Date of Award
Winter 2-2018
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
MA - Master of Arts
Department
Mindfulness Studies
First Advisor
Melissa Jean
Second Advisor
Nancy Waring
Abstract
My thesis is about a Buddhist perspective on the global environmental crisis, including an exploration of how both ancient and modern poetry express a compassionate response to nature, a social science survey, and a creative project of my own poetry. The exploration in the rationale paper suggests that looking inward may be an important way to begin to understand individual responsibility for the global environmental crisis. In consideration of this is a discussion of ancient Buddhist wisdom and teachings about, and the relevance of, mindfulness, compassion, interdependence, and impermanence. In a creative extension of this discussion, an exploration of Buddhist- inspired nature poetry follows. Both ancient and modern poetics address the human condition and interconnection with the planet in deep, heartfelt and insightful ways. I call this Poetics of the Wild, to describe the vast, passionate art of language that captures the wildness of nature, as well as the wildness of the creative mind in expressing our connection to it. In my emergent and multidimensional vision for this project, I include my research survey on how mindfulness may be a factor in individuals’ actions with regard to global warming; the findings are presented to illustrate the importance of mindful behavior within the context of creating solutions to the environmental crisis. Finally, my own poetry is presented in a creative project, with deep compassion and love for the earth. Awareness and respect of nature sustains my own mindfulness of how to live within the context of the devastating global environmental crisis, and I hope that it inspires others to pay close attention to the world around them, as well as to each other.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Trone, Cynthia D., "A Buddhist Perspective on the Global Environmental Crisis: Poetics of the Wild" (2018). Mindfulness Studies Theses. 9.
https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/mindfulness_theses/9
