The Soul's Rhythm - John O'Donohue

We should not force ourselves to change by hammering
our lives into any predetermined shape.  We do not need to
operate according to the idea of a predetermined program or
plan for our lives.  Rather we need to practice a new art of
attention to our inner rhythm...  This attention brings a new
awareness of our own human and divine presence.

It is far more creative to work with the idea of mindfulness
than with the idea of will.  Too often people try to change
their lives by using the will as a kind of hammer to beat their
life into proper shape.  The intellect identifies the goal of the
program, and the will accordingly forces the life into shape.
This way of approaching the sacredness of one's own
presence is externalistic and violent.  It brings you falsely
outside of your own self and you can spend years lost in the
wilderness of your own mechanical, spiritual programs.

You can perish in a famine of your own making.

If you work with a different rhythm, you will come easily and
naturally home to your self.  Your Soul knows the geography...
  Your Soul alone has a map..., therefore you can trust this
 indirect, oblique side of your self.  If you do, it will take you

  where you need to go, but more importantly, it will teach
you a kindness of rhythm in your journey. 
There are no general principles for this art of being.
Yet the signature of this unique journey is inscribed deeply in
each Soul. If you attend to your self and seek to come into
your own presence, you will find exactly the right rhythm
for your life.  The senses are generous pathways which can
bring you home.

John O'Donohue
from Anam Cara

with thanks to The Beauty We Love

~

....belong first in your own interiority.  If you are in rhythm
with your self and connected to that deep, unique source
within, then you will never be vulnerable.
  You will be able to stand....on the ground of your
Soul, where you are at home.

John O'Donohue
from Anam Cara

~

Art - Mystic Meandering
Craypas oils done with fingers
"Ocean Splash"
2012

 

Your "Soul's Task" - Gary Zukov

What does it feel like to remember your soul's task?

When the deepest part of you becomes engaged in what you
are doing, when your activities and actions become gratifying
and purposeful, when what you do serves both yourself and
others, when you do not tire within but seek the sweet
satisfaction of your life and your work, you are doing what
you were meant to be doing.  The personality that is
engaged in the work of its soul is buoyant.  It is not burdened
with negativity.  It does not fear.  It experiences purposefulness
and meaning.  It delights in its work and in others.
It is fulfilled and fulfilling.

from: The Seat of the Soul by Gary Zukov.

with thanks to Heron Dance

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

~*~

The past offers itself up
to feed the soul that seeks fullness [fulfillment]
by continuously reclaiming itself.

Ivan Granger
Poetry Chaikhana

 

The Solace of Solitude...

My Soul needs the solace of Solitude,
finding Its Rhythm again
in the deep silent space of "Home";
The Sacred Silence within...

The comfort of the deep Silence
brings everything into perspective;
an inner stability...

I breathe into my Soul
and my Soul breathes into me...
a mutual breath...

I fall into the slumber of a deeper
Rhythm of the Sanctuary of the Soul -

and rest...

Mystic Meandering
Nov. 25, 2022

~

Photo - Mandala Art
Meditating Monks
Mystic Meandering
2013

 

The Soul's Rhythm - John O'Donohue

We should not force ourselves to change by hammering our
lives into any predetermined shape.  We do not need to operate
according to the idea of a predetermined program or plan for
our lives.  Rather, we need to practice a new art of attention
to our inner rhythm of our days and lives.  This attention 
brings a new awareness of our own human and divine presence.

It is far more creative to work with the idea of mindfulness than
with the idea of will.  Too often people try to change their lives
by using the will as a kind of hammer to beat their life into 
proper shape. The intellect identifies the goal of the program,
and the will accordingly forces the life into shape.  This way of
approaching the sacredness of one's own presence is externalistic
and  violent.  It brings you falsely outside of your own self and
you can spend years lost in the wilderness of your own mechanical,
spiritual programs.  You can perish in a famine of your own
making.

If you work with a different rhythm, you will come easily and 
naturally home to your self. Your soul knows the geography of
your destiny.  Your soul alone has a map of your future, therefore 
you can trust this indirect, oblique side of your self.  If you do,
it will take you where you need to go, but more importantly, it
will teach you a kindness of rhythm in your journey.  There are no
general principles for this art of being.  Yet the signature of this
unique journey is inscribed deeply in each soul. If you attend to
your self and seek to come into your own presence, you will find
exactly the right rhythm for you life. The senses are generous
pathways which can bring you home.

John O'Donohue
from Anam Cara

with thanks to The Beauty We Love

~

Where you belong should always be worthy of your dignity.
You should belong first in your own interiority.  If you belong,
and if you are in rhythm with yourself and connected to that
deep, unique source within, then you will never be vulnerable
when you are outside belonging is qualified, relativised, or 
taken away.  You will be able to stand.....on the ground of
your soul where you are not tenant, where you are at home.

John O'Donohue
from Anam Cara

~

Art - Mystic Meandering
Craypas oils done with fingers

2012

 

Inner Rhythms - a meandering...

I've been trying to find my "Inner Rhythms" again; the Inner
Rhythm of Being, of the Soul, and how that wants to move
in and through me.  I receive postings from  Nature Artist
and Writer, Rod MacIver, from his website, Heron Dance.
He has spent a lot of time alone in nature, getting in touch
with his Inner Rhythm.  He reflects:

"A balanced life is based on its own rhythm.  If you don't set
your own rhythm, and have the discipline to follow it, your
life will move at the speed of the culture around [you], which
moves too fast.  The space we make for quiet time affects our
thought patterns and, in turn, the quality of our lives."  And, he
asks:  "To what extent is the rhythm of your life a result of....
adapting.....to the flow that surrounds [you]."  Or, I would
even say, to the people around you.  Have we entrained to the
people around us - living their rhythm?  I know I have...

I felt a resonance with his words, knowing that I needed to find
that sense of the deeper Inner Rhythm again, not just my own
personal daily rhythm with life, but the Flow with the Inner
Rhythm of my Being; the undercurrent flow of Life within -
from which all movement arises.

The only way I know to do this is to turn within to The Silence 
where The Rhythm of the Inner Being is felt - the Rhythm of
Silence ItSelf.  Being in The Sacred Silence is what brings me
joy, and a felt sense of Presence.  Finding that Inner Rhythm,
The Silence of Being, is "Divine Communion."  This, for me,
is the True Rhythm, the Rhythm of Pure Being ItSelf - the deep
undercurrent of Life that animates all life - which is The
Silence.  This is what calls to me - over and over again.

But the hypnosis of the world keeps me/us magnetized to the
ways of the world and pulls me/us out of this deeper way of
living and knowing.  We are conditioned to be drawn to the
external dramas of the world, to chew on them, teethe on them...
It's the pablum of the matrix we live in.  But no one trains us
to turn within to the Quiet Inner Presence of Silence.  And so
we follow the rhythm of the world (the "civilized", mechanized,
political, chaotic world), with its hypnosis of separation from
our Inner Rhythm, instead of turning inward to the awareness
of the Inner Rhythm; to that interior space of the "Great Mystery"
 that pulsates Its Rhythm within us...

I'm curious, before your innocent Heart was hypnotized by the
rhythms of the world, what did you want deep in your Heart,
not what you wanted to be when you grew up, but what did
you really long for?  What called to you?  Do you remember?
Do you know now?

Mystic Meandering
Sept. 6, 2015

~

Photo - Mandala Art
2013

 

Suffering - Francis Weller

No one escapes suffering in this life.
None of us is exempt from loss, pain, illness and death.
How is it that we have so little understanding of [and empathy for]
these essential experiences?  How is it that we have attempted
to keep grief separated from our lives and only begrudgingly 
acknowledge its presence at the most obvious of time, such as
a funeral.

It is the accumulated losses of a lifetime that slowly weigh us
down - the times of rejection, the moments of isolation when we felt
cut off from the sustaining touch of comfort and love.  It is an ache
that resides in the heart, the faint echo calling us back to the times of
loss.  We are called back, not so much to make things right, but to
acknowledge what happened to us.

Grief asks that we honor the loss and, in doing so, deepen our
capacity for compassion.  When grief remains unexpressed, however,
 it  hardens, becomes as solid as stone.  We, in turn, become rigid and
stop moving in rhythm with the soul.... with the flow of life.  Grief is
part of the dance.

As we begin to pay attention, we notice that grief is never far from
our awareness.  We become aware of the many ways it arrives in
our daily lives. It is the blue mood that greets us upon waking.  It
is the melancholy that shades the day in muted tones.  It is the
recognition of time's passing, the slow emptying of our days.  It
is the searing pain that erupts when someone close to us dies -
It is the confounding grief when our life circumstances are
shattered by the unexpected....  the ground beneath us opens,
shaken by violent rumblings.  Grief enfolds our lives....

It is essential for us to welcome grief, whatever form it takes.
When we do, we open ourselves to our shared experiences in life.
Grief is our common bond.  Opening to our sorrow connects us
with everyone, everywhere.  There is no gesture of kindness that
is wasted, no offering of compassion that is useless.  We can be
generous to every sorrow we see.  It is sacred work.

Francis Weller

from The Wild Edge of Sorrow:
Rituals of Renewal and the Sacred Work of Grief;
The Threshold Between Loss and Revelation
Richard Rohr's Daily Meditation

with thanks to The Beauty We Love

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

 

Take Flight My Soul...

Take flight my Soul -
Be free...

Open to a larger freedom...

You are not bound by the constraints
of life circumstances;
imprisoned, or captive, nor
weighed down.

Choose a greater freedom
and take flight...

Set yourself free -
unfettered, unencumbered -

opening to ecstasy...

Mystic Meandering
April 23, 2023

~

Photo from the Internet

 

Life as it is - a meandering

Religion is a heavy mantle some people wear -
robes of ritual, dogma and doctrine...

Advaita is a heady game some people like to play -
self/no-self?

Non-duality - a conundrum -
not two - but not one...

I'm tired of all these heavy "games" I've played
in the "Spiritual Game"...

It's time for me to just step out of the way -
to let myself unfold -
and not entangle myself in the many webs
that constrain and constrict that Flow.

Maybe some ancient saint or sage had it all figured out -
maybe not...

My inner sage tells me it's about acceptance,
about empathy, compassion; about living life as it is
the best I can without living up to some "spiritual"
ideal: Someone else's beliefs, someone else's "way",
someone else's "truth"; the "right" perspective, or
"right" thinking... 

Needing to listen to the
deeper Rhythm of my own Soul/Essence/Being...

But strong primal instincts arise,
unable to "spiritualize"
the rawness of emotions into - pretty language...

The practicality of Buddhist Wisdom draws me now -
not as a religion or belief system, but as day to day
wisdom for getting through...
The wisdom of accepting what is, of just being present,
of mindfulness, of caring and compassion, of stepping
out of the way of the experience and just seeing what unfolds,
letting go of expectations, the need for solutions,
 and the need to control - allowing life to happen
as it does...

No more lofty goals of "enlightenment" -
just fulfilling the requirements of ordinary daily living
in the midst of global and personal chaos
- in my new role as "caregiver" -
doing what needs to be done
as life keeps living itself
 as it is...

Mystic Meandering
Dec. 12, 2022

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

Hubby and Emmy sleeping....

 

The Solace of Solitude...

My Soul needs the solace of Solitude,
finding its Rhythm again
in the deep silent space of "Home";
The Sacred Silence within...

The comfort of the deep Silence
brings everything into perspective...

I breathe into my Soul
and my Soul breathes into me...
a mutual breath...

I fall into sleep, into the deeper
 Rhythm of the Sanctuary of the Soul -

and rest...

Mystic Meandering 
Nov. 25, 2022

~

Photo - Mandala Art
Mystic Meandering
2013

 

 

Divine Discontent - a meandering...

Something is arising in me - calling to me through the veils
of "spirituality" - that cannot be ignored...  The Call of the
Soul - the Passion of the Soul...  The call to a deeper
authenticity...

It's as if my Being, my Soul, is trying to free Itself from its
confines and constraints - A Divine Discontent.  There's a
sense of needing to break out of those limiting constraints,
to break out of a "role", a "spiritual identity", a "spiritual"
self-image that has kept me dancing to a tune that I now feel
out of sync with - out of sync with my Soul; needing to
find my own unique rhythm with life.

"Spirituality" has, in ways that I don't fully understand,
 suffocated my authentic expression of "The Mystery." 
And now I need to emancipate myself and live that
unique expression.  I must discover my own way, and
navigate my unique path.  It cannot be prescribed by others;
conforming to someone else's maps of Reality, but 
emancipating the true expression of the Soul, whatever
that may look like; listening to the authentic Voice within.

As I write these words, I feel myself settling back into
myself again - my Natural self - not an abstract 
"spiritualized" Self - hiding behind the
veils of "spirituality."

So what is my Soul calling me to?
What is my "unique path" - my unique expression?
What is the Fire in my Soul?

They are yet to be discovered...

But there is a kind of Alchemical transformation
arising within...  I feel its Fire...

_/\_

Mystic Meandering

July 1, 2022

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

 

In Rhythm With Your Soul - John O'Donohue

Where you belong should always be worthy of your dignity.

You should belong first in your own interiority.  If you belong,
and if you are in rhythm with yourself and connected to that
deep, unique source within, then you will never be vulnerable
when your outside belonging is qualified, relativised, or taken
away.  You will still be able to stand.....on the ground of your
soul where you are not a tenant, where you are at home.

John O'Donohue
From: Anam Cara

I think that we are infinitely greater than our minds and we are

infinitely more than our images of ourselves.  One of the sad
things today is that so many people are frightened by the
wonder of their own presence.  They are dying to tie themselves
into a system, a role, or to an image, or to a predetermined
identity that other people have actually settled on for them.
This identity may be totally at variance with the wild energies
that are rising inside their souls.  Many of us get very afraid
and we eventually compromise.  We settle for something that
is safe, rather than engaging the danger and wildness that is
in our own hearts

John O'Donohue
From: Walking in Wonder

With thanks to Whiskey River

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

 

Divine Wind...

This body, the vehicle I inhabit,
needs deep rest...

Relief - from the constant stimulation of life and living -
and the unbalance that it brings...
Shutting out the "worldwind" that spins
 out of control around me;
Not obliged to enter its chaotic storms,
I turn to the rhythmic pace of the Soul...
The Holy Space...

Even my Soul needs quiet "shelter"...
Respite - from the endless sucking winds of the demands of
others who are lost in an addiction to themselves...
Empty shells wanting to be filled;
grasping at me, drowning in their dark, distorted shadow,
as they try to pull me under to save them from themselves -

like hungry ghosts...

And my Heart needs to feel the Stillness
at the Core of my Being - again;
to hear the comforting sound of the Divine Wind,
restoring me to
sanity and wellness of being;
whispering Life into my Heart,
as I surrender
to its soft, silent Breeze...

Mystic Meandering
January 12, 2022

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

 

Dancing with Life...

In moments of Solitude and Quiet
the life "characters" I've assumed -
fall away...

The defense mechanisms, beliefs, roles and identities
drop into the Quiet -
and the Eternal Perspective emerges...

unthinking happens...

Embracing the mystery and paradox of life,
I accept the totality of life experience;
not just the pathways of 
light and bliss and peace -
but the darker pathways,
with their shadows of the psyche,
without "spiritualizing" them...
Accepting the shadow side of life
as part of the Whole...

In the Quietude I listen to the "Oracle" of the Soul
that has imagery, poetry and music all its own.

With the innocence of a child -
open and spontaneous -
my Heart, hidden by the many masks I've worn,
melts through - hearing the music...

Unencumbered... Unconstrained... Undefined...
And dances with the innate Rhythm of Life again -
The Natural Rhythm,
as the world plays out its darker side.

Mystic Meandering

Aug. 29, 2021

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering

 

 

Grief is Sacred - Francis Weller

No one escapes suffering in this life.
None of us is exempt from loss, pain, illness and death.
How is it that we have so little understanding of these
essential experiences?  How is it that we have attempted to
keep grief separated from our lives and only begrudgingly
acknowledge its presence at the most obvious times, such
as a funeral?

'If sequestered pain made a sound,' Stephen Levine says,
'the atmosphere would be humming all the time.'

It is the accumulated losses of a lifetime that slowly weigh
us down - the times of rejection, the moments of isolation
when we felt cut off from the sustaining touch of comfort
and love.  It is an ache that resides in the heart, the faint echo
calling us back to the times of loss.  We are called back, not
so much to make things right, but to acknowledge what
happened to us.

Grief asks that we honor the loss and, in doing so, deepen
our capacity for compassion.  When grief remains unexpected,
however, it hardens, becomes as solid as stone.  We, in turn,
become rigid and stop moving in rhythm with the soul...

When our grief stagnates, we become fixed in place, unable
to move and dance with the flow of life.  Grief is part of
the dance.

As we begin to pay attention, we notice that grief is never 
far from our awareness.  We become aware of the many ways
it arrives in our daily lives.  It is the blue mood that greets us
upon waking.  It is the melancholy that shades the day in
muted tones.  It is the recognition of time's passing, the slow
emptying of our days.  It is the searing pain that erupts when
someone close to us dies....  It is the confounding grief when
our life circumstances are shattered by the unexpected.....

It is essential for us to welcome our grief, whatever form it
takes. When we do, we open ourselves to our shared
experiences in life. Opening to our sorrow connects us with
everyone, everywhere.  There is no gesture of kindness that is
wasted, no offering of compassion that is useless. 
We can be generous to every sorrow we see.
It is sacred work.

Francis Weller
from - The Wild Edge of Sorrow

with thanks to The Beauty We Love

~

Photo - Mystic Meandering