Abstract
Bron Taylor defines dark green religion as follows: “…a deep sense of belonging
to and connectedness in nature, while perceiving the earth and its living systems to
be sacred and interconnected.” It not only emphasises a felt kinship with the rest
of life, but it evokes awe, wonderment and humility towards nature that binds to
something “greater than oneself.” Does the intimate “oneness” and living in the
moment of the two young lovers in the Song also extend to a diminishing of the self
and an experience of oneness with a greater, timeless, mysterious reality? In order
to determine whether the Song of Songs complies with a form of nature spirituality,
the notions of belonging, interconnectedness and sacredness were investigated as
they appear in this ancient book of love. It was found that the Song is representative
of a form of dark green religion of a non-doctrinaire, immanent kind. It exhibits
ubiquitously the notions of belonging and connection (kinship with nature, an
interconnectedness and interdependency of the web of life) and the sacredness of
the earth and its inhabitants (their intrinsic worth that evokes awe, wonderment
and humility). The experience of sensuality, living mindfully in the moment,
transforms into a timeless spirituality of connection to “another, mysterious
world.”