The Food-Chain and Saying Grace

I have to confess that I don't watch wildlife programmes very much (apart from Spring Watch etc and Iolo Williams) because I hate to see birds and animals attacking or eating each other, or young creatures being left to die. I also hate to kill anything and have a mainly vegetarian diet although I do very occasionally eat meat. Yet I know this killing is what constitutes the web of life: that everything feeds on everything else, and I know too that I need to encompass this more in my understanding, my spiritual path and my poetry - instead of the rather romantic vision of nature I sometimes have.  

Recently I came across Gary Snyder's poem Song Of The Taste which, he says, "is a grace for graces, a model for anyone's thought, verse, song, on "the meal" that the fortunate ones on earth partake of three times a day".

What he says on the subject, apart from the poem, is interesting and I'll quote some of it:

"The primary ethical teaching of all times and places is "cause no unnecessary harm." The Hindu, Jains, and Buddhist use the Sanskrit term "ahimsa", "non-harming". They commonly interpret this to mean "don't take life" with varying degrees of latitude allowed for special situations. In the Eastern traditions "cause no unnecessary harm" is the precept behind vegetarianism.

People who live entirely by hunting, such as the Eskimo, know that taking life is an act requiring a spirit of gratitude and care and rigorous mindfulness. They say "all our food is souls". Plants are alive too. All of nature is a gift-exchange, a potluck banquet, and there is no death that is not somebody's food, no life that is not somebody's death.

Is this a flaw in the universe? A sign of a sullied condition of being? "Nature red in tooth and claw"? Some people read it this way, leading to a disgust with self, with humanity, and with life itself. They are on the wrong fork of the path...

So again to the beginning. We all take life to live... The shimmering food-chain, food-web, is the scary, beautiful condition of the biosphere. Non-harming must be understood as an approach to all of living and being, not just a one-dimensional moral injunction. Eating is truly a sacrament.

How can we accomplish this? We can start by saying Grace. Grace is the first and last poem, the few words we say to clear our hearts and teach the children and welcome the guest, all at the same time... Looking at this world of one-ness, we see all these beings as of our own flesh, as our children, our lovers. We see ourselves too as an offering to the continuation of life....

Anyone can use a grace from their tradition, if they have one, and infuse it with deeper feeling and understanding, or make up their own, from the heart. But saying Grace is not fashionable in much of America now..." (Quoted in 'Deep Ecology: Living as if nature mattered' by Bill Devall and George Sessions)

I was really struck by this - how the act of saying grace (or a 'meal-time prayer') is truly the first poem, the first prayer; in many ways it's all we need. It is not fashionable in the UK either but I've been thinking what a powerful act it would be - reminding us all, and especially the children, of where food comes from; of how lucky we are to have some; of the responsibility it gives us, as those who are alive by virtue of having food. I wonder too if it would help people with eating disorders to see food as a sacrament instead of as a comfort/enemy. It could even be seen as a subversive act in terms of the consumer culture. (Could we change the world by saying Grace?)

I'd like to start saying it. But it is not without its problems. Fine when I am on my own but how do I apply it in company? This is what I've decided to do for now:

1. I shall say it when I am on my own, before my main meal at least.

2. When I am in my own house with guests, I shall say it.

3. When I am in mixed company (that is, the company of some people who don't have any spiritual belief) in their houses or in a restaurant I shall say it silently to myself.

4. When I am in the company of people in their houses who have some sort of spiritual or ecological understanding, I shall ask if they would like me to say it.

5. My son and his family - that's a tricky one! If they are visiting me, then 2. will apply. In their house I'm not sure. I'd like to expose my grandchildren to such an understanding and practice but my son and daughter-in-law have no spiritual belief and aren't always respectful of mine. I don't want to alienate them or invite their ridicule, which might be counter-productive. I think I need to talk to them about it.

I've decided to make up my own Grace, after looking at other models, this is my first draft:

This food comes from earth and sky,
from plants and animals,
from the work of many hands.
I/We remember those who
do not have enough to eat.
I/We give thanks for the life
that was given so we may grow.
I/We vow to live a life that is worthy of it.

The last line is taken from Buddhist tradition and I like it particularly because it is reminder of the privilege and responsibility of having this gift of being able to eat, which is the gift of life. However, when I say it with others present as well as myself I'm going to change it to: 'May we live a life that is worthy of it' since I don't feel I can make a vow on others' behalf.

I've also thought that when the grandchildren are there, while they are young, I might say a children's version of Grace; a small, rhymed version which is lighter but also memorable because of the rhyme, such as:

Thank you for the world so sweet
Thank you for the food we eat
Thank you for the birds that sing
Thank you Earth for everything

(an adaptation of the one I remember chanting as a child.)

Do you say Grace before meals? If so, when and where? How is it received? Do you have any other versions to share?

The Festival of Brigit

Brige in February

I saw her last week, coming down from the sky
with a white following
billowing up in a furl of swansdown
loud as the quickening wind.

She flew in over the blue rooftops
over the flatlands and the hills
over etched white horses and towers
over islands couched deep in the violet of snow.

Her feet were gold, fire-blinding, striking
sparks from the earth-anvil, flares
and radiance coming off her
flash-fires of light - light storms

Lambs sip milk from the ewes
swan-clans strut the meadows
the snake has come from her hole
tongue flicking at the new
shiver of green in the wind,
the blind opaque squints of the furrows
are opening, transparent as sky

She'll strip the iron habit of winter out of your bones
lick the glow of gold in a flush through your skin -
open your mouth to her kiss
she'll inspire you,
her spark in your heart
the beginning of healing
the ancient beginning of new life's song.

© Rose Flint

Be beautiful and enjoy and live! Edward Thomas

January

Suddenly a pheasant is hurled out of a neighbouring copse; something crosses the road; and out over a large and shining meadow goes a fox, tall and red, going easily as if he sailed in the wind. He crosses that meadow, then another, and he is half a mile away before a loud halloo sounds in the third field, and a mile away before the first hound crosses the road upon his scent.

 Run hard, hounds, and drown the jackdaws' calling with your concerted voices. It is good to see your long swift train across the meadow and away; on such a day a man would give everything to run like that. Run hard, fox, and may you escape, for it would not be well to die on such on a day, unless you could perchance first set your fair teeth into the throats of the foolish ones who now break through the hedge on great horses and pursue you - I know not why - ignorant of the command that has gone forth from the heart of this high blue heaven, Be beautiful and enjoy and live!

Edward Thomas: from The Heart of England

Blwyddyn Newydd Dda - Happy New Year!

Winter Solstice Meditation

As our planet turns away from the sun may we earth-dwellers rest easy in the darkness, finding in it a place of regeneration and creativity. As we each light our small flames to remember the greater radiance, to call ourselves back to it, let us remember that we are creatures born of the light and the dark, our bodies and minds attuned to the rhythms of a greater universe.

In an age when we worship light and stake our lives on the power of electricity, may we remember the wisdom born of darkness and rest with openness and fortitude in its cloak. As the days go by, may we greet the return of the light strengthened by our sojourn in the mantle of its conjoined twin, the darkness, without which the light could not exist.

If, as the Mayans believed, we are moving into a new cycle, may it be one in which we come to understand fully our place among the other denizens of our world; may sacredness return to all our transactions, those between ourselves but also those with other living beings and with the material elements of earth. At this time of gift exchange, as we strengthen our bonds with family, friends and neighbours, may we understand that the gifts and talents of all, not just our own small circle, are needed by us all and therefore nurturing each other is an act of mutual benefit..

For all things we share this world with - whether they are animate or inanimate, seen or unseen - have gifts to offer - to us, to each other, to the earth. If, in true reciprocity, we honour what they are, what they give, may we come to know ourselves as true citizens of the earth and find an undreamed of fulfillment and harmony in sharing, exchanging and nurturing rather than in plundering, appropriating and dominating.

Rob fír fírthar, rob bríg brígther (Old Irish) - May it be a truth that is fulfilled, may it be a power that is enacted.

The Sea Road: available soon

My poetry booklet The Sea Road is now in print. I'm very pleased with the way it's come out. There are twenty-five poems and artwork by local artist Jenny Fell. I took down my previous post about it as I had a hitch with the payment details and it seems to have disappeared! As I'm busy again preparing to go away for the poetry performances in London, I'm going to wait until I get back to launch it here. Meanwhile, you can see an image of it on the sidebar.

Leeks and Bounds

Last year, around the time I was aware of the presence of Cernunnos and writing about him, I realised that my way of gardening was in some part a metaphor for the way I am in life - and not in a good way. The most obvious thing was my management of the vegetable patch. I had demarcated a small bit of soil to grow a few veg, notably leeks, but several other species - forget-me-nots, evening primrose mainly - decided opportunistically that this was a perfect place for them to grow - as indeed it was. Instead of pulling them up I let them stay with the result that they drew nourishment from the leeks which didn't thrive. I ended up with a few stunted ones and lots of wild flowers.

The reasons I didn't pull up the 'weeds' were various - I don't like to kill things; I like living things to 'do their own thing'; I was quite pleased that flowers I liked were coming into my garden. It's true that the evening primrose made a wonderful display in the autumn, the patio becoming an avenue of bright and vibrant yellow, but it was at the cost of the leeks and made the work I had put into enriching the soil and nurturing the leeks almost null and void...

So this year I decided I would be ruthless and not allow any other plants beside the ones I had chosen to grow in the vegetable patch. I steeled myself and pulled up the rosebay willow herb, the lady's mantle, the forget-me-nots and evening primrose (though a few sneaked in). Result: 23 leeks which are substantial, tasty and glossy with health - and that's in spite of the slugs which have been feasting on the outer leaves but leaving me the important core. "Look at those leeks!" visitors have exclaimed.

These leeks as metaphor are a potent reminder to me to be focused and assertive. I have a tendency to want other people to do their own thing even if it isn't what I want to do - which is why it suits me to live alone I think - so that I can have my own way!

Also, I am easily distracted and that seeps energy and time away from projects. I need to weed out the distractions and trivia that leach energy and nourishment. A bit of discipline... just a bit, nothing oppressive, bearing in mind that my energy is limited and pushing myself always ends up being counter-productive.

But it doesn't mean that I'll end up being totally selfish. Compromise and reciprocity can be fruitful and others, like the slug in the picture above, may still benefit from things we do and what we grow in the world, without damaging what we need for our own nourishment and sabotaging the work we put into it.

Word Distillery Blog

Tina Warren reading at the Russkiy Mir bookshop, London

I've been facilitating a blog for The Word Distillery - the poetry group I perform with. There are pages for each poet with a short description and samples of his or her work as well as the latest news, pictures and forthcoming events.

If you'd like to have a look, click here: The Word Distillery