January 24, 2013 by IdealisticRebel

Romancing the Wind

“It is a beauteous evening, calm and free,

The holy time is quiet as a Nun

Breathless with adoration; the broad sun

Is sinking down in its tranquility;

The gentleness of heaven broods o’er the Sea;

Listen ! the mighty Being is awake,

And doth with his eternal motion make

A sound like thunder—everlastingly.

Dear child! Dear Girl! that walkest with me here.

If thou appear untouched by solemn thought,

Thy nature is not therefore less divine:

Thou liest in Abraham’s bosom all the year;

And worshipp’st at the Temple’s inner shrine,

God being with thee when we know it not. ”

—-It is a Beautiful Evening, Calm and Free

William Wordsworth

I find that on a cold winter day like today, I need to find more beauty in life. There are so many different kinds of beauty. There is music, painting, dancing, reading, watching clouds, admiring the way the waves wash onto the shore. You can watch an eagle swoop over a mountaintop, and just tell a friend they are loved and appreciated. Some days we just need to share a bit of the beauty of creation and of what human beings can create. This video is my gift to all of you, my readers to enjoy. I hope it lifts your spirits as it did mine. Blessings to all.

The rainbows in life.

December 15, 2012 by IdealisticRebel

America, we have had enough shooting

Prayer brings healing and love to people

There is a source of comfort in times of unbearable grief

We must end the anger and violence. We must look to helping each other to heal.

People of all faiths are praying together for healing and peace and an end to violence.

December 14, 2012 by IdealisticRebel

Another Day of Shock and Horror

May the angels hold all of these children and aad the fallen adults in their wings and carry them on to the arms of The Beloved

My heart is heavy today as I listen and pray for the victims, their families and friends. I pray also for the survivors and first responders.I don’t believe that I will ever forget the little boy, in fourth grade who said, “We are just glad we are alive.” I also heard a mother say,” My heart is broken into little pieces.”

This is not the blog I planned for today and yet it is the one that I need to speak about. There were also school employees who were also dead. I am beginning to hear of acts of heroism that saved further lives. This bravery speaks to the best in the human heart.

I have visited the social media today and what I read that a few people have written is as frightening as this terrible act. We must not forget that how we respond to terrible events is important to how well survivors heal and how well families and friends can begin the process of healing. It is a process and it is a journey. Having lost someone very dear to me, I understand the process they are facing.

I pray for all of the first responders to this quiet, beautiful little village. They were also brave and selfless and viewed what the rest of us will never have to witness. Thanks to all of them for their quick response.

May the energy and the light of these candles surrounds the grieving parents.

Just now, I can only think of the pain and grief of families in this small Connecticut village. I ask that many prayers be lifted up for all of those affected by this terrible event.

Healing hands bring Divine energy to those in pain.

December 9, 2012 by IdealisticRebel

Happy Hanukkah

This is the festival of lights. Eight nights and eight days that bring us right to the magic and beauty of this festival. It is a holiday of warmth, candlelight, songs, games, presents and delicious foods. It is also the remembrance of the first war for religious freedom.

The Hanukkah menorah, or candle holder, has eight separate places for candles. The flames of the lights must never touch. It also contains one place is for an extra candle called the Shammash. This candle lights all of the others. It combines the earthly strength with heavenly light.

This time of year, Jews are celebrating a battle, fought against the Syrian king Antiochus IV, who was trying to force Jews to worship the Greek gods. A Jewish man and his sons won this battle. Mattathias and his sons were called the Maccabees. They were a small group of men who won the battle against an enormous army from Antiochus. They fought with farm tools, stones,and sticks.

How the Maccabbes actually won is a mystery and magic. They knew Syria much better but they were desperate to fight and save their people and they felt that Adonai was with them. This is a true story of magic and is cherished by the Jewish people.

When the Maccabees returned to Jerusalem, they were looking forward to a celebration and they found the Temple. It was filthy with blood and debris, dirt and ashes. All of the candlesticks, Torahs and books had been stolen.

Most importantly. there was only enough oil for the seven-branched Menorah to burn for one day, when the Menorah was meant to burn continuously, as an eternal light illuminating the way to God. Even worse, it would take eight whole days to make more oil for the lamps . The Jews did the only thing they could think of — they used the last bit of oil. And they prayed. The end of the first day came, and still the lamp burned. The oil kept the lamp alight for a second day, and a third. In all, the oil lasted for eights days and nights, enough time to make more oil. For the Jews, it was a miracle, and that miracle is remembered each year on the eight days of Hanukkah.

Hanukkah means Feast of Dedication, and the Maccabees rededicated the Temple to what is supposed to be. It was a holy place in which to celebrate great days.So each year, we pray, light candles and remember the miracle that happened once a long time ago. Jews laugh, eat, play Dreidle, sing songs and give gifts to others.

The Menorah is lit at nightfall so the lights will shine in the darkness and even the babies will see the ritual. The lights of the menorah are not to work by but to remind everyone of the miracle of the oil. (Source: The Family Treasury of Jewish Holidays by Malka Drucker; Little, Brown and Company”)

A Blessing Over the Candles

“You abound in blessings, Source of Light, Our G-d, Ruler of All Worlds,

Who has made us holy with Your Commandments,

And has commanded us to kindle the festival lights.”

December 6, 2012 by IdealisticRebel

The One and Love

My Heart has Become Capable of Every Form

My heart has become capable of every form;

For gazelles and a retreat for Christian monks,

And a temple for idols, and the pilgrims’s Ka’ba

And the tables of the Torah and the book of the Koran.

I follow the religion of Love, whichever way his camels take.

My religion and my faith is the true religion.

——Ibn al–Arabi

“Fact is intelligible, but truth is beyond comprehension, for truth is unlimited.” ——-Hazarat Inayat Khan

“Love in reality creates harmony in one’s life on earth and peace in Heaven.” ———Hazrat Inayat Khan

“The principal work of the prophet is to glorify the name of God, and to raise humanity from the denseness of the earth,

To open the doors of the human heart to the divine beauty

Which is everywhere manifested, and to illuminate souls

Which are groping in darkness for years. The prophet brings

The Message of the day, a reform for that particular period in which he is born.” ——Hazrat Inayat Khan

November 14, 2012 by IdealisticRebel

Chanting For Peace

“Oh music,
In your depths we deposit our hearts and souls.
Thou hast taught us to see with our eyes
And hear with our hearts.”
——Kahlil Gibran

“Before the world was, all was in sound.
God was in sound, we are made of sound.”

—Hazrat Inayat Khan

Conflicts in the Middle East are often distressing and frustrating to follow in the news. I personally, often feel such sadness. But there are things we can do to help. I believe prayer and chanting are ways we can help to bring about peace in our world. With chanting in groups. Chaotic images fall away and walls and barriers move apart to make room for love and acceptance. Prayers in these groups are aligned to magnify our relationship with The One. A deep Peace can settle over the situations and ease the tensions. There is a call for Jerusalem to once again become an abode of peace.

We are enveloped in sound. The vibrations of energy that we call sound pour through us whether we are asleep or awake. Whether we are in the midst of a noisy traffic jam or on a mountain top. Nineteenth-century philosopher Lorenz Oken stated, “The eye takes a person into the world. The ear brings the world into a human being.”

“Flowers and bees may be different, but the honey is the same.
Systems of faith may be different, but God is One.”
—Rig Veda

The words you use to chant, I do not believe are important. You need only use words which take you into the inner self where you can focus on peace and harmony. OM, Native American chants, Jewish chants, Hindu, Buddhist, Christian or Islamic chants will take us within to help to bring the peace and harmony the world needs so desperately into fruition. I will be following up with more blogs about this important subject.

Working for Peace and Harmony in Our Time

September 27, 2012 by IdealisticRebel

Love and Peace Instead of War

Mother Teresa stated, ” Works of love are always works of peace.”

When and where there is God, there is peace. He/she pours their love for us and peace flows over us and within us. Divine love always pours joy and peace into our hearts. My prayer is to be led from despair to hope, from fear to trust, from hate to love, and from war to peace. Our world, our universe is Peace, Peace, Peace.

It cannot exist with war, hate and violence. Every day, we make choices about the world we create around us.

We all have the right to be at peace and happy. We were created to have this life of peace. We can each have peace in our world without causing pain or suffering to others. We each have a responsibility to use what we have been given to create peace. There is no other higher pleasure than to create peace and have that peace in your life create a ripple effect and flow out to touch others in positive ways.

We need to love one another as The One loves each of us. Accepting that love and using it to bring peace into your life will bring peace to those around you. As they feel covered and immersed in peace, it will flow out of their lives and will touch an ever larger group of people. It is a beautiful thing to see and experience.

Peace Plea

Please, protect my child.
Please, protect other mothers’ children.
Please, give me peace.
Please, give other mothers peace.
Please, give the world peace and justice.
This is the peace only you can give.”

————Karen Lavin

July 26, 2012 by IdealisticRebel

No Greater Love

One of my heroines is Mother Teresa. This soul is what I always wanted to be. I didn’t succeed, but I am continuing to help the world however I can. I am committed to do this for the rest of my life. Life requires commitment to ideals, commitment to love and acceptance. Life requires that we love and accept others without limitation. Now, I know there are some that would say, she has never seen the rough parts of life. But I have, in person and close up. The world isn’t beautiful. You have to look for the beauty in people and all around you. God is everywhere and that includes within us. So follow the creative voice within and create the beauty you need to thrive in this experience. This plane of existence.

“Love each other as God loves each one of you, with an intense and particular love. Be kind to each other; it is better to commit faults with gentleness than to work miracles with unkindness.”
—-Mother Tesesa

Rumi talks about the ecstatic love of God. He speaks of the interconnectedness of all sentient beings.

“One part of the Whole is not separate from the other parts. The beauty of all flowers is part of the rose’s beauty. The coo of the turtledove is part of the nightingale’s song.” —–Rumi

Our works of love and charity come from our overflow of our love of God from within. Charity is like a living flame. The drier the fuel, the livelier the flame. Showing gratitude for everything in your life, whether a little thing or an abundance, needs to be done with joy. A heart burning with love produces a joyful heart. Joy is strength. Joy is always hard and it isn’t just temperament. We need to work to acquire it and make it grow in our hearts. We may not always have a lot to give but we can always give the joy that springs from a heart which is in love with God. We need to love without getting tired. A lamp burns with the continuous flow of drops within the lamp. Compassion and a loving heart are the most important things we can cultivate and we will never run out. We were chosen for this incarnation for a purpose, we aren’t just a number. So explore life, embrace it with passion and find what God has for you.

Photo by Barbara Mattio, Livingston, TX.

July 18, 2012 by IdealisticRebel

The beginning of Peace

Photo by Barbara Mattio

” The fruit of silence is Prayer
The fruit of prayer is Faith
The fruit of faith is Love.
The fruit of love is Service.
The fruit of service is Peace.”

—-Mother Theresa

We talk so much about peace. And then they talk some more. We wish for peace, we pray for peace, we hate those who are different and we talk some more about peace. We don’t like different colors, we don’t like wearing hoodies, and we pray for peace. We tell others that if they don’t worship like we do, they will not experience St. Peter and the pearly gates. We hate those who have a different culture. We become violent when changes are suggested for our country. We let fear and anger twist our thinking and our souls, but we know God is with us and we pray for peace. Peace needs to start somewhere and the best place is within our hearts and souls. If we develop peace within our own families, communities and with our friends; it is the place for beginnings.
If each of the 7 billion + people on Mother Earth start in their own lives and in their communities, a wave of peace will begin to spread over the world. Let it begin with each of us.

Photo by Barbara Mattio

July 17, 2012 by IdealisticRebel

An Attitude of Peace

There are people from every religion who believe in peace. There are prayers that are part of every culture, every religion that are lifted up for the cause of peace.

Zorastrrian prayer for peace:
“We pray to God to eradicate all the misery in the world; that understanding triumph over ignorance, that generosity triumph over indifference, that trust triumph over contempt and that truth triumph over falsehood.”

A Jewish prayer for peace
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, that we may walk the paths of the Most High, and we shall beat our swords into ploughshares, and our spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall we learn war anymore. And none shall be afraid, for the mouth of the Lord of Hosts has spoken.”

A Baha’l Prayer for Peace
“Be generous in prosperity, and thankful in adversity. Be fair in thy judgment, and guarded in thy speech. Be a lamp unto those who walk in darkness and a home for a stranger. Be eyes unto the blind, and a guiding light unto the feet of the erring. Be a breath of life to the body of humankind, a dew to the soil of the human heart, and a fruit upon the tree of humility.”

A Sikh Prayer for Peace
“God adjudges us according to our deeds, not the coat that we wear; that Truth is above everything, but higher still is truthful living. Know that we attain God when we love and only that victory endures in consequence of which no one is defeated.”

A Hindu Prayer for Peace

O God, lead us from the unreal into the real.

O God, lead us from darkness into light.

O God, lead us from death to immorality.

Peace, peace, peace unto all.”

A Buddhist Prayer for Peace
” May all being everywhere plagued with sufferings of body and mind quickly be freed from their illnesses. May those frightened cease to be afraid. and may those bound be free. May the powerless find power, and may people find themselves in trackless, fearful wilderness- the children, the aged, the unprotected, be guarded by beneficent celestials. And may they swiftly attain Buddhahood..

A Sufi Prayer For Peace

“Send Thy peace, O Lord, which is perfect and everlasting, that our souls may radiate peace.
Send Thy peace, O Lord, that we may think, act, and speak harmoniously.
Send They peace, O Lord, that we may be contented and thankful for They bountiful gifts.
Send Thy peace, O Lord, that amidst our worldly strife we may enjoy Thy bliss.
Send Thy peace, O Lord, that we may endure all, tolerate all in the thought of Thy grace and mercy.
Send Thy peace, O Lord,that our lives may become a divine vision, and in Thy light all darkness may vanish.
Send Thy peace, O Lord, Our Father and Mother; that we Thy children on earth may all unite in our personhood.”

Each spiritual path leads us to the Divinity. A different facet of Divinity. Does it have to look like the people around us, is Divinity energy, is it all-powerful, does it love us and want to experience life through us? Wherever in this great big world we live in, let us understand that there is One World, One Life and One Love. Let us each do all we can to remember this each day; that we all want the same peaceful world. And may that peace come to all countries and religions and races. May we learn to love the way we are loved by Divinity. May we not see anything besides Divinity within each other and may we build a peaceful world where love is all.