ae 2 
INTRODUCTION 
¢¢7TNHE natural world, so to speak, is the raw 
material of the spiritual. Therefore, ere 
man can understand the spiritual, he must un- 
derstand the natural,” writes Thomas Gentry. 
The authors of this book would go a step fur- 
ther and say that the natural world 1s the spirit- 
ual. Soul and body, ephemeral and material, 
on this plane of existence are ineffably bound to- 
gether. If you would climb to sublime heights 
of ghostly exaltation, study first the grass at your 
feet. If you would unravel the mysteries of 
the universe, desert the cloistered hearth for the 
wonders of woods and meadows. Slow-think- 
ing man will never understand the secret of his 
own existence, until he thoroughly understands 
the plants outside his window. 
For one to examine dead, withered speci- 
imens and hope to understand Nature is as if a 
“person should analyze hundreds of Egyptian 
mummies in order to acquaint himself with the 
[11] 
Wid 
