April 15, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

Terrorism

Boston Marathon
27,000 participants

My heart has been rendered in two. Two bombs went off at the Boston Marathon Finishline and at the JFK Library. Tears are slowly coursing down my face. We need to send prayers, positive energy and loving support to the deceased, the injured, the families and the viewers.

The journey is peace and we must meet every act of violence with peace and loving forgiveness

We must meet all acts of violence with an increase of peace, kindness, love, and compassion. Is it easy? No way. But if we meet violence with violence there will only be an increase in violence. We are being tested and our humanity put to the test.

” O Thou, the Cause and Effect of the whole universe, the Source from whence we have come and the Goal towards which all are bound: receive this soul who is coming to Thee into Thy parental arms. May Thy forgiving Glance heal these people. Lift them from the denseness of the earth, surround them with the light of Thine own Spirit. Raise them up to Heaven, which is their true dwelling place. We pray Thee grant them with the blessing of Thy most exalted Presence. May their lives upon earth become as a dream to his waking soul, and let their thirsting eyes behold the glorious Vision of Thy Sunshine. Amen

Come Together in Love

” Death takes away the weariness of life; and the soul begins life anew.
Death is the night after which the day begins.
It is death which dies, not life.
The life everlasting is hidden in the heart of death.” —Hazrat Inayat Khan

A Prayer for Each of Us

“Help me to serve Thy cause.
O Spirit of Guidance, throw thy Divine LIght on my Path.
Open my heart, that thy spirit it may reflect.
My life is changing and taking a better turn on my journey.
My mind is still, Lord, with all people and with all conditions of the body.
May your Divine Inspiration fill my life, guide my thoughts and emotions.
Help my mind be your Divine Temple.”
Amen

One World, One love, One life now and always.

April 13, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

The Way of the World

Cleveland skyland from Huntington Beach, west of the city.Photograph cpoyrighted by Barbara Mattio 2013

Cleveland skyline from Huntington Beach, west of the city. Frozen Lake Erie. Photograph copyrighted by Barbara Mattio 2013

We are at a place in history where we have stood before. War, the worst of our mean, selfish, evil behaviour as human beings. Big countries start wars, small countries, a well aimed bullet ending the life of a king. Cultures will start wars. Religions start wars. Spirituality is different from religion, because spirituality is inclusive, not exclusive or demeaning to others who think differently, as many religions can be. Jihad is an excuse. The People of the Book love and follow the same God. Allah, Adonai, Christ – if you look at what they asked of the people of their world, it is similar. It is not supposed to take lives; lives that carry the exact same spark of Divinity. Now the people may suffer again under a new war and one that we may not survive.

We all feel the strong negative energy whirling around the world. We make sanctimonious noises about how good our country is, how right we are. Elsewhere, there is disease, famine, starvation, fear, Here, there is disease, fear, hunger, judgemental thinking, people say one thing and mean another. Trust is hard to find. People look at others and actually see a reflection of their inner selves. Mass shooting, mass stabbings, the ability to look away from the hungry child who can’t stay awake in school. We continue to look at children suffering as unfortunate. If we can, we look away or treat them like refuse which needs to be taken to the dump.

Love in the World

Every country in the world is experiencing pain, hunger, greed, oppression, in justice, hypocrisy, bullying, violence against women, racism and homophobia. It becomes a litany of woe. A list of the negativity people must live with.

What do we do? We are all on a journey and it is dark all around. We can’t see our feet through the whirling black negative energy. The answer is positive thoughts, positive actions. You can call them mitzvos of random acts of kindness. Or simply doing good. The name means nothing, the action is what produces the magic. The we find the source of some evil double the positive energy that will counteract the dark energies.

I have spoken with several masters who feel that the more positive energy we send in the world, the harder the darkness will fight. So we add more. Surround yourself and the troubled parts of the world with white light. Pray for leaders to have wisdom and the courage to act upon the wisdom.

” The bitter tear that flows into the sea

Dissolves into liquid unity

And in the sunlight rises up anew

To fall again as rain–sweet alchemy.

The seen of belief unfurls in faith , branches

out in experience, blossoms in realization, and bears fruit in service.

The goal of the journeyer is the Beloved.

The goal of the Beloved is the journey.”

—Pir Zia Inayat Khan

Babies are not born thinking others are different.

April 6, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

Bringing Purpose to the Journey

Steady the course

Life goes on – even after the adventure is gone. We must not forget the importance of living fully, of keeping the excitement of life. If it seems that your life has none, then it is your quest to find it and live it and share it.

I find, at twilight, that I experience that unique second, the moment that you recognize your complete and utter solitude and your deep and abiding connection to the universe. The feeling keeps me connected to the adventure of life and to the universe, and readies me to share my journey.

The journey through our days is often long, and sometimes seems too solitary, but you will meet the people you need in your life as you walk on the road. Open yourself to them, and let them open to you, and you will find adventure in the knowing of one another, and share the adventure of each morning, each evening and each lovely twilight as you walk side by side.

Some parts of the journey we walk alone and feel alone, but we are never really alone Photograph copyrighted by Barbara Mattio 2013

March 25, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

Passover reminds us that there are still miracles

Reflections

God does still perform miracles. No matter what name you call God/Goddess, miracles happen often. We need to remember to look for them. Even little miracles are just that, miracles.

Whenever humans, Jewish or otherwise are faced with problems that appear insurmountable, we can remember the stories from history. The Jews being held as slaves in Egypt is a very important memory for all Jews. The slaves could not overcome the entire Egyptian country. They were not even able to visualize the concept of possible freedom. They were stuck between the Egyptians and the Red Sea. God had other plans.

God brought plagues and eventually death to the Pharoah and in the end, they had their freedom. All of this happened a long time ago, but there are still miracles each day. The same God who brought freedom and a covenant with the Jews, continues to bring little miracles into our lives every day. Here, in 2013 we can still see miracles. Pre-mature babies survive and thrive into adulthood. Abused children grow into productive, loving adults. Victims of stroke and heart attacks recover and live normal lives. Flowers bloom. Birds sing. And life is a grand adventure we all get to experience.

” There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” —Albert Einstein

” No man can share in the Torah of Moses unless he believes that all our affairs and events, concerning the masses or the individual, are miracles.” —Nachmanides

“The true miracle is not walking on water or walking in air, but simply walking on this earth.” —Thich Nhat Hanh

” All change is a miracle to contemplate; but is is a miracle which is taking place every second.” —Henry David Thoreau

Photo copyrighted by Barbara Mattio 2013

Photo copyrighted by Barbara Mattio 2013

March 11, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

The Vibrations of our Heart

Within our hearts and souls, we vibrate with the life we are living on this planet. We vibrate on our journey. Our lives are like a song, the secret to the beauty of music is the notes…and the spaces between the notes, while we walk our path, or play a violin, or piano. The voice of God/Goddess/It is found within the vibrations. This is the essential sound, it is the vibration of the Universe and the sound of creation.

“But few will hear the secrets hidden within the notes.” –Rumi

Chanting brings audible sound into a refined state. It is as if there were a hidden peephole into the inner landscape. The sound moves us, but it is the silence of the inner landscape that truly moves us.

“Listen far beyond hearing, and call the unheard.” –Loa Tzu

When we turn to the music within us, we enter through the peephole into another reality. This one is filled with the loving presence of the souls of our ancestors and the souls of our offspring not yet born.

“If you want the truth, I’ll tell you the truth,

Listen to the secret sound, the real sound, which is inside you…

The music from the strings no one touches.” –Kabir

According to Jewish, Kabbalistic tradition, in the act of Creation the numinous light of God poured forth into vessels that were meant to receive His creative force. But the vessels couldn’t contain the awesomeness of God’s light and shattered, and the world is made up of their shards. Our job as evolving souls is to find and reclaim the hidden light. –Excerpted from the Khaballah

” Shout unto the Lord, all the earth,

Break forth and sing for joy, yea sing praises.

Sing praises unto the Lord with the harp…Hallelujah!

O Lord my God, Thou art very great…Hallelujah!

I will sing praise to my Lord while I have any being…Hallelujah! ” —King David

Chant and sacred sound are gifts of Spirit. To join with a community of others on many different paths is the rising of ecstasy of the inner landscape.

Namaste, Himdu path

March 11, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

The Art of Chanting

The secret of chant

The tree and sun connect us with Mother Earth and with the Divine

Joseph Campbell brought to light many years ago, the importance of ritual in the life of human beings. In his opinion, we all need rituals and I agree. Rituals may not be extremely structured and they may be performed every day at a certain time for many years. It has been an important aspect in my life to practice meditation, chanting and prayer.

From the Native American Indians to the Jews to the Buddhists, and Sufis and Muslims, there are practices which when done daily with ritual can keep us connected to our spiritual center and the path we choose to follow. There are some days you are centered and the praise, and the knowing flow between you and The One. My eyes are closed right now as I type and I can feel my center flowing words from my hands to this monitor. Watching the breath is another important practice as it keeps us balanced and within the perfect order.

The beauty of chanting is that it is very easy to reach a state of absorption. Your mind follows you into the chant and you become the chant. Chant evokes the living, vibrational reality of these core truths: devotion, stillness, praise, and oneness.

Radiating energy and light as you meditate or chant

” You’ve been walking the ocean’s edge,
holding up your robes to keep them dry.
You must dive naked under, and deeper,
a thousand times deeper…” ——Rumi

” This is how I would dive into the love I have for you: as pieces of cloud dissolve in sunlight.” —Rumi

Mirabi was a Hindu saint, who gave up her privileged life of wealth and ease to wander in search of the Hindu god, Krishna. She wandered from village to village barefoot singing, dancing nand chanting. When a seeker’s longing is pure, the Divine is always there.

” My friend, the stain of the Great Dancer has penetrated my body.
I drank the cup of music and I am hopelessly drunk.”
” And having tasted the nectar of God’s love, Mirabai is His forever:
Like a bee trapped for life in the closing of the sweet flower,
Mira has offered herself to her Lord.” —Mirabai

Cleveland skyland from Huntington Beach, west of the city.

Cleveland skyline from Huntington Beach, west of the city. Photography copyrighted by Barbara Mattio 2013

March 6, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

The Truth

The face of truth is open,
The eyes of truth are bright,
The lips of truth are never closed,
The head of truth is upgright,
The breat of truth stands forward,
The gaze of truth is straight,

If you are a child of the Universe

Truth has neither fear nor doubt,
Truth has patience to wait,
The words of truth are touching,
The voice of truth is deep,
The law of truth is simple:
All that you sow you reap.
The soul of truth is flaming,
The heart of truth is warm,
The mind of truth is clear,
And firm through rain or storm.
Facts are but its shadows,
Truth stands above all sin;
Great be the bettle in life,
Truth in the end shall win.
Soul of truth is God.
Life of truth is eternal,
Immortal is its past,
Power of truth will endure,
Truth shall hold to the last.
–Hazarat Inayat Khan

Towards the One

February 18, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

Celebrating Each Day of Our Lives

Make sure you dance every day so you can feel your joy

The days of our lives are filled with many things. They can be filled with hard work, illness, anxiety, passion, protesting, child care, doing laundry and a million other things which are not exciting. Life can make us very numb where we just go through the motions. We can look but not see what is right in front of us.

There are days where getting out of your comfort zone is rough. Some days it is easier to over look the song of the bird or the honk of a goose. Some days you don’t hear the music, it swirls around you without being able to get near your heart or soul.

Some days life feels right as soon as we open our eyes. The air smells sweet, you can hear a robin looking for materials to build his nest, you can hear your favorite music in your head and it lifes your heart. You can do a little dance as you make breakfast. A smile graces your face all day and you in turn, can share it with everyone. In short, these types of days show our celebration of life.

Celebrating life comes in sections .One section is praise for the blessing in your life. Those things that could be material or simply the note you received from an old friend. Praise is easy on the good days. It will flow out and around you as it gently floats upward toward the heavens. Praise on the hard days, when sickness, problems, uncertainity plague you, make praise be something you need to work at. It is just as important on these days and probably more appreciated by The One.

The other section is gratitude. This is not the same. The gratitude raises up out of your soul and engulfs you as you take every breath of air and as you take each step. Gratitude is the ability and intention of seeing every little gift given to you. It is the ability to recognize that you are surrounded by tiny miracles and they make you feel so loved and cherished by the Divinity in life.

When you put gratitude and praise together, you find the ultimate goal. You find yourself celebrating life. Celebrating life takes the weaving together of gratitude and praise to create an emotional quilt to wrap around yourself. So try each day to find a way to be in touch with your innerself and celebrate life as often as you can. Life, here on this plane, won’t last forever. There will be a day when we move on to the next plane of existence. We go forward experiencing the cycle of life. So today, try to really see and hear your world, dance a few steps, and sing your favorite song, even if it is off tune. Celebrate! Celebrate and see what comes back to you. Blessings to all, Barbara

Butterfly whispering. Photo by Cliff Mattio

Celebrate with praise and gratitude.

February 16, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

A Tiny Drop of Water

The Joy of Unity With the Universe

“O Lord,
One tiny bit of water rests on the palm of my hand.
I bring it to you and with it I bring the whole ocean
This tiny drop has the power to ease the burning thirst of men,
when spread on the earth, to give life to the seed and the future
harvest,
when poured on the fire to quench the blaze.
A tiny drop of water
can cleanse the whole of my impurity when blessed by your forgiveness.

—Ishpriya rscj

Seeing the World Through Different Eyes

Invoking the powers of the Universe or bestowing on Mother Earth or other beings is neither a simple benevolent wish nor an act of hubris. It is really an act of creative confidence.We free ourselves to come into dynamic relationship with the entire Universe. “May all beings be happy.”

“What a thing it is to sit absolutely alone,
in the forest, at night, cherished by this
wonderful, unintelligible,
perfectly innocent speech,
The most comforting speech in the world,
the talk that rain makes by itself all over the ridges,
and the talk of the watercourses everywhere in the hollows!
Nobody started it, nobody is going to stop it.
It will talk as long as it wants, this rain.
As long as it talks I am going to listen.
————Thomas Merton

“Let us be united,
Let us speak in harmony,
Let our minds apprehend alike,
Common be our prayer,
Common be the end of our assembly,
Common be our resolution.
Alike be our feelings,
United be our hearts,
Common be our intentions,
Perfect be our unity.

—— From the Hindu Rig Veda