said 'If you want to run, run a mile, if you want to change your life, run a 10k, if you want to talk to God, run a marathon '. I ran a road marathon a while back, but didn't connect, so I'm trying a mountain trail ultra marathon. ..that ought to be somewhat spiritual

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That sounds awesome. I had the opportunity to hike in Denali back in May- and I can't describe how beautiful that was.

smaneck said:

Oh, come on. They are perfectly harmless. I used to play with them as a kid.

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They aren't harmless; they increase your skeevieness level to dangerously high levels!