Fire And Joy

I’m not saying, mind you, that a life consciously lived from its true Centre will be safe or painless, easy or consistently joyful. Real adventure is made of sterner stuff. Those great arms embrace the suffering of the world no less than its splendour and its thrill. Those hands know the torment of crucifixion. Only so can the terrible pain of the world be overcome. The real joy, the joy that casts no shadow and knows no variation, has come through the fire. .
Douglas Harding, To Be And Not To Be

Words of the Prophet...

Some day we'll understand the whole thing as one single marvelous vision that will seem so
overwhelmingly simple and beautiful that we may say to each other; 'Oh, how could we have been so stupid for so long? How could it have been otherwise?!'

J. A. Wheeler, physicist

The Father's Love

I am the formless, timeless unborn, yet all form, time and birth arise in me
I neither come nor go, but all journeys occur in me
I am before the concept of concept, yet I give birth to all concepts
I am all that is, yet I play with that which is not
I am before I AM, yet all existence flowers in me

All I give birth to is held in infinite compassion
And I welcome it all home, rejoicing

Come Unto Me... I Have Overcome The World

As the little guy, I have tunnel vision. I say, “I’ve got enough troubles of my own. I’m only interested in the great world outside insofar as it serves the purposes of this little guy. I’ve got enough suffering of my own; I don’t want to know about yours.” Then something happens – good luck, the grace of God in my case, whatever it might be – and our angle of vision widens and we take on the suffering of the world. The strange thing is that you get beyond suffering by taking it on and going through to the underlying peace which passes understanding. Some people seem to suggest that when you see Who you are, there is no more suffering. On the contrary. In a way, it’s the exact opposite of that. You take it all on. You take on the pain of creation, not only human suffering but the whole tragic history of the world and the suffering of other creatures – not because you are a saint or a good person. You have no option. That’s the way you are made, and that’s the way through. You could say that the remedy for suffering is homeopathic.

Douglas Harding. Face to No-Face