Friday, May 13, 2005
More on Linda Greischel
In an earlier post, I quoted Linda Greischel's account of her kundalini awakening, which appears in her book, "Divine Eros," recently published. Linda is now the President of the Board for the Kundalini Research Network, and it was she who did the bulk of the groundwork for the recent conference in San Diego. (Thank you again, Linda, for all your dedication and hard work to make this conference the great success it was.)
Linda is a remarkable woman. As we compared notes, the two of us were struck by how many parallels there were in our individual awakening experiencs. Like me, she had a sudden, unexpected kundalini arousal, one which transformed all aspects of her life thereafter. She, too, mostly kept her experiences secret for many, many years (in her case thirty), since there seemed to be no one in whom she could confide. She also kept a journal, in which she described the progressive unfolding of her mystical awareness, and wrote poems and created paintings as well to express the intricate complexity of what was happening in this mysterious transfiguration of the self at all its levels.
She has now published two books which reveal the full extent of the ongoing alchemy within: "Divine Eros: The Alchemy of Soul and Spirit" (on yoga, meditation, mysticism, and the kundalini process) and "Mythic Memory: Remembering the Feminine Soul and Spirit." Both are rich depictions of LInda's continuing spiritual discoveries. The latter in especial contains poems and paintings based on her own life journey.
A few minutes ago, I opened "Mythic Memory" to this lovely poem:
Aqua Vitae III: Divine Waters
Let me drink
from the wellspring
of your eyes
Fill my empty cups
parched with thirst
that only your holy waters
can quench
Aqua Vitae, Ultimate Love
baptize me anew each day
I am drought stricken
without your liquid light
As I close my eyes
I can see again
sinking to depths
where me becomes You
And everything
dissolves
into the boundless
Ocean of You.
(copyright, Linda Greischel)
I wonder how many other "hidden mystics" there are among us. Surely this is the time to come forward, to face the world with courage and hope, to say, yes, this happened to me, and perhaps you too will be touched by this wondrous force, baptized in the spirit of holy love.
(But, I do not mean to imply that people should feel compelled to "go public" until the time is right. These things are always a matter of personal circumstance, best left to ripen at their own pace. After all, Linda kept her counsel for thirty years before "going public" and I kept silent for twenty.)
Linda is a remarkable woman. As we compared notes, the two of us were struck by how many parallels there were in our individual awakening experiencs. Like me, she had a sudden, unexpected kundalini arousal, one which transformed all aspects of her life thereafter. She, too, mostly kept her experiences secret for many, many years (in her case thirty), since there seemed to be no one in whom she could confide. She also kept a journal, in which she described the progressive unfolding of her mystical awareness, and wrote poems and created paintings as well to express the intricate complexity of what was happening in this mysterious transfiguration of the self at all its levels.
She has now published two books which reveal the full extent of the ongoing alchemy within: "Divine Eros: The Alchemy of Soul and Spirit" (on yoga, meditation, mysticism, and the kundalini process) and "Mythic Memory: Remembering the Feminine Soul and Spirit." Both are rich depictions of LInda's continuing spiritual discoveries. The latter in especial contains poems and paintings based on her own life journey.
A few minutes ago, I opened "Mythic Memory" to this lovely poem:
Aqua Vitae III: Divine Waters
Let me drink
from the wellspring
of your eyes
Fill my empty cups
parched with thirst
that only your holy waters
can quench
Aqua Vitae, Ultimate Love
baptize me anew each day
I am drought stricken
without your liquid light
As I close my eyes
I can see again
sinking to depths
where me becomes You
And everything
dissolves
into the boundless
Ocean of You.
(copyright, Linda Greischel)
I wonder how many other "hidden mystics" there are among us. Surely this is the time to come forward, to face the world with courage and hope, to say, yes, this happened to me, and perhaps you too will be touched by this wondrous force, baptized in the spirit of holy love.
(But, I do not mean to imply that people should feel compelled to "go public" until the time is right. These things are always a matter of personal circumstance, best left to ripen at their own pace. After all, Linda kept her counsel for thirty years before "going public" and I kept silent for twenty.)
