Manila, 6 November 2019 — Blue, green, or whitespace: which holds most power?

Space and Health

The Guardian had it.

In her article Blue spaces: why time spent near water is the secret of happiness, Elle Hunt quoted recent research showing that being close to water, including the sea and coastline, and also rivers, lakes, canals, waterfalls, and even fountains, is good for your body and mind.

As quoted by The Guardian, “many of the processes are exactly the same as with green space – with some added benefits,” in the words of Dr. Mathew White, a senior lecturer at the University of Exeter and an environmental psychologist with BlueHealth, a program researching the health and wellbeing benefits of blue space across 18 countries.

According to Hunt, White asserts that the presence of water positively affects health, wellbeing, and happiness because of environmental factors and because water has a psychologically restorative effect, outperforming green space when it comes to inducing positive mood and reducing negative mood and stress.

Water is Special

I believe that Hunt and White are correct. From my experience in designing and implementing water projects, visiting blue spaces around the world, and supporting knowledge exchange on water management, I agree that there is something very special about water, and being close to it. That is also echoed in cultural practices and water festivals around the world.

I therefore wholeheartedly recommend that you visit blue spaces—and green spaces like parks, forests, and even golf courses—as often as you can, to soak up the benefits they bring for your mental and physical wellbeing.

That said, I also know from experience that there is another kind of space that brings even greater power and more benefits than blue and green space. I call it Whitespace. Where did I learn about this space?

Discovering Whitespace

I discovered about Whitespace from studying with my Chinese mentors, from India’s Vedanta ancient tradition, and from Integral Life Practice.

It was Liu Yuantong, an energy healing master in China, who confirmed to me that we can indeed benefit from aligning with natural forces and energies, as also taught in Feng Shui, China’s ancient system to help people live in harmony with their surroundings. Feng Shui, incidentally, means ‘wind and water’ so it has a direct reference to blue space.

However, Liu went on to explain that the power of that alignment with natural energies is always trumped by the personal power that we can learn to muster by developing our leadership.

Mantak Chia, a Dao master residing in Northern Thailand, held a similar view and also used a water metaphor. He explained that each of us can learn to master energy that far exceeds an Olympic size pool full of water.

The Witnessing State

The good news is that we can learn to access our powerful Whitespace wherever we are, regardless of whether that is close to or far from blue or green space. The way to discover and experience Whitespace is what the Vedanta calls Turiya, the fourth state of awareness, i.e., beyond the states of waking consciousness, dreaming, and dreamless sleep.

Turiya is often described as the Witness, or pure observing awareness, of the states of consciousness and developmental stages we pass through in life as we cope with our life conditions and (hopefully) expand our worldviews.

Drawing on Vedanta and other wisdom traditions, as well as a wealth of research, including from developmental psychology, Integral Theory teaches how we can discover Turiya in combination with the highest developmental stages available to us today.

While continuing to appreciate blue and green spaces, you can learn to access and use the immense power of your Whitespace to resolve problems and challenges anytime and anywhere, as you keep moving forward on your leadership development journey.

If you’re interested to access your Whitespace and grow your leadership, our community of leaders may be a good fit for you. Visit Grow3Leaders to request your invitation.

Joining is free of charge—not free of commitment.