The Spiritual Value of Tasmanian Wilderness

As the influence of organised religion declines in Western nations, research into spirituality and the emerging field of nonreligion can illuminate how individuals construct meaning in largely secular societies. A survey of 1101 Australian hikers finds that 76% of all participants and 72% of nonreligious participants agree or strongly agree that the Tasmanian wilderness has spiritual value. Qualitative analysis of 800 textual responses to the survey examines how hikers find spiritual value in natural environments more broadly. This research employs a ‘meaning systems’ approach to investigate how nature immersion fulfils many of the existential functions traditionally associated with religion. Australian hikers find spiritual value in nature through subjective wellbeing and orientation in a meaningful cosmos where nature is articulated as a powerful ‘other’. Although spiritual experiences in wilderness environments are often described as transcendent, hikers in this study report a sense of grounding, place, and belonging.