Five simple rules for happiness

1. Free your heart from hatred.

2.  Free your mind from worries.

3.  Live simply.

4.  Give more.

5.  Expect less.

                                   --Anon.

THE FISH AND I WILL CHAT

Once 

In a while

The fish and I will chat

In the silent

Language:

We look

Into each other’s eyes and smile,

And they often

Say,

“Hey Hafiz

We see you know the joy of 

Our existence,

We see you have discovered how meditation

Can free you from land,

Mind, debts, alimony–the 

Whole works,

And like

Us

Let you carouse all day 

In

God.”

From: “The Gift”

Translated by Daniel Ladinsky

Hafiz' ecstatic poetry

Hafiz, a Sufi poet, expressed in poetry love for the divine, and the intoxicating oneness of union with it.  Along with many Sufi masters, he uses wine as the symbol for love. The intoxication that results from both is why it is such a fitting comparison. Hafiz spoke out about the hypocrisy and deceit that exists in society, and was more outspoken in pointing this out than many poets similar to him. He lived in south-central Iran in the 1300’s A.D.

I Will Hire You as a Minstrel

Take one of my tears,

Throw it into the ocean

And watch the salt in the wounds

Of this earth and men begin to disappear.

Take one of my tears

And cradle it in your palm.

Mount a great white camel

And carry my love into every desert,

Paying homage to every Prophet

Who has ever walked in our world.

O take one of my tears

And stop weeping only for sadness,

For there is so much More to this life

Than you now understand.

Take one of my tears

And become like the Happy One,

O like the Happy One --

Who now lives Forever

Within me.

When a drop from my Emerald Sea

Touches your soul's mouth,

It will dissolve everything but your Joy

And an Eternal Wonder.

Then,

The Beloved will gladly hire you

As His minstrel

To go traveling about this world,

Letting everyone upon this earth

Hear

The Beautiful Names of God

Resound in a thousand chords!

Hafiz himself is singing tonight

In Resplendent Glory,

For the cup in my heart

Has revealed the Beloved's Face,

And I have His oath in writing

That He will never again depart.

0 Hafiz, take one of your tears,

For you are weeping like a golden candle-

Throw one tear into the Ocean of your own verse

And let the wounds

Of every lover of God who kneels in prayer

And comes close to your words

Begin, right now,

To disappear.

From: "I Heard God Laughing - Renderings of Hafiz" 
Translated by Daniel Ladinsky

Grandfather Fire

Some reflections from a weekend on the foggy, windblown Oregon coast where Claire and I went last month to listen to her brother’s jazz/funk band (Blue Paradox) play for the Sacred Fire Community and to listen to Grandfather Fire, a timeless Elemental Being who speaks through the body of David Wylie a Huichol trained American: 

http://keepsthefire.org/davidswork.html

The Sacred Fire Community (http://www.sacredfirecommunity.org/) is an international group of 600 or so people who gather to reconnect to each other and the world through the Sacred Spirit of Fire. Once a year the community has a reunion in a natural setting to celebrate life, dance to trance-like rhythms from the band, and for the high point of the weekend, listen to Grandfather Fire speak.

In the few years that I’ve been a part of this community, I’ve never seen any mind-altering substances or alcohol used by anyone. It’s strongly discouraged and totally unnecessary. I know that when David goes into a trance and relinquishes his body to Grandfather, the only drugs he uses are very long, strong cigars and strong, hot chocolate, both of which he consumes like his life depended on them.

Claire, my brother-in-law, Rob, and I sat under the great smoky tent for nearly three hours while a light Oregon mist fell outside and questions were asked of this wise and humorous being. In a deep, raspy voice (totally unlike David's, which is a bit higher), Grandfather answered questions from a point of view that very much seemed older than 'history' itself. 


Most of the questions that weekend had to do with the land we were on at the time: its history; the history of the native people who lived there; the trees, vegetation, minerals, volcanos, placement of the rivers and the 'purpose' of all of these earth forms. It was like getting a glimpse into the distant past that was spellbinding and ‘enlightening’. I asked Grandfather what changes might we expect as the Mayan calendar comes to a close in the year 2012. He chuckled and said (basically) that it's just a threshold that we'll all cross over into a different kind of energy.

Some years ago, I did my master’s thesis in counseling on “Shamanism and Healing”, considered a bit far out at the time, even for this California university I attended, but I argued successfully that I’d do a scholarly work, which I think I did. I’ve always had more than a passing interest in shamanism and in 1985 received an powerful healing from Don Lucio, a Huichol shaman in Mexico (who coincidentally trained David Wylie a few years later). 

I don’t see any conflict with the 'varieties of religious experience' which, for me, include: Roman Catholicism (from my childhood), Esoteric Christianity, Tibetan Buddhism, Sufism, and the New Age path of the Ascended Masters, St. Germain, chief among them.

The Salamander and the Falcon

  

The lowly salamander casts a suspicious and envious eye at the graceful falcon, gliding on the warm updrafts rising from the stone ovens she calls home.

The falcon isn't aware that the salamander is hungry. It probably never occurs to a predator that its prey could be hungry too. The salamander watches the falcon as he makes smaller and smaller circles around her. But she's plotting a feathery meal should the Lord of the Skies ever come too close.

Growing hungrier by the minute and thinking that, although the salamander is only an appetizer, he'd better grab it before it gets away and he has no meal. He dives down at lightening speed straight at the slow moving, orange and black salamander. Their eyes meet, and in an unplanned instant, they fall madly in love with each other. 


How could this happen? And yet it did. They were truly in love, and both very hungry.
    --YM

Learning about St. Germain

Saint Germain will not be found in the List of Saints of the Catholic Church. He is referred to as an Ascended Master. The following is from Wikipedia:

The Ascended Masters are believed to be spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans, but who have undergone a process of spiritual transformation. The term "Ascended Master" was first introduced in 1934 with the publication of Unveiled Mysteries by Guy Ballard in The "I AM" Activity.

I feel that I was 'guided' to learn about St. Germain. Two weeks ago, I wandered around a local bookstore and zeroed in on a book on prayer that mentioned St. Germain. Then I recalled buying a small book on him last year in Mt. Shasta. I pulled it from my bookshelf and that led to the Unveiled Mysteries, which is Vol. 1 of numerous books.

I'm pretty excited about the direction this is heading and am meditating twice a day on what is called "The 'I AM' Presence":
http://www.saintgermainfoundation.org/body2.htm