Could someone please explain to me the meaning of もち in the following sentence?


私たちは自然の流れとは別の生活リズムをもち始め、次第に自然との調和を失い始めたのです。 I searched but couldn't find an
answer.




It's the masu-stem of the verb 持つ ("to have"), followed by
[始める](https://nihongokyoshi-net.com/2019/03/25/jlptn4-grammar-hajimeru/)
meaning "to start to ～". This is one of the most basic usages of 持つ, and there
is nothing tricky.

> 私たちは自然の流れとは別の生活リズムを **持ち【もち】始め**  
>  We **started to have** a different rhythm of life that is different from
> the flow of the nature, ...

