17/03/2024
Jeg har lånt denne skønne børnebog af et par venner. Den er jo vildt god. Nu tror jeg ikke, de får den tilbage igen 😉
Bare titlen: 'Walking is a way of knowing' ...
Den handler om Kadarfolket, et skovfolk i det sydlige Indien, som et par bymennesker besøger, samtaler med og vandrer med. Det er der kommet en skøn fortælling ud af, fyldt med skoves visdom.
Det er regenerativ visdom. Bæredygtig livsfilosofi. Resonant sameksistens.
Bagerst i bogen skriver forfatterne: 'We found that their way of knowing the forest involved the entire body: the spoke not only of what they saw, but also what they felt, touched and smelled. Wanting to convey their dynamic and lived sense of the forest, we decided to write a book that would capture the way Kadars walked in the forest. For they taught us that walking was a means of knowing and not just a mode of travel. Walking involved not only movement, but attentive observation and a sense of timing; it also requires us to be acutely aware of color, light, sound and silence in the forest.'
Her et par citater fra bogen. Især det sidste...
✨ "I like to pause for a minute after entering the forest.' [...] ' I like to see if anyone has walked on that path recently, to check if my ansestors are walking with me...'
✨ Finding ones way: 'Knowing the path alone is not enough'
✨ 'Every time we sit together and share stories, old and new, we're adding to each other's map of the forest.'
✨ Resonant sounds: '...the sound of an axe cutting into the wood is different because it is not so resonant - it ends with a dull 'thuk' sound.'
✨ 'The floor of the forest is like a mirror - whatever goes on above is reflected below.'
✨ Home in the forest: 'Of cause, there are difficulties too: if one falls ill, for instance. But the forest both creates problems and holds the solutions. For every fever you get in the forest, there is also a herb that can cure it.'
✨ 'Only fools cut down the entire hive: what is the point? If you leave the part where the bees live intact, they will rebuild the store rooms of their hive soon and you can get honey from the same hive the next season too.'
✨ 'I think this is why our ancestors said it was important to enter the forest with a clean heart, so that you find only good things on the way.'
✨ Returning from the forest: 'Old Kadars like me chant a few lines, both when entering and leaving the forest. When we leave, we thank the muthiyar [indisk fløjtedrossel] for watching over us, the forest for whatever produce we may have gathered that day and the bear, elephant, tiger, scorpion, snake and so on for keeping away from our path. Ah yes, this is a big difference between us and the outsiders: we pray that nothing should come our way, whereas they pray that everything should come and stand right int the middle of their trail! They don't realise the dangers.'