Meditations on the Jungle.

On entering the Amazon rainforest, one is utterly overwhelmed. All of our senses are totally, beautifully, overwhelmed. The myriad of colours- dozens of different coloured butterflies, the contrast between water, land and sky, a thousand shades of green. The sound of a million insects calling at once, interrupted by the cries of parrots and hawks. The smell of an abundance of oxygen, mixed with the scent of endless growth and decay. We are constantly touched by something, a mosquito, a vine, a leaf.

On the intellectual level, the most shocking thing is the dramatic reduction of the ego. All of the will is focused on the next steps forward. We are forced to be aware of how tiny we are compared to the enormous trees above and the apparently endless forest ahead. The oversized ego of modern man is instantly returned to the purely functional ego of the ancient hunter.

Upon viewing the jungle from a distance the effect is different but equally dramatic,

From the comfort of a restaurant on the boulevard in Iquitos, you can look east to the river and jungle beyond. That is the frontier of civilization. Beyond are thousands of miles of trees before the next city. Thousands of miles of jungle and deadly animals. If you were to walk east you would be hopelessly lost in a few hours. You would be lucky to survive one night. Without assistance from a fellow human, you would soon die.

It is humbling. Awesome, terrifying and beautiful at the same time. It is the awareness of the glory of nature and our own insignificance within it.

In the jungle we are equally as important as the smallest leaf, as strong as an ant, as delicate as a lotus. This is a viewpoint that is sorely lacking in modern people, and one we ought to regain.