Shoreline Walk

Shoreline Walk 

Walking along the shoreline of your life

  what will you find this day?

Are the waves rough or calm?

  Is the horizon cloudy or bright?

Are you walking in another's steps?

  Is another walking in yours?

Have you made this walk before?

  If yes, what are the memories.

If it is a new walk,

  how open are you to discovery?

If you are alone on this walk

  what are your thoughts?

If you are with another,

  is there conversation?

Can you feel the earth under your feet

  and the wind's embrace?

Can you walk with purposeless presence

  and a sense of grace filled curious wonder?

                        richard hammer

                            5-22-17

Just This

   Just This

Just this moment

Just this breath.

I am here.

Turning inward.

Sensing inward.

I am here.

Releasing distractions,

surrendering control.

I am here.

Giving myself to light,

opening to life.

I am here.

In expansion while centering,

centering while expanding.

I am here.

I give myself to Shakti

in this moment in love.

I am here.

Peeling back surface layers.

Sourcing into self truth.

I give myself to light.

And know

The essence of everything

is light and love.

In silence, and in surrender.

Essence is revealed.

   richard hammer

      5-20-17

  

Yantra of Being

Yantra of Being

C.A.L.M.

Centered

Aligned

Loving

Mindful

There are a multiplicity of openings in each quadrant of your mantra of calm.

As you look at, and meditate on, this yantra, the center of it, see it as a wheel of deepening awareness, of both grounding and expanding, of both center and circumference.

Feel the vibrancy of its activating colors. Come into a sense of its depth and vibrancy.

Spend time with it. Each one of the compass points can be an inquiring into presence.

Perhaps note the Four Quadrants as:

Centered is the North point – lifting mental awareness up beyond separated self identity.

Aligned is the East point – leading you forward in your calling, leaving behind attachment to the results of your actions.

Loving is the South point – a grounding into the basis of your being, into love for that is what you are.

Mindful is the West point – a remembrance of what has brought you here, the work to be done in this moment.

Mantra

When I am calm I move forward with purpose, grace, and ease.

When I am calm I know the next right action.

When I am calm I move in the rhythm of all life.

~~~  ~~~ 

Sea of Awakening Poem

On the Sea of Awakening

There is an imperative

that requires you to blossom.

Just as the flower opens,

as a responding to light

And the butterfly emerging into flight

as an expression of fulfillment of being

With pure attention and intention,

 it is a tasting into mystery that is.

Start with feeling this moment,

beyond conceptional understanding.

Feel the energy that is you, a primal pulsing,

and the delight that is its right action.

Let enlightenment be revealed to you

with this breath, and the next.

Becoming empty to become all that is,

non-separation as authenticity.

There is a givenness to this moment

that blesses you and all around you.

Open to this sea of awakening.

            richard hammer

               5-13-17

            Cape Coral, FL

Deeper Listening with Self and Others

Deeper Listening with Self and Others

May 15, 2017

All of us are familiar with the phrase – “Life is what you make it.” Restated, it could be said that the goal could be to experience all that is here to be experienced by us, or to be in our wholeness.

Ruth King, mindfulness teacher, writes that “There is no greater gift to ourselves than our willingness to be present to our own lives ~ the good, the bad, and the ugly ~ and we do this most effectively through Mindfulness or Insight.” ( see https://ruthking.net/ , “Healing Rage: Women Making Inner Peace Possible”)

What is necessary to come into this sense of wholesomeness is to get out of the old story, narratives, and remove the lens of misperception caused by egocentric conditioning. One helpful way for Ruth is to have a mantra phrase she uses with herself when confrontation arises - “life is not personal, not permanent, not perfect”. This is a reminder for her that the act and perception of it is not “all about me”, is not going to be permanent for change is a constant, is not my way which usually involves arrogance or be indignant.

Standing back from judgment, at least two steps, can we see things differently? This requires a deeper listening. It requires a sense of presence with your true self as well as with the other.

For the self, the first step of mindfulness is to relax and come into relationship with body and breath. Then, one way of looking at the challenge of the moment is to sit and have tea with the demons that are being faced. This story analogy, from Buddhism and the demon Mara that confronted Guatama, is to invite the demons to have tea with you. Do not reject and push away. Sit and see what is here.

For connecting with the other, it is to engage in mindful conscious conversation. This requires unprogramed presence, the willingness to be a receiver. It requires standing back from fixing, comparing, and judgment. It requires us to be a good listener. The process of nonviolent communication, known as NVC, is helpful here. (See https://www.cnvc.org)

Being a good receiver takes practice. It requires that we recondition the way we have done it in the past and then the discipline to remember to do it.

Take time each day to sit and listen - to the inner dialog of you, and then with another for the inner dialog of them. Connect.

The Dali Lama has noted that the next step for enlightenment for us, both individually and as the human species, is to develop community.

Listen Well

What is the conscious conversation you might have today with another? 

..... one that might provide a space for deep listening.

Today a member of our Center of Spiritual Living Wednesday meeting group, Ken, spoke of a moment in time that offered a deeper spiritual awakening for him. He said,“I came to listen in a different way.” 

Can you mindfully pause, yes stop, to inquire of another "How is your day today." Attempt to drop below the surface veil of accepting the standard response of "OK" to listen at depth. Instead of receiving the five second response, opt in for the five minute listening without speaking response. Say nothing, unless it is "tell me more"! Have eye-to-eye contact. And listen. Deeply listen. Be present for meaningful heartbeat of another. 

Our world hungers for this human connection.  As human beings, we each want to be seen and heard. This is part of joining the community of human beings, to be accepted and loved. Give the other a moment of your time to feel nurtured by you.

Instead of listening for content, listen for heart resonance, for mutuality, for understanding the meaning of another's life. Instead of trying to fix the other with all your accumulated years of wisdom .... pause and let higher guidance direct your next words and action.  Maybe it is "Thank you", along with a hug.  May be it is something else.  Let it be authentic with you. 

We are here for mutual support and surrender. Or, is that mutual surrender and support?  When it is your turn to say what is happening to you this day, allow vulnerability. Walk to the edge of your fear of opening to another, and mindfully voice what is arising.  Face the fear of revealing your deeper self to another (yes, done within a safe context with appropriate boundaries).  

We grow by pealing back the layers of surface stories and meeting what is truly true at depth.  This is self discovery.  Listen to the words you speak and hear something that you did not realize was there, that wanted to surface.  This is self-realization. This is transformation. 

Let another hold this space for you just as you would for them. 

Here are a few referencing sources:

From  Elephant Journal online  - "Love, real love, in all of its raw, beautiful, dirty, confusing, funny, ugly, and sexy forms is what connects us. At Elephant Talk we dive boldly into every aspect of love and partnership. Curiosity and a passion for finding connection, fresh perspectives, and honest communication are the driving force behind every episode."

https://www.elephanttalk.org  /  Listen  - https://www.elephanttalk.org/listen/

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Also, you might find it of interest to receive the short monthly recording of Listen Well, a monthly audio blog, a spoken word website where the speaker-journalist provides an insight into perceptions. impressions of her journey. -  http://www.listenwell.org/current-offering

May you be well.

May you know peace.

May you offer peace to others.

Richard