In Harmony with The Cosmos - Sardello

Silence is not a path...
The most basic experience of Silence is intimacy...
Silence keeps us intimately bound with the truth of
our Being...

We feel how we, in our individuality, are part of a
vast and mysterious world process...
Illusion and ego-fantasy begin with forgetting this
intimacy with Silence...

In "practicing" [being aware of] the Silence we are not
trying to merge with the Cosmos, or to leave this world
for timeless regions... but to come into harmony with the
Rhythm of Silence and the great [natural] rhythms governing
the world [planet].  We start by sensing the presence of
extremely subtle currents of The Silence that have a unique
quality.  These currents are neither "energy" nor the electro-
magnetic currents of the body.  We experience the currents
of Silence, as being touched by a "spiritual" presence.  The
nature of the currents of Silence is that of the presence
of an interiority, like knowing someone in a way that reveals
the essence of their Being.  We experience an immediacy
of the quality of interiority.  There is nothing behind Silence...
There is just Silence...  When we are in The Silence we
experience something very bodily and we also experience
 it as a subtle touch at the level or our Soul, at
the level of our own interiority.

[Accessing] The Silence through directly sensing is the key
to living both our Soul life, and our spiritual life *in* the world...

The work is to be with The Silence itself...

Robert Sardello
Excerpts From - Silence: The Key to Wholeness

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

~

Personal Note:  I have experienced some of what Mr.
Sardello describes as his own experience.
Everyone experiences this Silence differently...

 

The Rhythm of Rest...

I flow on the swells of the Great Sea.
Out beyond the thought stream,
in the deep calm of the Stillness
rising and falling in the endless, subtle
rhythmic movement beyond time;
a Stillness that ebbs and flows naturally.

Here is the gateway to deep Rest,
an attunement with the deep inner Silence,
where everything falls into
the Rhythm of Rest.

I allow myself to be taken by
"The Rhythm",
suspended in the mystical breath of the Cosmos,
the Silence of pre-existence.

Its Stillness holds me, sustains and supports me -
Is deeply Me...

And I realize everything is suspended in this 
Essential Rhythm of Life.
In some mysterious way,
We breath, and are breathed by
"The Rhythm."

Immersing myself in "The Rhythm"
I deeply Rest
in harmony with the Universe...

Ommmmmm......

Mystic Meandering
2022

~

Photo Art - Mystic Meandering

2018

 

The Still Point - Rod MacIver

The source of your [authentic] power is your still point.
Your power comes from harmony with your inner world.
That relationship is nurtured in silence, in solitude, in reflection.

Joseph Campbell said much depends on knowing who you are
and what you want out of life.  The self-knowledge requires
reflection, quiet time to nurture and build.  Before expending energy,
build energy.  Spend time in contemplation, in a pre-verbal state
of receiving, waiting for guidance.

The still point is that place of quiet reflection, meditation or
prayer, time for rest and relaxation and contemplation.

Rod MacIver
Heron Dance
Excerpt from his latest post in his Art Journal

~

Still point = sanity :)

~

Within each of us , there is a silence, a silence as vast as
the universe,  And when we experience that silence, we
remember who we are...  It is a paradox that we encounter
so much internal noise when we first try to sit in silence.

Gunilla Brodde Norris

With thanks to Heron Dance

~

photo Mystic Meandering

 

The Language of Invisible Vibrations - Hazrat Inayat Khan

Color and sound are not only the language in which one
communicates with the life without, but also the language in
which one communicates with the life within.  One might ask
how it is done.  We can see the answer in certain scientific
experiments.  Special plates are made, and by speaking near
such a plate marks are made upon the plate with sound and
vibrations.  Those marks make either harmonious or in-
harmonious forms.  If that is true, then every person, from
 morning till evening, is making invisible forms in space by
what he says. He is creating invisible vibrations around him
 and so he is  producing an atmosphere.  Therefore it is that
 one person who may come into the house, and before he speaks
you are tired of him, you wish to get rid of him.  Before he
 has said or done anything you are finished with him, you would
 like him to go away, for in his atmosphere he is creating a sound;
 a sound is going on which is disagreeable.  There is another person
 with whom you feel sympathy, to whom you feel drawn, whose
friendship you value, whose presence you long for; harmony
is continually created through him.  That is sound too.

If that is true then it is not only the external signs, but also the
inner condition which is audible and visible.  Though not visible
to the eyes and not audible to the ears, yet it is audible and
visible in the soul.  We say: "I feel his vibrations.  I feel the person's
presence.  I feel sympathy, or antipathy towards that person."
There is a feeling, and a person creates a feeling without having
said anything or done anything.  What you are speaks louder than
what you say.  "It is life itself which has its tone, its color, its vibration.
It speaks aloud."

Hazrat Inayat Khan
Vol. 2, The Mysticism of Sound and Music
7. The Spiritual Significance of Color and Sound

with thanks to Whiskey River

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

 

Sacred Fog - Sarah Carlson

As one drops in
and widens,
there can be a sense
of being in a sort of
sacred fog.
There is a softness here.
Though that which
once anchored
has altered,
there is safety, too.
Rhythmic waves
create a gentle harmony
that blends with breath and heart.
Vastness may not be visible,
yet is both discernible
and inclusive.
This sacred fog
can allow for
that which aches or tugs
or threatens
to disperse
as light once more
works its way
around and through
from above.

Sarah Carlson
Meanderings of the Heart

Posted with permission of the author

Sarah is publishing her third book called:
Tender Light Softens,
which includes the above poem.
See her blog: Meanderings of the Heart
for more poems and info about her books.

~

Photo - Sarah Carlson

 

Uni-Verse: One Sound - Fred LaMotte

"Om is the primordial word.  All that is, was, or will be is Om."

Mandukya Upanishad

"Adau Bhagavan shabda rasahi: In the beginning, the Lord
created the cosmos through a subtle stream of sound."

Rig Veda

Creation is sound.  The universe is sound.  The subtle essence
of light shines in darkness as sound.  Each star has a sound.
Every galaxy is a revolving chord, the harmony of a trillion
worlds.

The atoms of your body are chimes.  Each cell of your body is
a carillon.  Your music vibrates into my sound-body, mine into
yours.  Both are intermingled with that galactic harmony, the
gong of planets.  Our subatomic counterpoint trembles and
dances over the scale of humanity, and humanity's music co-
mingles in the cosmic chorus of angels.

You are a ringing bell.  Who struck you?  Even from a thousand
miles away, I am touched by the song of your body.  Each cell
of my flesh feels and recognizes your key, your rhythmic signature.
The memory of you brings a blue note, a minor seventh, a raga
into my inward ear.

My heart is a receiver of your elegy, and a transmitter of my own
love song.  Inside the ribs of every man and woman, the hollows
of a well-carved instrument resonate, softly playing notes
deeply personal, yet pervading the universe.

With the vibrant sound of our minds, we contribute to the
harmony of All, or we grind out dissonance.  The most
important question we can ask at any moment is, "Do my
thoughts right now create harmony on earth, or disharmony?"
Harmonious thoughts expand creation, bringing light out of
darkness.  Cynical or hateful thoughts unravel creation and
contract our energy, preventing waves of music from
manifesting as light.

We are each a unique resonance of grace notes.  Are you a
morning or an evening raga?  Are you the music of the wind
or rain?  A brook of Spring rain murmuring in the desert?  The
song of melting snow high above tree line, chanting under
stones?  Are you the sound of moonbeams falling softly on the
petals of an amaranth hibiscus, changing their color to burgundy?

The day will come, and now is here, when you will wake in the
morning stunned by a symphony of blossoms, polyphony of sun
and dew.  The day will come, and is now here, when medicine
will be music, and songs will heal us.  The day will come, and
now is here, when listening to vibrations of mantras, O most
silent melody in the ancient brain, will dissolve the mind of
war into pure love.

The day will come, the day is here, when you long for the
Beloved, O nakedness more intimate than form; you merely
call the Beloved's most secret name, and the Beloved is
with you, nearer than this breath!

Fred LaMotte
Uradiance

~

Photo - via Uradiance

Subtle Truth - Lao Tzu

Why scurry about looking for the truth?
It vibrates in every thing and every not-thing,
right off the tip of your nose.  Can you be still and see it
in the mountain? the pine tree? yourself? 
Don't imagine that you'll discover it by accumulating
more knowledge.  Knowledge creates doubt, and doubt
makes you ravenous for more knowledge.
You can't get full eating this way.
The wise person dines on something more subtle:
He eats the understanding that the named was born from the unnamed,
that all being flows from non-being, that the describable world
emanates from an indescribable source.  He finds this subtle truth
inside his own self...
So who can be still and watch the chess game of the world?
The foolish are always making impulsive moves,
but the wise know that victory and defeat are decided by something
more subtle.  They see that something perfect exists before any
move is made.  This subtle perfection deteriorates when
artificial actions are taken,
so be content not to disturb the peace.
Remain quiet.
Discover the harmony in your own being.
Embrace it.
If you can do this, you will gain everything,
and the world will become healthy again.

Lao Tzu

via - The Beauty We Love

Trust Your Vision - Ivan Granger

So often we pour ourselves intensely into life's purpose without
actually pausing to consider why we are doing what we are doing.
How is it a reflection of who we truly are?  How does it express
our specific qualities and role within the larger panorama?  What
does it imply about the fundamental nature of reality?

Rarely in the modern world are we encouraged to discover our
vision and dedicate ourselves to it.  To the prevailing mindset,
one's vision is thought to be intangible, suggesting something
that is a fantasy whose pursuit is narcissistic or even delusional.
The focus of life must be practical with goals that are approved
and easily measured.

That approach, while seemingly reasonable and safe, is
devastating to both the individual and to society as a whole.
While we certainly must live effectively within the physical
and social worlds that require a certain level of practical purpose,
we are not such stunted creatures that exist only on that level.
We are magical beings, here to embody immensity and love and
the will of the universe as it expresses itself uniquely through
each of us.

Vision is the way we discover our personal path through the world.
Vision is the way we come to know ourselves, allowing us to be as
we are, showing us how to act with strength and creativity in
service to our true [vision].

A vision is not the same as some fantasy or daydream.  A true
 vision is the voice of nature, the intention of the universe,
uniquely tuned to our soul.

The word "vision" can trip us up because we think of seeing
things that are external to our physical bodies, so we often
consider a vision to be external to us.  But vision in the
spiritual sense is the conscious mind's way to assign meaning
to the deep recognition of self as a harmonious expression of the
self-aware universe. In other words, vision is not so much about
seeing as it is about being.  A vision is a challenge to ourselves
to be more fully ourselves.  Vision is a vocation, the calling of
the soul to its true role.

The first question is, how strongly do we want to see?  And then
we must answer the second question, do we dare live the truth
seen?  Then again, what's the point to any other path but our own?

Ivan Granger
commentary on the poem
"Trust Your Vision" by Stephen Levine
Poetry Chaikhana

~

Photo - Sunset digitally enhanced...

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 Universe is Vibrating Strings - Kaku

...the subatomic particles we see in nature,
the quartz, the electrons,
are nothing but musical notes on a tiny vibrating string.

What is physics?

Physics is nothing but the laws of harmony that you can write
on vibrating strings...

What is chemistry?
Chemistry is nothing but melodies you can play on interacting
vibrating strings...

What is the universe?

The universe is a symphony of
vibrating strings...

What is the mind of God?
It's the cosmic music resonating
through hyperspace...


Michio Kaku

Physicist

Photo - Indra's Net of Jewels Mandala Art
digitally altered

Gearing Up to Gear Down...

My inner Spirit calls me to a quiet life, to long periods of Silence, wants hibernation and repose.  Evidently it doesn’t know that it is “Spring” on the calendar and I must “gear up.”  My “surface life” requires me to “gear up.”  And I am having trouble reconciling the two; being faithful to one and responsible to the other.  Sounds dualistic I know, but it is the way of things here, trying to find the balance and flow, the Yin and Yang of life – the harmony between doing and being…

There is “Spring” cleaning and repairs that have been long needed on the house – like roof and soffit repairs, requiring researching roofers on line, making phone calls, leaving messages for call backs that keep me tethered to the phone, and being available for on-sight estimates.  And then there’s yard work - repainting garden chairs and planter tubs.  I think a nice Red Salmon color, or Cinnamon, or Terra Cotta would be a nice change. J   And then weeding out winter’s waste – and pruning trees – and….. and….. and….

And yet, the chamomile is blooming already

 and the tarragon and catnip are rising, despite the fact that the tubs have not been painted.

 But there is no thyme growing this year – interesting play on words, don’t you think… J

The lovage replanted itself over here by the fence in the rocks.

But “Spring” is not the only reason we are “gearing up.”  We are “gearing up” because we want to “gear down” – to simplify our lives, to rid ourselves of the physical clutter that has accumulated over 35+ years of marriage and 17+ years of living in this house.   And so I have to start somewhere!  And this seems like the best place – in the basement - often likened to the sub-conscious where our inner clutter lies… J  This should be fun…

There is a neighborhood garage sale mid-May where we will try to sell a lot of this “clutter” stuff, which means cleaning out the garage.  Then we will start an e-bay store to try to sell the more “valuable” clutter. J  In the mean time it means several rounds of decluttering - deciding what to throw out, what to give away, what goes to garage sale, and what goes to ebay. It’s a daunting task – at least from my current perspective.  When I *think* about it all I start to feel overwhelmed.  So much for meeting life events as they come – they are coming too fast, and I am feeling a little out of control. J  So as you may have gathered I am resisting.  Like writing this blog post instead of digging into the rubble of my life J 

I discovered that the mind loves the “busyness,” finds it soothing, because it has a focus, “to do” lists, going from one thing to the next on the list, which doesn’t leave much time for meditative Silence and time for just Being – which I need a lot of.  I’ve not had a quiet day yet this week – and I can feel a case of the crankies coming on. J  But I took some time perusing what needs to be done in the back “garden” today, snapping photos, and felt the Presence of Silence in the solitude there.  I’m thinking this is where I’ll start – scraping planter tubs and chairs, and weeding out the detritus…  Very therapeutic… J

Part of the reason I want to gear down is to have more time for living what truly matters, not burdened with house and chores, which means letting go of the clutter that tends to take up the time - and dam the Life Flow... This requires listening to a deeper Flow - the deeper internal, intuitive Flow of Inner Being that runs through me, and through life; paying attention to the Spirit of Life within – to what *feels* right and what doesn’t; getting the priorities straight – waiting for the “yes” – putting the Inner Flow first.  Letting myself sink into those Silent depths within for only a few minutes a day reminds me of the deeper Flow that remains undisturbed by the chaos of life events, the Flow that actually carries me through the day…

~

“We are all innately aware that
 a deeper truth exists within us
than our day-to-day existence
and mundane concerns…
We must live life from
this more encompassing
state of Being -
and understand our
divine nature -
giving us
a means
to
enliven
a
truer identification
with
 the
 stunning
 beauty
 of our
    Being.”

Dennis Holtje

Life is a Stream of Events...

While lying in bed late one night this week, talking with my husband about ‘life events’ that have recently arisen, groping for perspective, feeling inundated with yet more “events” to deal with, day after day, recognizing how I continue to live from habituated patterns, *reacting* to life events – usually resisting them - still identified with the little me always swimming up stream, trying to keep my head above water, feeling drowned by the stream of life - he made this statement: “Life is a stream of events. Events will always happen.  Events come and go.”  The context of his statement was to say – if we see that life is always a stream of events, then we won’t feel so overwhelmed by them, they won’t trip us up as much because we can adapt and adjust and manage them.  Sounds a little like the Tao to me – to see that no matter what happens Life is a Flow, and we are in that Flow as well.  It was helpful to begin to see a way to re-orient my way of going down stream…

He also shared with me this prayer that he says silently to himself every morning as he faces each day:

“Equip me to respond to life events as they come today.  Help me to adjust and adapt with Divine Purpose, and discern what is needed.”

I asked for clarification on his meaning of “with Divine Purpose”:

In essence, he told me, what this is saying is, meeting life as it comes by “plugging in to the Divine” (his words) – the Cosmic “Flow of the Universe” – meeting the “events” of life through seeing the Divine Flow, or Cosmic Flow, of all things, and through *awareness* of our Inner Divine Beingness – flowing with life as it happens, not getting *focused* on the obstacles/events, or seeing the events as obstacles, allowing them to distract – which I tend to do.  He said by seeing that everything *is* the Divine Flow, we can be assured that it is flowing the way it is supposed to – no matter what happens…  When you don’t fight it, you can begin to experience the harmony of the Flow.

Wow!  B knows nothing about Taoism, but he has intuitively “tapped in” to “the Tao” ~ ~~~ The Flow…   Amazing…

“Empty yourself of everything.
Let the mind rest at peace.
The ten thousand things rise and fall
while the Self watches their return.

They grow and flourish,
and then return to the source.
Returning to the source is stillness,
which is the way of nature. “

“If you are willing to be lived by it,

you will see [the Tao] everywhere,

even in the most ordinary things."

Lao Tzu

Sacred Circles - Mandala Art

This is my new creative endeavor – creating and painting mandalas - also known as “sacred circles,” or Yantras, using sacred geometry, as taught by Guada in a Free Class at Guada’s Circle.

In a recent previous post – Focus As A Gateway – I was explaining how I felt a need for focus and balance as a way to bring the mind to a place of stillness.  Creating and painting this mandala gave me that focus and balance, and an inner meditative Stillness of Being.  I’m hooked! :)

Geometric mandalas are a sacred anciet art based on the language of patterns, like an underlying cosmic blueprint, an art form of the cosmos, revealing that our existence is inseparably and inherently one with the matrix of the Infinite – an inseparable, *inherent* union;  the circle being the symbol of this wholeness, or Oneness.  My limited understanding is that this oneness with the Divine, the interconnectedness of matter and spirit, is symbolized in the space where two circles cross each other forming what is called a Vesica Piscis – symbolically where Divine Consciousness and Human Consciousness are One; reminding me as I make the mandala that the Sacred is intimately present within – is both Here and Everywhere in the Universe simultaneously - meaning everything is sacred.

The seed of life at the center of many mandalas represents the heart of Existence itself, expanding into form; a symbol of sacred propagation of Life ItSelf; the Vesica Piscis symbolizing the Womb of the Universe from which all life arises.  Of course not all mandalas start with the seed of life pattern; but are obviously just as sacred, using other sacred symbols, such as the sanskrit OM(AUM) symbol at the center.   Buddhists and Hindus have used sacred geometric mandalas as symbols of the interconnectedness of the workings of the cosmos and meditative aids – or Yantras.  The Buddhists are also well known for their incredible sand mandalas that are “destroyed” after being meticulously created by monks over days and days as a symbol of the impermanence of life, and non-attachment.

I love creating mandalas as an art form; the creative design using the precision of sacred geometric patterns, and the detail of painting them in; the focus in the creating of it, and the balance that emerges in the design.  Just like the “spiritual path” – a combination of focus/practice, balance/equanimity, and the meditative Silence of just Being.  In most of my art experience I seem to work in circular fashion naturally, either circles, spirals or vortexes, as if it is primordial. See Something About Circles for an explanation and a look at my early Vortex art.

This is the basic seed of life pattern made with a compass:

See the Vesica Piscis in each intersection of a circle

From this template you can create a different design by erasing lines and adding other lines to make different shapes and designs.  The possiblilities are infinite. :)  In the mandala that I created, I added straight lines and a star pattern emerged, so I just went with it, making it a focal point; erasing parts of the outer circular lines around it, except the ones surrounding each point of the star.  I also created a wave line through each petal of the seed of life at the center, giving it a more fluid look.

I darkened this so you could see the design better

I then outlined each petal, and started filling in on one side with a water color pencil, which turns into water color paint when water is applied with a brush!  Quite amazing actually.  I like the effect in the purple star points.  They look like amethyst crystals with varieties of shading and light…

Not quite complete?

I contemplated filling the rest of the circle in with more color, but intuitively it felt complete.  Part of the process is listening intuitively to how the “painting” expresses itself, how it speaks to you, as in any artistic process….

Be sure to check out Stacy Wills’ mandala creations at A Magic Mom and Her Mandalas.  Some of them look like stanined glass windows!    Be sure to scroll down to see a variety of her mandalas using geometric design patterns.  She has recently begun using a different creative style and technology to create a more fluid affect.  

~*~

“In reality only the Ultimate (Infinite) is…
the rest is a matter of name and form.”

Nisargardatta

Paying Attention to "The Pull"

I have been feeling “the pull” of the Cosmos lately, in case you hadn’t noticed. :) Don’t know why. It feels similar to “the Pull of Consciousness” that I wrote about while window sitting. And of course since everything *is* Consciousness, I imagine that’s what’s knocking at this door again – saying, “pay attention.” I feel immensely drawn to and curious about this pull of “the Cosmos.” I even checked out the series “Cosmos” by Carl Sagan from the library this week and started watching it to satisfy this curious “longing” for the spacious Cosmic Ocean. In watching it I feel at home, I rest internally – as if “I” recognize something. A sense of innocent aliveness wakes up in me again – interesting. And, I am learning things about the universe that I don’t remember learning before. It’s as if I’m hearing it for the first time, and I am like a child listening in awe, wanting to soak it all in…

Last weekend it occurred to me that this pull has something to do with the pull of the Natural Rhythms, the Cosmic Tides of Consciousness, which I haven’t been paying attention to lately. I have been feeling out of sync with Life, with the Sacred Harmony - unable to hear, or sense The Rhythm of Life Itself because life circumstances keep drowning out the music. And yes, I know, there is “just this,” “life as it is” – and its all Awareness… And yet, and yet - this “pull.” How does one explain this “pull…” A conundrum. I’m sure there must be Cosmic Buddha’s that could explain this… :) If you’re out there give me a ring!

What would happen if I followed the pull, I wondered? Where would it take me? No particular “answer” arose in Consciousness. Only the sense that I need to pay attention to the pull. So I went about ordinary life this week, in ordinary ways, listening, sensing, feeling it - p-u-l-l-i-n-g.

There were even little quirky messages in the everydayness of life saying “pay attention.” -

One day this week, as I approached a stop sign, a young male on a cell phone, carrying a duffle bag of some sort, waved at me with two fingers as if to motion to me to stop, like I was a taxi of some kind. I shook my head no, indicating I was not going to pick him up. But of course he was at a stop sign and I had to stop. A few tense moments ensued as he ranted and flailed his arms at me through the window. I quickly flipped the automatic “door lock” switch, while I waited for the busy traffic passing in front of me to clear so I could move out. Whew. Now there’s a “pay attention” moment if I ever felt one!

And then, while walking through a small crowded gift shop full of things, and people, trying to navigate through the maze with a package to get to the post office counter in the back of the store, I had to circumvent a woman standing looking at things at the front counter. As I smoothly passed behind her, she evidently moved away from the counter, and plowed right into me, sending me sailing into a display case. I was abruptly stopped. If the display case hadn’t been there I would have been splayed on the floor. Another rather strong “pay attention” moment.

Sometimes the little “stories” in the everydayness of life are like messengers. The ‘Mystery’ speaks through everything. And clearly the message here was to stop and pay attention…

So – today I stopped. I sat in “The Cave” and paid attention to this pull… It was experienced as a very deep pull to Silence, to Zero point – the still point; a pull into the hush of the Cosmos – the Symphony of Silence. It was experienced as a pull to stop, be still and rest… It felt like a giant unseen cosmic tide of Silence drawing me to its core; a magnetic pull, continually pulling Itself back to Itself… As I “allowed” the Cosmos to pull me (there was really no allowing, it was just happening, and I was just along for the ride on the Cosmic Waves) there was a sense of being pulled to a deep internal space, an internal “home” – if you will. There was a comfort in the Silence and a deep relaxation, as I “let” it pull “me,” collapsing into it, “letting” it swallow me up… There was no intent and no cause. I do not have any intellectual understanding of it – none is needed. This “Pull” is just happening – ongoing - present tense – always there – the Natural Rhythm of Life. It requires nothing - except maybe stopping and paying attention.

~*~

Photo - Bill Kennedy
A paper weight

"Cave Writings" - Sacred Flow

Aliveness
constantly flows,
emerging as every day life
from its primordial womb of Silence.

This Flow curls and swirls
constantly transforming Itself,
constantly renewing Itself,
constantly unfolding Itself.

Recognizing ItSelf
in the face of another,
in the voice of another,
in the eyes of another…

…as the Essence of all life…

It is the Natural Rhythm of Life,
unfolding Itself into form…
Thriving…

…a palpable inner Rhythm of all that exists…

In the luminous Sacred Flow
everything is real,
vibrant and fluid ~
a living, breathing
Reality of Aliveness…

And we, like curious discoverers and explorers,
try to find this Natural Rhythm,
to experience its Harmony,
to hear its Flow
and follow its Sound ~
Not seeing that this Mystery is here,
pulsing in us…

Effulgent Flow ~

…in the everydayness of living…


~*~

Mystic Meandering
copyright
December 5, 2010


Photo ~ Fun-Qi Art™ ~ Christine

Sacred Harmony

While transitioning, out of curiosity, I watched the documentary film by Prince Charles of Wales called “Harmony.” Now I am not an activist, or environmentalist, but I was deeply moved by this film. In fact it is partly what broke this cycle of fear that I have been in. There were many tidbits of Dharma – which actually surprised me. For instance, Prince Charles said: “…we have the ability to be connected to the inner patterns of nature, to the inner patterns of the natural world…to be in relationship with the Sacred.” A Dr. Shiva from India was interviewed and she said that in order save the environment “we need to recognize our non-separable connection with life; recognize our mutuality, inclusion, and solidarity with each other, and have a deep awareness for the role that everything plays; that when we have the awareness that every day life is based on the Sacred we have harmony. Basically the film’s message is that when we recognize and work with the patterns of nature, seeing everything as Sacred, we find the answers to our environmental problems.

Many of us know this already of course, but I don’t remember any “environmental activist” saying it in quite this way before. If this is not true, then pardon my ignorance. I’ve been in “The Cave” listening to the Voice of Stillness, not angry environmental activists shouting their in-your-face, fear-based message. Even our own Al Gore had a rather alarmist message that the sky was falling, despite his rather demure and dry delivery. No, I don’t recall hearing the message ever being delivered so – gently, so heart-based, so “spiritually” before. And by a Prince!? So it caught my attention. In the end Prince Charles said: “We must look to the abandoned wisdom, knowledge and understanding for a new paradigm.” By “abandoned” I believe he meant the “ancient wisdom” – the wisdom of the ancients who knew that the movement and sustainability of life is based on a primordial Harmony found in nature.

I don’t know why this film moved me in the way that it did. But the words and images awakened a deep longing to *live* this Harmony, to live the Natural Rhythm of Life; to re-ignite the spark of this ancient wisdom and live an authentic, “awakened” life in congruency with The Sacred – our Beingness. I didn’t feel the need to “save the planet.” There was no sudden urge to become an “environmentalist.” Yet, it awakened a remembrance of The Sacred in life, a recognition of the Sacred that *is* Life ItSelf. As the spark ignited again, a kind of excitement for life arose, and I seemed to remember that we live in Sacred Harmony with Life by deeply knowing our Essential Nature – our Beingness; not by forcing a change in the way we live or manipulating the environment – but by becoming deeply aware of our Original Nature – The Sacred Harmony that we are; knowing that we are inseparable from The Sacred. Of course. Ancient Wisdom… This seemed to be the subtle message in the film as well. And whether you believe the planet needs “saving” or not is not the point of this post. It’s really that when we *recognize* and live *as* our Original Nature, we thrive - harmoniously…

I had forgotten this wisdom. I haven’t been *living* it, wasn’t *seeing* everything as Sacred, as “connected.” I have been in the delusion of separation once again. Transitioning out of the experience of fear however, has left this very open and curious space that just wants to be aware of and absorb The Sacred that’s in everything - to experience the Harmony of the living and breathing Essential Nature of Reality.

And now back to “The Cave” to explore the vastness of Sacred Harmony… :)

~~~~~~~

You can watch “Harmony” online.


Photo – “A Spiral Galaxy in Hydra”
From the book: “The Invisible Universe”
by David Malin


~*~

“…surrender to the Mystery that moves life.
The wholeness of Being sees itself as whole.
When we are deeply touched by something
it is the Mystery stirring in its human expression…
How each of us is aroused to awaken
comes in many forms.
But the deep longing for Truth, Self, [the Sacred]
comes from within Itself, your Self.
Nothing is outside your Self -
not a leaf, a galaxy, longing or love…

For a time we may bow before an idea, an image,
a form, a picture, a deity, a teacher, a guru, a mountain,
imagining that is divine and we are not.
Eventually we discover it is
the divine that sees the divine;
…buddha that sees buddha.

…a life lived in harmony with Reality
does not refuse the moment-to-moment unfolding
of life.
[It is] being intimate with the moments of your own experience;
paying attention to those that seem to touch you in some
deep, unknown, mysterious place.”

Dorothy Hunt