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A FRIDAY POEM FROM “RHYTHMS AND CYCLES” – Lessons
I wrote this a few years ago when I was in the middle of the ebb and flow of life lessons. I guess we are always there; part of the rhythms and cycles we live within. Happy weekend!
Lessons
Endless chain,
Link by link,
Event by event;
A measured life,
No start, no end.
Continuous flow,
Then to now,
Now to when;
A lessoned life,
No start, no end.
Unbroken stream,
Spring to river,
River to sea;
Consciousness rising,
No start, no end.
Rising sea,
Spring fed, river fed,
Rain drenched, windswept;
Lessons to learn,
No start, no end.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
Ask Yourself… – Richard’s Commentary
So, why DO you get up in the morning? My answer to this question has changed over the course of my long corporate career. I had the opportunity to work on and lead a number of exciting technical projects, from space and earth sciences exploration to commercial software development and logistics planning and management. I always enjoyed my work, its challenges and rewards.
But for all that time I had a bigger “why”…family. Rosemary and I raised three fabulous kids, now in their 30s; they are off doing their own “family things” now. Yes, we have grandkids – a wonder! But they are their parents’ responsibility and their “why” now.
So as my family dynamics have shifted my “big why” is also shifting. Of course I still have family responsibilities to Rosemary but she is fully capable of taking care of herself. It is true that I am taking care of much of the “back-office” obligations of managing our businesses together, Rosemary’s The Scientific Mystic enterprise and our church and consciousness study center, Church of A New Alliance. And these efforts are fun and fruitful. But they are not up there with a “Big Why.”
I love to write. I write lots of things, including blog posts, like this one, poetry which I share selections on this blog, morning pages, sales copy for websites…I spend a lot of my time writing. But writing is not up there with a “Big Why.”
I love bodywork. Currently I am practicing both yoga and several forms of Qigong. In fact I am teaching three classes of Qigong now and really enjoying the sharing the physical “energetic” of the forms, the breath work and the Taoist philosophical underpinnings of Qigong.
This gets at another love: my love of world religions and spirituality. I am an ordained “Interfaith Minister” – by a seminary of Pebble Hill Church, Doylestown, PA. And since my ordination in 2000 I have continued to study, absorb and practice many of the world’s spiritual traditions, from Taoism, to Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Sufism to Judaism and Christianity, not to exclude indigenous cultures and their spiritual traditions. My emphasis in understanding these traditions is to gain insight through practice, not just learning the beliefs and reading the texts. It is through practice that we truly get in touch with one another.
I love community. I enjoy the dynamics and give and take, the yin and yang of community, of people sharing their gifts, their understanding and wisdom. How else can we get in tune with the world around us than through community.
I guess the bottom line of what gets me up in the morning is love. I’ve said before in this space that my highest value is PRACTICE –> LOVE. I’ve also mentioned that my fingerprints tell the same tale; my 10 loops for prints point to my purpose: LOVE.
So, yeah, love gets me up in the morning. It keeps me going through the day. And it’s often the last thing on my mind and in my heart as I drift off to sleep.
Big Whys are important. If you don’t know yours do some soul searching. Get your hand and fingerprints read by a Scientific Hand Analyst. Get help eliciting your Big Why if you need it. Knowing makes it fun to get up in the morning!
MONDAY’S POEM: Poet’s Choice
Today’s poem is from the archives. I opened to a random page in my journal and reached back to August 2011. I am feeling a bit conflicted today so this poem is for me and all of you out there having a conflicted Monday!
Poet’s Choice
What does a conflicted poet write?
What bubbles up from below?
What trickles down from above?
Love. A poet writes of love
For all the world to read
And understand this Queen.
Low. A poet sinks so low
To find the deepest part
And understand this King.
Light. A poet merges with light
To sing of the highest peaks
And understand this God.
A poet writes of highs and lows.
He writes of light and sings
From mountain tops.
And most of all he writes of Love!
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
I CHING GUA FOR THE NEW MOON IN TAURUS: Da Guo
The New Moon (and solar eclipse) occurred early this past Tuesday morning (2:14 am), April 29 on the east coast. The sun was well below the horizon here so no great visual effects, only vibrational!
This New Moon was the bookend to the Cardinal Grand Cross that peaked a few days earlier. We began the month of celestial activities with the Full Moon/Lunar eclipse on April 15th. It was quite a month! Have you felt the effects of the transformational energy?
It was with a certain level of excitement during this time that I cast the Gua (I Ching hexagram) to determine the energies we are heading into for May. If you follow my blog you know that I use yarrow stalks and manipulate them in traditional fashion to determine the six lines (either open/yin or solid/yang) that compose the Gua.
For the next month the Gua is Da Guo, or “Great Exceeding” as Master Alfred Huang translate it in his The Complete I Ching. It is pictured here:
The hexagram consists of two trigrams; the lower is Xun or Wood and the upper is Dui or Lake. So Great Exceeding is like a lake over a tree. Isn’t it interesting that there has been a tremendous amount of rain here in Maryland with significant flooding just after this New Moon!
During this time of “Great Exceeding” there is a need for “extraordinary action.” The action required is to balance, or adjust for that which is exceeding limits.
The image offered by Master Huang and King Wen’s Decision is that of a roof beam with weak end supports (the strong yang lines bounded by the two weak yin lines). The roof sags under weight. Extraordinary action is required to straighten the roof and balance the load.
The key here is to watch for imbalances. Things that are too big are difficult to control. Things that are too firm are easy to break. Take action to shore up weaknesses and to trim excesses. This is a positive Gua if action is taken. Confucius’ commentary on the Decision concludes:
Smooth and joyous in action.
Favorable to have somewhere to go.
There is success.
Truly great is the time of Great Exceeding!
Watch for imbalances in your life, correct them promptly and decisively and have a great month!
Commitment and Solutions – Richard’s Commentary
We are just returning from the West Coast and Suzanne Evans’ Be The Change Event she hosted in Las Vegas. This event coupled with the Cardinal Grand Cross bookended by two eclipses has truly been a transformative time for both Rosemary and me. However, one of the key take-aways from BTCE and Suzanne’s teachings is, there is no transformation possible without commitment!
In her bigger-than-life style, from both her power center and her heart, Suzanne demonstrated over and over what commitment means. If you don’t know her, look her up. If you do know her there is little I can say to emphasize my point about her and her events. She is committed. And she teaches the need for that level of commitment if we are to make a difference, to “Be the Change”, to transform ourselves in any meaningful and purposeful way.
It takes commitment. Not lip-service, not half-hearted acknowledgement that we are all here for a purpose, not even dedication of time, resources, energy and money. We have to be all in!
But how do we know what to commit to? If we are called to action, to commitment, how can we be sure that our path is the right one and our choices lead to fulfillment of our commitment?
In her Exploration article Rosemary channeled The Divine Feminine and here’s what they say about that:
For so many of you there have been problems in your life that you have struggled to handle. Money, relationship, children, career. These problems exist in the 3-dimensional world of Planet Earth. Your pain, whether only emotional or a combination of emotional/mental/physical, is also a 3-dimensional pain.
But we would tell you that there are many dimensions beyond the 3 you are considering and your solutions lie beyond where you are searching for them.
Do you look for solutions that lie beyond the 3-dimensions? Do you go inside and ask for guidance from your “Inner Knower”? And when you ask do you listen? And trust the answers?
The key to this examination of 3-dimensional problems solved by multi-dimensional exploration is trust. This is one of the key components to Rosemary’s teaching. As a man this is one of the key teachings I pay attention to and learn from. I am still learning this key. I go inside for answers often. And I do hear and sense the advice I seek. And I am still learning the trust part!
The secret here is gut instinct…trust your gut. Too often I get that feeling that something is about to happen; I need to prepare or participate. But then I ignore the sense of it and go about my business as I PLANNED IT. This is the downfall: to be so stuck in “the plan” that there is no room for trust!
And the secret to this trust is to go through and beyond the fear. The Divine Femininesay:
Focus on what you DO WANT and commit your energy to making that happen, even if it scares you.
Suzanne echoed this advice many times through this past weekend conference; when your next step scares the hell out of you then you know you are on the right track!
Are you that committed?
MONDAY’S POEM: Signs and Wonders
It has been quite a month with significant astrological and astronomical events occurring in the heavens. And we have been traveling on the west coast during these times of change and rebirth. Tonight, 11:14 PM Pacific time, we have one more April event to push us farther along this path to awakening: a solar eclipse.
In recognition of these events I wrote:
Signs and Wonders
Eclipsed Moon, Earth’s shadow hiding
Features, drawing blood, going deep.
Long shadows cast along a path
Of discovery and regeneration.
Grand Cross, Cardinal Signs, upheaval,
Rebellion, war god soothed in the
House of Love. God of Hades opposing
Expansion and stabilizing influences.
Eclipsed Sun, Moon’s shadow hiding
Light, blotting out life’s blood.
Dark shadows reaching far in this time
Of reformation and transformation.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
A FRIDAY POEM FROM “RHYTHMS AND CYCLES” – Shells
I planted a few seeds in some pots on our deck last week. Now I watch for the sprouts to break through. Spring time is such a wondrous season of birth; it’s the perfect time to consider all the cycles of life!
Shells
The heart does not expand
From an empty shell.
The seed is there inside
Waiting for the moment.
It takes a special love
To break through that shell.
The germ hovers in bonds
Trembling in dark potential.
The light waits calmly
Just outside the shell.
The sprout presses its power
Seeking a weakness and release.
Suddenly love explodes
Through that hard shell.
The tender life wiggles free
Reaching toward the light.
The heart embraces all life
To escape that empty shell.
The community grows
Filling the world with love.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
Conscious Relationships Start with Self-Love – Richard’s Commentary
Humans are social beings. It is all about relationships. Last week I wrote about our interdependence with others, what Thich Nhat Hahn calls “interbeing.” We are especially dependent on and interdependent with other humans. Here’s what Rosemary says about that:
Human beings are relationship experts. We are constantly adjusting relationships, in one direction or another. Relationships with significant others, with parents and with children, with co-workers, clients, neighbors, hairdressers, waitstaff at the local restaurant, checker at the grocery store. Every interaction with another human being is an element of a relationship.
And every relationship begins on the inside of ourselves. This is why it is so important to have that relationship in the first place! Do you have a good relationship with yourself?
In her post Rosemary writes about choices we have and we make moment to moment. The first choice is to have that inner relationship. How do you do that? It’s as easy as breathing! And we all need to do that!
The “conscious relationship with self” begins with conscious breathing. That’s right, bring your consciousness to your breathing pattern. Don’t try to change it or make an effort, just bring your attention to how your breath feels; think about the inhale; feel it as it comes in through your nose, down your throat, into your lungs. Where does it go there? Does it fill up your chest? Does it go down into your belly? Just notice. And on the exhale, how does that feel? What happens first? How much air do you exhale?
Shifting just our focus on our breath, with no change at all in rhythm or style, changes our body chemistry and our mental awareness! Imagine what might happen if you actually, consciously begin to control your breathing. Maybe your in-breath goes a bit deeper and is longer; maybe you hold it for just a moment as you sense it, notice the feeling of expansion. Then as you exhale maybe you do this more slowly, deliberately. And maybe you expel more air, even flattening your belly, back towards your spine as you push out more air – to make room for a bigger in-breath.
And you can continue in this manner, watching your breath, taking longer, deeper, slower breaths. This is the beginning of a relationship with yourself, your deeper self.
I’m not writing here to teach meditation. But I am echoing Rosemary’s intention that your best relationship is with yourself, inside. Here’s what she says about you:
Who you are, deep in your core, is a beautiful being of Light. Who you are, inside, is a spark of divine energy. Who you are, in the essence of you, is a person of access to great wisdom and love. THIS is the person that you really want to show up in every relationship, isn’t it?
I would like to have a relationship with this being of Light – you! Wouldn’t you?
MONDAY’S POEM: The Dance of Time
Another Monday. The moon wanes, the month wanes into the third third and time marches on! Shortly we’ll be a third through 2014. With time on my mind here is a Monday poem I wrote in 2011 (about three years ago):
The Dance of Time
The passage of time is a spiral dance.
It weaves
It floats
It rises
It falls.
It is a multi-dimensional wave.
And like a wave it is stationary.
It moves
It calms
It comes
It goes.
It is a mystery beyond space.
The passage of time is music for the dance.
It sings
It plays
It beats
It rhymes.
It is the rhythm of my heart,
The song of my soul,
The symphony of my spirit.
©2014 Richard W. Bredeson. All rights reserved.
Connect! – Richard’s Commentary
We are all connected in so many ways. Do you ever consider just how connected we are? Thich Nhat Hahn speaks of this as interdependence. I heard him speak years ago about this concept of interconnectedness, not just with humans but with all things. It’s his way to begin to explain shunyata, or the Mahayana Buddhist philosophy of “emptiness.” We are interconnected with and interdependent on every atom and molecule on earth (and beyond)!
So as Rosemary writes:
Your life is all about connecting. You were born into a family or chosen by one. You have chosen friends and partners. You bore children or sired them. You have worked with people, paid some for services, gone to the doctor, bought groceries. Every thing you have done has contained an element of connection.
How deep does your “connecting” go?
All of these external, intricate interdependencies at the material, physical level are only a small (maybe miniscule) part of our connectedness. Rosemary urges another way to “Connect” – to the inner you:
When you connect with the inner you, you are tapping into your own power, your essence. When you have a strong connection to your inner wisdom, your guides, you gain clarity and confidence.
How vast is this connection for you? When you let your imagination run free how much ground does it cover, how many worlds do you visit?
Rosemary mentions many ways to connect to the inner you: meditation, contemplation, visualizations, writing. For those who don’t have a formal practice even daydreaming is a way to connect. Prayer is also an excellent way to connect and listen!
But how many of us resist this inner connection? How many even blot it out through various means of escape? Even in prayer it is easy to externalize the conversationmaking appeals to the Almighty out there somewhere in the Universe! Do we ever stop to listen, to keep this conversation bidirectional? When/if we do listen, where do we hear that voice?
Often people need help with this inner connection. For many indigenous peoples they relied on shamans as intercessors with the Spirit World. Western people rely on their priests and/or psychologists to facilitate the inner dialog. This is a wonderful way to begin the conversation. Sometimes we need translators to interpret the symbols. Sometimes we need validation that what we are hearing/feeling/seeing is true for us.
If you need help to jumpstart your inner connection, get it. The inner world is vast beyond belief. The inner connection, the inner dialog can take you on journeys beyond your wildest conscious imagination if you allow and listen. Your purpose calls you to this and your passion is waiting for you, just there, inside!
Have fun; have a great ride. And don’t worry about sending postcards!
Men and The Goddess 