Be Curious Instead of Afraid - Pema Chodron

Regard everything as transparent...

See through everything...

See that everything is in transition...

Liberate concepts and beliefs...

Let go of the need for an "answer"/solution

Rest in the nature of Essence -
the Primordial State of everything...

Be a child of fantasy/imagination...

Be curious instead of afraid...

Pema Chodron
Buddhist Teacher

~

I've had this posted on my refrigerator
for years.  Maybe I should have read it
more often :)

~

Photo from the Internet

 

Contemplating The Mysteries - Albert Einstein

The important thing is not to stop questioning.
Curiosity has its own reason for existing.
One cannot help but be in awe when one
contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life,
of the marvelous structure of reality.  It is
enough if one tries merely to comprehend a
little of this mystery every day.
Never lose a holy curiosity...

Albert Einstein

~

We participate in an unfolding, dynamic reality.
There is no solid, static universe, reality is mutable -
affected by our perception of it.

Opening to the vast universe takes all ways of "knowing:"
the rigors of science, the powers of imagination, embodied
wisdom and mystical vision - and - accepting what still
remains unknowable...

The Institute of Noetic Sciences

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

 

Mystical Fog...

 

Unable to sleep, I pattered down to the living room
at 3:45 am and was surprised to find fog out the
window.  I haven't seen fog in a very long time...
I grew up in New England, but have lived in semi-
arid Colorado for more than 40 years.  There's not
often fog here...  So what a delight to find my
child-like wonder again! - on a sleepless mystical foggy
night; falling in love with the simple beauty and
magic of nature in the wee hours...

Here's a different view out the back window.
The chimney on the house behind us looks like
a lighthouse. :) A matter of perspective I know... 

And here I inverted the color for even more magic... :)

~

Regard everything as fantasy...

Regard everything as transparent...
See through everything...

See that everything is in transition...

Liberate concepts and beliefs...

Let go of the need for an "answer"/solution...

Rest in the nature of Essence ~ the Primordial
State of everything...

Be a child of fantasy...
Be curious instead of afraid...

Pema Chodron
Buddhist teacher

Inner Passageways - Matt Licata

 The path of opening the heart is not the same as becoming
 an unboundaried, leaky vessel for the unloading of another's
unlived life.  It is to the degree that we are attuned to our
own grief, sadness, shame, and rage that we will most
skillfully navigate within the we-space...

Most of us were not trained in the art of embodied

attunement as we live in an increasingly disembodied
world, where the capacity to hold unfolding emotional
experience was not encoded into a tender developing
nervous system.

The inner passageways, however, are luminous and ache
 for reorganization by way of the slower circuitries of
empathy, curiosity, wonder and awe. 

Inside something is stirring, a longing being awakened to
return home, for new circuitry to encode, for a new pathway

to light up and come alive.

Slowly, one moment at a time.
Safe. Connected. Open.

Embodied.

There is no urgency on the path of love.

Matt Licata

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

Letter to a New Born Girl - Elias Amidon

me - 1949

You come fresh from the place where names are not needed.
In that place there's a blissful secret most of us can no
longer remember.  We have forgotten.  But soon you
will start to learn words.  You will learn to say what you
feel and want, and with that saying you too will forget
what is so natural to you now.  Or perhaps you will be
lucky, and a current of the bliss you came from will
continue to stream through your heart...remembering
the beauty of your origin.

.....each of us is unique, and each of us has to find
our own way.  I suppose it's only natural that I
should want to give you some advice...

Know you are safe...

Everything is all right forever.
We are made out of light.
One day you may doubt it -
that's part of the drama...
Just remember - you are safe...

Walk in the open air.
Spend as much time as you can
in nature, in places that humans
have not built on and paved over.
The natural world will teach you,
heal you, and replenish your soul
with its beauty.  It is, like you are now,
fresh from the generosity of the
Unamable.

Be interested in everything.
Be a generalist.
Be curious and amazed by things.
Listen to others.
Welcome new ways of seeing, but
always think for yourself.

Follow your love.
Do what you love.
Love what you love.
I'm not talking simply
about love that's affection
or passion - but love that
continually moves to heal...

Little one, you are about to start
a great adventure.
Follow your love.
Be interested in everything.
Walk in the open air.
Know you are safe.

Elias Amidon

age 2 or 3

Guru Cat...

Peering over the computer screen,
with piercing eyes, Guru Cat said to me:

Today
start to de-clutter your life
of that which does not serve the Heart,
or nourish the soul;
whether people, or
situations, or
beliefs, or
your immediate environment
would be good...
Look at this mess!

Create space for
LIFE
to enter, to flow
through you.

Yes, Guru Cat - I said.
I cannot contort myself to
the forms that others have created
any longer...

Guru Cat said:

Today
start to pick up the lost pieces
of your tattered psyche,
let go of the frayed and loose ends
in the fabric of your current reality,
and open to
"The Mystery" of being.

Be at peace with life;
not afraid of what life will bring.

Yes, Guru Cat - I said.

Guru Cat said:

So - Today,
reclaim your Self,
the Eternal Being
that inhabits your form,
that allows you to move on,
past the scatteredness, through
the overwhelm, and the inertia,
moving into pure Aliveness...

Let go... Relax...
Play more!

Do you see what I'm saying...

Yes, Guru Cat - I said.
Got it...

Today
I will start
writing a new life;
as soon as my computer comes back on line...

Seeing life in a new way...
Opening to curiosity...
Accepting the uncertainty of living...
Exploring my inner Resource...
Embracing change...
Experiencing life as it is...
Content to just be...

_/\_

purrrrrrr

Mystic Meandering
Dec. 17, 2017

Live In Wonder - Bach, Monroe, Einstein

It must happen to all of us...  We pack up what we've learned
so far and leave the familiar behind.  No fun that shearing
separation but somewhere within, we must dimly know
that saying goodbye to safety brings the only security
we'll ever know.

Richard Bach

Quote from: Live In Wonder
a journal book
by Eric Saperston

~

Take wrong turns.  Talk to strangers.  Open unmarked doors.
There are so many adventures that you miss because you are
waiting to think of a plan.  To find them, look for tiny
interesting choices.

Randall Monroe

Quote from: Live In Wonder
a journal book
by Eric Saperston

~

The important thing is not to stop questioning.
Curiosity has its own reason for existence.
One cannot help but be in awe when he
contemplates the mysteries of eternity,
of life, of the marvelous structures of
reality.

Never lose a holy curiosity.

Albert Einstein

Quote from: Live In Wonder
a journal book
by Eric Saperston

~

Photo - Leaves on grass, color digitally inverted

Be a Child of Fantasy - Pema Chodron

Regard everything as a dream/illusion/fantasy

Regard everything as transparent.
See *through* everything

See that everything is in transition,
always changing

Liberate concepts and beliefs

Let go of the need for an"answer"/solution

Rest in the nature of Essence ~
The Primordial State of everything

Be a child of fantasy
Be curious instead of afraid...

You are the sky.
Everything else ~

"it's just the weather."


Quotes from
Pema Chodron
Buddhist Teacher/author

~

Photo - have no idea what this is.
Think it was a "mistake" digitally altered. :)

Up In Smoke ~ ~ ~

I awoke Thursday with the usual feeling of “fear and dread” that constricts the body before rising.   I recognize it each morning and wonder where it comes from.  I am not conscious of what the mind must be thinking to create such a state before awakening that would leave such a residue.  It indicates to me that there must be something *before* the first thought, some automatic conditioning in the body-mind that kicks in as I awake.  There is and always has been this ever-present “Fear Gate.” 

Settling into the meditation chair, after lighting the candles, and striking the bowl – I journaled a few notes before meditation, as is my practice - noting that the “Fear Gate” had closed tight around me; also noting how it keeps me on the edge, on the surface, unable to go deeply into the core of Beingness.

As I was sitting, feeling the struggle of resistance trying to meet the fear, something caught my eye.  I had lit a stick of incense, as I always do, just outside the room I sit in, out of view, so as not to overwhelm the small room (and myself) with smoke.  But my attention was suddenly captured by swirls of smoke passing by the door, dancing in the sunlight streaming in from the skylight.  I got up to experience the phenomena more fully, and managed to “capture” a few shots of the swirling smoke.

I love how Life presents us with metaphors for the things we tend to struggle with.  And of course we can read any meaning into it that we want.  But if we listen Life speaks to us in ways that we can hear and understand.

I continued to watch in wonderment as the smoke from the incense danced in the light, leaving intricate fluid designs that changed and dissipated into haze – there and gone.  The dance of form and formlessness, taking shape and dissipating fluidly, dancing with the air currents effortlessly…  And it became clear what the “spiritual teachers” say - how solidly we *perceive* things to be – our thoughts, feelings, emotions, beliefs, opinions, our selves, life, etc.  Yet they are just smoke, forming and dissipating with the movement of life – unless – we try to hold onto them, grasping at smoke with our mind – believing them and making them solid.

After the dance of light and smoke I was pleasantly surprised to find that the sense of fear and dread was gone.  It had dissipated – like the smoke.    Curiosity and playfulness *allowed* the solidification of the fear to dissipate from the mind, from focus - even if momentarily.  Through curiosity and playfulness the “Fear Gate” released and I evidently entered a state of open Awareness.  

 

Fear is of the “me-mind” - and the “me” contracts into fear – the form of fear.  Our formless Beingness (True Nature) holds no grip on fear and is not constrained by fear’s form.  It is totally free of fear and only experiences fear through the “me-function” – the particular arrangement of thoughts, feelings, beliefs and identifications that we call “me.”   But in wide open Awareness there is no fear – only the dance of smoke and light.   I know these things to be true, hearing them all before, and yet I continue to fear – amazing.  What was understood in this phenomena of smoke was that when we occupy the space of inherent Awareness fear loses its grip – opens its gate and dissipates – if only in that moment.  But it was enough to allow me to see what I needed to see, which was that *everything* is smoke, *everything* dissipates back into the open space of fluid, formless Aware Consciousness.  We only need to bring our attention to that Space – the space of inherent Conscious Awareness that is curious and unafraid; instinctive – not reactive; intuitive – not based in mental concepts.  It is aware of *everything* but does not *identify* itself *as* or with anything, including feelings, emotions, and thoughts – or the “me” - but remains unaffected and effortlessly fluid.

Having this re-cognition does not mean that the feeling of “fear and dread” has burned away completely.  I still woke up today in the smoke swirls of fear and dread – totally disappointed that my insight wasn’t a “cure.”  It’s a deeply engrained automatic pattern.  And it feels like an ongoing process of re-orientation - of turning again and again to the awareness of  the wide open space of Aware Consciousness, remembering that what I believe to be me, my thoughts, my feelings, and “my life” are just ~ smoke ~~~~  

  

"Awake" Window

In my last blog post one of the questions I said that I was going to pose during window sitting, to bring a greater sense of Awareness, was: What would it feel like to be fully awake? These are the reflections and “answers” I received over a period of three nights…

~~~

What would it feel like to be fully awake?

There is a sense of deep inner calm.

There’s a sense of just being Aware –
aware of everything that is occurring…

Being aware of *life* - life living itself…

The sense of Being the Awareness…

There is the sense of the world just being as it is…

And just being aware of the world as it is…

Everything, everyone, is just being -
just being the way they are….

~~~

What would it feel like to be fully awake?

A sense of innocent curiosity arises -

a joy of living…

The sounds, smells and sights of the night are experienced
with a sense of curiosity.

They are not experienced as “distractions.”

They are just the “happenings” in this field of pure Awareness

that I sit in – that “I” is…

Beingness/Awareness is curious about how life works…

It is a feeling of being undisturbed and untouched by anything…

It is a sense of open receptivity, clarity, and deep awakeness to life…

A deep awakeness that just sees

and delights in what it sees…

~~~

Crickets chirp in unison – like a pulse – the pulse of Life singing in the night…

“No agenda” wafts through my head…

“The only thing that separates is *thought*” wafts through my awareness…

I’m beginning to really *feel* this sense of “no separation” here at the window,

a blurring of the boundaries…

Yet “Oneness” doesn’t seem to be the right word…

It’s more like inseparable, indistinguishable, indiscriminate…

But these are only words too…

I ask again: What would it feel like to be fully awake?

I know I have already received the “answer”….

And then, as if an afterthought, I heard – “Live as if…”

Live as if…you *are* Awake…

~*~

Btw – I welcome all of your comments. And I love that all of you share your insights and sharings in such positive, supportive, loving and respectful ways. We all hold a flashlight for each other on our way…

With gratitude…

Curiosity, Intuition and Fluidity

This space of “waiting for the ‘Yes’" that I wrote about in the last post has been an interesting experience. There’s a feeling of freedom here. It’s like a new playing field has opened up. There’s a new sense of being open and playful with Life, seeing where Life wants to go, seeing that it’s all Life doing the doing, and so there’s more curiosity about Life and how it’s expressing Itself – how it’s moving and being open to how it’s moving. And so there’s a deeper listening, if you will, to the Inner Voice that some call Intuition, some call Spirit… And amongst all this there is also the realization of how I have become a Curmudgeon – grumbling and complaining – and trying to control how life has been happening, or resisting what’s been happening, instead of staying open to this inner fluidity of Life moving Itself.

In this space of “listening” a curiosity and an inner sense of “connection” with the fluidity of Life has emerged, with the Flow that underlies existence – being in touch with the deeper Flow within – and a curious and intuitive sense of how to move with it.

And I have been noticing that what I need to hear does in fact come to me in this Flow – things that eerily reflect my experience…

For instance, earlier this past week I just happened to check out Annette Nibley’s Website, and read her January Writing. Certain phrases began to emerge: “…move with What Is …with fluidity and intuition. Be curious. Be fluid. Go with whatever sparks your interest. There is a way to move with a subtler, inner world…..explore it. There are no constraints, and this is freedom. All is Self. This completely frees this life for impersonal play. It is the force of Self that actually propels you.”

It was music to my ears. I listened deeply and felt a sense of freedom flooding in…

Wednesday evening I listened to Adyashanti’s Café Dharma online satsang. Initially there didn’t appear to be anything there for me. But again, certain phrases popped as he was speaking: “Surrender your resistance to what is. See the Divine in the ups and downs of life. Surrendering completely to the moment allows us to spontaneously perceive a whole different reality – to see the peace that is there. Don’t let your non-dual philosophies about life get in the way. Let go of your *idea* of it. It’s all simultaneous Existence.”

More opening into a fluid sense of living…

Thursday evening I listened to an audio recording of a “spiritual teacher” that I have been listening to for over a year now. For several months now I have been feeling a lack of resonance with what is being said. This time I intuitively knew that it was time to move on. There was no ‘Yes’ here anymore.

I realized that sometimes in “waiting for the ‘Yes’” you get a ‘No’ – which is still fluid and open – and still takes you to where you need to go.

Yesterday I logged onto Tammi Brannen’s video blog on her Instinctive Life Website. Now I don’t normally listen to “motivational” type teachers, but my husband has been listening to this woman for several months now and I was curious. So my curiosity led me to where I needed to hear something that profoundly spoke to me. Once again I discovered that it doesn’t always come though the “normal channels” that I expect it to come through – like the “spiritual teachers” that I normally read or listen to, or the particular “path” that I’m following at any given time. But I’m noticing that if I am open and curious I may find Life speaking to me in profound ways. In her blog Tammi said: “Live the life that is true to who you are. There is a connection between who you are and your life. Do they match? How does life want to be lived? What is life showing you, offering you? Don’t approach life in terms of what you want or need, but focus on being absorbed by life. Open and receive what the Ocean of Life has to offer and ride it.”

Another opening to fluidity.

The combined messages I heard this week had a profound impact - all reflecting where I am and what I need to hear in a kind of Divine Synchroncity. “The Mystery” was fluidly and playfully dancing with me this week – leaving a universal thread running through everything I encountered. All I had to do was be open and listen.

Fun-Qi Art™ - :) Christine