The Cosmic Symphony...

The Cosmos plays a continuous symphony of Silence
that only Inner Stillness can hear...
We have forgotten the music of the
Celestial Songs
that sound the stellar light language of 
Love ~

Our remembrance lies hidden deep in
the cave of the Heart - untouched...
The unspoken language of the Heart
longs to be opened - awakened...
The dormant vibration calls to us,
to resonate with the tones of Creation
in the Space of Silence ~

Listen deeply and hear the
Celestial Symphony
within the Stillness
of the Heart ~

Follow the cosmic waves,
the pulsing sound of Life,
into the Vastness 
of Being ~

Find your own resonance
with The Rhythm
in your Heart ~

~ and know ~

We are all a tone of Love
playing our uniqueness in the
Chord of Life,
reverberating with the
Sound of Source ~

Mystic Meandering
August 1, 2001

~

Photo from the James Webb Telescope

 

The Felt Sense of Silence - Devaji

When we speak of silence here, it has nothing to do with the
perceptive quality of your ears.  It is a feeling; the feeling
of stillness.  It is a feeling in the heart of what is silent.
What is unchanging, which has always been with you.
It is just that the habit of attention is always falling into
perceptive sense...  But amongst the ever changing
phenomenon of the body - thoughts always changing,
sensations always changing, emotions always changing,
situations always changing, there is something that is
constant.  Something that lays witness to all that is
changing, but itself is changeless.

The feeling of silence is felt equally everywhere.  It is
not found in a particular location. It unifies what the
perceptive senses experience as separate.  In other words,
when you are feeling what is still, when you are feeling
silence [within], there are no boundaries in it.  And all of a
sudden, perceptive awareness is experienced to all be
occurring within the boundaryless space of what is felt
as silence.  There is no distance in it because there is
nowhere it is not.  It is the ground in fact of your Being.
It is the depth of peace and wholeness.  And it feels itself
everywhere, in everything.

It is through the silence that all wisdom arises.  It is the
language of the Heart.  The more the habit of following
mental movement is released, the deeper you fall into this
beauty that is always present...

In the beginning it feels like space, a sense of stillness.  But
as the falling into it deepens, there begins to be the flavor
of this unspeakable love.  It is not because of something.  It
has always been.  It has just been bypassed because of
conditioned thinking, busyness, preoccupation with sense
perception.  And out of this stillness infused with this love,
flowers joy,  Pure joy.  Eternal joy.  It is felt in the silence.
You can feel it in everything.  It is the natural state.  It is
not temporary, it is not in a particular place, it is not
dependent on the ever-changing phenomena arising in the
body that the mind has hypnotically conditioned you to
believe is 'me.'

[It's] like a wave in the ocean.  And this ocean is pure silence,
out of which arises the bliss of your natural state.

Devaji

via No Mind's Land

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

The Root of All Things - Chuang Tzu

The non-action of the wise man is not inaction.
It is not studied.  It is not shaken by anything.
The sage is quiet because he is not moved,
Not because he wills to be quiet.
Still water is like glass.
You can look in it and see the bristles on your chin.
It is a perfect level;
A carpenter could use it.
If water is so clear, so level,
How much more the spirit of man?
The heart of the wise man is tranquil.
It is the mirror of heaven and earth.
The glass [mirror] of everything.
Emptiness, stillness, tranquility, tastelessness,
Silence, non-action: this is the level of heaven and earth.
This is the perfect Tao.  Wise men find here
Their resting place.
Resting, they are empty.

From emptiness comes the unconditioned.

From this, the conditioned, the individual things.
So from the sage's emptiness, stillness arises:
From stillness, action.  From action, attainment.
From their stillness comes their non-action,
which is also action, which is, therefore, their attainment.
For stillness is joy.  Joy is free from care.
Joy does all things without concern:
For emptiness, stillness, tranquility, tastelessness,
Silence, and non-action
Are the root of all things.

Chuang Tzu

translation by Thomas Merton

with thanks to The Beauty We Love!

The Invisible Flame - Eric Baret & Mooji

The heart is yearning to be open.
When a heart meets an open heart,
when a match approaches a lighted match,
it rejoices in unity, in the flame;
there is no longer a match.
This is called transmission.
But nothing is transmitted.
No one transmits, no one receives.
There is heart-to-heart transmission.
There is only one heart...

Eric Baret

~

Don't take the behavior of the mind and body
to be a reading of your true Self.
Let everything happen,
but know and confirm inwardly,
you are watching everything from a very stable place...

There is a stillness there.
There is an untouched silence.
You must acknowledge this.
You must be like the Polar Star in the heavens.

Your heart is the Polar Star, the North Star.
Everything is revolving but it is still - unmoving.
You are the stillness,
the Silence inside which all is moving.
You only have to recognize and love that.
and nothing will trouble you.

Everything is the flow of time.
Everything is coming and going,
including even this body.
It is like a burning candle.
But there is an invisible flame inside
that never goes out.

Fix your attention inside the Formless
and leave the rest to God.
[However we know "God" to be]

Mooji

In Turbulent Times...

In these turbulent times of upheaval
on the surface of life,
dive deep...
into the Stillness of Being within,
where nothing is disturbed, nothing is harmed...

Externally it's all "The Mystery" playing
itself out in the construct of time - the Unmanifest in form.

In the Greater Context in which life takes place,
everything is allowed...
The world will go the way it goes -
life will continue to unfold the way it unfolds -
the light and the dark will continue to dance together -
in time-bound reality.

Do not focus only on the chaos;
mind-created contractions of fear and ignorance.

Instead...  Turn within...

Experience the depths of True Stillness,
the Stillness of the Everlasting Deep,
experience what's beyond the chaos and fear
- what holds the Cosmos together -
the enduring hum of Aliveness within all form...

Held in The Rhythm of Stillness that sustains Existence,
that IS Existence, Rest...
in the Embrace of That which animates all Life...

_/\_

Namaste

Mystic Meandering
Meditative Writings
Nov. 2016

~

Come into Peace...

Even in the midst of chaos there is Peace...
Even in the midst of complexity there is Simplicity...
Even in the midst of confusion there is Stability...

In everything there is Love...

Mystic Meandering
2006

Humble Lovers of The Mystery - Nepo, Rumi, Bhagavad Gita

I don't know why I was born
with this belief in [awareness of] something
deeper and larger than we can see.
But it's always called.  Even as a boy [child],
I knew that trees and light and sky all point
to something timeless...

I have spent my life listening to that
and filtering it through my heart.
This listening and filtering is the music
of my soul, of all souls.
After sixty years, I've run out of ways
to name this...
Even now my heart won't stand still...

Mark Nepo
(Jewish)

Also see "Honoring The Mystery"

~

Both light and shadow
are the dance of love.
Love has no cause;
it is the astrolabe of God's secrets...
Lover and loving are inseparable
and timeless...

Although I may try to describe Love,
when I experience it, I am speechless.
Although I may try to write about Love,
I am rendered helpless;
my pen breaks, and the paper slips away
at the ineffable place
where Lover, Loving and Loved are one.

Every moment is made glorious
by the light of Love.

Rumi
(Sufi Muslim)

~

Still your mind in me, still yourself in me,
and without a doubt you shall be united with me,
Lord of Love, dwelling in the heart...

Bhagavad Gita
Chapter 12 excerpt
(Hindu Scripture)

~

Photo - Buddha Heart

Listen for the Silence - Fred LaMotte

In the white noise
of many opinions
I long to hear the silence
creatures make
when they are listening.

There is no thought,
only the mysterious harmony
of trees and raindrops.

Invisible things appear.

The deer step gently
out of the mist.

When we listen,
the heart opens
fearlessly.

[.....]

Fred LaMotte

Uradiance

Interfaith Chaplain
Instructor of World Religions
Shaman

~

For those who celebrate the Solstice/Yule
may you hear the Silence of Life
singing in your Heart...

_/\_

The Unutterable Space...

There is a clear
Space
within our
Heart of Hearts

Softly Fluid
Purely Still
Undisturbedly Content
Innocently Wondrous
The Illumined Space of
Pure Being...

"Ordinary temporal life" is allowed to be -
to happen -
within the context of
this Space,
allowing everything to pass through it.

Trust this that
sits in the Heart.
Touch into it,
and see where
it takes you.
Feel how it buoys you up
and floats you through time.

Turn awareness
inward - Listening...
Sense Its Presence,
as if there was an inner window
to this voiceless, timeless
Space of the Ineffable

For even when the mind is preoccupied with words,
this Ineffable Space
is still silently present;
in the wordless language
of the Heart.

Feel the nearly imperceptible movement
as it subtly reveals Itself as
Love...
The reverberation of our Eternal Being,
echoing ItSelf as Love
through the chambers
of the Spiritual Heart

Everything comes back to this Unutterable Space

the Space of
~ Love ~

Mystic Meandering
July 20, 2016

Still Point of the Heart...

Empty your self out
until all that is left is Silence,
the still hush
of

S
i
l
e
n
c
e

in
the
deep
Stillness
of the Heart…

Lay it all down ~ and let the Silence breathe you.

It doesn’t matter what you’ve been taught,
what words you have heard,
what beliefs you have believed…

Lay it all down ~ and just listen to the
Sound of Sacred Silence,
the deep Rhythm in the Heart.

Unconcern yourself with words,
beliefs, concepts of the dreaming mind.
Fill yourself with the Rhythm of the Stillness;

the living atmosphere of Love…

Live from the silent Flame
that burns in your Heart;
brighter than any words,
any teachings, any beliefs,
revealing everything…

Lay it all down ~
and Live!

Unencumbered…

 Resting in the still-point of the Heart

*

Mystic Meandering
Dec. 2010

When the Heart Opens...

When the Heart opens
nothing else matters:

not trying to “figure ‘it’ all out,”
or to “make ‘it’ happen”,
or “understanding” anything…

When the Heart opens
you know that you are loved
beyond measure,
from a space beyond
known love...

Embrace this Love
that arises in the
 Heart of Hearts.
Feel its joy, its comfort,
and play in the channels
of Its Love.

It is not difficult to open to Its flow,
but you have erected many barriers
and limitations
through the years of hiding
who you are
as

 ~ Love ~

Don’t be afraid of where this Love might take you,
or how it will change you.
Allow the stream of Love to carry you,
to ~ flow ~ you ~

 through life ~

Allow the Truth of who you are to emerge:
~ Love ~
the Essence of your Being,
and all constrictions will release,
and
 Love will
flow ~ ~ ~ ~

Unrestrained…

All that is necessary is to Remember
the Essence of Love
that you are,
 from which you came,
in the Stillness of
your Heart…

It is your truth
and your substance…


Mystic Meandering
Meditative Writings
circa 2004/2006

“Meditative writings” are words that seem to have simply fallen
 out onto the page in narrative form during times in meditation
 or deep Silence.
They were written down as if spoken by someone else from within
– from the Cave of the Heart - giving Divine instruction.

I simply put them together in the form of a poem.

~

Top Photo: Sunrise 1-16-15
taken by Dear Hubby

Bottom Photo: Sunset 1-5-15
moi… J

The Silent Flame...

Empty out everything except Silence,
the
still
hush
of

S
i
l
e
n
c
e

the
deep
Stillness
of the Heart…


Lay it all down – just breath the Silence,
the Stillness of Being.

It doesn’t matter what you’ve been taught,
what words you have heard,
what beliefs you have believed…

Lay it all down – just listen to the Silence,
the deep Rhythm of the Heart.

Unconcern yourself with words,
beliefs - concepts of the dreaming mind.
Fill yourself with the Rhythm of the Stillness…

Lay it all down – just *live* from the Silence;
the still space within the Heart.

Live from the Silent Flame
that burns in your Heart;
brighter than any words,
any teachings, any beliefs,
revealing everything.

…

Live
in
the
Still
Point
of

S
i
l
e
n
c
e
.
.
.



©Mystic Meandering
December 19, 2010

The Silence of which I speak is a
meditative Silence, a sacred Silence
in which we are aware of what is Aware
within us; where we are in communion with
that Eternal Being – that which is
our Essence…

Sharing the Love ~ ~ ~

To my blogger Friends and readers near and far…

No matter where you all are today,
or how you are spending your day,
or what your life situation is,
or how dysfunctional your family is, J
or whether you celebrate the Holiday or not,

may Love and Grace be at your table…

~*~

 Don’t be afraid of where Love might take you,

or how it will change you.
Allow the Flow of Love
to show you the way.

Mystic Meandering
circa 2004-2006

 Deep change comes through

the confluence of Love within you…

Listen to its Flow,
its music,
its message:

‘There is nothing but Love…’

Mystic Meandering
circa 2004-2006

 Be with Stillness,

with Sacred Silence,
where the ripples of

Luminescent Love
form and expand…

Mystic Meandering
circa 2004-2006

With gratitude for your presence here…

The Eternal Joy of Deep Silence...

Devote your life to the eternal joy of deep Silence,
to the *awareness* of the deep,
 eternal Silence of the Cosmos -
the hush of The Mystery -
that enlivens your Heart from within…

Let this Silence be your resting place.
Abide here.
It *is* your Home…

Allow the Sacred Silence to carry you -
sustain you -
uphold you –
with its Silent Rhythm…

Do not be deterred from this Sacred Silence,
the warm flame of Eternal Presence…

Wrap the Quiet of Silence around you,
like a soft mantle,
and be still in your Heart…

The deep Silence is your comfort;
is the Presence of The Mystery ItSelf,
infusing and embracing you simultaneously…

Everything is THIS -
this Sacred Silence
that animates and illumines life from within…

Come Home to the deep hum of Silence,
the OM of Silence…
Let it expand your Heart
and sing its Joy…

It is the Eternal Joy of the Heart.

Do not be distracted
as you enter the abode of
The Infinite…

Mystic Meandering
Meditative Writings from Silence
Novermber 12, 2012

Photo: I have no idea what this was supposed to be.
The camera went off by mistake and left this mysterious image…

~*~

The “Silence” that is spoken of here
is a deep meditative Silence,
that brings one into
communion with
the Infinite,
with Home.

From Fear To Stillness...

Yesterday I was perusing the internet with its plethora of “spiritual teachers” looking for YouTube videos that might give me insight on this deep-seated anxiety that I’ve been experiencing…  I don’t know what made me look up Mooji, as I sometimes do– a big gentle Jamaican (www.mooji.org).  There were several videos with the word “fear” in the title.  I picked two.  I found Truth in his words, bringing me back to the Truth in myself.  Sometimes that’s all it takes, someone to point you back to the Truth of your Self – your True Nature.

The following words are excerpts from the two videos.  I have put Mooji's words in poetic form, but they are not meant to be a poem.

“The mind fears…

What is the message in the fear?

Find the message in the fear…

Fear empties itself as soon as there is revelation…

YOU (the True Self) *are* before the movement of fear that arises…
Realize your Self that is before time, before phenomenon…

Wake up to the recognition of your Eternal Self.

[That is] the Awareness in which fear occurs.

Just keep quiet.

Don’t identify the reactions and interactions,

just *feel* your Existence

and

let the fear burn off…

Identify the Presence that sees,
and stay with this Presence,
and you’ll come to a place of
complete [internal] Stillness…

There is Stillness in that space of fear…

When fear is met
what expands is a sense of spaciousness…

There is an intuitive sense that you and the spaciousness
of Stillness are one.
There *is* no separation…

In this place your mind of fear will not have much power
because you’re in your

Natural State of Awareness…”
Mooji

I have a long way to go on this adventure of meeting this life-long anxiety and its message, but I am committed to the journey.  As Mooji has also said – “Stay in the Heart.  Only keep your eyes on ‘The Beloved’” – meaning the inner spaciousness of Stillness, Awareness, Self, or Buddha Nature, or Christ Consciousness – however you know that to be.  Home…

These are the links for Mooji’s videos.

From Fear To Stillness
Attacks of Fear

There are of course many other “teachers” with videos and books who address such issues.
It just happened that I found these…

Life Came Back...

Then when
it seems
we will never
smile again,
life comes back...









This photo and verse are on a blank greeting card that I found many years ago. (See copyright info below). I kept it for myself, to remind me that through the “dark” times, life does come back… Of course *Life* never goes away. It just changes form. Life morphs Itself.

During times of fever, through my recent experiences with illness, I was drawn into deep Stillness, similar to the space of aware Stillness in meditation – only deeper. I was surprised that illness could lead to such a deep space of Stillness. The mind and body - though laboring under illness - were less active, and I was able to find a deep inner space of rest - amazing. And yet, there were many times that it also felt as if “life” (the sense of aliveness, well-being, embodiment) had left and would not return – or at least was on hold somewhere in cyberspace maybe. Hello~o~o~o~o …. This is not to sound dramatic. I was not near death. It was just the way “I” experienced it. But of course “Life” hadn’t left – the body-mind was still here, still functioning… But it was experienced that *something* “left” – the felt sense of Presence. Inexplicable…

Monday night, however, “LIFE came back” – the healing rain came. There was a clear shift in body-mind. Energy returned to the body and clarity to the mind – a sense of wellness and well-BEing – a sense of being here, aware, alive; a sense of the spirit of LIFE embodying this body again. Although energy levels still seem to come and go.

“Life came back”, much as it had been before. There were no big revelations, no breakthroughs, no big shifts in perception. Life lived on – like nothing had happened at all. Even intentionally taking time out for “refuge” for a few days in Stillness last week, as part of my “recovery”, was not a life-changing “retreat.” My home did not suddenly become a monk’s (or is that monkess’s :) monastery filled with chants, meditation and enlightenment - darn. There was still – husband home 24/7 - again - conversing, engaging; meals to make, laundry to be done, sprinkler system to “help” fix; and mother continuing to call every day to see if I was “better” – no pressure there. :) My “refuge” was nothing more than taking refuge in inner Stillness – capturing moments of Silence as much as possible – listening inwardly as Life lived on.

Now I am experiencing a renewed curiosity in and re-commitment to this deep inner Stillness of Being, the Aliveness within, as a way of life. I take more time during the day to feel and listen to this inner Presence of Being, awareing IT, experiencing IT, breathing IT, absorbing IT - delighting in the wonderment of IT as it pulses through this body. However, I do feel the demands of ordinary life and requirements of daily living beginning to crowd it out - again. I understand why gurus, yogis, artists, writers, and contemplatives head for the hills, places unknown, caves and nature – to *live* in wondrous refuge and intimacy with the Stillness of Life within – listening deeply to Its Voice.

I am curious – What is your refuge? What allows you to experience the Aliveness of Being within on a daily basis?

~*~


Photo
copyright – Chris Jones
Card
copyright - The Borealis Press – 1997
Surry Maine

Taking Refuge...

I realized through this ‘bout with illness the last few weeks that I have just been dancing on the surface of life, leaping from wave to wave, being driven by life events, life circumstances, family needs, focused only on what’s happening at the surface, trying not to be overwhelmed by other waves crashing around me. But of course, there it was, overwhelm that lead to illness. And most recently discovering that when one is “ill” one tends to fixate on the body and what’s wrong with the body – losing sight of the *depth* of Being that underlies it all.

It was also realized that what is needed here is deep rest and taking refuge in this deep Stillness of Being that is the Ocean of Life; sensing – again - what it feels like to live life from and as this deep place of Stillness – from the awareness and *knowing* of this Stillness that is Life.

So I am diving deep these days, taking refuge and resting in the deep Stillness of Being that is Home – experiencing what it feels like to BE well again in the core of my Being…

“I” shall return to blogging as the Ocean moves me, as the Inner Voice leads, as Stillness speaks, etc. In the mean time I’ll enjoy being inspired by all your wonderful blogs!

~ ♥ ~

Heart Excursion...

A “mantra” has emerged from the depths: “Follow the Heart” – the Heart of Hearts that is. It is the sense of paying attention to the deepest Heart that *knows* the Way – the Inner Compass - the silent space of Stillness, our Essential Nature. It’s about experiencing what *enlivens* the Deep Heart, what feeds and nourishes this Heart…

I want to feel Alive while I am alive. I want to be acutely *aware* of this Aliveness, this Heart that I am – listening deeply to Its hum – like the purr of a contented cat… But I’ve been feeling a little funky lately in our brown, dry winter – depressed, unsettled, feeling a lot of “heartburn” – but no purring… After a 3-week funk I was inspired by Genju’s blog (108zenbooks) when she started posting her “contemplative photography” on Monday of this week. The Deep Heart awakened from beneath the thick layers of molasses, and said: Let’s go on a photo excursion! And this Being suddenly came alive, wanting to play, to be in nature, to explore, to see Life with new eyes. So Monday I went on a Heart Excursion – to follow the Heart in order to feed it…

Now I am not a “photographer," and only have a little Kodak Easy Share digital camera, but it was the excursion that counted – nourishing the Heart. There is something in the act of taking pictures that makes me actually *see* my surroundings. I enter into curious interaction with Life. Seeing Life focused through the lens of a camera stills my mind and thrills this Heart; allows my whole being to settle into inner Stillness, to be at complete rest within my Self. Even with others walking past me on the path that day, I was in deep Silence. I was kissed by Silent Joy and the Heart purred - reminding me that this is why I/we are here – to *live* in full awareness of the Deep Heart; to be aware of and commune with the Deep Heart – to be *Alive* to Life - to *be* the Aliveness that Life is – and to walk in the Alive Stillness of the Heart…

Here are some photo highlights.










There are many blog sites out in the blogosphere that display inspiring photography that enlivens this Heart. One that I just found is Beyond the Fields We Know – beautiful winter photos and writings. Be sure to visit, and scroll down.

Remembering the Heart...

Come,
walk
with me

as I pour out my heart
remembering
who “I” is,
listening to the whispers
of the Heart…

Come,
walk
with me

amongst the clutter of the mind,
between the chaos and confusion,
surfing the waters of life together,
navigating the eddies in the flow
of the Heart…


Come
walk
with me


in the Stillness that connects us
to all that is true in this life experience
beyond the disturbances of the mind,
the malfunctions of the body,
and the deep pain of life
that breaks the spirit,
then opens us to
the depths
of
the
H
e
a
r
t
.
.
.


Come
walk
with me

emptied out
poured out
opened up

Remembering

Recognizing

the whispers of the Heart calling:
Come… be with ME
Come... follow the path
of the Heart
Come... be still
in ME ~ the Heart...
Remember
why you are here:
to remember that
you are ME
~ the Jewel in the Heart

Come
walk
with ME

Remember ME

"I" is your Heart

~*~


Mystic Meandering

copyright

January 19. 2011

Still Point...

Empty out everything except Silence,
the
still
hush
of

S
i
l
e
n
c
e

the
deep
Stillness
of the Heart…


Lay it all down – just breath the Silence,
the Stillness of Being.

It doesn’t matter what you’ve been taught,
what words you have heard,
what beliefs you have believed…

Lay it all down – just listen to the Silence,
the deep Rhythm of the Heart.

Unconcern yourself with words,
beliefs - concepts of the dreaming mind.
Fill yourself with the Rhythm of the Stillness…

Lay it all down – just *live* from the Silence;
the still space within the Heart.

Live from the silent Flame
that burns in your Heart;
brighter than any words,
any teachings, any beliefs,
revealing everything.

…

Live
in
the
Still
Point
of

S
i
l
e
n
c
e
.
.
.



Mystic Meandering
copyright
December 19, 2010


~*~


“Every other creature on the face of the Earth
seems to know how to be quiet and still…

We (humans) seem to have lost
the ability to just be quiet -
to simply be present in the stillness
that is the foundation of our lives.
Yet if we never get in touch
with that stillness,
we never fully experience our lives…

Reaching the Still Point is not something
unusual or esoteric.
It is a very important part of
being aware and staying awake."

John Daido Loori
from: Finding the Still Point