that is a wish for all of us together–to embrace
in the most tender ways.
Tripping Over Joy
What is the difference
Between your experience of Existence
And that of a saint?
The saint knows
That the spiritual path
Is a sublime chess game with God
And that the Beloved
Has just made such a Fantastic Move
That the saint is now continually
Tripping over Joy
And bursting out in Laughter
And saying, “I Surrender!”
Whereas, my dear,
I am afraid you still think
You have a thousand serious moves.”
― Hafiz, I Heard God Laughing: Poems of Hope and Joy
I wake up for nine days with the chin of an eternally optimistic chocolate Lab resting on my hand or arm, with tail wagging and bright eyes imploring, “let’s play!” Because she is the sweetest and most well behaved critter on four legs, I surrender to the hour, 6:15, throw on some clothes, harness her up and we explore the neighborhood–new to me and always new to her no matter how many times she has sniffed that patch of ground.
She doesn’t know me but loves me regardless and I don’t know her but the feelings are mutual. It is the wonderful thing about dogs and I personally am grateful for a little extra LOVE this week! Thank you Lily.
…this glorious moment, this presence and our heart, the jewel that provides us everything.
The Stairway of Existence
We are not in pursuit of formalities or fake religious laws,
for through the stairway of existence we have come to God’s door.
We are people who need love, because love
is the soul’s life, love is simply creation’s
greatest joy.
Through the stairway of existence, O through
the stairway of existence Hafiz,
have you now come, have we now all come,
to the Beloved’s door.
–Hafiz, from a Year with Hafiz by D. Ladinsky
Full Moon May 14, 2014 @ 23 degrees Scorpio 54 minutes
03:16 p.m. EDT 12:16 p.m. PDT
With that Moon Language
Admit something: Everyone you see, you say to them, “Love me.”
Of course you do not say this out loud;
otherwise someone would call the cops.
Still though, think about this, this great pull in us to connect.
Why not become the one who lives with a full moon in each eye
that is always saying, with that sweet moon language,
what every other eye in the world is dying to hear?
–from a year with Hafiz, Daniel Landinsky
Keen focus on what matters or what does not matter. Moon in Scorpio (conjunct Saturn, 4 degrees) opposition Sun in Taurus; if we feel like we need something for emotional stability our premise for this belief will be challenged. Tugged at by old insecurities, the basic considerations of the astrological 8th house, the cycle of humanity, birth, death, rebirth and regeneration, may loom tall on the agenda for the next several days. Further penetration to the core of our beliefs and that which may limit us.
Until at last we arrive at the shining truth– what is here is love. We realize that; that which we have always yearned for, we have always been. Only at a ‘deeper’ level of knowing do we grasp this truth. It is when everything else falls away and we have no illusions that we are not, that we are liberated. This is a gift of Scorpio and this Full Moon chart. There is little wiggle room. The wound is finally cauterized, the wound being our emotional neediness, by recognizing the impermanence of material reality in exchange for the knowing of unlimited, eternal ‘Reality’.
If the energy to perform habitual distractive antics eludes you this is part of the challenge, to sit with whatever may be uncomfortable on the way to realizing nothing matters–‘nothing really matters’ means a space in which not anything is a problem (Robert Wolfe, livingnonduality.org)– except the ‘truth’.
It may feel like road rash, sound like nails on a blackboard, taste like battery acid and look like the final scene from Braveheart but on the other side of this is stillness, perpetual calm–the absence of suffering.
Scorpio is strongly motivated to succeed and rarely balks at a challenge. So, whatever test you may be presented with at this time will be victoriously surmounted. In fact dig deep and deeper. Whatever the issue, you will find the strength to ‘defeat the enemy’ and move beyond into silence where the mind is not in control and peace prevails. I am “that” is all that arises and that is everything.
With gratitude we embrace this Full Moon experience.
Truth is blossoming love, flowing freely and embracing all of us in warmth and a continuous feeling of Be-longing. Love is the truth of a touch that doesn’t stop even when we are separated by many miles, our hearts remain connected in support of all we do here–no matter what appears to be going on around us. Everything is motivated by love. Love is recognizing that ‘you and I’ are one and though I may project my concerns and fears on you, it is part of the journey toward love of Self and Self realization.
In gratitude for your continued presence and willingness to participate in the intimacy that unites all of us.
How did the rose
Ever open its heart
And give to this world
All its beauty?
It felt the encouragement of light
Against its Being,
Otherwise,
We all remain too frightened.–Hafiz