In prayer one can express gratitude to Divine Being, as well as express it to anyone or anything, including Earth or all beings, seen or unseen. To give thanks to one, is to give thanks to all. The Spirit of gratitude is at the heart of the spiritual life. Recently, I sat before the altar, gratitude quietly welling up in realizing how many beings made and make it possible for me to be on this precious path of every~moment~awakening. To them, I gave and give gratitude. Let us not forget all those who have prepared the way before us. Let us not forget we are preparing the way for those to come. Thank You!

A continuance of dialogues with a sage who did not see himself as a sage, but others did; from Brian K. Wilcox. "Meetings with an Anonymous Sage."

A seeker visited the sage, referring to himself as "a praying man," and asked in the group sharing ...

"What is the prayer you would most recommend to someone?"

Thank You!

"And," inquired the 'praying man,' "whom am I giving thanks to?"

Someone, no one
Something, nothing

What if I want to pray to a particular manifestation of God, as I usually do?

Why?
Why not?
if it comes from
the heart

Then, spoke the sage in spontaneous verse...

No representation of God is God,
yet, any representation of God is a means to God

Simply remember,
to go to God, you go with God, you go within God, as God~is-going:
God within God ~
no other way, heart friends,
no other way

God in the beginning
God in the middle
God the whole of the endless Way

Do you ever really pray?
Any...one?

Nothing but God...
Nothing, Nothing, Nothing
that is all
that is God

This means
'God prays'

This does not mean
'When God prays, you don't pray'~
prayer is total intimacy

discern this
'one~and~both'
inseparable loving
OneTaste ~ Yes! Wow!

Can you let
God pray
with you, through you, outside you,
over everything,
like the beloved kissing
the body of a lover in choiceless Embrace?

so say
Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!

feeling the welling up of joy
in the Innermost Sanctuary
flowing like gladsome oil
upon the body of self and world, all,
no one, nothing excluded,
and, remember, not you, too ~
God! God! God!

What is That?
forget it
no questions, no answers
meet me there, commune with me there now now now... ~
now just

breathe, breathe,
imbibe, imbibe
the sweet nectar of pure Presence
in overflowing gratitude

this loving openness,
pristine, primordial, timeless, spaceless, never far, always near,
opens the heart in Love,
in love, in and with and for the world ~
go there!

then, rest
in this flowing Light of Grace
soaking in the Rays of the Sun
Yes! Yes! Yes! always Yes!

Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!
so, prayer becomes spontaneous ecstasy
the elation of Life
and you, with everyone ~
again, inseparable loving

so, smile, exclaim
for the world, for Earth, for Life, for yourself
for all beings seen and unseen
Thank You!

do not hold back
let this grace gush forth
then, in the ambience relax

you have stepped
out of yourself into yourself
rest

repeat this often
Yes! Yes! Yes!
Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!

a way
of joy, to joy
Love

that is all
so simple, so simple

*Brian Wilcox. 'a gathering of immaculate presences'. Flickr

(C)Brian K. Wilcox, 2019

The theme of "Lotus of the Heart" is 'Living in Love beyond Beliefs.' This work is presented by Brian K. Wilcox, of Maine, USA. You can order Brian's book An Ache for Union: Poems on Oneness with God through Love, through major online booksellers.