Aligning with Grace

Here are some recent quotes from The Inner Journey on cultivating a greater sense of awareness, acceptance, and appreciation... "Few are those who see with their own eyes and feel with their own hearts." - Albert Einstein "Mindfulness means moment-to-moment, nonjudgmental awareness. It is cultivated by refining our capacity to pay attention, intentionally, in the present moment, and then sustaining that attention over time as best we can. In the process, we become more in touch with our life as it is unfolding." - Myla and Jon Kabat-Zinn "It is permissible to take life's blessings with both hands provided thou dost know thyself prepared in the opposite event to take them just as gladly. This applies to food and friends and kindred, to anything God gives and takes away... As long as God is satisfied do thou rest content. If he is pleased to want something else of thee, still rest content." - Meister Eckhart "Sometimes what seems like surrender ...

I go down to the river this morning and it is cold... I do my Lovingkindness meditations and my Reiki meditations as well - chanting the Reiki mantra and then reflecting on the first precept: "Just for today, do not anger..." I think of how much more is implied - do not feel anger - or sadness, or separation - for it is all illusion...I think of how the cultivation of compassion is the appropriate response to everything... I hear a voice deep inside that reminds me that everything is within... I hear the voice of the Divine ever so gently whispering in my heart: "I will be with you until the end of time... You are never alone..." So much more that I hear - it is all beautiful and breathtaking...I listen - not wanting to miss a single word... And then I realize - I have not been cold for the entire time I have been sitting...Only when I am ready to depart do I feel it once again... I end with this poem shared by Oprah during her webcast with Eckhart Tolle this week: ...

Last night I took my last yoga class of the session - and today I taught my own last class of the session... My teacher came full circle and ended with the same principle that we began the session with - opening to grace... She encouraged us to engage all of the shoulder principles in poses - and then to broaden in the back of our hearts and body - opening the doors to grace... At the end she told us that she did not teach us anything that was not already engraved within our hearts... I thought of this, as I taught my own class of beginners - that were no longer beginners themselves. Their sun salutations and standing poses were exquisite as they moved gracefully from pose to pose... I also thought of a newsletter I received which stated that: "April is about flowing with change...It is a time to plant seeds, and to put our energy toward that which we wish to manifest, and to continue to clear out old patterning... Blessings abound in the most difficult lessons, and so we learn to...

In the midst of so much busyness - I hear a voice inside me that says - Go down to the river and receive what you need... The sky is overcast - it has been drizzling, but it has stopped now, and the sun is trying to peak through... I look out at the river and hear this line in my head: "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want..." I laugh, because of all of the psalms, it is my least favorite - and it is always used in funerals... I have joked in the past that I do not want this psalm recited at mine - just as I do not want "Amazing Grace" sung either... But I contemplate the words of this psalm - and for the first time they fill and comfort my heart... The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want... He leads beside still waters, He restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for His name's sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil, for you are with me... You prepare a table before me... my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall ...

Yesterday I had the pleasure of spending the day with Todd Norian, a gifted Anusara Yoga teacher, for a workshop on arm balances and backbends, and another on therapeutics. This morning, as I was reviewing my notes, I delighted in the beauty and simplicity of his insights and the wonderful experiences I had yesterday in the local Anusara community. In the morning, I shared with a wonderful teacher some of the misalignments and pains I experienced in my body. She made sure that Todd came around and worked with me in several assists that shed a lot of light and insight into my practice. I was also able to partner up with other experienced teachers who worked with me. I was so touched by the love and compassion and encouragement that was so selflessly extended to me. Though as Todd noted, all were being supportive of one another. Here are some of things that Todd shared: Why do angels fly? Because they take themselves lightly...You have to be willing to be silly in practicing these chal...

The conclusion to yesterday's entry by Kabir Helminski: Rumi was was left with a profound, continuing awareness of the awesome love at the heart of existence... Despite his great loss, Rumi was intoxicated with the realization that love was everywhere and in everything, working its own purpose... Rumi also had this sober intelligence that was capable of formulating a wisdom teaching, which would become a guide for the soul's journey... And the point of every story and poem, the essence of every page, is a reality not necessarily evident to the senses, nor the intellect, but apparent to the heart: That all of existence is the creation of love, and the purpose of that love is to reveal itself in the full magnitude of its beauty and generosity. ...He did reveal that love is the only teacher and that the lessons of love are the most significant in our lives. He demonstrated that one could live through the greatest tragedy imaginable and still trust and be true to that love... The P...

Again, here is a continuing excerpt from the article: "Rumi: The Way of the Lover," by Kabir Helminski, in the April 2008 Issue of Spirituality and Health : Rumi knew deep in his heart, that the love he was experiencing was leading him back to the deepest level of himself and his own intimate connection with the divine... Rumi and Shams gave themselves...to a spiritual relationship - not a relationship in which one ego fed and flattered..but a relationship that would tear each other down to his essence. Shams knew the secret of love is in...dying. You have suffered much agony, but you are still behind a veil, because dying was the one thing needed, and you haven't fulfilled it. Your agony will not end until you die... Let your candle be extinguished in the dawn! Know that as long as our little stars are visible, the Sun of the world has not appeared. Wield the mace against yourself: shatter egoism to pieces. The encounter of Rumi and Shams is something rare in human spiri...