Don't Go Back to Sleep

The 13th century mystic, Rumi wrote:

 "The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell you.  Don't go back to sleep!
You must ask for what you really want.  Don't go back to sleep!
People are going back and forth across the doorsill where the two worlds touch,  
The door is round and open     Don't go back to sleep!”

It is so true that we can be more interested in keeping our habits then we are in our spiritual growth that we simply go back to sleep. When we are on the spiritual path it is difficult to remember that we live in a sea of infinite intelligence. Not only do we have access to it, but also it is pressing Itself into us, awakening us.

Last night was a phenomenon of a Super Blue Blood moon, a rare lunar eclipse that was visible here in the Americas for the first time in 152 years! It was visible at 4:51 AM our time.

I thought about setting my alarm but it turned out that I didn't need to set it. Directly outside my bedroom is a small parking area for guests in our community. At 3:45 AM someone's car caught fire. Before firemen arrived, water hoses were needed. My hose was the nearest and my quick-thinking neighbor already had it hooked up and running before I realized what was happening. Soon I was up and awake. The eclipse had not occurred yet.

So I watched the first part of the eclipse. Those of you who witnessed it were blessed with a feeling of awe and delight! Then I went back to sleep. My bedroom was reflecting the red of the moon. And I went back to sleep.

Rumi's poem reminds us that we are constantly bombarded by new spectacular ideas from every direction. Stay awake in every moment. If you miss a divine idea, the next one  is already present. Be still. Listen to the voice for God. Divine ideas return much more quickly than a super blue blood moon!
The link will take you to more on  the solar eclipse.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/31/world/super-blue-blood-moon-2018-intl/index.html

Promises and Commitments

How good is your word? Is your word, your commitment?

For people with integrity, our word is our bond. When we agree to do something we do it.

Is it true for you?

You probably keep your word to your friends and colleagues to employers  and employees.

But do you value your agreements with yourself? Do you keep your word to yourself?

This is an important aspect of the spiritual path.  Many people who have learned to put other people's needs ahead of their own, are great at keeping promises to others, but are really poor at giving themselves the same respect that they give others.

If this describes you, make a decision to stop it.

Sometimes our commitment is instinctual. A mother hummingbird sat on her nest for at least an hour at a time outside my front door. People were coming and going. And that sweet tiny ever-moving bird, sat. Why did she sit? I think she had a commitment to the new life that was attempting to burst forth from her.


This is a very short post for me because I need to keep some other agreements with myself.

I love the quotes by W.H. Murray,

 "Until one is committed,there is hesitancy, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation) there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans:that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too."

The quote is often followed by a couplet by Goethe: "Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it."

What one thing can you do today which would move you closer toward your vision? Commit to yourself to do it. Do it now. 

Another quote I love is from the mystic poet Rumi:

"Come, come, whoever you are. Wanderer, worshiper, lover of leaving. It doesn't matter. Ours is not a caravan of despair. Come, even if you have broken your vows a thousand times. Come, yet again, come, come."

A Dizzy Path to Consciousness Connection

"The children are acting like a bunch of whirling dervishes!!" I would tell my husband amid screaming and wild energy, thinking in my mind of the Tasmanian devil from Looney Tunes fame.

Well, this weekend I was schooled! During the after-Sunday-service Conscious Connection, September Warren, Conscious Connection leader and practioner, revealed that a whirling dervish is actually a sacred order of the Islamic Sufi tradition and was created by the centered, wise Rumi. And they still exist! The whirling dervishes' Sema Ritual dance, a seven-centuries-old tradition, is a sacred event.

September shared the science behind this traditional dance:
It is scientifically recognized that the fundamental condition of our existence is to revolve. There is no being or object which does not revolve, because all beings are comprised of revolving electrons, protons and neutrons in atoms.  All of these revolutions are natural and unconscious. But the human being possesses a mind and an intelligence which distinguishes him from other beings. Thus, the whirling dervish or samazen, intentionally and consciously participates in the shared revolution of other beings. (sourced from http://www.whirlingdervishes.org/whirlingdervishes.htm)

During Conscious Connection, September explained how to whirl and we did!

Left foot remains connected to the ground and the right foot facilitates the spin. 

The right arm reaches up to the heavens and the left palm points down to the Earth. 

Then you move counter-clockwise. 

Now, the true whirling dervishes also rotate around each other. So, imagine that you are planet Earth spinning on it's axis and rotating around the sun. That's exactly what the whirling dervishes look like. It's an amazing feat.

I will say, I found a true respect for these individuals who spin for more than a few seconds and at an amazing rate. After about 5 or 6 revolutions, I was feeling extremely dizzy. But, I did notice, in less than 30 seconds, an energy or vibration coming from the heavens, through me, down to the Earth. My fellow participant suggested the feeling of centrifugal force and maybe that's what it was or maybe it was a new realization of the sacredness of whirling. Either way, I felt something and it was really cool.

And that's exactly what Conscious Connection is all about. It's an opportunity to notice and touch the sacred and spiritual being within, using an experiential exercise. For me, Conscious Connection moves the spiritual ideas from my mind into my body, grounding me in the spiritual energy of life. Conscious Connection takes place after Sunday service at noon in the sanctuary and everyone is welcome to attend.

In life, there are no accidents. After contemplating the truth of the whirling dervishes, I now realize that maybe calling my children a sacred order of Rumi followers was more correct than incorrect. Maybe simply affirming their divinity in a moment of wild energy was absolutely perfect, a recognition of oneness with all life.

The Secret Turning

A secret turning in us

makes the universe turn.

Head unaware of feet,

and feet head. Neither cares.

They keep turning.

Rumi

Compiled by Coleman Barks, i.b.i.d

The Space Between

In the song, "The space between," by the Dave Matthews Band are the following lyrics:

The Space Between
What's wrong and right
Is where you'll find me hiding, waiting for you.

source: http://www.lyricsondemand.com/d/davematthewsbandlyrics/thespacebetweenlyrics.html

Interesting concept, there is a space that isn't right or wrong?  Is there such a place or "space"?  In science we're taught about experimental results compared to being in a vacuum.  The vacuum is where the conditions are perfect.  We also use the phrase, "All things being equal".  There is said to be a Zen proverb regarding music stating, "It's the silence between the notes that makes the music".

All these concepts come to that one thought of void, a space that is the "No-thing-ness", to quote Reverend Michael Bernard Beckwith.

The 13th century, Persian poet, Sufi mystic, Rumi, whose words transcend time, wrote:

Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing
and rightdoing there is a field.
I’ll meet you there.

In the Dave Matthews band version, there is a tone of wrongness and rightness, however, in Rumi's poem its equality.

This field, this silence, this space, this vacuum, this No-thing-ness is the I AM presence, the Oneness, the embodiment of Allness. 

Today, when encountering others, look for that space between, step into that awareness of what it feels like to not have to be right or wrong.