Listening to Nature Wisdom

Lessons on Being from the Garden

‘Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished’ Lao Tzu

A tweak in my back forced me to slow down and pay attention. Often, we push ourselves, working against the natural rhythms of our bodies and the nature around us.

One spring Sunday, I spent the afternoon gardening, pulling onion weeds from my vegetable patch. They had proliferated over the winter, and I had finally found the time to tackle them. I sat bent over for a couple of hours, lost in the task. Suddenly, I felt a twang in my lower back—uncomfortable but not alarming enough to stop me. Unfamiliar with back pain, I ignored the warning signals and pressed on. That evening, it was painful to walk, so the next day I visited a chiropractor. My vertebrae had twisted. The adjustment helped, but since I had jammed it pretty well, I needed to move more slowly for the next few days and the coming weeks.

Deep listening

In those quiet mornings that followed, I returned to practices of qi gong and breathwork, grounding myself barefoot on the grass. On the third day, insights began to flow in. The earth was hard and dry that day, and I found myself battling to dig out the weeds. It wasn’t the right time to work the soil, especially not after the rain when it would have been soft and receptive. I was working against the land, rather than with it. Over time, I’ve learned to listen to the land, to seek its permission; after all, they are living beings, just as we are. That day, I was out of touch, and it brought me back to a deeper understanding. The more we are in tune with the natural world and ourselves as nature, the more we can work in harmony with nature’s rhythms. Deep listening is a practice of being truly present—attentive and in flow with ourselves and everything around us.

Working against nature’s rhythms

Our lives often reflect a push against these natural flows. Many people in the industrialised world have become accustomed to a systematised way of working and living, detached from the cycles of nature in their daily lives. Businesses operate year-round at a demanding pace with work schedules frequently ignoring the seasons, leading to burnout and exhaustion. In this state, we lose touch with our creativity and potential. This disconnection extends to our food systems, where we expect produce to be available year-round, even when it’s out of season. As a result, our communities have become increasingly estranged from the vital, life-sustaining energy that flows through nature, losing touch with a deeper, more integrated source of life.

Working with natural cycles and flow

With winter behind us, spring and summer offer a time for renewal and growth. At the School of Being, we’ve been deeply immersed in various projects, allowing our ideas to quietly incubate, waiting for the right moment to emerge. Now, as spring bursts into full bloom, it’s time to plant those seeds. Just as nature knows when the conditions are right for seeds to sprout, we too thrive when we respect the natural timing of our endeavours. When the conditions are ripe, they will flourish. When the conditions have not been well tended to, they will naturally wither. This is the law of nature.

The process of cultivating vegetables organically is far more enriching than rushing growth through industrial farming, and the same holds true for our approach to life and work. How is our way of ‘being’ in the process? Are we stressed and pushing or in a state of flow? Cultivating presence, rest and self-regulation help us to sustain our pace for the longer term.

Working in alignment with ourselves, with each other, and with the natural world requires tending to our gardens with regular watering and attention, as well as nurturing our relationships to form strong roots that will foster long-term trust, collaboration and resilience.

As we tend to our gardens and our lives, let us remember the lessons of nature: to listen, to respect timing, and to nurture our relationships, embracing the journey as much as the destination. In doing so, we cultivate not just our crops, but also our well-being and creativity, fostering more purposeful interactions that reflect our deepest values and intentions.

Written by Vivien Sung