Biophilia.
Biophilia
( The Love of the Living World)
An Introduction.
This category “Biophilia” is of course dedicated to Edward Osborn Wilson. He died recently December 26th, 2021, at the age of 92.
While the term Biophilia was first attributed to the philosopher Erich Fromm. It was E.O.Wilson who polarized the term with his 1984 book “Biophilia” (Biophilia, 1984, Harvard University Press,
E. O. Wilson was an American influential biologist whose specialty was Myrmecology the study of ants. Has been named “Darwin’s natural heir”, and sometimes the Ant-Man. Photo of E.O.Wilson by Jim Harrison.
Biophilia, which literally translates to “love of life,” is the idea that this fascination and communion with nature stem from an innate, biologically driven need to interact with other forms of life such as animals and plants.
The Backcountry to me can generate wonder, beauty, and awe. This beauty and expansiveness of nature can lead me to appreciate the grandeur of the universe, Puin thet my personal worries into perspective, and be more attentive to my world of love and relationships.
One concept that I can relate to comes from Japan with the practice of Shinrin-yoku or “forest bathing”, the experience of walking among the trees of a forest I find is an uplifting experience.
It follows that spending time in nature, walking within green spaces, and observing, interacting, and studying life forms, can have beneficial effects on both physical and mental health. I feel a sense of freedom, low levels of stress, and time to meditate.
Visit the “Friends” of the Rocky Mountains’ Eastern Slopes of South-Western Alberta.
They are many friends within this small community that share our Biophilia of the backcountry and all the wildlife that live there.
Come meet some of these people, which have helped to create this blog with advice, stories, and most of all wonderful photographs of their travels among the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains.
