I was on the banks of Cauvery at Gali Bore, near Bangalore. A poster on the wall of the resort triggered my thoughts. It read – “ Observe the patterns, Create sound maps and feel the senses .

I realised that in this materialistic world, we have forgotten all the above. Our eyes are the most powerful pair of lenses, in the world and the best camera we can ever have. But, we do not put it to its best use. There is so much to observe ,all around us.

Today ,sitting on the banks of Cauvery, I can see the wave patterns on the flowing river. It can give us unlimited ideas for designing any pattern in our lives. The swaying leaves on the trees and the playful malabar squirrel can keep us engaged all day.

It may be worthwhile for us to pause for a day and take a break from the madness of our every day life. We can hear the vibrations of nature. You feel as if the birds are speaking to one another. The squeak of one bird is responded by the melody of another. Such is the beauty of nature, we are missing every day.

Can we smell the air ? In our busy urban life, we only can smell the emissions of other vehicles and the polluting industries around us. In a forest, nature bestows us the fragrance of trees, flowers and even the wet mud, which makes us realise how much we have lost our senses.

As humans, we have five senses – see, hear, touch, smell and taste. But with urbanisation and leading a materialistic world, we seem to have lost all of them. We cannot see the obvious, listen to one another, touch and care for one another as humans, smell the fresh air ,as we have polluted it and taste organic natural food ,as we have injected all possible chemicals into our food.

It may be time to sit back and reflect. We may benefit by setting the clock back and rewinding our life. We may surprise ourselves ,if we activate all our senses to see, touch, taste, hear and smell. It may not be a difficult task ,but definitely needs introspection and efforts to get back to nature.

The first step could be to take a break ,once in a while ,from our rugged routine and be with nature. Nature can teach us in simple ways ,to reactivate our senses. The sights of nature ,will invigorate our senses. We will get mesmerised by the nature’s scenes and the smell of the flowers and trees. The care and touch of animals will kindle our senses. The taste of fruits from the forest ,will revitalise our senses and the sounds of nature will make us more sensitive and possibly make us better listeners in life.

Let nature awaken us. If we are willing to learn from nature, we may be able to activate our five senses and evolve as better human beings.

It is time to wake up and re unite with nature.

S Ramesh Shankar

11th May 2024