I have no power of miracle
other than the attainment of quiet happiness.
I have no tact
except the exercise of gentleness
The Oracle of Sumuyoshi, Shinto Shrine, Osaka, Japan.
Photo Bill Nicholls
Tag: balance
Not needing to go far
I was reminded this morning, when visiting the Cistercian monastery near my house, that today is the feast of St Augustine. Even in his quieter time people preferred distraction to awareness, and sought happiness outside, rather than realizing that its roots are within and in the ordinary.
Men go abroad to wonder at the heights of mountains,
at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of the rivers,
at the vast compass of the ocean,
at the circular motions of the stars,
and they pass by themselves without wondering.
St Augustine, Confessions, c 397
photo abxbay
Ordinary
The sacred is in the ordinary…
it is to be found in one’s daily life, in one’s neighbors, friends, and family, in one’s own backyard…
travel may be a flight from confronting the scared — this lesson can be easily lost.
To be looking elsewhere for miracles is to me a sure sign of ignorance that everything is miraculous
Abraham Maslow, American Psychologist, 1908 – 1970
photo shopping trollies ireland by ardfern
Seeing life as a gift
Every morning I vow to be grateful for the precious gift of my human birth. It’s a big gift, and it includes a lot of stuff I never particularly wanted for my birthday. Some of the things in the package I wish I could exchange for a different size or color. But I want to find out what it means to be a human being — my curiosity remains intense even as I get older — so I say thanks for the whole thing. It’s all of a piece.
In thirteenth-century Japan, Zen Master Dogen wrote, ‘The Way is basically perfect and all-pervading.’ I’m already in it. We are all in it; we are made of it.
Susan Moon
photo mattbuck
A bigger picture
The Comet Jacques passed over Ireland these last few days, but unfortunately cloud cover made it difficult to experience this “once in a lifetime” event. It will not be back for another 20,000 years. The night sky tends to put things into perspective:
If people sat outside and looked at the stars each night I’ll bet they’d live a lot differently.
When you look into infinity you realize that there are more important things than what people do everyday.
Calvin in Bill Watterson‘s Calvin and Hobbes
Begin Again
Everything changes. You can make
A fresh start with your final breath.
But what has happened has happened. And the water
You once poured into the wine cannot be
Drained off again.
What has happened has happened. The water
You once poured into the wine cannot be
Drained off again, but
Everything changes. You can make
A fresh start with your final breath.
Bertholt Brecht, Sometimes
photo Scmtb49
