The "mystical experience." Always HERE and NOW -- in that freedom which is one with distance, in that stillness which is born of silence. But this is a freedom in the midst of action, a stillness in the midst of other human beings. The mystery is a constant reality to those who, in this world, are free from self-concern, a reality that grows peaceful and mature before the receptive attention of assent. In our era, the road to holiness necessarily passes through the world of action.
The fairest thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion which stands at the cradle of true art and true science. A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestation of the profoundest reasons and the most radiant beauty, which are only accessible to our reason in their most elementary forms. It is this knowledge and this emotion that constitute the truly religious attitude; in this sense, I am a deeply religious man.
O Mystery, You are life. I feel you all around
You are the fire in my heart, You are the holy sound.
You are all of life. It is to You I sing.
Grant that I may feel You, always in every thing.
We believe profoundly in silence -- the sign of a perfect equilibrium. Silence is the absolute poise or balance of body, mind and spirit. If you ask us: "What is silence?" we will answer: "It is the Great Mystery!" The holy silence is Great Spirit's voice!" If you ask: "What are the fruits of silence?" we will say: "They are self-control, true courage or endurance, patience, dignity, and reverence. Silence is the cornerstone of character.
~ Ohiyesa, Santee Dakota author in TOUCH THE EARTH by T.C. McLuhan
The overwhelming experience of fly fishing is Mystery. It deals with the Unseen, with what lies in the invisible dimensions beneath the shimmering, rippling surface of an ever-changing mountain stream. It exercises every ounce of imagination and can bypass conscious awareness for extended periods. Fly fishing is an open doorway into the unconscious. After all, one is often standing waist-deep in water, which is a mighty symbol of the unconscious mind. There is no way to rush this process: One must STAND in the Mystery. ... In order to be a decent fly fisherman, on must BECOME the fish ... To enter Trout Mind means giving up the self. ... Landing a trout provides a great opportunity for nonattachment: thanking and blessing the fish, and releasing her.
Enter into the Silence, into the
Heart of Truth;
For herein lies the Great Mystery
where life is ever unfolding;
Herein the Divine Plan is made known,
the Plan all are invited to serve.
Listen for the music of the Holy Word
in the resounding Silence of
the universe.
May balance and harmony be your aim
as you are drawn into the
Heart of Love.
What else should our lives be but a continual series of beginnings, of painful settings out into the unknown, pushing off from the edges of consciousness into the mystery of what we have not yet become, except in dreams that blow in from out there bearing the fragrance of islands we have not yet sighted in our waking hours, as in voyaging sometimes the first blossoming branches of our next landfall come bumping against the keel, even in the dark, whole days before the real land rises to meet us.
IN A CITY NOT FORSAKEN, the Jerusalem Community Rule of Life invites all to enter into the mystery of silence:
Silence is the well-spring of your prayer at the heart of the city and the daily peace of your soul ... In the crucible of silence you will learn holiness, since silence is the door to humility, contemplation and mercy. By leading you to self-forgetting, silence will allow you to discover God and in the heart of God, you will rediscover the world by God's light. So live outward silence and enjoy it inwardly and you will taste the perfect delight of those who keep the commandments in their hearts and dwell silently in God's love.
May we each answer the call to let ourselves be defined by God at any given moment, let ourselves be attuned to our essential course of action, without loosing or abandoning any one of our own unique qualities and gifts. May we, like Mary, discover the secret of true silence.
