The knowledge is invisible and sacred. It's a world of shadows that we rarely see, but that nurtures us all and can be used for good or evil. Agriculture is a kind of alchemy. It is taking stones and death and creating gold: new life. The stones contain minerals; inert matter that is brought to life by an unseen conversion by microbes and microfauna into sustenance. The channels of new life are invisible to us, in the world of light: the roots, in the universe of the soil... a kind of spirit-world. Chemists can study the parts and the pieces, but only a grower of plants can know the true potential of the life beneath their feet. The names of bacteria that fix nitrogen into the soil from the atmosphere, one of the most important processes for life on earth, have names like gods: Nitrosomonas and Nitrobactor. And more than their mythical counterparts, these gods truly deserve worship.
That which we have reduced to chemistry is truly magical and deserves a deep, spiritual respect to all who grow and all who consume plants (that means you). The soil is more than a physical support for plant life. It holds the secret of the transformation of inert matter into all life on earth. The chemical fertilizers used in "conventional" agriculture pervert this ancient system and confuse the spirit of the soil, slowly killing it, and because we have lost our connection to the earth, we can't see how it is killing us too.
Those of you who know me well know how long I've struggled against religion and even fate. But there's something deep and sacred here, in what I'm learning and the things I'm seeing. One can't have a respect for plants if one has never really seen them grow. We have our gardens, our flowers, our lawns, but it's just a dressing for our material existence. Until we live in the garden we can't truly understand the power that exists in plants. And the power we consume when we eat them. If the energy that goes into their production is unnatural, so is the energy we take into ourselves. If the energy that grows your food is natural and well-intentioned, we take that into our bodies when we eat each meal. And the knowledge of that energy sustains our mind, body and soul.
Why have we detached ourselves from the soil? When did we let ourselves drift away from our (literal) roots? Was it when von Liebig burned a living plant and reduced it into elements? Was it when war-science artificially obtained nitrogen to make a bomb, and then to fertilize our food? Was it when crusaders murdered the spiritual connection ancient civilizations had with nature and artificially melded Pagan gods with Christian demons?
Living in a country where the culture is not so far gone as ours gives me hope for my own. But how long before this culture is corrupted? I see religious harvest festivals conducted for genetically engineered crops. I see the cradle of compost using toxic white powder to produce food that has never needed it before-- why now? Only 2% of America's population are still directly employed in agriculture, but the majority of Indians are still farmers. How can we restore the reverence our ancestors had for the earth? Why do we assume they were ignorant, just because they were not well-versed in organic chemistry. Perhaps they knew more than we know now.
Think of your mother: the most complex relationship in our lives. The earth is humanity's mother. She created us, and she has nurtured us. But we are abusing her. Like our mothers she continues to nurture us whether we want it or not, but as our abuse continues she has aged too quickly and grown bitter and tired. Could you ever reduce your mother to three elements? Would you ever presume that she needs just three nutrients to live? Why would we assume that of the earth?
I know this all sounds over the top. The processes on earth really are just chemistry and physics. But reach past your staunch logic and find some magic in your heart. How is chemistry anything but unwinding a spiritual mystery? How is carbon any less than a piece of the infinite and mysterious universe? It is both arrogant and degrading to think that once we understand something, it is no longer a part of the larger cosmic conundrum and therefore we may use it however we please-- to the detriment of all the rest we still don't understand.
All I know is that Nature has been around a lot longer than we have, and her processes are not random. If we had kept listening to her, instead of pulling away, we wouldn't be in this mess. And I don't think anyone can deny that we are in one hell of a mess.
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