We have been developing a new EwA Nature Circle lesson, and it is almost ready for publication. A few impatient Friends asked for a preview, so here it is.
Forest Immersion: Going Back Home (▷ booklet)
We also call this circle lesson: Forest Attuning.
This is a guided practice focused on attuning to forest environments. Variations of the same structure are also used in meadows and coastal settings. A full open-access version will be published soon.
At a high level, the session follows three phases: Before, During, and After. It is typically a long-form experience, lasting two to three hours or more.
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Before
Clarity of intention
We begin by articulating our intention and commitment for the session.
Safety and preparedness
We review relevant field considerations such as ticks and poison ivy and ensure appropriate preparation, including water, clothing, sun protection, and other basic needs for the habitat.
Entering a quiet state
Devices are turned off or placed in airplane mode. We transition into a reduced-distraction mode of attention.
Ethics of reciprocity
We discuss basic field ethics and our role as participants within ecological systems. This includes recognizing humans as part of the web of life, not external observers. We explore reciprocity by reflecting on what nature provides and what we intend to give in return through our presence and practice.
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During
Threshold and opening
The session begins with a simple embodied transition, often supported by breathing practice. A natural feature, such as a tree or landmark, may be used symbolically as a threshold before entering the space of attention.
Sensory exploration
We engage with the environment through expanded sensory awareness. This may include sound mapping or guided attention exercises that temporarily reduce visual dominance. Depending on the group, gentle movement practices may also be incorporated to support embodied awareness.
Attunement and integration
Participants move slowly through the landscape, alternating walking, pausing, and resting. Observation is intentionally open and non-analytical. Sitting moments are often used for drawing or quiet perception, which helps deepen temporal awareness.
Stillness and reflection
This phase emphasizes presence rather than interpretation. The focus is on reflective attention, a form of inward gathering and ecological listening. The aim is not to analyze nature but to be with it in a direct way.
Return and belonging
If anything has been collected, it is considered carefully and, where appropriate, returned to the environment, retaining only what is meaningful or necessary. This practice reinforces the distinction between need and desire and acknowledges relational responsibility. Personal stories are sometimes shared here to illustrate this principle.
Closing threshold
A symbolic closing marks the end of the immersive state, helping integrate the experience and support its continuity beyond the session.
After
Sharing among participants
Participants share reflections, drawings, or observations from the experience. This reinforces collective learning and attentional diversity.
Closing gesture
The session ends with departure and, often, a simple intention to return.
I have been practicing forms of forest immersion for more than 40 years, rooted in my upbringing in Brittany in northwestern France. I hesitate to call it a “practice” in the formal sense because for much of that time it was simply a way of being in the landscape: listening, observing, and entering into relation with place.
Over the past few decades, I have also incorporated elements inspired by the Tao Te Ching and Tai Chi. The simplicity of breath and movement offered a useful complement to forest attunement, not as a technique in itself, but as a way of deepening attention.
Cultural and ecological grounding
My early experience is shaped by Brittany, historically Armorica, a region with deep Celtic and megalithic heritage and a strong cultural relationship to forest and sea landscapes. In this context, forests were not separate from life but integral to it. Certain sites, such as the forest of Brocéliande (often associated with Arthurian tradition), reflect the intertwining of ecology, myth, and cultural memory.
From an ecological perspective, the oak is particularly significant in these landscapes. It supports a high diversity of associated species, including Lepidoptera, making it a keystone genus in temperate forest ecosystems. This ecological richness aligns with its cultural symbolism in many European traditions.
Reflection
There is a tendency to treat forest attunement as culturally specific, but this overlooks a deeper evolutionary context. Humans have a long shared history with forested environments. In that sense, forests are not foreign spaces but ancestral ones, which may help explain their enduring effect on human cognition and wellbeing.
The Tao Te Ching offers another complementary lens through its emphasis on “the Way” as an ungraspable, ongoing process rather than a fixed object of knowledge. This perspective reinforces humility in the face of complexity.
Tai Chi contributes a related embodied dimension, where breath, movement, and attention are integrated. In this context, it is not used as formal training but as a way of supporting presence and sensory awareness.
