1) I, the guide interpreter SHŌ, runs this blog and the word, nature, reminds me of a Welsh-born Japanese writer, C. W. Nicol (July 17, 1940 – April 3, 2020).
2) He was well known among Japanese people as he was also a documentary producer of TV programs on natural environment.
3) The textbook for English learners entitled “Old Nic’s Notebook” published by Sanshusha in 2012 is a selection of the monthly columns Mr. Nicol contributed to The Japan Times. The 15 essays inspired me very much to the concept of nature.
4) At about the same time I encountered one article about Ise Jingū, which he wrote in Japanese in 1997 for Ise Jingū’s periodical, Mizu-gaki 瑞垣 No.178. The article was titled ‘To develop our consciousness for the purpose of preserving the treasure-like nature in Japan.’
5) In the four-page article he gave us five points.
Point 1 Ise Jingū is easy for him to understand, because his grandmother told him about a spirit who dwells in a tree, a grove called ‘the Land of Fairies’ and Celtic sacred woodlands.
Point 2 Ise Jingū has launched the worthy project for nurturing forests and he believed that Jingū’s method of reforestation is reasonable.
Point 3 Ise Jingū and the surrounding woodlands are one and the same. Here in Ise Jingū there remains Japan that he adored.
Point 4 People living in Japan are diligent and gentle. Why? Because they had been brought up by Japanese natural circumstances. He urged people living in Japan to raise their own consciousness of the value of nature. Then how should we heighten our awareness of the importance of natural environment? The answer is ‘by visiting the precinct of a shintō shrine, jinja.’
Point 5 Nature makes human nature.
Note 1: The photo is one of the trees in the precinct of Ise Jingū.
Note 2: The C. W. Nicol Afan Woodland Trust website https://afan.or.jp