People offer their allegiance to their nation or their religion, but we would like to offer our allegiance to the Land. We commit to take care of the Land. We would like all people in all countries to do the same because our lives and the lives of all living beings depend on the Land.
The Land is our true home. The Land is our true identity. The Land is our true community. It is through the Land that we are connected with our ancestors and it is through the Land that we connect with future generations.
The Land never fails us. The Land never lets us go hungry. If the Land flourishes, we flourish. If the Land is depleted, we are depleted.
The Land is neither a commodity nor a machine. The Land is a living organism. The land is a sacred gift to life from Gaia, the goddess of the Earth. And it is our sacred responsibility to receive the gifts of the Land with humility and gratitude.
We have no ownership over the Land; we have only a relationship with the Land. The land is and should be held in trust by us all. We hand over this trusteeship to the next generation when the time comes.
The Land is our true security and our true-life insurance policy, provided we enter into a covenant of care and symbiotic relationship. As the Land feeds us, we should feed the Land with wholesome organic food. It is a relationship of reciprocity and mutuality. Land and life thrive together.
Let us take an oath of loyalty to the Land, and then commit to taking care of her. If we take care of the Land, she will take care of us and of everything else. Therefore, let us become responsible members of the Land community.
Commercial farmers treat the Land as a resource for the economy, a resource for making money. They engage in extractive methods of farming. Real farmers treat the Land as a source of life itself. They engage in regenerative ways of agriculture. Good farmers never take more than the Land can happily give, and they never take more than they need. For them, farming is a spiritual practice.
Real farmers understand the economy of the Land and abide by the law of the Land, rather than being driven by greed and growth.
Let us sustain the Land with our love so that the Land can sustain life on Earth forever. The Land is our mother. We are children of the Land.
What is good for the Land is also good for the people. Therefore, we should never damage the Land or do any harm to the Land. Farmers will come and go, but the Land will remain here forever.
If in our ignorance we have done any damage to the Land, then it is our sacred duty to do everything in our power to restore good health to the Land. By restoring the Land, we restore ourselves.
Let us pledge to keep the Land whole and healed forever. it is the Land that gives meaning and purpose to our lives. Therefore, let us tread lightly on the Land by keeping away from profligate lifestyles and insatiable consumption, which impoverish the Earth, diminish the common good, and harm the human spirit.
The Land is our teacher and our spiritual guide. We can learn unconditional love and compassion from her. She looks after all living beings without any discrimination or judgment. Whether you are a king or a beggar, a priest or a prisoner, a human or an animal, a bird, a bee or a wasp, all living beings are fed and nourished by the Land equally.
May we learn equanimity from the Land, practice unconditional compassion, and offer unlimited love and nourishment to all living beings without any discrimination or judgment.
The Land has the power to transform. She transforms seeds into plants, crops, and trees, providing flowers, limits, grains, vegetables, herbs, and spices. It is the Land who knows, how to make medicines. While doing so, she produces more seeds for further regeneration.
The Land is the goddess of abundance. Let us celebrate this transformative power of the Land and rejoice in her gentle generosity. Let the knowledge, wisdom, and magnanimity of the Land be the guiding lights for the whole of humanity.
Satish Kumar/Resurgence &Ecologist
