Anthropocosmic vision, time, and nature: Reconnecting humanity and nature

Having enjoyed remarkable economic success, China’s natural environment is being increasingly degraded, and with it, the quality of life. Researchers and environmentalists have responded by exploring whether cultural resources can provide a means of understanding ecological systems. This article reviews philosophical Chinese concepts of tian-ren-he-yi and ecological time, and ponders their implications for understanding current ecological challenges. A motif of ancient Chinese thought, tian-ren-he-yi perceives the cosmos as an organic, mutually reciprocal entity in which human beings coexist harmoniously with nature. This entity does not unfold by following a cyclical pattern, but rather through a process of transformative harmony with the flow of time. In contrast to the linear time constructed by community life, this view of ecological time can reveal the new dimension of rhythm. To enhance children’s awareness of their responsibility for caring for the environment, we must protect their rights to a safe and healthy place to live, ensure that they have free access to nature, and demonstrate the pedagogic value of an anthropocosmic worldview and ecological time.