Hi Everyone,
Are you hungry?
I was able to Zoom with a few of you since I last wrote. It is good to see faces and have some contact in this new weird world we are all living in. Please don’t hesitate to set up an appointment if you would like to chat by phone or Zoom.
I am getting my Eastern Philosophy class together for the fall semester and in doing so I have come across some cool quotes that I figured I would share, hoping at least some of you would find them helpful.
“Your own Self-Realization is the greatest service you can render the world.” Sri Ramana Maharshi
I like this quote because it reminds me that even here in a fairly isolated condition, I can be of service to the world. I think of it this way. We have changed laws regarding slavery, child abuse, and many other painful issues. And yet…the madness seems to continue in one form or another. Why? I think it is because not enough people have changed on the inside.
I am trying to wake up by the simple mindfulness practice of being present. Just that. The effort to come back to the present moment and not get lost in the madness of past and future is one way.
“We are human beings, beings whose fundamental food is the experience of truth.” Jacob Needleman
I think of food for the body, food for the mind, but what is this “fundamental food?” The hint is that it is not ideas. It is an experience. Think of your peak experiences, times when you were in “the Zone.” Needleman is suggesting that these moments feed us in ways we don’t truly understand.
“What is most necessary for people and what is given us in great abundance, are experiences, especially experiences of the forces within us. This is our most essential food, our most essential wealth. If we consciously receive all this abundance, the universe will pour into us what is called life in Judaism, spirit in Christianity, light in Islam, power in Daoism.” Jacob Needleman
The key here is “consciously.” We can receive this essential food only in the present moment. So let’s have a feast! Are you hungry? I know I am. Come feast with me! Here. Now. One breath at a time.
To Self-Realization!
Apophat