|
Animism / Environmentalism
The attribution of
a living soul to plants, inanimate objects, and natural phenomena. Oxford Dictionary
The last thirty years, in particular, have
seen countless attempts to re-interpret, re-invent and re-vitalize the ancient traditional superstitions and beliefs in
Gods, Spirits and Life-after-death in a ‘fresh and unique’ way. These attempts have included the modern
interpretation of the celestial spirits as aliens involved in great cosmic visions; the revision of earthly spirits,
animism and spiritualism as the belief in Mother Earth, Gaia or the fervent religion of environmentalism; the resurgence
of Divination; the popular practice of meditation as a ‘turning away’ from the world and going ‘in’, to name a
few.
Environmentalism, like all religions, can
be seen superficially by the gullible believers as ‘doing good’, but when one digs deeper than the seemingly noble
ideals we see fervent belief and when it becomes dogma, policy and practice, it causes untold human suffering, hardship,
illness and hunger for hundreds of millions of humans. Environmentalists care more for the spirits of animals and plants
and Mother Earth than they do for the welfare of their fellow human beings. So entrenched is the religion of
Environmentalism that it is now taught to children in schools to an extent that few other religions have managed, and as
such, its ubiquitous and debilitating effects are both widespread and deep-set. It could well be seen as the Next Age
religion to emerge, now that Western influence is beginning to investigate, water-down or reject the more fundamental
Eastern religious beliefs.
For an actualist, any spiritual belief, no matter how it is
disguised or formulated, must be investigated and seen for what it is – metaphysical belief and not empirical fact.
| 
