Nature Based Ethics

(December 1, 2025) Nature-based ethics covers all three relationship domains:

1. Ethics Between State and Individual: Natural Rights - Non-brain damaged humans have equal levels of consciousness meaning all are equally connected to the divine. All of us are children of God. This means all humans have a deep fundamental equality which lead to the concept of liberty.

2. Ethics Of Relationships: Law of Attraction/Return - Humans exist in two networks, the social and the spiritual. Because their channels are bi-directional this existence  results in the Law of Attraction/Return which is a form of distributive justice.

3. Ethics For Self: Nature Virtues - The overarching goal of magic crafters is aligning with the divine powers (doing the will of God if the divine is personified). No matter what one's personal goals they will be easier to achieve is one is aligned with the divine and one lives in a society which is composed of members seeking to also align with the divine. This alignment can only be found by discerning the deep principles of Nature because nature was created out of the divine realm so it has to be in alignment with it. Nature is observed to have three underlying principles which are connection, growth, and balance. These become virtues when we make them goals. 

Each is discussed in more detail below.

(December 1, 2025) Natural rights concerns itself with the proper relationship between a state and its citizens.

Consciousness is what connects us to the divine. While humans have different personalities, levels of intelligence, and physical abilities, all have an equal levels of consciousness. This had a huge effect during the Enlightenment because this is what is meant by the phrase "all men are created equal."

The revival of Nature Spirituality in the Enlightenment caused thinkers to question the purpose and limit of state authority. John Locke (1632-1704) provided the ideas which were generally adopted in the English speaking world. He wrote the following between 1689 and 1693:

• The commonwealth seems to me to be a society of men constituted only for the procuring, preserving, and advancing their own civil interests. Civil interests I call life, liberty, health, and indolency of the body (freedom from bodily pain); and the possession of outward things, such as money, lands, houses, furniture, and the like. (Locke, A Letter Concerning Toleration in Kramic 1995)

Thomas Jefferson of the then forming United States provided the next step. While Jefferson was not as skilled at reasoning like the lawyerly John Adams and tended to live his life in separated into intellectual boxes, his great contribution to the times was his writing skill and his desire to ground authority in nature. In the 1776 U.S Declaration of Independence he shortened and generalized Locke's phase to "Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness."

• We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. 

Happiness thus includes the right to health and the right to acquire and hold possessions. George Mason in 1776 went even farther in his Virginia Declaration of Rights by getting rid of the creator:  

• Section 1. That all men are by nature equally free and independent and have certain inherent rights, of which, when they enter into a state of society, they cannot, by any compact, deprive or divest their posterity; namely, the enjoyment of life and liberty, 

Basing rights on levels of consciousness continues to have important ramifications. Because animals have some level of consciousness animal cruelty laws can be justified. 

References

(December 1, 2025) The Law of Attraction/Return is a consequence of living within a bidirectional social and spiritual network.

The Law of Attraction is a form of distributive justice. Because emotional/spiritual channels are bi-dirctional people seeking to harm others will find that influence coming back to themselves, perhaps not right away but eventually. Responding with more hate will just intensify the effect. If a person's life is a mess just look at what emotional/spiritual channels are typically open.

The first statements of the Law of Attraction/Return seems to have originated with the Zoroaster or his first generation of disciples (about 800 BCE). Below is a quote from the Gathas which are the oldest part of the Zoroastrian scriptures called the Yasnas. Notice that speaking the truth was thought to  increase the Dominion of God (Mindful One).

1. (Yasna 31, verse 6) It will go best for him who knows and speaks my (Zoroaster’s) truth, the prescript of health, right and continuing life, what he increases for Him through Good Thought, that is dominion of the Mindful One (the lord Ahura Mazda). (West 2010)
2. (Yasna 43, verse 2) But best of all could a man add well-being to well-being for himself by understanding through Thy most bounteous will, Mindful One, the transforming powers of good thought that Thou hast created with Right, all his days as he enjoys long life.  (West 2010)

Zoroastrianism was the religion of the Persian Achaemenid Empire. After they conquered Babylon and released the Jews from captivity in 539 BCE the Law of Attraction/ entered the Jewish tradition as shown below:

1. (Job 4:8 NIV) As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it.
2. (Proverbs 11:17) Those who are kind benefit themselves, but the cruel bring ruin on themselves.
3. (Proverbs 11:27) Whoever seeks good finds favor,  but evil comes to one who searches for it.
4. (Proverbs 22:8) Whoever sows injustice reaps calamity, and the rod they wield in fury will be broken.

The Persians conquered the Greek cities in Anatolia and also heavily influenced Greek civilization. Thus the Law of Attraction is found in Plato in 360 BCE:

1. (Plato, Republic book 4) Then, as I was saying, our youth should be trained from the first in a stricter system, for if amusements become lawless, and the youths themselves become lawless, they can never grow up into well-conducted and virtuous citizens. …. It would seem, Adeimantus, that the direction in which education starts  man, will determine his future life. Does not like always attract like? To be sure. Until some one rare and grand result is reached which may be good, and may be the reverse of good.

This later Epicurean text (100-50 BCE) clearly states the Law of Return in with the example that fear of your own making will come back against you:

1. (Lucretius 6.68-79) Unless you spew these things from your mind and stop thinking things that are unworthy of the gods and alien to their peace, the holy numina (motion power) of the gods, degraded due to you, often will cause you injury; not because the mighty power of the gods can be injured, so that, out of anger, it may  yearn to seek bitter punishment, but because you yourself will construct for those who are tranquil with placid peace as setting in motion great waves of anger, nor will you approach the shrines of the gods with peaceful breast, nor will you be able to take up those images concerning sacred body, which are born into the minds of people, messengers of divine form, with tranquil peace of mind. (translated by Chris Eckerman 2019)

The Law of Attraction/ Return was a core teaching of Jesus  who seems to have been exposed to it from the a trade route linking Persia with Egypt which ran through his town of Capernaum. He taught it as:

1. "Whoever has will gain more, whoever does not have will gain less." - From 2 Corinthians 9:5-7, Mark 4:24-25, Q (Matthew 25:28-29, Luke 19:24-26), Thomas 41: Validity = 1.59. (Copied from Mark: Matthew 13:11-12, Luke 8:18)

Finally, it was also adopted by Wicca during the 1960's being known as the 3-Fold Law.

References

The Law of Attraction/Return is not the same as the idea of conditional grace found in Christianity. Grace is the forgiveness of sins by God even though the human is not really deserving of such a gift. Once a person's sins are forgiven that person is saved and gains eternal life. Yet the Catholics put conditions on getting grace which changed over time. One had to do meritorious acts to gain the grace. Do such things as attend the the church sacraments and do good works and you will earn merit. This was at its worst just prior to the counter reformation. Then the Catholic church sold indulgences so the rich could meet the conditions without actually doing anything. Outside of full indulgences how does one know when one has earned enough merit? That question bothered Martin Luthor who led the Protestant reformation.

So the Protestants came along and said the only condition is faith. Believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God and Savior of the world and you will meet the conditions. Still how does one know one has enough faith? The Methodists claimed one knew this by having an emotional experience which was why they were popular for a while after 1800 and why they held ecstatic revival meetings.

Ah Buddhism, originally simple but its texts and concepts grew exponentially as it expanded. Consequently, many Buddhisms now exist making any general statement about Buddhist concepts nearly impossible.

So we have to go back to the earliest surviving texts such as the Pali canon and the Salistramba Sutra to the the origination of its concepts.  The Pāḷi Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition. It was written in the Pāli language. The teachings were preserved orally until written down during the 4th Buddhist council in 29 CE (according to tradition). The Salistramba Sutra started coming to together starting around 250 CE and reached it final form around 400 CE. Its purpose was the systematize the growing number of teachings into a more coherent whole.

In these early texts we find "karma" simply means "actions with consequences." It is not to be confused with Dharma which means "truth."

The consequences of karma may be expressed immediately or years later. Thus this early concept of Karma was similar to the "Law of Return/Attraction." The most negative emotions associated with karma were ignorance, desire, and hatred. In the Pali sutras these are lobha, dosa, and moha. In Sanskrit and in the Salistramba Sutra they are raga, dvesha, and moha. These are the roots of wholesomeness (kusala-mula) as opposed to unwholesomeness (akusala-mula). These are passive principles and are not active powers at war with each other as found in Europe with their concept of good versus evil.

References

Reat, N. Ross (1993) The Salistamba Sutra. Motilal Banarsidass Publisher, Delhi. Online at: https://www.scribd.com/document/507894108/N-Ross-Reat-The-%C5%9A%C4%81listambha-S%C5%ABtra-Tibetan-Original-Sanskrit-Reconstruction-English-Translation-Critical-Notes-Including-Pali-Parallels-Chine

Reat, N. Ross (1994) Buddhism - A History. Asian Humanities Press, Berkeley, California

(December, 2025) The first underlying principle of Nature is connection. In Nature everything is connected. The material network of quantum mechanics connects everything and defines what can and can't interact.

In the human sphere, connection is love but it is also more. I will just let Theo Epstein explain its importance. He was named one of the greatest leaders of 2016 by Forbes Magazine for turning around the Chicago Cubs baseball team. He has some great insights based upon real life experiences:

• Said Epstein, “If we can’t find the next technological breakthrough (in baseball player selection), well, maybe we can be better than anyone else with how we treat our players and how we connect with players and the relationships we develop and how we put them in positions to succeed. Maybe our environment will be the best in the game, maybe our vibe will be the best in the game, maybe our players will be the loosest, and maybe they’ll have the most fun, and maybe they’ll care the most. It’s impossible to quantify.
• “When people do things they weren’t even sure they were capable of, I think it comes back to connection. Connection with teammates. Connection with organization. Feeling like they belong in the environment. I think it’s a human need—the need to feel connected. We don’t live in isolation. Most people don’t like working in isolation—some do, but they typically don’t end up playing Major League Baseball.” ( Fortune.com)

(December 2025) Normally people will connect best to others (people or deities) using one or two of the following expressions.

Give and Receive Gifts (Offerings To a Personified Deity)

For many people the giving and receiving of gifts is a major sign of love. If you have this emotional resonance, the perfect gift or gesture shows that you are known, you are cared for, and you are prized above whatever was sacrificed to bring the gift to you. A missed birthday, anniversary, or a hasty, thoughtless gift would be disastrous—so would the absence of everyday gestures.

Words of Affirmation (Praise A Personified Deity)

Actions don’t always speak louder than words. If this is one of your emotional resonances unsolicited compliments mean the world to you. Hearing the words, “I love you,” are important—hearing the reasons behind that love sends your spirits skyward. Insults can leave you shattered and are not easily forgotten.

Quality Time (Devotions, Meditation, Spiritual Studies)

Mothing says, “I love you,” like full, undivided attention. Being there for this type of person is critical, but really being there—with the TV off, fork and knife down, and all chores and tasks on standby—makes your significant other feel truly special and loved. Distractions, postponed dates, or the failure to listen can be especially hurtful.

Acts of Service (Teaching, Charity, Maintaining a Sacred Space)

Anything you do to ease the burden of responsibilities weighing on an “Acts of Service” person will speak volumes. The words he or she most want to hear: “Let me do that for you.” Laziness, broken commitments, and making more work for them tell speakers of this language their feelings don’t matter.

Physical Touch (Ritual)

A person whose primary emotional resonance is Physical Touch is a touchy-feely person. Hugs, pats on the back, holding hands, and thoughtful touches on the arm, shoulder, or face—they can all be ways to show excitement, concern, care, and love. Physical presence and accessibility are crucial, while neglect or abuse can be unforgivable and destructive.

(December, 2025) The universe itself is growing and changing. All life grows. Yet growth is part of a larger cycles of growth and decay, of life and death. Decay and death is required to make room for more growth. Life cannot exist without death.

Once we are born humans grow in knowledge and mass. But growing in wisdom requires a motivating goal, a purpose of some type. Gaining wisdom requires continuing experiences, education, and introspection. Every person is on their own path. 

Yet following a path into the unknown requires courage and self-confidence which are traits not everyone possesses. Still for those able to have such a goal they have an inner strength able to get them through tough times  as discovered by Viktor Frankl.

The concept of "growth" as a virtue was made by the Greek Philosopher Heraclitus between 510 and 480 BCE:

• (Heraclitus, quoted in John of Stobi, Anthology 3.5.6) Everyone has the potential for self-knowledge and sound thinking. (F31 in Waterfield, 2000)

References

(December 2, 2025) Energy in the physical realm always seeks to balance out.

Balance, moderation, and harmony are the opposite of the duality found in the sacred text religions. We live in a dualist culture which is reinforced by our dominant religions. Dualism admits no middle ground for uncertainty and transition states. Things can change between good and evil but they cannot stay somewhere in-between.  

Yet good and evil can't be defined in such absolutist terms. Good and evil can only be defined relative to some criteria. This is pointed out in an ancient Chinese (probably Taoist) proverb:

• An old farmer had worked his crops for many years. One day his only horse broke through the fence and ran away. When his neighbors learned of it, they came to the farmer and said, “What bad luck this is. You don’t have a horse during planting season.” The farmer listened and then replied, “Good luck, bad luck. Who knows?”
•  A few days later, the horse returned with two other horses. When the neighbors learned of it, they visited the farmer. “You are now a rich man. What good luck this is,” they said. The farmer listened and again replied, “Good luck, bad luck. Who knows?”
•  Later that day, the farmer’s only son was thrown from one of the stallions and broke his leg. When the neighbors heard about it, they came to the farmer. “It is planting season and now there is no one to help you,” they said. “This is truly bad luck.” The farmer listened, and once more he said, “Good luck, bad luck. Who knows?”
•  The very next day, the emperor’s army rode into the town and conscripted the eldest son in every family. Only the farmer’s son with his broken leg remained behind. Soon the neighbors arrived. Tearfully, they said, “Yours is the only son who was not taken from his family and sent to war. What good luck this is…” to which the farmer replied “Good luck, bad luck. Who knows?

The earliest mention of balance as a virtue was made by the Greek Philosopher Heraclitus between 510 and 480 BCE.

• (Heraclitus, quoted in Hippolytus Refutation of all Heresies 9.9.5.3) Harmony, non-apparent is better than apparent. (F24 in Waterfield, 2000)
• (Heraclitus, quoted in Hippolytus Refutation of all Heresies 9.9.2.2-4) They are ignorant of how while tending away it agrees with itself – a back turning harmony like a bow or a lyre. (F21 in Waterfield, 2000)
• (Heraclitus, quoted in Plutarch: On the E at Delphi 392b10-c3) “It is impossible to step into the same river twice” as Heraclitus says … “It scatters and regathers, comes together and dissolves, approaches and departs.” (Heraclitus F10 in Waterfield, 2000)

But dualism from the Persian culture slowly permeated classical culture such that Stoics started to become dualist leading the the counter philosophy of Epicureanism.

Today balance survives as a core concept in Swedish culture as the word  "Lagom." Paganism survived the longest in Sweden so it has the most surviving rune texts (only ending in 1300 CE) and greatest cultural influences from that time.

A native Swedish Pagan give this definition to me:

• "In Sweden Lagom is “just enough” or “just the right amount”. Lagom is that feeling of contentment we all get when we have all that we need to make us comfortable. No more. No less. For example, in Sweden…we maintain a much greater sense of balance….the balance between work-home-family-play etc. we do not bring work issues home, and we do not bring home or family issues to work. We separate each and maintain the balance of each." 

References