July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)

Nan Merrill

BLESSED BE, dear friends! May you pause these summer days to bask in solitude and silence. They will refresh your soul! for, Love's sacred Spark is lit in the secret space of the soul, the innermost depths of silence, where the Divine Fire makes its hearth.

soul is the substance of the universe

Joan Borysenko | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)
To nourish the soul means to become kinder, more compassionate, wiser, and more loving, often through the making of difficult choices that foster growth rather than safety. The nourishment and growth of the soul is very reason for human life. When we nourish the soul we nourish God, increasing the abundance of the life that we can see – our children, or society – and the levels of life we don't see at all. In a larger sense, soul is the substance of the universe, knowing itself and growing itself.
~ from HANDBOOK OF THE SOUL by Joan Borysenko

How the soul finds the path

Mahatma Gandhi | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)
In the attitude of silence the soul finds the path in a clearer light, and what is elusive and deceptive resolves itself into crystal clearness. Our life long and arduous quest after Truth and soul requires inward restfulness to attain its full height.
~ Mahatma Gandhi

In the center of Love's embrace is the circle of the soul

Joan Ohanneson | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)
In the center of Love's embrace is the circle of the soul and the body. For just as the Word of God penetrates all creation, so does the soul penetrate the whole body like wind flowing through a house or like a sower seeding fertile ground or like a mother soothing her crying babe. Yet all these wonder are held in the arms of Love an are linked in a delicate balance in a universe creted to be of service to humanity so men and women can work with it.
~ from SCARLET MUSIC: A Life of Hildegard of Bingen by Joan Ohanneson

The voice of God speaks but of the soul

Alfred Wolfsohn | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)

It had never been my intention to discover something new. I wa simply forced to follow the call of a voice. Now I know; it was the voice of God I wanted to hear, the voice I divined as a child, of which I dreamt when I read in the Old Testament that it sounded not in the wind, not in the earthquake, not in the fire, but that it was a gentle whisper. The voice of God speaks but of the soul, the soul speaks but of life, and as he soul means life, God means life itself, the beginning and end of a gigantic current which flows in eternal movement, in time and space, beyond time and space, and beyond any judgment.

~ from ORPHEUS by Alfred Wolfsohn

The oftimes disowned inner guardian of our lives

Susan C. McElroy | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)
I have come to understand soul as the unseen, oftimes disowned inner guardian of our lives, a force weaving together the threads of heart, mind, and spirit that fashions us into an integrated piece of work.
~ Susan C. McElroy

Your soul suffers if you live superficially.

Albert Schweitzer | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)
You know of the disease called sleeping sickness. There also exists a sleeping sickness of the soul. Its most dangerous aspect is that one is unaware of its coming. That is why you have to be careful. As soon as you notice the slightest sign of indifference, the moment you become aware of the loss of a certain seriousness, of longing, of enthusiasm and zest, take it as a warning: your soul suffers if you live superficially.
~ Albert Schweitzer

Faith lengthens the soul

Isaac of Stella | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)

Faith lengthens the soul, charity widens it, hope gives it height.

~ Isaac of Stella

The rainbow soul

Anonymous | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)

The soul would have no rainbow had the eyes no tears.

~ Minquass tribe proverb

The soul of the universe

Anonymous | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)

The soul of the universe is never seen;
  its voice alone is heard ...
It has a gentle voice like a woman,
  a voice so fine and gentle that
  even children cannot become afraid.
What it says is,
  "Be not afraid of the universe."

~ an Alaskan adage or teaching

In the school of adoration

Douglas Steere | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)
In the school of adoration the soul learns why the approach to every other goal had left it restless.
~ Douglas Steere

How to stay connected to my soul

Angeles Arrien | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)
To help my stay connected to my soul, I begin each day by spending an hour in nature. Every day I give gratitude; every day I meditate. One day a month I devote to silence and reflection. Usually I fast on this day; it's a whole day of being, and of listening to my inner guidance. There is no doing. I literally either walk in silence or sit in silence listening. These practices help open my creative fires to the mysteries of the soul.
~ from "Gateway to the Soul" by Angeles Arrien

Soul of the community

Robert A. Powell | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)
Since early times, the Holy Soul was known to the people of Israel as the Shekinah. She brought peace and harmony into the community, working into the "soul of the community." Shekinah also means "Divine Presence," and he most direct and immediate experience of the Holy Soul or the Shekinah is the presence of a sense of peace and harmony prevailing on the soul level – a kind of "overlighting" from the community of souls gathered together.
~ from THE MOST HOLY TRINOSOPHIA by Robert A. Powell

You have found your soul friend

John O'Donohue | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)

According to Celtic spiritual tradition, the soul shines all around the boy like a luminous cloud. When you are very open – appreciative and trusting – with another person, your two souls flow together. This deeply felt bond with another person means you have found an ANAM CARA or "soul friend." Your ANAM CARA always beholds your light and beauty, and accepts you for who you truly are.

~ from ANAM CARA by John O'Donohue

Attending to our souls

Anonymous | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)

We allow loss of soul awareness at our own peril and that of humanity and planet Earth! We can only become authentic individuals by attending to our souls throughout our lives.

~ Anonymous

The glorious sound of a soul waking up

Hafiz | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)

What is this precious love and laughter
Budding in our hearts?
It is the glorious sound
Of a soul waking up!

~ Hafiz

If we are willing to sit quietly and wait for a while

Parker Palmer | July-August 2001 (Vol. XIV, No. 7)

If we want to support each other's inner lies, we must remember a simple truth. The human soul does not want to be fixed, it wants simply to be seen and heard. If we want to see and hear a person's soul, there is another truth we must remember. The soul is like a wild animal – tough, resilient, and yet shy. When we go crashing through the woods shouting for it to come out so we can help it, the soul will stay in hiding. But if we are willing to sit quietly and wait for a while, the soul may show itself.

~ from THE COURAGE TO TEACH by Parker Palmer