On a day when the wind is perfect, the sail just needs to open and the world is full of beauty. Today is such a day. -Rumi ** Our next Poetry Party will be on Monday! ** © Christine Valters Paintner at Abbey of the Arts: Transformative Living through Contemplative & Expressive Arts
Floating on the wind, What do I resemble? A solitary gull Between the heavens and the earth -Du Fu Photos taken at Golden Gardens in Seattle in honor of my father’s 77th birthday.
I have been thinking about moments a lot lately – those holy doorways where I am lifted out of time and I encounter the sacred in the most ordinary acts – and then a friend emailed me this video. It has me contemplating what it is I am here to do as an artist and as a monk. Mythologist and storyteller Michael Meade says the word “moment” comes from the Latin root momentus, which means to move. We are moved when we touch the eternal and timeless which is available to us in each moment we are fully present. There is a
What’s In The Temple? In the quiet spaces of my mind a thought lies still, but ready to spring. It begs me to open the door so it can walk about. The poets speak in obscure terms pointing madly at the unsayable. The sages say nothing, but walk ahead patting their thigh calling for us to follow. The monk sits pen in hand poised to explain the cloud of unknowing. The seeker seeks, just around the corner from the truth. If she stands still it will catch up with her. Pause with us here a while. Put your ear to
Do you have a body? Don’t sit on the porch! Go out and walk in the rain! If you are in love, then why are you asleep? Wake up, wake up! You have slept millions of years Why not wake up this morning -Kabir “In a world where faith is often construed as a way of thinking, bodily practices remind the willing that faith is a way of life.” (xvi) “Here I am. This is the body-like-no-other that my life has shaped. I live here. This is my soul’s address.” (38) from An Altar in the World: A Geography of
A series of images celebrating embodied prayer. © Christine Valters Paintner at Abbey of the Arts: Transformative Living through Contemplative & Expressive Arts
I always find these end of summer days difficult. There is the last spate of hot weather which I really dislike. My sweet husband, a high school teacher, has summers off and so these slow days of spending time together will be coming to an end soon. And probably most significant (more so than I used to give credit), the end of August and beginning of September bring both my father’s and mother’s birthdays. Having lost both of them, this time is always filled with a spectrum of feelings: grief, sorrow, anger, rage, gratitude, wonder. I am an only child, so
From the door sill of a dream they called my name… It was the good voice, the voice I loved so much. “-Listen,” said the voice. “Will you go with me to visit the soul?…” And a soft stroke reached up and touched my heart. “With you always” … And in my dream I walked Down a long and solitary corridor, Aware of the touching of the pure robe, And the soft beating of blood in the hand that loved me. -Antonio Machado, from Times Alone: Selected Poetry of Antonio Machado (edited by Robert Bly)
I rested into a quiet weekend which did my spirit good. It is challenging to slow down after a long period of fullness and so I am being present with curiosity to all those internal judgments about the value of my downtime — where do those voices come from? Living a contemplative life is at the heart of my call in the world and so I laugh when I am confronted again with those same voices many of us struggle with in an ongoing way. My father was a workaholic, allowing multiple compulsions to numb him from his pain. I
As expected I am learning much from my yoga practice this week. Showing up each morning and creating space to listen to my body has been powerful on many levels. In the class we have learned a balanced series of poses that we repeat each day and now move through them at our own pace in silence . The instructor gently moves through the room adjusting us and offering encouragement and suggestions for interior noticings. We begin our time each day with attention to breath and the reminder that the slow, deep breath is the foundational element of our practice with the poses layered
