Spiritual Ecology Area in Tamera
“When somebody asks what is at the core of Terra Nova we can say that it is the sacred alliance of all beings. When we speak of a new planetary community, we are also speaking about the sacred alliance of all fellow creatures, as they all belong to the planetary community.”
(Quote from the book Terra Nova by Dieter Duhm)
The Terra Deva research area is situated on a large, 15-acre tract within the Tamera site. It serves as a space for inter-species communication, i.e. contact and cooperation with plants, animals and all creatures, both visible and invisible. The purpose of this area is not to generate yield or income, but to build trust with all that lives. In contact and cooperation with all beings, we wish to learn how to regenerate devastated landscapes and habitats and find ways in which the food of the future can be produced.
Communication with all beings
Communication is more than the transfer of information through words. It is the establishment of contact from the center of one being to another based on the phenomenon of resonance. We can communicate with all beings, for all have the same basic genetic structure and are able to resonate with each other. In other words, we are all members of the One. Every being has a soul with which we can get in touch. Some cultures use the word “Deva” for this.
Terra Deva was founded by Sabine Lichtenfels. She says, “We’re not just talking about things and beings, but also with them, in cooperation with nature. This is not just a slogan, but a real source of inexhaustible knowledge, friendship and soul quality of life.
Knowledge is being transfered to various places globally and seminars are being held at Tamera in close cooperation with the Ecological Insitute and Bernd Walter Mueller. Basic knowledge in ecology and spiritual research can not be seperated from each other. If you are dealing with so called vermits, if you want to build a lake or suddenly have to deal with the appearance of wildbores – in all cases it is about cooperation partners whom’s needs and message we want to hear and understand.
Terra Deva Team
Some research questions:
How can we get in touch with the soul of a tree, with the essence of an animal? What is a power place? How can we share experiences with others? After thousands of years of exploitation, how can we reconcile with domestic animals and livestock? Can we influence the growth of plants by thoughts, music or other frequencies? Can we cooperate with natural beings to heal destroyed biotopes? Can we solve the world food problem without violence against animals and the exploitation of habitats? Is it possible to eat fish, meat or dairy products in agreement with animals, as it is said of indigenous cultures?
Animals are collaboration partners, not pests
In 2013, the Terra Deva team started to cultivate the terrain which had previously been overgrown with cistus and blackberries. Animals such as pigs, chickens, bees and wildlife have been collaborating happily. There are no enemies in Terra Deva. Only greed, revulsion and fear have made us regard them as pests. Above that, Terra Deva seeks collaboration with wildlife such as wild boar, mongoose and many others.
Sabine Lichtenfels on the importance of Terra Deva: “When we walk the path of cooperation with nature, we will find one day that a word like paradise is no longer just a religious concept. Rather, it is what we are striving for with our lives, our actions and our work. “
Terra Deva is part of the emerging MarIsis landscape park with stone a circle, pilgrimage paths and other spiritual power places throughout the entire site of Tamera. The results of the cooperation and communication with all beings are incorporated into the work of the ecology team and the creation of the landscape and supply gardens.
Chickens
Chickens live in a nature preserve in the chicken area of Terra Deva where they are protected from wildlife. They are able fly over the fence, but return back to their enclosure at night where they sleep in the trees. Terra Deva is exploring cooperation between chickens, wild animals and humans. Some questions are: Considering that Tamera is a vegetarian community, can wildlife help in the regulation of a group of chickens if, for example, too many roosters are growing up? Will chickens that live in trust and contact with people voluntarily surrender their eggs to them?
Pigs
Pigs are considered unclean; “pig” is even used as a dirty word. In the times of the goddess, however, the pig was a powerful and sacred animal. It stood for wealth and lust and thus for properties that have always come under attack during the patriarchal age.
The pigs of Terra Deva are no meat suppliers, but cooperation partners. They love to stir up wasteland with their snouts to clear scrub and plow the earth. This useful work helps turn fallow areas into gardens.
Wild boars also roam through Tamera. If you want to protect your gardens without fighting and fences, then cooperating and communicating with them is essential. The Terra Deva research results are already being used successfully in Tamera’s agriculture department.
Bees
The bee is sacred in many cultures. Bees are very important insects for both people and nature, because they pollinate 90% of all food crops. Today, we know that if the bees disappear, humanity will survive no longer than four years. But bees are dying on a large scale, weakened by agricultural chemicals, monocultures and the greedy exploitation of honey. In Terra Deva, a bee sanctuary is being created. Using traditionally shaped hives, through cooperation experiments with the varroa mite, treatment of sick bees with herbs and leaving the honey to the bees for a while, we are trying to understand the nature of the bees and to receive information which is needed for their protection and cure.
Aquatic Life
Many different fish, crabs and other aquatic animals are living in Tamera’s water retention landscape. The formation of deep and shallow zones and rich vegetation at the shores provides them with protected areas of for spawning and feeding. The wealth of these aquatic habitats attracts a lot of wildlife such as otters, cormorants and storks. Nature regenerates. The proliferation of water retention landscapes could provide answers to the issues of nutrition and the disastrous fishing out of the oceans. In this area, we are also trying to find out whether eating fish may belong to a non-violent culture.
Rats
Most people´s fear and disgust of rats are grotesque. In their frantic effort to destroy rats, everything seems fair. And yet, they have no chance against the rats´ cunning and robustness; rats have even been known to survive nuclear accidents.
Terra Deva includes communication with rats. We tell them where they are allowed to be and where they are not, sometimes with amazing success. So that they may enjoy human contact without visiting our homes, the Terra Deva Rat team has created places for mutual perception and communication inspired by the famous Rat Temple in Rajasthan. We have learned that only those who let go of hostility and fear are capable to perceive the beauty and the message of rats. We also learn that the explosive growth of rats´ populations decreases when they have their safe places and are no longer fought and hated. The Terra Deva team has already been able to assist people in the region in learning how to treat rats in a nonviolent way.
Learning from children
Many children experience animals and plants as partners with whom they share their thoughts and feelings in all matters. Through their connection with nature, they experience basic trust. Adults can learn a lot from children. Children regularly help the Terra Deva team in a playful way and in collaboration with the school “Escola da Esperanca.”
Places of Power
All original cultures had power places in which people could recharge their energies, contemplate and communicate with the divine. Power places are places of peace and contact with natural forces. Tamera has been using them for healing purposes. Meditation at power places can uncover buried the memories of our original peace wisdom. Power places often lie on geomantic energy lines or feature some striking natural features such as a special tree or rock. The Terra Deva team is trying to emphasize these natural forces and bring out their special character with a sensitive design, for example a stone monument or sculpture.
Art
Terra Deva combines ecological and artistic design. “A form is there to seduce and capture a force,” said Antonin Artaud. Dieter Duhm: “Art comes from a deep connection with the world and creation. It comes from an inner willingness to let go of the old and open up to new experiences.
Getting to Know Us
Participants of some seminars can take part in Terra Deva for some days and get to know our work in a very practical way. Guided tours for guests are available upon request. We are preparing a public diary to share our experiences and the results of our inter-species communication.
For questions and wishes for us, please contact: contact@sabine-lichtenfels.com