October 1992 (Vol. V, No. 9)

Nan Merrill
AUTUMN GREETINGS! Now is the time of the harvest. As the trees burst forth in glory, as the earth yields the fruits of spring promise and summer growth, we are reminded to reflect on the changes that occur in our lives in due season. Wise are those who, like Meister Eckhart, acknowledge and reverence the need for silence and solitude. For,

The true Word of eternity will be spoken only in solitude

Meister Eckhart | October 1992 (Vol. V, No. 9)

The true Word of eternity will be spoken only in solitude, where people are made desolate and estranged from themselves. This emptiness exerts a profound influence. For if something empty existed under heaven, no matter what you wish and no matter whether it be large or small, love would either carry it to heaven or have to come down and fill it with love. The purpose of emptiness is to receive, to be filled ... God needs nothing more than for us to offer a quiet heart.

~ Meister Eckhart

Solitude is an attitude of gratitude

Francine Schiff | October 1992 (Vol. V, No. 9)

Solitude is an attitude of gratitude ... It is a state of mind, a state of heart, a whole universe unto itself. The early contemplatives in all traditions knew this secret of happiness -- that being alone was a great gift. And whether or not we sit upon the mountain top or kitchen stool, whether we seek a sacred place or simply stir the soup, the message is the same. For what does it mean to be alone, if not to be all one. To be who you are already in your deepest self, to be happy.

~ from FOOD FOR SOLITUDE by Francine Schiff

I, who live by words, am wordless when I try my words in prayer

Madeleine L'Engle | October 1992 (Vol. V, No. 9)

I, who live by words, am wordless when
I try my words in prayer. All language turns
To silence. Prayer will take my words and then
Reveal their emptiness. The stilled voice learns
To hold its peace, to listen with the heart --
to silence that is joy, is adoration.
The self is shattered, all words torn apart
In this strange patterned time of contemplation
That, in time, breaks time, breaks words, breaks me,
And then, in silence, leaves me healed and mended.
I leave, returned to language, for I see
Through words, even when all words are ended.
I, who live by words, am wordless when
I turn me to the Word to pray. Amen.

~ Madeleine L'Engle

The choice of conscious transformation

Gary Zukav | October 1992 (Vol. V, No. 9)

Only through responsible choice can you choose consciously to cultivate and nourish the needs of your soul, to challenge and release the wants of your personality. This is the choice of clarity and wisdom, the choice of conscious transformation. It is the choice of the higher-frequency energy currents of love, forgiveness and compassion. It is the choice to follow the voice of your higher self, your soul. It is the decision to open yourself to the guidance and assistance of Love. It is the path that leads consciously to authentic power.

~ from THE SEAT OF THE SOUL by Gary Zukav

The worship of the Great Mystery was silent

Ohiyesa | October 1992 (Vol. V, No. 9)

The worship of the Great Mystery was silent, solitary, free from all self-seeking. It was silent because all speech is of necessity feeble and imperfect ... it was solitary, because the people believed that the Great Spirit is nearer to us in solitude, and that no one was authorized to come between an individual and the Creator. Among us, all were conscious of their divinity.

~ Ohiyesa, Santee Sioux thanks to Elaine Simard

Times of silence and solitude

Raynor C. Johnson | October 1992 (Vol. V, No. 9)

If one saw a person who was always loving, but not easygoing; utterly kind, but not to the point of creating dependency; very wise, and clearly able to intuit the future; never condemning, yet always understanding; willing to descend into the mire of human conditions to help someone rise out of it; prepared to share anything they had with another; utterly firm when necessary for the soul's sake; one might say, "S/he is the most Christ-like person I have ever met". But one still would not know the inner status of that person. The most important discoveries we make are not on the level of intellect at all. They are inward knowledge of absolute certitude; this is the result of a grace bestowed when the recipient is inwardly ready to see ... and often arises out of times of silence and solitude.

~ from THE SPIRITUAL PATH by Raynor C. Johnson

The empty spaces needed for nurturing the soul

Karen Casey | October 1992 (Vol. V, No. 9)

We need interaction with others, and we need activities. We have many gifts to offer those who cross our paths, and we need the many gifts they have to offer us. But we soon have little to share, to give to others, if we neglect the special themes, the empty spaces needed for nurturing the soul. Some time away from people, activities and things, some time away to commune with God, to seek guidance, to seek security in the fullest sense, will prepare us to better give our gifts to others. That time alone will also ready us to accept others' gifts to us.

~ from EACH DAY A NEW BEGINNING by Karen Casey

May the thoughts we think be pure

Neta Kaye Stokely | October 1992 (Vol. V, No. 9)

May the thoughts we think be pure,
May the words we speak be kind,
May God's love in our hearts be shown and shared
In the daily service of our lives.

~ Neta Kaye Stokely