As a wellness practice, the ancient Japanese Forest Bathing; Shinrin-yoku takes the participants on a colossal journey, one that is aimed at increasing concentration, mindfulness, and appreciation of the gift of nature.
Deep in the forest, it begins; away from the hustle and bustle of the city, participants are encouraged to distance themselves from using phones/electronic gadgets unless necessary. Of course, the principles of Shinrin-yoku are explained, and the participants are invited to take part not just passively, but with intentionality and purpose.
It is just the middle of my first semester, and my mental health is something I have to think about. As graduate students, we are often encouraged to find activities outside academia that will allow us to “shut down” for a while. Our brains are constantly on the move, and the pressure to attend to the next project/assignment is real. For this reason, a mindfulness activity such as Forest Bathing; Shinrin-yoku is one offered by Penn State University Student Affairs.
“According to Price, who will lead the walks, the benefits of the practice include reduced stress and anxiety, improved mood, and a strengthened immune system.” For me, the activity did not just usher in Fall; it also invited me to a season of refeltedness and inward interrogation. Life is beautiful, yet the constant presses and demands have actually distracted us from having conversations or check-ins with ourselves. We live in a fast-paced world, where attending to the next matter is prudent, and with that, we have lacked in connections, warmth, and going through this life with some sense of wonder and apathy seems to be the norm.
So what can nature, or rather forest bathing, a type of meditation in the forest, do for you? In this blog, I take you on a journey through my first forest bathing experience.
1) What I Notice
In this invitation, you are asked to move around, use your whole senses, and make sense of what you notice. There is so much peace—perhaps some birds singing, perhaps you notice the swaying of the trees. Or you may even wonder at the tiny little ants jointly rushing towards an unknown destination. You may notice the sun rays struggling to penetrate through to the forest, or you may notice that the old rugged tree has been lying down and is slowly rotting away. There is so much to notice, something we miss on a daily basis because either we haven’t tuned our senses to be aware of them, or just maybe there is too much noise.
2) What’s in Motion
Movement describes the human. We are hardly immobile. This reminds me of the aboriginal quote, “We are all visitors to this time, this place. We are just passing through; our purpose here is to observe, to learn, to grow, to love. And then we return home.” So, what is in motion around us? It could be the moving trees, the squirrels chasing each other, or even more deeply, the movement of the log as it slowly rots and disappears. A once huge, green tree now lays in the moss, slowly rotting away, and being trampled upon—the impermanence of life.
3) Forever Young
We have sort of been forced to grow up and attend to “more urgent matters in life,” and as grown-ups, there is not much flexibility and “playing around.” In this invitation, you are asked to go back in time and find an object that will awaken your inner child. It could be sticks you used to pick up and strike together, or perhaps rocks to hit against each other to produce some sound. Or even walking on the logs, carefully balancing yourself, and in that, you notice the distance, the disconnect perhaps to what you used to do.
4) A Gift for Somebody
We are surrounded by people who influence our lives somehow. We may be disconnected from them, but their memories live on within us. What gift, however little, can nature offer these kinds of people? In this invitation, you think of either a material object or even a wish that you have experienced that you would love your loved ones to have. Perhaps it is that peace in the forest, or even the simplicity.
5) Tea Ceremony
Now that the meditation exercise is over, we convene again to the starting point and commune in tea spiced up with honey, cinnamon, sugar, etc. A reminder of plants, the earth, and warmth, and as the leaves fall, even coziness. An invitation to take back the good and positive attitudes back to the world.
Introduction 
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