Why do we always think that happiness is to be found in the future, or when this or that happens,
and not seek it in the life that we have or in the here and now?
I was passionate,
filled with longing,
I searched
far and wide.
But the day
that the Truthful One
found me,
I was at home.
Lal Ded, (Mother Lalla), 1320 – 1392, Kasmiri Hindu poet and mystic
The practice of silence nourishes vigilance, self-knowledge, letting go, and the compassionate embrace of all whom we would otherwise be quick to condemn. Gradually we realize that whatever it is in us that sees the mind games we play, is itself free of all such mind games and is utterly silent, pure, vast, and free. When we realize that we are the awareness and not the drama unfolding in our awareness, our lives are freer, simpler, more compassionate.
Fear remains frightening but we are not afraid of fear.
Pain still hurts, but we are not hurt by pain.
from Martin Laird’s beautiful book, Into the Silent Land: The Practice of Contemplation
photo Per Ola Wiberg
I heard a man say a poem once,
he said,
‘All that lives is holy.’
John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath
The Lord has spread the delicate net of his presence across the world.
See how He gets under your skin, inside your bones.
If you can’t see Him while you’re alive,
don’t expect a special vision once you’re dead.
Lal Ded (Mother Lalla), 1320 – 1392, Kashmiri Hindu poet and mystic
When experience is viewed in a certain way,
it presents nothing but doorways into the soul.
Jon Kabat Zinn
photo Bjoertvedt
Every day we have moments when we get a glimpse into the deep beauty of the world. It may be as simple as a shared conversation, a glass of wine, a walk in nature. However, sometimes we are so preoccupied that we do not have the time or the space to notice.
You know what the issue is with the world?
Everyone wants some magical solution to their problem
and [yet] everyone refuses to believe in magic
Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
photo phil champion
