I hold the most archaic values on earth ... the fertility of the soul, the magic of the animals, the power-vision in solitude.... the love and ecstasy of the dance, the common work of the tribe.
Gary SnyderRead
I pledge allegiance to the soil _x000D_ of Turtle Island, _x000D_ and to the beings who thereon dwell _x000D_ one ecosystem _x000D_ in diversity _x000D_ under the sun _x000D_ With joyful interpenetratio n for all.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses a commitment to the land and its diverse inhabitants, emphasizing unity and joy in coexistence.
Gary Snyder's quote reflects a deep ecological pledge to the earth, particularly to Turtle Island, which is a term used by some Indigenous peoples of North America to describe the continent. It emphasizes the interconnectedness of all beings within an ecosystem and advocates for a joyful relationship with nature, highlighting the importance of diversity and harmony under the sun.
Themes
NatureEcosystemDiversityUnityCommitment
In practice
Example use cases
During an environmental awareness workshop, one might use this quote to inspire participants.
More from Gary Snyder
All quotes →Being the Stream Meditation is not just a rest or retreat from the turmoil of the stream or the impurity of the world. It is a way of being the stream, so that one can be at home in both the white water and the eddies. Meditation may take one out of the world, but it also puts one totally into it.
Gary SnyderRead
We . . . must try to live without causing unnecessary harm, not just to fellow humans but to all beings. We must try not to be stingy, or to exploit others. There will be enough pain in the world as it is.
Gary SnyderRead
Nature is not a place to visit. It is home.
Gary SnyderRead
In the belly of the furnace of creativity is a sexual fire; the flames twine about each other in fear and delight. The same sort of coiling, at a cooler, slower pace, is what the life of this planet looks like. The enormous spirals of typhoons, the twists and turns of mountain ranges and gorges, the waves and the deep ocean currents - a dragonlike writhing.
Gary SnyderRead
Forests in the tropics are cut to make pasture to raise beef for the American market. Our distance from the source of our food enables us to be superficially more comfortable, and distinctly more ignorant.
Gary SnyderRead
Similar quotes
I've been bitten by a python. Not a very big one. I was being silly, saying: 'Oh, it's not poisonous...' Then, wallop! But you have fear around animals.
David AttenboroughRead
Nature seems to take advantage of the simple mathematical representations of the symmetry laws. When one pauses to consider the elegance and the beautiful perfection of the mathematical reasoning involved and contrast it with the complex and far-reaching physical consequences, a deep sense of respect for the power of the symmetry laws never fails to develop.
Chen-Ning YangRead
Every blade in the field - Every leaf in the forest - lays down its life in its season as beautifully as it was taken up.
Henry David ThoreauRead
A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled surfaces. We need wilderness whether or not we ever set foot in it. We need a refuge even though we may never need to set foot in it. We need the possibility of escape as surely as we need hope; without it the life of the cities would drive all men into crime or drugs or psychoanalysis.
Edward AbbeyRead
Nature teaches beasts to know their friends.
William ShakespeareRead
There is not a flower that opens, not a seed that falls into the ground, and not an ear of wheat that nods on the end of its stalk in the wind that does not preach and proclaim the greatness and the mercy of God to the whole world.
Billy GrahamRead