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This essay explores how two different philosophical streams, Zen ecology and eco-phenomenology, help us build a deeper and more intimate relationship with nature. Today’s ecological crisis shows that the way we have been treating the natural world is harmful and unsustainable. Some Western traditional moral theories, such as Kant’s ethics and utilitarianism, are insufficient in guiding us to reach our wishes. They display features like rule-based moral monism, strong anthropocentrism, and absolute universalism. Those features are limited in helping us understand our intricate relationship with nature. To find better approaches, I explore eco-phenomenology and Zen-ecology. Eco-phenomenology encourages us to think more deeply about how we perceive the world and challenges our usual ways of seeing things. This perspective helps us understand that the Earth is not just a background to our lives but an active part of our experience that deserves our respect and active learning. The ideas of philosophers like Husserl and Merleau-Ponty are key here, especially their thoughts on how our interactions with the world around us shape our experiences. Zen ecology, in contrast, underscores the profound interconnectedness of all life. Rooted in the teachings of Zen Buddhism, it promotes the ideas of impermanence, suffering, and the concept of no-self from Dōgen’s The Mountains and Waters Sutra. Zen-ecology instills in us a sense of unity and responsibility and reminds us that our actions have impacts on other beings throughout the entire web of life. By uniting the profound insights of eco-phenomenology with the holistic teachings of Zen ecology, we can transcend superficial environmental approaches. There are real-life examples that use these theoretical frameworks to transform human-nature relationships. This synthesis between practical and theoretical offers hope and guidelines that enable us to cultivate a truly respectful and meaningful relationship with nature. It acknowledges our role within the larger ecosystem and inspires us to embrace these philosophical ideas for a sustainable and harmonious relationship with the natural world.

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