pleasure derived from time in nature

Question

What is a word that means pleasure derived from nature?

I'm working on an assignment where I need to identify my personal values. So I started by thinking about the non-material things that mean the most to me. I found myself thinking about was how nature makes me feel.

Have you ever been on a hike or camping trip and you have an overwhelming sense of happiness or comfort from being completely separated from man-made materials such as buildings, streets, technology, etc.? I found a list of values that includes "nature" but I feel as if valuing nature and valuing the pleasure gained from being immersed in nature are two different values and concepts. One who values nature seems to have the connotation of preservation and conservation and while I personally value nature, I would also like to include a term with the sensation I have described that is brought from being outdoors.

An example of how this word would be used could be "I like to visit mountains because it gives me the feeling of ____, reminding me of other trips and times I have been away from all things man-made"

Answer 1

I don't think there is a single word or anything specific, but the idiom at one with (nature) applies:

[Merriam-Webster]
1 : in a peaceful state as a part of something else
// I feel at one with nature.

So:

I like to visit mountains because it gives me the feeling of being at one with nature, reminding me of other trips and times I have been away from all things man-made.

Answer 2

Naturophilia would be a specific word for the meaning but it wouldn't sound "natural" in your example. It is from Latin nātūra + -philia suffix.

The term is not in the big dictionaries but it naturally occurred to me. Then I've checked in Google also and it's been used quite a lot. Philia-words are usually coined for a specific need or meaning.

Here are some good definitions I've found (which come down to love of nature, feeling better in nature, feeling connected to nature):

From Entrepreneurship in culture and creative industries: Perspectives from companies and regions (edited by Elisa Innerhofer, Harald Pechlaner, Elena Borin):

Rural tourism is constructed upon a collective imagery of naturophilia, the idea that the rural environment provides quality and authenticity and offers a romantic outlook, as opposed to the life within a bustling city (Pearce 1990). The return to nature as a way to escape from the pressure of city life is a widespread idea present in our societies.

From a Naturophilia Exhibition in Melbourne:

naturophilia: the state or experience of a strong attraction or affinity to nature; nature loving

naturophilic: to possess qualities that allow the ready absorption of or the dissolution into nature

_{https://www.weekendnotes.com/naturophilia-exhibition-carlton-connect/}

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Connectedness is a more common but less specific word that would fit in your example sentence. It is usually used for human-nature connection in a relevant context.

From The Oxford Textbook of Nature and Public Health (edited by Matilda van den Bosch, William Bird):

Being attached to natural environments and even having a feeling of connectedness to nature may provide an existential sense of well-being (Bonaiuto and Alves, 2012).