permaculture

["Lawrence F. London, Jr." <lfl@intrex.net>]

Toby Hemenway wrote:

> Ummm, I think it would be pretty impolitic for me to name names in writing
> (I have the names of 51, no, 73, no, 204 card-carrying woo-woos right here).
> Didn't mean to suggest that these folks aren't great teachers nor are they

> ungrounded, just that the tendency to mention devas or goddesses or to sing
> earth songs or whatever during PDCs isn't limited to the US West Coast.

What is wrong with doing that? It certainly has social benefits, that of 
relaxing folks and putting them in a learning frame of mind
during a convocation. I can't see any way this would impede the process of learning about nuts and bolts systems design and implementation 
where the digging fork meets the earth or the Yeomans bites the subsoil. I always thought that the admixture of some spirituality with 
agriculture was a positive thing. The Episcopal Church has a blessing of the fields ceremony (held in field or forest, of course); I was 
acolyte at one of these when I was younger. Spirituality in agriculture and permaculture may be beneficial in the same way music and art is 
for people. Certainly, such teachers as  Thomas Merton, Thomas and William Berry, Gautama Buddha and Sri Ramakrishna would not have felt 
that they should not share their enlightenment with people involved in a hands-on way with diverse agricultural or permacultural endeavors.

I doubt that any of the 968 card-carrying pc woo-wwoos would dream of trying to force spirituality on anyone. It just doesn't work that way 
for those seeking or sharing enlightenment.

LL
perpetual back-to-the-land, tree hugging, dirtfarming homesteader
--
L.F.London
lfl@intrex.net
http://market-farming.com
http://www.ibiblio.org/ecolandtech