Problem solving in a forest

The famous quote by Dr. Thomas Hora, “All problems are psychological, but all solutions are spiritual”, stirred up my curiosity. Considering that the “spiritual” he meant had nothing to do with established religions, it led me to believe more strongly that, a forest is the best spiritual theatre for problem solving practices.More often than not, by spending time, mindfully, in a forest, we end up realizing there wasn’t a problem at all. Forests, as well as most natural environments, offer us a profound and most importantly secular spiritual experience. Practices like Shinrin-yoku and forest therapy, open up a portal, allowing us to cross over from a mostly “psychological”, reactive, fight of flight state to a more “spiritual”, open minded, relaxed but yet clear state. The most fecund state of mind for solutions to spontaneously present themselves.The main factor that makes this practice so effective is that problems themselves shed their fear generating powers, the panic inducing cloak drops off, you can then see the problem for what it really is, naked and vulnerable. Therefore, often, you realize that nothing is left, so there was no real problem to begin with. In the remainder of the times, solutions just appear in front of you, and one of the recurring solutions is to, actually, continue coming back to the forest.Like John Muir says… “And into the forest I go to lose my mind and find my soul.”