Deep within the forest, interconnected mycelial networks form an
electrochemically continuous biomass that dwarfs our vaunted ape brains.
The deep, subtle intelligence of the forest waits patiently for us nervous
warm blooded mammals to slow down for a moment and feel the wonder.
If one examines visually the layout and form of the interconnected roots and fungi of the forest soil, it bears a remarkable resemblance to the ganglia and neurons of a cerebral cortex. By the rules of form follows function and convergent evolution, there could well be a matrix for consciousness in the forest biomass.
My own dream experience of forests suggests that this consciousness still lingers on in the old growth forest fragments still remaining on earth. Spending a night in an old growth forest, the entire forest acts as a dream pillow. If one's head is clear of the racket of raucous civilization, the memories of thousands of millenia of continuous life will come through in dreamtime. My own experience of forest being is such that I'm sure it exists in some form, regardless of what specific mechanical matrix, if any, it may actually turn out to reside in.
The experience of true wilderness is not just of great scenery and lifeforms, but also of the resonant energy of the dreamtime that is especially strong in the wildest places.
The trees in an old growth forest may be up to several thousand years old, but it is not that span that makes an ancient forest ancient. The forest ecosystem is millions of years old, in some cases existing continuously since the dinosaur extinctions of 65 million years ago.
Teilhard de Chardin in his works posits that life on Earth is headed toward an "omega point" of unified planetary consciousness. De Chardin's omega point had humans "seizing the tiller of creation" and forming that planetary mind. However, he left out the other species, and this is a major oversight. There exists long before the omega point, if indeed it converges to a point, an "omega tendency" of different life forms to join together into larger entities. While human society is indeed a manifestation of this tendency, it also crosses species boundaries as well.
Background graphic from MkdzK.
Examine the latest advances in modern forestry:
Canada takes care of its forests
Myth:Clearcuts harm communities
Enlightened self interest on private lands
