5 min readJun 4, 2025 07:43 PM IST
First published on: Jun 4, 2025 at 07:43 PM IST
There is a deep and beautiful connection between our inner world and the outer world. Today, we speak of climate change, sustainability, and conservation. But we often overlook an invisible thread that binds all these efforts together — the human mind. If one in every three persons is depressed on our planet, how do we expect the world to be a better place? How can one truly care for nature if they are struggling mentally or emotionally? A mind clouded with stress, fear, or greed cannot be sensitive to the needs of the planet.
Any policy made without taking the mental health of people into account is unlikely to work. We can have sound policies in place but to implement those policies you need to build consensus and inspire people. And here, faith-based organisations can make a big difference. When people are mentally strong, when their hearts are open and they are spiritually awakened, they will naturally become more sensitive to the environment. Faith, spirituality, and inner peace are the foundations that can inspire climate action, and bring together millions of people towards this sacred cause.
Throughout history, faith has guided humanity to walk the path of righteousness. Ancient cultures across the world saw nature as sacred. Rivers were not just water bodies; they were goddesses. Trees were not just wood; they were sacred beings. Even mountains and the wind were revered as divine. People didn’t protect the environment because of some policy but they did it out of love and devotion. That spirit needs to be rekindled.
Faith leaders can play a pivotal role here to rekindle the sense of connection with the planet, with nature, and create a sense of urgency in people for its preservation. Individually we may be able to do less, but when everyone comes together, communities can create a bigger impact in environmental conservation.
In India, the Art of Living has worked closely with communities at the grassroots level in this direction. We began by teaching people how to breathe, how to meditate, how to find joy and clarity within. Only a heart that has opened up can choose to serve others. When the mind becomes peaceful and content, it becomes sensitive too. And from that sensitivity, action springs. We rejuvenated more than 72 rivers across five Indian states that had dried up or existed only on paper. With the support of local communities, we built thousands of ground recharge structures, conducted land surveys, and planted over 100 million indigenous trees-not fast-growing or water-draining species, but trees like peepal and mango that replenish the soil. We saw, the birds started coming back.
When the Earth starts healing from reduced use of chemicals on the soil, one of the greatest beneficiaries happens to be the farmers. In Vidarbha, an area that often made headlines for tragic farmer suicides, our volunteers trained thousands of farmers in natural farming methods, in meditation, breathing and being happy. The impact was such that last year thousand farmers flew down to our Bangalore Ashram to express their gratitude. Many of them now earn four times more, free from the burden of toxic chemicals.
This goes on to show that when people are mentally and spiritually empowered, they become the true custodians of the Earth.
In our ashram, after introducing permaculture and multilayer farming, we’ve seen astonishing results — papayas that normally grow to 2 kg now grow to over 5 kg, or ash gourds weighing as much as 30 kilos and you can grow yields of a five-acre land in just a single acre. All that you need to do is take heed of nature’s intelligence, and work with it instead of against it.
Another powerful example of community action comes from a temple in Nepal where thousands of birds were sacrificed annually. We approached the priests with love and reason. We reminded them that Divine does not ask for sacrifice of these innocent animals but the animalistic tendencies in our own hearts. Within a few years, that practice stopped. Today, they feed birds instead of sacrificing them. When change is rooted in faith, it lasts.
We need to ask ourselves: How much do we want to exploit the Earth? And how much do we want to preserve it? We have to honour, respect and take utmost care of our planet. We must encourage chemical-free farming and ensure we don’t pollute the earth with plastic, poisonous fertilisers and chemicals. Taking steps so that we collectively become environmentally conscious will be our greatest offering.
The writer is a spiritual leader and founder of The Art of Living Foundation
We need to ask ourselves: How much do we want to exploit the Earth? And how much do we want to preserve it? 
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