Sunday, May 25, 2008

Call to Silence & Opening Meditation

“We do not see things as they are. We see them as we are.”
from The Talmud, as quoted by Elizabeth Lesser, page 130

“No problem can be solved from the same consciousness that created it.”
Albert Einstein, as quoted by Elizabeth Lesser, p 131

Readings

“The ego wants to be a ‘Republican’ or a ‘liberal,’ a ‘New Yorker’ or a ‘Midwesterner.’ It wants to judge things as right or wrong. It wants to be ‘for’ something or ‘against’ something. It does not want to delve more deeply into the full picture of reality.” (page 146)

“If we regard spirituality as a fearless investigation of reality, then we’ll find that all of our experiences is within its boundaries.” (43)

“... my meditation practice is simple. While it is surely informed by all of my study and experiences, I would be mocking the real meaning of meditation if I represented it as an exotic journey. Immersion into so many forms of meditation has led me deeper and deeper into the most essential core of all of them: mindfulness – a nondenominational form of practice that teaches moment-to-moment awareness, a kind of falling in love with naked reality.” (93)

“I have found that no matter where my searching has taken me, it always leads me back to my need to face my own true nature, and since I am a human being, my human nature. We may choose a beautiful and moral way to know God, replete with an interesting theology, an engaging community, and a well-conceived set of practices. We may look far from our own culture and adopt a path that includes ancient wisdom, meditation, and foreign mantras and dress. Perhaps we look closer to home, and embrace a religious tradition that teaches more familiar prayers and concepts. It doesn’t matter what path we take toward spiritual realization. If we by pass our humanness, each path leads back to the same question: What are we hiding from in ourselves and in each other?” (37)

“Opening up the secret of our human nature, revealing to ourselves and to each other our deep and soulful longings, our fear and sadness, our joy and wonder, is the critical step on the spiritual path. It is the step that makes the difference between living our own, real spirituality and just acquiring someone else’s beliefs…Thus a critical step on the spiritual path, and one that we will take over and over, is to let ourselves experience spiritual hunger long enough and deep enough to follow it to its source…the Source of our spiritual hunger resides in a place deep within us. It is a quiet and faithful place and if we learn how to access its powerful wisdom, it can become our most dependable friend.” (37-38)

A Reading form the Gospel of Mary – (Karen King translation)

When the Blessed One had said these things, he greeted them all, “Peace be with you!” he said. “Acquire my peace within yourselves! Be on your guard so that no one deceives you by saying, ‘Look over here!’ or ‘Look over there!’ for the child of true humanity exists within you. Follow it! Those who search for it will find it.

Call to Conversation



The Opening Meditation is inspired by Elizabeth Lesser, co founder and senior adviser of the Omega Institue in Rhinebeck, New York.

The Readings are found in Lesser's The Seeker's Guide: Making Your Life a Spiritual Adventure (New York: Villard) 1999.