The Young People who Brought the Rain: The Power of our Thoughts

We can clearly see how our actions have a profound impact on nature, ranging from nurturing a flourishing garden to  creating desolate wastelands.  What about on a less tangible level though?  Do our thoughts, prayers and meditations also have an influence on nature? 

At an event in January at Global Cooperation House, the  International Coordinating Office of the Brahma Kumaris in London, called ‘Reconnecting with Mother Earth,’ Ody-Marc Duclos, the Vice-President of The Green Heart Foundation told a story about how a group of young volunteers became known as the young people who brought the rain.  Every year the Green Heart Foundation takes a large group of young people to plant a new section of ‘The Great Green Wall’. This is a project to plant a 8,000km long band of trees across the widest width of Africa.  One time, when Ody-Marc arrived with his group, the local agent explained that the conditions were going to be too dry to plant the trees this year and so although they could plant a few the next day, there would be no point in them staying on.  This was very disappointing news.  The next morning at breakfast, Ody-Mark suggested to the group that they express their gratitude for the food, sun and water.  Afterwards, they gathered together for a meeting and he explained  that there is a connection between our inner attitude and what happens in nature, and that the desertification we see across the world is connected with the human heart becoming dry and parched.  He then asked the group to offer a heartfelt apology to nature for everything we have done to it and to the saplings for planting them in such hot arid soil.  Also, to thank the earth for helping them grow and survive once planted.  This they all did with great humility and sincerity.  Then the youth  went out to begin their planting.  It was around 40o and yet as they planted, dark clouds began to gather above them and then, quite unexpectedly, it began to rain.  It rained so much that the area became flooded and planting had to stop!  The  really strange thing was that it only rained inside the area fenced off for planting, not outside the fence. The next day the group were able to continue and they left having planted 400 hectares of seedlings.  

There are other examples too, that show that  our powerful thoughts and wishes can impact the natural world , such as the Yogic Farming project in India and various experiments around water crystal formation/rice growth in response to different sound and word vibrations.  Modern science, supported by new technologies, is now able to measure what was previously invisible to us, from brain waves to eletro-magnetic fields to biophoton emissions. These same technologies are  also being used to measure frequencies emitted by plants. There is the growing understanding too of what it really means that nature is an interconnected ecosystem.  

Do we still see ourselves as separate from that ecosystem? This interconnectedness means that everything is influencing everything. So, if we are part of that ecosystem are we not influencing it too, on a subtle level as well as in  more obvious ways?  If so, this calls on us to be more mindful of our thoughts and feelings towards nature as well as our actions.  Maybe the age old adage of talking to your plants if you want them to grow well isn’t so crazy after all.