Tag: awareness

Between These Two Realities.

What creates our reality, my loves?

Is it the boundaries maintained within this physical space, or an aspect much deeper still? Is it the memory of those whose love is now ‘past’, or – is it the yearning of what might possibly be.

In our hearts, we know the answer. We feel it through to our very core, and it is this essence which makes us human.

The scales shift at times absent a ‘reason’; the inner voice begs a measure of promise.

And, here we stand between the two — knowing the only true reality is the one within us.

“They take the images outside of them for reality,” offers poet, Hermann Hesse. “and never allow the world within to assert itself.”

My darlings, on this day I wish you the blessing of knowing your one true reality, and the courage to engage this boundlessness within.

In peace…

Namaste ❤️

This Spaciousness of Being.

I remember having a conversation once with a dear friend.

He was experiencing the angst of newly forged circumstance; a move, a marriage, a child on the way. Enough to unsettle the heart of even the most experienced of ‘zen masters’ — though, ironically he wasn’t quite sure what to do.

“I know my fears are unfounded,” he said. “Logically, I understand the impermanence of these emotions. So, why then do I feel so trapped?”

That’s the curiosity of fear, my loves. Whether grounded in the roots of our past experience or completely irrational – the energy of fear still feels the same.

Knowing this, then how should we respond?

As with everything, my loves – healing begins with compassion, and a willingness to allow ourselves the blessing of this experience.

People change, paths unfold and new horizons lay always ahead. And our is to recognize the space within.

“Our buddha nature,” writes Sogyal Rinpoche. “Then, has an active aspect, which is our ‘inner teacher.’ From the very moment we became obscured, this inner teacher has been working tirelessly for us, tirelessly trying to bring us back to the radiance and spaciousness of our true being.”

Perhaps that’s the key, my loves? A return to the vastness of our own unobstructed being.

You see, even amidst the buckling of knees — there is still this space…

A space for the spirit to be truly free.

A little something to consider, wouldn’t you agree?

In peace…

Namaste ❤️

An Unimaginable Glory.

Every day, in so many ways – I am reminded.

Through the bustling of trees, and the courageous burst of honeyed apple blossoms delicately bearing witness to the legacy of ‘new’.

We are, at times, transformed by these subtleties which surround. And, absent the labors of troubled breath struggling to know this essence of ‘you.’

We were born once liberated -our sanctity of spirit, undeterred. Though, time had yielded an unforgiving paradigm – having forged new chains through human form.

We curse this challenge of transformation, forgetting its place in this greater good.

Oh, but if only we understood…

That what we once had, hasn’t left – merely changed; revealing an aspect of unimaginable glory.

Now, tell me darlings – what is it that reminds you today?

In peace, my loves…

Namaste ❤️

By Destiny or Choosing?

I had the honor once of attending a lecture given by famed physicist Michio Kaku. He was speaking to the theory of ‘multi-verse’ and our propensity to be singularly focused.

“All around you, there are hundreds of radio waves being broadcast from distant stations.” He spoke softly, though with bold assertion; as if to frame simply these complexities of being.

“At any given instant, your office or car or living room is full of these radio waves,” he shared. “However, if you turn on a radio, you can listen to only one frequency at a time; these other frequencies have decohered and are no longer in phase with each other.”

Although he was speaking to the plausibility of a “higher” dimension, I couldn’t help but to consider the spiritual implications.

As practitioners, we seek freedom from our emotional attachments; distancing ourselves from that which limits the depth of our human experience.

We cast aside these boundaries of label, losing ourselves within the patterns of star against sky — a quiet joy entering through the vastness of these much greater things.

Though we are surrounded by a multitude of ‘waves’, is there an opportunity to attune the mind to these subtleties of focus? To engage the divine through the simplicity of stillness?

A little something to consider, my loves — how much of this experience is that which we’ve chosen?

In peace…

Namaste ❤️

Opening to the Blessing of Awareness.

I was inspired this morning through the words of Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche. He was speaking about the essence of ego, and the need to shift our ‘reference point’.

“Without ego as our primary reference point,” he writes. “mind is naturally open, unconfused, and able to enjoy everything without judgment. In essence, mind is unobstructed and free from ignorance, with the potential to experience everything in a fresh way.”

So often, our practice is preoccupied with the need to deny our ego. We silence, we crush, we attempt to transcend – all the while lending additional focus.

How, then, might we establish this balance between thinking mind and open-hearted awareness?

First and foremost, we must abandon this prospect of ‘chase’. Awareness can not be forced, rather – it must be revealed.

And, I believe we’ve all experienced pockets of unfettered awareness – moments which have stolen our breath away, leaving us powerless to argue the complexities of mind.

Whether through the simplicity of nature – a butterfly’s ascent to peony’s edge, the whispering of wind through Sequoia trees; or the magnitude of life’s much greater moments – the birth of a child, the loss of someone dear…we are inevitably transfixed.

Awareness has shifted absent our ‘doing.’

This is the example we must carry forward; to allow ourselves this space to become lost for a while.

“Revealing this potential,” he shares. “is the purpose of the practice of self-reflection – and this is our natural inheritance.”

My darlings, today I wish you the blessing of unimpeded awareness, and the patience to simply allow its arrival.

In peace…

Namaste ❤️

This Dance of Light.

“These trees are magnificent,” the poet Rilke once observed. “but even more magnificent is the sublime and moving space between them, as though with their growth it too increased.”

My darlings, the ‘space between’ is calling me; through wooded path and timbered trail, and simply to find my place again.

Not even the tortured burn of a body failed can keep me; for faith shall serve destiny’s will.

And I am made whole through these lumberings of journey.

Neither the stinging whip of ‘unfurled branch’ nor the labyrinth of twisted root could deter; a heart’s resolve is measured through doing.

“So we are grasped, by that which we could not grasp,
at such great distance, so fully manifest—
and it changes us, even when we do not reach it,
into something that, hardly sensing it, we already are…”

Isn’t it amazing, my loves – that throughout all of this journey? In the end, that which you are seeking is you.

In peace…

Namaste ❤️

The Simplest of Rules.

Someone once asked me my “instructions for life.”

I must admit, I was initially taken aback — I mean, such absurdity to be limited by a function of rules.

Those who know my heart understand the true depth of my spirit; that of a wandering soul wishing only adventure.

That’s the challenge of life, is it not? To remain free in spite of the circumstances which may occasionally surround.

“Rules and responsibilities,” shares author, Neil Gaiman. “these are the ties that bind us. We do what we do, because of who we are. If we did otherwise, we would not be ourselves.”

Having said that, then perhaps there is one rule to life:

“Slow down, let it go and follow your heart.”

Good morning, my darlings…wishing you happiness for this day.

In peace…

Namaste ❤️

The First Step of Journey.

I had the blessing once of watching a sea turtle on her journey.

Newly hatched, she waited for the cover of night to engage the shifting sands — knowing only the sound of wave to gauge the depth of sea.

“Waking up this morning, I smile,” shares Thich Nhat Hanh. “Twenty-four brand new hours. I vow to live deeply each moment and look at all beings with the eyes of compassion and love.”

And I could see the same reflected as moonlight in her eyes; her softened grace yielding only to determination.

Three long days from hatchling to shore; each lumbering step a testimony to purpose.

Though ours is but a fleeting glimpse, we are truly gifted — the quality of our lives determined by our capacity to live deeply.

Another 20 years, they say, before she’ll finally return to this space — wishing only the heart of adventure to those of similar virtue.

A little something to consider, my loves ~

In peace…

Namaste ❤️

As the Morning’s Glory Unfolds.

I was reminded of a story I had written many years ago and watching the morning glories unfold from my window.

It was the first time I recall being truly aware; awakened to the fullness of that very moment.

In my stillness, I could appreciate its depth of colors amplified through the grace of misted dew. And the cardinal’s vigilant gaze, mindful to the impermanence of nature’s view.

Most assume mindfulness to be an ‘all at once’ sort of revelation. Though, I believe it to be manifested within these pockets in between; fleeting glimpses into heart of simplicity.

As the venerable Thich Nhat Hanh once observed, “the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don’t even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child — our own two eyes. All is a miracle.”

My darlings, today I wish you the blessing of this moment – and the opportunity to reflect on the greater miracles which surround.

In peace…

Namaste ❤️

This Moment of Reflection.

I watched a little one playing ball today; his cheeks were flushed a fiery red and his hair, wild with adventure.

He was captivated simply by the thrill of living; his beads of sweat serving a measure of joy.

Absent to him were the troubles of world; of waging wars over differences of opinion.

In fact…

I’d venture a bet he was thinking merely of reward – a splash of cool water ‘straight from the hose.’

Nature shares its tidings through the grace of her simplicity; her light shining through us, as sunshine amidst the trees.

“This grand show is eternal,” shared adventurist John Muir. “It is always sunrise somewhere…each in its turn, as the round earth rolls.”

My darlings, on this day I wish you peace within each and every step, and the wisdom to reflect on the blessings of this world.

In peace…

Namaste ❤️