I have noticed that sometimes people speak of our planet as a thing. This attitude will not lead to the feelings of closeness and affection that would move us to take care of the earth. As we know, the earth is not a dead rock floating in space. It is a living system, in itself as a whole and in each and every part. I do not see the earth as an inanimate object—a lump of stone.

I think of it as a being alive. Sitting on the earth, I feel that I am resting on a mother’s lap. It is thanks to her that everything exists. In this way, we could easily think of the earth as a goddess—a living, breathing, and constantly giving goddess.