The Fukuoka Farming Website The philosophy of Masanobu Fukuoka |
|||||||
| Home | Introduction | Overview | Synergistic | Articles | Projects | Resources | Philosophy |
That quotation has become the most frequently used introduction to Masanobu Fukuoka, and to discussions of his Natural Farming method.
In his books, Fukuoka describes Natural Farming as "… a Buddhist way of farming that originates in the philosophy of 'Mu' or nothingness, and returns to a 'do-nothing' nature." He writes about Mahayana Natural Farming (Mahayana is one of the two major schools or sects of Buddhism) as "… the very embodiment of life in accordance with nature… [it] is realized when man becomes one with nature, for it is a way of farming that transcends time and space and reaches the zenith of understanding and enlightenment."
From these statements, it might seem necessary to understand Buddhist teachings in order to understand and practice his Natural Farming method, but quite the opposite is true.
When asked if he felt that he was receiving insight and guidance from a divine source, Fukuoka responded with the following:
"Although natural farming — since it can teach people to cultivate a deep understanding of nature - may lead to spiritual insight, it's not strictly a spiritual practice. Natural farming is just farming, nothing more. You don't have to be a spiritually oriented person to practice my methods. Anyone who can approach these concepts with a clear, open mind will be starting off well. In fact, the person who can most easily take up natural agriculture is the one who doesn't have any of the common adult obstructing blocks of desire, philosophy, or religion... the person who has the mind and heart of a child. One must simply know nature... real nature, not the one we think we know!"
Fukuoka went on to explain: "Many people think that when we practice agriculture, nature is helping us in our efforts to grow food. This is an exclusively human-centered viewpoint... we should instead, realize that we are receiving that which nature decides to give us. A farmer does not grow something in the sense that he or she creates it. That human is only a small part of the whole process by which nature expresses its being. The farmer has very little influence over that process... other than being there and doing his or her small part."
In the Overview section of this website we noted that you could view Fukuoka's teachings from two different perspectives: as a spiritual guide that uses farming as a path that can lead to personal enlightenment, or as an inspirational guide on how to grow food in an ecologically beneficial and sustainable way.
Most of this website's content examines his teachings from the second perspective, but if you want to learn more about the Buddhist teachings that underlie and shape what Fukuoka is saying, the following internet links might be a good place to start.
Resources for the Study of Buddhism
An excellent list of links and other resources compiled by Dr. Ron Epstein, Professor of Philosophy at San Francisco State University.
BuddhaNet
The Buddhist information and education network based in Australia. This excellent site has an extensive collection of understandable documents about Buddhism past, present and future.
The Digital Buddhist Library and Museum
Hosted by the Center for Buddhist Studies at the National Taiwan University
An interesting collection of documents in Chinese and English.
The Mahayana Buddhist Sutras in English
Links to an extensive collection of Buddhist Sutras (books) in English translation
Essentials of Buddhism
A simple list of the major concepts of Buddhism with little or no explanations, background or elaboration.
-- Larry Haftl
| Home | Introduction | Overview | Synergistic | Articles | Projects | Resources | Philosophy |