Calm, as an adjective, began being applied to the Sea in the 1300s CE. Earlier, in the 1560s, the adjective form began being used of society or the mind as free of "agitation, passion". In the 1400s "calm" began referring to persons of "peaceful manner, mild bearing."k
Friend, you lose everything you gain everything
with each loss gain
why cling to a grain of sand when the Beloved offers you a Diamond
Why play on the shore when the Ocean wants to make Love with all of you
You say, "I can't" a good place to begin ~ Grace can!
Weakness opens the doorway to Heaven surrender the posture all along the Way
*Brian K. Wilcox. "Grace Can!".
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i am the minstrel of eternal love and will play the song of happiness
when my soul hears music and changes to softness I'll break open the wine jar's seal
i am in love with the temple of fire because i was born as the prophet named Khalili Abraham
i am in love with soul and wisdom i am the enemy of false images
the spring is arriving it is high time for action for the sun and Aries to get together
my blood is boiling my heart is on fire and the winder snow is melting away from my body
someone's love is knocking me out and pulling me after itself very forcefully
though i am in this hell and fire i'm filled with honey and nectar
though i am condemned to take this journey i'm filled with the sweetness of going home
now the time has come my sweatheart kindly express what my tongue can never describe
*Rumi. "I AM".
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Spiritual traditions speak of fire as a metaphor for the process of spiritual transformation. Spiritual practices were designed to throw us into the Fire. Yes, wonderful for those who enjoy some heat from the Fire; more wonderful, even glorious, for those who jump in and say "Yes!". And, sometimes, this Fire may appear merciless. So, when the heat increases, remind yourself the path is working its Work. Rejoice, even if you do not feel like being thankful for a Love that would burn you up, and in the process free you from the illusions you dreamed true. You are not being burned up, who you think you are is. Not only is Grace burning up the delusional self you have identified as I, regardless of how highly functioning, Grace is burning up, little by little, and with varied intensity, the whole dream you called my life. When you stop jumping in and out of the Fire, you settle into the bliss of the dream being burned up, and the joy of being awake to Life in a way you never, ironically, dreamed possible. Then, your whole life becomes one big "Thank You!". We can live in gratitude, arising from fearless perseverance, for we have learned, as Pema Chodron writes...
Awakeness is found in our pleasure and our pain, our confusion and our wisdom. It's available in each moment of our weird, unfathomable, ordinary everyday lives.
Grace and Peace to All
*Lotus of the Heart is an interspiritual offering of Brian Kenneth Wilcox, who lives in Florida USA.
*Rumi poem from Rumi Poems. "I AM". Trans. Nader Khalili. Pema Chodron quote in Pema Chodron. Comfortable with Uncertainty. "96 ~ This Very Moment is the Perfect Teacher".
*Move cursor over pictures for creator of photo and title.
