THE BOOK OF NATURE is an anthology of spiritual perspectives on nature and the environment, highlighting the human role in honoring and maintaining the balance. Part One looks at the "Basic Principles" of Unity, Interdependence, Power & Beauty, Communication, Adaptability, Creativity & Transformation, Endurance & Rejuvenation. Part Two includes sections on the Four Elements and The Communities (Species) of Life. The Final Section is "Caring for God's Creation." From the Muslim perspective, Nature is the Book of God, open before us, from which there is much to learn. While themes from the Qur'an introduce each chapter, The Book of Nature also includes the wisdom of other faith traditions, as well as insights from individuals whose sensitivity to the natural world can assist in reawakening our own.

Table of Contents

Introduction:, 1; Reading the Book of Nature... Charles Upton, 3; I. Basic Principles; Chapter One; Introduction to Basic Principles, 11; The Journey Towards Knowledge... Muhammad Asad, 12; Sea, Earth, and Sky... Charles Recknagel, 14; Outer and Inner Space... Guy Murchie, 17; At Whose Command... Kena Upanishad, 18; Chapter Two; Unity, 20; The Signs of God... Charles Upton, 21; Only You... Levi Yitzchak of Berditchov, 24; The Quest for Unity... Axel Reisinger, 24; The World Is a Mirror... Mahmoud Shabistari, 29; Circles... Michael S. Schneider, 29; Philosophy in Warm Weather... Jane Kenyon, 33; Sacred Circles... Black Elk, 34; Al-Tawhid, Unity... Charles Upton, 34; The Kaaba... Ali, Aliaa, and Aisha Rafea, 36; Veriditas... Hildegard von Bingen, 37; Chapter Three; Interdependence, 38; Anthem... W.H. Auden, 39; The Grace of Sharing... Ibn Kathir, 40; The Tree of Life... Kaminaga Zenji, 41; Opening to the Moment... Helminski with Kaatz, 42; The Biological Matrix... Michael J. Denton, 43. The Circularity of Existence... Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri, 50; Light upon Light... Lynne McTaggart, 53; Portraits of Faith... Laura Fisher Kaiser, 56; Chapter Four; Power and Beauty, 58; Witnessing the Beautiful and the Sublime... Charles Upton, 59; When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer... Walt Whitman, 61; String Theory... Brian Greene, 62; Flowing Strength... Rainer Maria Rilke, 66; Witnessing Power and Possessing Beauty... Alain de Botton, 67; When You Touch a Petal... Padma Hejmadi, 81; The Ministry of Nature... Ralph Waldo Emerson, 83; Gardens Beneath Which Rivers Flow... Charles Upton, 85; Divine Beatitude... Reza Shah Kazami, 86; Chapter Five; Communication, 91; Opening to the Word... Camille Helminski, 91; Come... David James Duncan, 92; Listening... Charles Upton, 94; Invisible Gifts... Camille Helminski, 97; And What if Rocks Speak?... F. David Peats, 98; Learning Nature's Language... Henry David Thoreau, 99; Versatile Words... Lincoln Barnett, 100; Caring for the Young... Brian J. Ford, 101; The Dolphin As Ally... Brian J. Ford, 104; Chapter Six; Adaptability, 108; Thar She Blows... David Pitt-Brooke, 109; The Artful Universe... John D. Barrow, 114; Journeying... Bruce Chatwin, 117; Languages of Plants... Brian J. Ford, 117; The Creative Tongue... Lincoln Barnett, 119. Chapter Seven; Creativity and Transformation, 121; Moment by Moment... Jalaluddin Rumi, 123; Metamorphosis... May Sarton, 125; In the Forest Leaves Are Always Falling... C. Helminski, 126; Four Wings and a Prayer... Sue Halpern, 127; Unconscious Came a Beauty... May Swenson, 138; Chapter Eight; Endurance and Rejuvenation, 139; Sailing Homeward... Chan Fang-Sheng, 140; You Ask Why... Li-Po, 141; Fertility... Herman Hesse, 141; Rain Stirrings... Elspeth Huxley, 142; Chasing Clayoquot... David Pitt-Brooke, 143; Australian Flowers... Jessie Ackermann, 145; Rejuvenation... Muhammad Asad, 147; II. The Natural World; Chapter Nine; Introduction to the Natural World; The Cosmos and the Natural Order... Seyyed Hossein Nasr, 158; The Elements; Chapter Ten; Earth, 170; Essential Salt... Helminski and Kurlansky, 173; The Grand Canyon... John Muir, 175; Renewal... Dayton Fandray, 180; Mountain Christening... John O'Donohue, 181; From the Garden of Abu Mahmoud... Naomi Shihab Nye, 182; The Garden... Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri, 183; Leaf Patternings... Leila Ahmed, 186. Befriending Trees... Kevin Lax and Patrick Tyler, 187; Deep Ecology... Peter Reed and David Rothenberg, 189; Chapter Eleven; Air, 203; The Wind Blows from the Sea... Papago Indians, 205; The Bird... Edwin Muir, 205; Who Has Seen the Wind... Christina Rossetti, 207; Watching the Weather... A.B.C. Whipple, 207; The Opening of the Wind... Juliette de Bairacli Levy, 208; Air Dances... Theodor Schwenk, 210; Mysterious Air... David Abram, 214; Chapter Twelve; Fire, 225; Alchemy... Charles Upton, 228; Why Newton Played with Sunbeams... Nechaev and Jenkins, 230; Spectral Analysis... Camille Helminski, 232; Aurora Borealis... John Muir, 234; Ring of Fire... Lawrence Blair with Lorne Blair, 238; Engendering Life... Camille Helminski, 241; Chapter Thirteen; Water, 243; Water in the Qur'an... M.A.S. Abdel Haleem, 245; Waves of the Sea... Sa'd ud-din Mahmoud Shabistari, 256; And the Rains Came... Padma Hejmadi, 257; Miraculous Messages of Water... Masaru Emoto, 259; Sacred Springs... Juliette de Bairacli Levy, 266; The Great Sea... Eskimo Tradition, 268; An Expedition to the Pole... Annie Dillard, 269; That Day... Denise Levertov, 270; The Communities, The Umam; Chapter Fourteen; Creatures of the Air, 272; Doves of Peace... Camille Helminski, 273. Migrating Shorebirds... David Pitt-Brooke, 275; A Paradise of Birds... John Muir, 276; The Vulture and the Kite... Sa'di, 282; Freedom... Chuang-tzu, 284; The Bee... Dr. Javad Nurbakhsh, 286; Writing the Sacred into the Real... Alison Hawthorne Deming, 287; Chapter Fifteen; Creatures of the Sea, 294; Mysteries of the Pacific... Thor Heyerdahl, 295; Jonah and the Great Fish... Muhammad Asad, 298; Regenerating the Heart... Sarah Simpson, 300; Where the Two Seas Meet... Muhammad Asad, 301; Raja Ampat... Djuna Ivereigh, 303; Chapter Sixteen; Creatures of the Land, 308; The Horse... Imrio'ul Qais, 309; The Art of Horsemanship... Charles Upton, 309; King of the Wind... Marguerite Henry, 310; Camels... Asa b. Qays, 313; Qaswa... Ibn Kathir, 314; Come into Animal Presence... Denise Levertov, 316; Owen and Mzee... C.A.H. with Peter Greste, 317; The Faces of Deer... Mary Oliver, 319; Chapter Seventeen; The Human Ummah (Community), 320; The Trust... Charles Upton, 324; Longing for the Divine... Aisha Rafea, 326; Poetic Spirit... Matsuo Basho, 327; Ask... Scott Russell Sanders, 328; Tokens of Mystery... Wendell Berry, 329; Spacious Soul... St. Teresa of Avila, 330; Consciousness... Peter Russell, 331; The Rising Dawn... Henry David Thoreau, 332; The Marvel of Creation... Michael Lerner, 333. Remembering God... Gai Eaton, 340; III. Caring for God's Creation; Chapter Eighteen; Introduction: Recognizing the Sacred, 354; Where the Wasteland Ends... Cremo and Goswami, 355; Sacred Science and the Environmental Crisis... Seyyed Hossein Nasr, 357; Measuring... Fazlur Rahman, 359; Recognizing the Sacred Earth... Thomas Berry, 361; Chapter Nineteen; Working Towards Sustainability, 364; Widening the Circle of Compassion... Albert Einstein, 366; Threads of a Whole Cloth... Charles Upton, 368; Being Caretakers... Leyla Knight, 369; Responsibility... Tenzin Gyatso, the Dalai Llama, 370; Sustainability... Shams Helminski, 372; How Do We Care?... Juliette deBairacli Levy, 377; Exposing the True Nature of Chocolate... Michael Lipske, 379; Chapter Twenty; Honoring Diversity, 383; The Music of Diversity... Boethius, 386; Divine Radiance... Hildegard of Bingen, 387; Bearing Witness for the Earth... Thomas Berry, 387; Continuing Creation... David James Duncan, 390; Leave the Wetlands to Beavers... Christie Aschwanden, 392; Looking at Bird's through Creative Eyes... Doug Stewart, 397; Monocultures of the Mind... Vandana Shiva, 402; Animals in Islam... Al-Hafiz B.A. Masri, 408; Preservation... Camille Helminski, 429; Whale Dreams... Kim Heacox, 433; Awakenings... Paul Gorman, 437; Chapter Twenty-One. Humility, 442; Let me Walk in Beauty... Chief Yellow Lark, 443; Moments of Recognition... Barry Lopez, 445; Opening the Heart... John P. Milton, 447; Being Balance... Ali, Aliaa, and Aisha Rafea, 450; The Man Who Planted Trees... Jean Giono, 451; Chapter Twenty-Two; Wonder, 460; By the Peonies... Czeslaw Milosz, 461; Renewing Wonder... David James Duncan, 462; Morning... Emily Dickinson, 464; Cleanising the Doors of Perception... Charles Upton, 465; Winter Paradise... Kathleen Raine, 466; Renewing Soul... William Wordsworth, 467; Heaven's River... Issa, 469; Ocean Views... Rachel Carson, 469; Chapter Twenty-Three; Awe, 472; Modes of Divine Presence... Thomas Berry, 473; You Are the Moon... Swampy Cree, 474; The Lote Tree... Ibn Kathir, 475; The Peace of Wild Things... Wendell Berry, 476; Felicity... Kathleen Raine, 477; i thank you God for most this amazing... e.e. cummings, 480; The Morning Glory... Basho and Moritake, 481; Bibliography, 484.