Gratitude, not just policy, is what plants the seed of abundance
Evidence
What is the alternative? And how do we get there? I don’t know for certain, but I believe the answer is contained within our teachings of “One Bowl and One Spoon,” which holds that the gifts of the earth are all in one bowl, all to be shared from a single spoon. This is the vision of the economy of the commons, wherein resources fundamental to our well-being, like water and land and forests, are commonly held rather than commodified. Properly managed, the commons approach maintains abundance, not scarcity. These contemporary economic alternatives strongly echo the indigenous worldview in which the earth exists not as private property, but as a commons, to be tended with respect and reciprocity for the benefit of all. … And yet, while creating an alternative to destructive economic structures is imperative, it is not enough. It is not just changes in policies that we need, but also changes to the heart. Scarcity and plenty are as much qualities of the mind and spirit as they are of the economy. Gratitude plants the seed for abundance. — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 1392
Categorization
- XREF: One Bowl and One Spoon directly relevant to a Legal Systems course thread on Indigenous land-as-commons vs. private property (ch4). — connects to: Accepting a plant’s gift can itself stimulate that plant’s renewal — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom,…, 583; Gratitude-based contentment subverts the consumer economy that depends on manufactured desire — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom,…, 392; Gratitude for past favors is a primary social cohesion mechanism. — Georg Simmel, The Sociology of Georg Simmel, 9294
Broader Connections
- Accepting a plant’s gift can itself stimulate that plant’s renewal
#exemplifies(0.75) — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 583 - Gratitude-based contentment subverts the consumer economy that depends on manufactured desire
#qualifies(0.72) — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 392 - Gratitude for past favors is a primary social cohesion mechanism.
#expands(0.70) — Georg Simmel, The Sociology of Georg Simmel, 9294