May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

Blessings, dear friends around the world!

Throughout our journey into the Silence, we experience new landscapes, the beautiful country of our soul. Here our minds are stilled and we "know without knowing," a clarity beyond our little selves in no-space and no-time. Our creativity expands as our soul is attuned and aligned with our higher Self, where our soul is at One with All. These may be but fleeting moments; yet, as we dive deeper into the Ocean of Love that stirs us and ever embraces us, our soul expands, our life becomes rich and full even under difficult circumstances, our fears diminish in the presence of Love. We become beneficial co-creators as we engage with the world. Let us be mindful, as Meister Eckhart reminds us, that "God is not found in the soul by adding anything, but by a process of subtraction." For, our souls thrive in silence, stillness, simplicity, and times of solitude.
 

Precious Memories

Tennessee Ernie Ford | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

Precious memories, unseen angels,
sent from somewhere to my soul;
how they linger, ever near me,
and the sacred past unfold.

Precious memories, how they linger,
how they ever flood my soul,
in the stillness of the midnight,
precious, sacred scenes unfold.

~ as sung by Tennessee Ernie Ford

The Vale of Soul-Making

John Keats | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

Call the earth if you please,
"The Vale of soul-making."

~ John Keats

Marla Says Cruel Things that She Doesn't Mean

Aryeh L. Stollman | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

Marla says cruel things that she doesn’t mean. That’s how she deals with her painful life. Most of us do not understand that we might see each other only for a brief few times in a single lifetime and yet be eternal friends. Marla is drawn to your soul, Alexander. Your people have the most dazzling and vivid souls. Since Marla has always been so very close to that other world, where only soul exists, she is able to see and love your soul.

~ from THE FAR EUPHRATES by Aryeh L. Stollman

Spirituality Is an Awakening to the Inner Reality of Our Being

Sri Auribindo | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

Spirituality is, in its essence, an awakening to the inner reality of our being, to a spirit, self, soul which is other than our mind, life, and body; an inner aspiration to know, to feel, to be that, to enter into contact with the greater Reality beyond and pervading the universe which inhabits also our own being.

 
~ from THE LIFE DIVINE by Sri Auribindo

The soul's natural inclination to love beauty is the trap God uses

Simone Weil | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

The soul’s natural inclination to love beauty is the trap God most frequently uses in order to win it and open it to the Breath from on high.

 
~ Simone Weil

The soul's love for God is God's love for the soul

Gerald May | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

If we are in intimate union with God in the center,
then the soul’s desire is Love’s desire.
The soul’s love for God is God’s love for the soul.

 
~ from DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL by Gerald May

These valleys are what my Beloved is to me

St. John of the Cross | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

Lonely valleys are quiet, pleasant, cool, shady, and flowing with fresh waters; in the variety of their groves and in the sweet song of the birds, they afford abundant recreation and delight to the senses, and in their solitude and silence they refresh the soul and give rest. These valleys are what my Beloved is to me.

 
~ from THE SPIRITUAL CANTICLE by St. John of the Cross

The soul is the totality of your love

Glenda Green | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

The soul is the totality of your love, awareness, experience, ability, memory, emotions, and potential which compromise your immortality. Your mind is the recorder and administrator. In this capacity the mind is a useful and important asset to your existence. But it was never built to be the commander. At the center of your soul is the Sacred Heart. This is the point at which you are one with God... Your heart is centered in a viewpoint of infinity established by your Creator. Thus, the heart honors your individuality, the oneness of God, and the integrated unity of all that is

 

 

~ from LOVE WITHOUT END by Glenda Green

All living souls in the world cumulatively make up part of a universal soul

David Cooper | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

Just as each soul spark of every living cell in our bodies makes up that which we call our soul, so too do all living souls in the world cumulatively make up part of a universal soul. Indeed, mysticism teaches us that the soul giving us vitality is connected to, and draws sustenance from, a universal soul.

~ from GOD IS A VERB by David Cooper

The gold that was my hair has turned silently to gray

Marina Tsvetaeva | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

The gold that was my hair has turned
silently to gray. Don’t pity me!
Everything’s been realized,
in my breast all’s blended and attuned.

-- Attuned, as all of distance blends
In the smokestack moaning on the outskirts.
And Love! A soul’s been realized:
The most deeply secret of your ends. 
 
~ Marina Tsvetaeva

The soul is not in the body

Hildegard of Bingen | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

The soul is not in the body;
the body is in the soul.

~ Hildegard von Bingen

Everyone has a soul

Melinda Ribner | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

Everyone has a soul . . . a gift from God. We are born with it, and we cannot destroy it. We can, however, create barriers that limit contact with our own souls. Some people are more in touch with their soul because they take time to nourish it. Those who nourish the soul, who experience themselves as pure soul, often have a spiritual radiance . . . and they are happy: a good reason to meditate in the silence.

~ Melinda Ribner

Become one yourself

Marcus Aurelius | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)
Waste no more time
talking about great souls
and how they should be.
 
Become one yourself.
~ Marcus Aurelius

Confusion still exists concerning the nature and functions of the soul

White Eagle | May 2009 (Vol. XXII, No. 5)

Confusion still exists concerning the nature and functions of the soul and also of the spirit of humankind. Once spirit comes down to dwell in the flesh it starts to create what is called a soul, for soul is that part of our being which is built up through experiences undergone by our tender inner self during incarnation. Soul can further be described as the feminine aspect of our life, the mother principle. The soul of the world is made up of the feeling of the world; the soul of a nation is created by the feeling of the people of that nation.

~ from The Living Word of St. John by White Eagle