FELIPE VIVEROS >
Independent researcher/ Strategist/
/ Cultural activist

Mapuche / chilean

Listening to the Land

I was born along the largest river in Chile, in a beautiful and wild land next to the Pacific, altogether a divine geography. South America was known to indigenous people as Abya Yala, which in the Guna language means "land in its full maturity”. An exuberant  and mysterious land that continues to be a source of inspiration. One of my most vivid early memories growing up was when I was around five and I managed to leave my parents’ side and run away into the woods. There I recall, in those ancient woodlands, I manage to find myself for the very first time. As if I had been called by the call of the forest, I found a spot and sat down by a pristine creek that was really not very far from our summer family cabin. I remember the feeling of awe and stillness, and for first time in my brief life the feeling of the Earth as alive—a living being. This experience became a seed in my heart that later on would germinate and be a guiding force for my life and work. 

Years later when I was old enough, I left Santiago and embarked on a journey into the unknown in search of meaning and answers. I felt overwhelmed by the magnitude of the global social land ecological crisis and I wondered where I could find ways to alleviate this crisis. Perhaps amongst people living closer to the land? 

My journey began in the mountains at the source of the Bio-Bio river, the mightiest river in Chile and home of the pehuenche people. I had always felt drawn to connect and learn with the indigenous, certainly because I have some indigenous blood, and so this was the moment I had been waiting for. My first teacher was Mari Llaweñ a pewenche dreamerand medicine woman. She taught me so much, how to better understand and follow my dreams, how to pray and do traditional Earth rituals, and about the properties of herbal medicines. Mari was the first person who showed me how to care for the natural world through prayer and ceremony. 

Today we live in uncertain times. This is a time when we need to listen to our elders and remember together how to listen deeply to the natural world in order to survive and thrive as a species. My time in the mountains is still alive in my memory, a life centred around sharing and community and celebrating the living miracle that is life itself. What I learned from my beloved teacher and others, was not complex, but quite simple. How to slow down and connect with one’s own heart and that of Gaia. 

Following this powerful call of the Earth, I went deep into the Amazon rainforest and found one of the greatest inspirations in my life, a mentor, a friend, and a family. I was adopted by an indigenous medicine man who tore me apart, healed me, and  helped put me back together again. By example he taught me how to lead a life full of dignity and beauty. With him I learned how to listen to the forest and the stars and remember that our life is full of purpose and meaning and that love is the most powerful weapon that we have.

Now it seems that the planetary crisis is accelerating the emergence of an ‘evolutionary impulse’, which is helping us to realize that we are planetary beings. Our universe is gradually walking up and becoming aware of itself. When astronauts and cosmonauts first reached outer space and saw our planet “from the outside” a living miracle floating in the midst of the cosmos, it provoked a deep cognitive shift in all of us.

After  years of traveling in South America, living close to nature and indigenous people, I travelled for the first time to Europe (with $30 in my pocket) with the hope of reconnecting with my roots, as well as joining people working at the heart of the western world to shift the paradigm. Resistance is necessary to fight injustice, ecological destruction, and violence. And we also need to create new realities. 

Druk Yul, the land of the thunder dragon is perhaps one such place. Home to ancient wisdom traditions, wildlife and thriving rural communities, Bhutan inspired the world by launching a new development paradigm centered on well being and happiness for people and planet, called Gross National Happiness. (GNH) I was invited to this mountain kingdom to host a youth retreat for global changemakers. There I understood that it is possible today for people to live in harmony with nature and each other, and even thrive if we change our priorities from things to relationships. 

I often see myself as a bridge between worlds, fortunate enough to carry the seeds of many cultures  and my own, for transformation and healing of both myself and the planet. I feel as though our job is to connect the dots and realize our interconnectedness as a species within the whole.

(Based in UK.)