The Wisdom of Wilderness : Experiencing the Healing Power of Nature

A distinguished psychiatrist and author of the best-selling Addiction & Grace explains how to tap into the psychological and spiritual healing power of the natural world as he reveals how we can discover great lessons of life by retreating from our busy and hectic lives to find the serenity of the wilderness. Reprint. Gerald G. May, M.D. (1940-2005), practiced medicine and psychiatry for twenty-five years before becoming a senior fellow in contemplative theology and psychology at the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation in Bethesda, Maryland. He was the author of many books and articles blending spirituality and psychology, including Addiction and Grace, Care of Mind/Care of Spirit, Will and Spirit, and The Dark Night of the Soul.

tap Into The Awe-inspiring Power Of Nature

publishers Weekly

psychiatrist May (1940-2005), Known For His Works Blending Psychology And Spirituality (addiction And Grace), Chose The Theme And Milieu Of Nature For This, His Last Book. Chronicling Outdoor Forays He Took From 1990 To 1995, May's Elegant Prose Uses A Storyteller's Magic To Plumb The Profound Mystery Of Outside Events That Provoke And Foster Inner Change. Vivid Details And Masterful Style Place The Reader In Context: Breathing Alongside A Bear, Drumming With Cicadas, Grieving A Man-mutilated Turtle, Dodging Eagles Or Seeking Fire's Heat In A Soaking Storm. Thunder Came And It Was My Song, And The Wind My Courtesan, And Praise Welled Up Inside Me As The Rain Poured, Drenching Down Around And In And Through Me Until The Fire Finally Died Under Its Flow And There Was Nothing But Cold Dark Chilling Water Covering Everything, Running Down My Legs Into Rivulets. May Is A Kind Of Christian Zen Master, But This Book Doesn't Favor A Particular Religious Tradition So Much As The Deep Wild Of Nature's Way. In This Work For Everyone, He Wants Us To Understand That Wilderness Is Our Natural State And That Contemplative Communion With The Power Of The Slowing Will Bring Us Safely Home To Our Wild Eternal Selves. (june) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Cover......Page 1 THE WISDOM OF WILDERNESS: Experiencing the Healing Power of Nature......Page 2 CONTENTS......Page 4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS......Page 6 FOREWORD......Page 8 PREFACE......Page 15 One. THE CALL......Page 22 Two. THE POWER OF THE SLOWING......Page 36 Three. NIGHT FEAR......Page 48 Four. CICADA SONG......Page 72 Five. OF TIME AND THE SEASONS......Page 90 Six. VIOLENCE AT SMITH’S INLET......Page 112 Seven. A PERFECTION OF TREES......Page 144 Eight. THE NAME OF THE EAGLE......Page 158 Nine. RAINSTORMS......Page 172 Ten. NATURAL BEING......Page 184 Eleven. ANOTHER WILDERNESS......Page 194 NOTES......Page 212 About the Author......Page 216 A L S O B Y G E R A L D G . M AY......Page 217 Copyright......Page 218 About the Publisher......Page 219 The natural world has a power to inspire the best and soothe the worst in each of us. In his last work, beloved author Gerald May offers a memoir and spiritual guide that reveals the lessons available when we retreat from our busy lives to the serenity of the natural wilderness. He expresses the healing and wholeness of spending time in the wild--hiking, camping, canoeing, fishing, or just sitting. Wilderness can be found anywhere--a garden, a park, perhaps in one's own room, or even in other people. Wherever we find it, it calls to what is natural in each of our hearts, reassuring us that we are part of something bigger and teaching us how to make peace with the outer world and with our inner selves.--From publisher description Outside of the city and suburbs, the natural world has a power to inspire the best and soothe the worst within each of us. It has much to teach us about the wilderness within, and about the'greater power'manifest in the sublimity of nature. In this his last work, beloved author Gerald May offers a memoir and spiritual guide which reveals the great lessons available to us when we retreat from our busy lives to the serenity of the natural wilderness