spiritual path

I don't know why I am always so amazed when different events in my life seem to be culminating into a particular direction I am to take, like pieces of a puzzle that don't seem to connect at first but as you get more pieces you see where they fit together. For me, it's usually things of a spiritual matter that develop in this way, and I enjoy looking back in time to try and figure out the genesis, the beginning, of a particular path. I really believe this is how God speaks to me, too, and I find it so interesting and enjoyable.

Anyway, the current path I find myself on is that of meditation. I looked back to older posts, and I actually posted about meditation in August of 2010, when I was reading Elizabeth Gilbert's, Eat, Pray, Love. My personal favorite section of the book is when she was in India at the ashram, and as I read her descriptions of her experiences with meditation I found myself thinking, in the words of Liz Lemon (for those that don't watch 30 Rock, that's Tina Fey's character), "I want to go to there." But that's still not the genesis. I actually think what began this for me was (and I can't find when the original post was, apparently it was in 2009 because I haven't looked back that far) awhile back, I found myself singing a song we used to sing in the Catholic Church, Prayer of St. Francis. The melody is beautiful, but really it's the words I find so mesmerizing. I would sing it out loud or to myself, and I finally sat down and wrote the words as a post, and I guess you could say, I meditated on it. Jon has a collection of various books that deal with meditation, whether it's meditation as Buddhists do it (the practice of mindfulness), or meditation on a passage, which is what the Hindus do, and is the type that feels most natural to me, though I think they go hand in hand. Part of my morning ritual for quite some has been reading Words to Live By, by Eknath Easwaran, one of my favorite spiritual teachers. I find myself drawn to the mystics of many different religions, it's just fascinating to me to see how we all share a common God, and describe experiences with Him in different, yet not so different ways. Before anyone reading this becomes too uncomfortable with my having said this, or having broached the topic of meditation at all, let me emphasize that nothing has changed for me as far as my Christian spirituality, but I do stress the word spirituality here. I find myself stepping further and further away from the Christianity that is within the confines of religion, and I have to say that to learn to see and experience God outside of man-made religion is revolutionary. Once you've come to "see," it's nearly impossible, or even unthinkable, to go back. Not to say that I did not benefit from my years of learning and growing in church, I've just entered a new stage in my walk, a new path. Prayer is an act of meditation, to some extent, and Paul very much espoused meditation when he said, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is- his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2.

Back to St. Francis...months went by, and I finally picked up a book Jon had tried to get me to read a long time ago, Passage Meditation by Eknath Easwaran. Wouldn't you know, the passage he suggests for meditation is the Prayer of St. Francis (isn't God clever?). I just recently picked that book up again to finish it, as I've decided to take more seriously my pursuit of the practice of meditation. If I have my timeline of all of this correct, the next puzzle piece was a book on CD that Jon, the kids, and I listened to in the car last spring when we drove down to Orlando, The Amazing Story of Henry Sugar, by Roald Dahl. It was a children's story about meditation. Then, I read Eat, Pray, Love, which I've already discussed how that fits in here. Sometime in there I picked up another book Jon had tried to get me to read much earlier, Full Catastrophe Living. It deals more with the kind of meditation known as mindfulness, but while reading it I came upon a quote from the book, Zorba the Greek. The narrator of this book practiced meditation, and not only that, but Zorba the Greek is a treasure trove of wisdom and insight into God, man, and life. Each of these books so perfectly complimented one another, it has been as though I was taking a carefully planned course on meditation, with God as my professor.

My challenge is now to consistently pursue meditation, but I don't think I have any choice in the matter, honestly. It's not just a curiosity, it's almost a compulsion. I am fascinated by what I may discover, what experiences I may have, and I want to experience all of God that He's willing to reveal to me. It really can be a challenge in my busy household, but I am determined, or rather committed, to carve out time each day to learn and see and experience what awaits me on this path. This entry from Words to Live By really spoke to me the other day, it was from January 31st:

A devotee who can call on God while living a householder's life is a hero indeed. God thinks, "They are blessed indeed who pray to Me in the midst of their worldly duties. They are trying to find Me, overcoming a great obstacle, pushing away, as it were, a huge block of stone weighing a ton. Such a one is a real hero."

Sri Ramakrishna

To find a spiritual path, it is not necessary to give up our job, leave our family, change our religion, or travel to distant lands. We start wherever we are, not running away from society, but right in the midst of life.

Whatever context we find ourselves in is a suitable one in which to overcome our problems and grow to our full height. We tend to look upon the other home as peaceful, the other couple as perfect, the other parent-child relationship as ideal, but this is not very likely. Everyone has done some good, and made some mistakes, as well. This is part of the human condition.

Saints and sages are loving realists. "Don't wait for ideal conditions. You'll never find them," they admonish. "Begin! And the conditions you need will come to you."

One last quote I will leave you with will give a glimpse of one of the many benefits of meditation, and is very biblical, indeed: "When you sit quietly like this every morning, concentrating completely on words that embody your highest ideals, you are giving your mind thoughts of the purest quality to work with during the day. These selfless thoughts begin to mold your life. Joy begins to follow you throughout the day." From Words to Live By, by Eknath Easwaran.