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The natural world, for Naess, is not
something that we should strive to
control and manipulate for our own gain.
Living well involves living as an equal
with all the elements of our environment.See also: Laozi 24–25 ■ Benedictus Spinoza 126–29 ■ Friedrich Schelling 335
THE MODERN WORLD
entire natural world. He implies
that often we miss the broader
implications of our actions, only
considering the immediate benefits
to ourselves. To “think like a
mountain” means identifying with
the wider environment and being
aware of its role in our lives.
Harmonizing with nature
Naess takes up Leopold's idea by
proposing his “deep ecology.” He
states that we only protect our
environment by undergoing the
kind of transformation of which
Leopold writes. Naess urges us to
move toward seeing ourselves as
part of the whole biosphere. Instead
of viewing the world with a kind of
detachment, we must find our place
in nature, by acknowledging the
intrinsic value of all elements of the
world we inhabit.
Naess introduces the “ecological
self”, a sense of self that is rooted in
an awareness of our relationship to
a “larger community of all living
beings." He claims that broadening
our identification with the world to
include wolves, frogs, spiders, and
perhaps even mountains, leads to a
more joyful and meaningful life.
Naess’s "deep ecology" has had
a powerful effect on environmental
philosophy and on the development
of environmental activism. For
those of us who live in cities, it may
seem hard or even impossible to
connect with an "ecological self."
Nevertheless, it may be possible.
As the Zen master Robert Aitken
Roshi wrote in 1984, “When one
thinks like a mountain, one thinks
also like the black bear, so that
honey dribbles down your fur as
you catch the bus to work.” ■Arne Naess Widely acknowledged as the
leading Norwegian philosopher
of the 20th century, Arne Naess
became the youngest-ever full
professor at the University of Oslo
at the age of 27. He was also a
noted mountaineer and led a
successful expedition to the
summit of Tirich Mir in northern
Pakistan in 1950.
It was only after Naess retired
from his teaching post in 1970
that he actively developed his
thinking about the natural world
and became involved in direct
action on environmental issues. In
1970, he chained himself to therocks by the Mardalsfossen
Waterfall in Norway to protest
against the building of a nearby
dam. Elected as chairperson of
Greenpeace Norway in 1988, he
was knighted in 2005.Key works1968 Scepticism
1974 Ecology, Society
and Lifestyle
1988 Thinking Like a Mountain
(with John Seed, Pat Fleming
and Joanna Macy)
2002 Life’s Philosophy: Reason
and Feeling in a Deeper WorldThe thinking for
the future has to be
loyal to nature.
Arne Naess