Why hug trees: how the energy of the forest helps us

Druids were Celtic priests who believed in the healing power of trees. They performed rituals at the sacred oak, asked him to give them strength. Taoist sages advised to meditate in the forest. They believed that trees give strength and take away negative energy. Nowadays, we pay attention to the experience of the ancients: even some scientists talk about dendrotherapy, a method of healing the soul based on the beneficial properties of trees.

Perhaps you yourself have noticed that a walk through the forest cheers you up, and some trees attract you – it’s nice to touch them, inhale their smell. Many believe that hugging a tree, clinging to it, looking at the crown, you can heal the soul and body. Supporters of druidism – a spiritual movement – call for unity not only with trees, but with nature in general. In Japan, it is believed that spending 250 hours a year in the forest is enough for good health. To recharge your energy, you need to hug strong, healthy trees. They also practice shinrin-yoku (“forest bathing”) – the so-called long walks in the forest.

Different trees affect mental and physical health in different ways. There are “donor” trees and “vampire” trees: some give us something, the second ones take something away. The first include pine, cedar, oak, birch, linden, maple. Communication with them tones up, helps relieve stress, alleviate depression. To the second – aspen, poplar, spruce. They draw out negative energy. With their help, you can get rid of disturbing thoughts, obsessions.

It is believed that the energy of plants works “at full” in the early morning. To “recharge” you need to approach the tree from the south side. And to relieve anxiety – from the north.

In a pandemic, older people are especially encouraged to hug trees, and those that grow deep in the forest are better. Like accumulators, they feed on the power from the earth and the sun through the roots and crown, and then generously share the accumulated energy with a person – unless, of course, it is right to ask them about it.

“New experience changes the idea of ​​yourself and the world”

Olga Nosikova, psychologist

Like everything on earth, we ourselves consist of 5 elements. Nature is virgin, reasonable. She is loving, she has no desire to harm. And when people come into contact, interact with it, they connect to it as a source of strength and inspiration, feel this loving kindness, return to creativity, slow down.

One walk through the forest, of course, will not solve all problems. But if you walk often, you can become healthier, calmer, kinder. We must remember that we are part of nature. Isolation from it negatively affects the human psyche.

I work with trees in the forest. One of my techniques is blindfolded mindful walking. At the edge of the forest, we formulate a request with which we turn to nature. As a rule, the experience gained during such a session changes the person’s idea of ​​himself and the world. We turn to the forest, to its energy, so that it accepts us as friends, as guests, and helps to solve the problem.

Contact with nature is felt physically: warmth in the fingers, in the stomach. It happens to everyone. During conscious walks, we begin to feel differently smells, tastes, touches. Every object in the forest can become therapeutic for us. Trees, bushes, mushrooms, stones help to discover abilities that were previously hidden. There is an ability to feel by touch whether a tree is alive or dead, to understand which trees take energy and which give.

The forest is not only trees. These are springs, streams, glades with flowers, berries and mushrooms, birds, animals, insects. This is the wind, which can begin to rustle in the foliage, move the branches …

Walking in the forest is like mindful meditation. We walk through the forest for about three hours, but it seems that 10 minutes have passed. Much emerges from the subconscious, from the past, even from the perinatal period. The person removes the bandage and returns to the world with open eyes.

In the process of such practices, physiological and psychological problems are solved. Immunity is strengthened, attitude to negative events changes. There is awareness and responsibility. New neural connections are being created, new relationships with the world. If something happens in life, a person begins to perceive everything more calmly, to accept what is happening. Do not waste time and energy on negative thoughts. The forest teaches us this.

In the process of another practice “A tree as an image of a person”, we go through several stages. The first is connected with bodily therapy, with psychodrama. We “become” trees: we move in a certain way, learning a lot about ourselves. We also work with metaphorical maps, images of trees, we communicate with them in the forest. We are looking for our “tree of power”, with which we hug, in order to feel: nature protects and protects.

How do I recommend hugging trees?

• First you need to ask yourself questions: “Why do I need this? What do I want to buy or what do I want to share? Then – close your eyes, touch the bark, tune in, get in touch. Stand nearby, feel the bark, the movement of internal juices, get closer, smell. Then wrap your arms around, snuggle up and watch the process. Or you can lean back and touch the back of your head.
• You will feel when the process is complete. Thank the tree for the healing session. Then you can return to him, hug, share love and gratitude, talk about the innermost and important. You can take a branch, a stone from the forest, asking permission. Explain why you are taking.
• At home, when you feel the need, pick up what you brought with you, inhale and exhale. Remember how you took it – how you noticed how you picked it up. During meditation, this object will become a guide for you, which will help you return to the state that you felt in the forest.

I recommend walking among the trees alone, in silence, taking conscious steps, enjoying nature, visual, tactile sensations. If we go with someone, we completely switch to dialogues, and this distracts us from the purpose for which we entered the halls of the forest.