Kundalini Splendor

(Painting titled "Kundalini" by Jan Elvee)

I recently received the following from Bonnie Greenwall, well known authority and writer  on Kundalini.  I looked at the  opening sections of each book and found much helpful and reliable information in each.  Bonnie draws on the knowledge and experience of some thirty years as a counselor on Kundalini and other matters.

Dear Dorothy,
I am a voice out of the past who just found your lovely website. I'm glad to see you are on the web and I hope you are well and happy.   I'm writing to anyone who might be interested to let people know I have published two new books this year, "The Kundalini Guide" and "The Awakening Guide", based on my 30 years of listening and supporting people in the awakening process.  I've thought of you as an inspiration for self-publishing and so went ahead and put my books up on amazon and kindle.  They are smaller that my first book but more concise and focused on a perspective and practical guidance that is very useful for anyone in these processes.  
I'm no longer involved in the Kundalini Research Network and now have a center in Ashland, Oregon where I do non=dual teaching (I was invited to teach by the lovely teacher Adyashanti), consulting and counseling, and still do a lot of internet consulting through my website www.kundaliniguide.com.
I'd enjoy hearing from you.
Blessings Always, Bonnie Greenwell


You might want to check out my books at amazon.com
"The Kundalini Guide" and "The Awakening Guide."
Or my websites www.kundaliniguide.com and www.awakeningguide.com

may alchemy spin pain into love
in this moment
may the love course through me
weave fear into gratitude
tendrils touching and being touched by others
with this breath
beaming
brimming
boundless cloth shimmering
deep
full
unfurling with grace
gossamer garden bed
growing courage and kindness
tucking us in with tenderness

- Andrea Marquette

The Summer Day

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean--
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down,
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.

I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?


~ Mary Oliver ~

(New and Selected Poems, Volume I)

from the Shift Network:

Dear Dorothy Walters,

I'm writing to let you know that registration for Andrew Harvey's Christ Path Advanced Intensive closes at midnight Pacific Tonight, Wednesday, June 25.

This will be the last email about his course, so I wanted to invite you to close your eyes, let go of worldly "to-dos" and distractions for a moment -- and just feel the essence of this beautiful man, who has touched so many hearts and inspired so many souls already.

Are you ready to embark on one of the greatest spiritual adventures of your life? To discover the advanced teachings and practices hidden in the depths of esoteric Christianity? To commune and co-create with other sacred hearts and minds from across the world? To fully awaken and embody your Christ nature in your daily life?

If you get a resounding "yes" in your heart, you can register here:

The Christ Path Advanced Intensive with Andrew Harvey

In my experience, Andrew is the rarest kind of teacher, as brilliant as he is loving; passionately sharing his insights with a wide open heart and unflinching commitment to the truth. His unique wisdom helps us to see through centuries of religious misinterpretation to reveal the essence of Jesus' true message -- which is that his path is available to us all.

If you register today, you'll get access to the recordings and transcripts of the first two sessions, so you can catch up with everyone already in the course.

And then you can join Andrew LIVE, tonight at 5:00pm for the next session in his in-depth training on "The Cauldron of the Gospel of Thomas."


And remember, when you sign up this extended course, you’ll also receive all of the recordings and materials from Andrew’s 7-module introductory training at no additional cost.

Plus, you'll join a global community of 250 people who are diving deep into their core and embodying the Christ path to bring more heaven down to earth.

Today is also the last day to apply for a partial scholarship. We don't want you to let finances be a barrier to you walking the Christ Path, so if you're called but need some assistance, please do apply: Apply for a scholarship tonight, June 25, by midnight Pacific.

So, if you're truly committed to your spiritual awakening -- and are called to enter into this transformative field of sacred activism with Andrew Harvey -- reserve your spot here: 9-Month Advanced Intensive Christ Path


  In spirit,
Stephen

The Shift Network 101 San Antonio Rd Petaluma, California 94952 United States

Recently, I read an article from the N. Y. Times in which the author commended the writings of Anne Carson.  I confess I did not know her work, and looked up some of her poems.  I was quite surprised by what I found.  Her work appears, on the surface, to be a jumble of memories and musings, none cohering into a comprehensible text, until one examines more carefully and sees the connecting patterns.  She is definitely a poet of highly experimental technique. She is also quite gifted intellectually, and has won all sorts of honors and rewards, including a prestigious genius award from the McCarthy foundation. As if often do, I wrote a personal reaction to her poems, which were fascinating and somewhat frustrating.
What does all of this have to do with Kundalini?  Very little, at least at first glance.  However, once Kundalini visits us in all its power and glory, we achieve a more coherent view of our universe, and our experience falls into more comprehensible patterns.  Her work illustrates (I think) the confused eclecticism of the high critic and creator, one whose mind moves rapidly through a melange of events and memories, but who finds no sustaining vision in her life.
For me, intellect alone will not suffice.  Mind must be fused with heart for significant spiritual progress to occur.  Hers is the plight of the contemporary "intellectual," who possesses great knowledge but lacks connection to great "Soul."
Look her up on google to get a taste of what I am describing here.


Anne Carson

Anne Carson's poems are highly experimental, quite unlike the work of most of those who came before her.
To read her is as if you took a brain box and shook out all its contents, then reassembled them randomly as they “fell out” or emerged into consciousness.  Thus lost lover, mother’s carping, demented father, cold moor, Emily Bronte, dream scraps, faithlessness and pain all equally occupy the field of awareness together or separately, each demanding attention of the moment, and thus creating a chaos of knowing more like actual consciousness than that "stream" of thinking artificially constructed into sentences, paragraphs, or pages.  Shades of James Joyce!  This is the stream of consciousness carried to its full limit, the disorganized, unsorted debris of awareness as it reels ahead, moment to moment, undirected and seemingly devoid of ultimate meaning or purpose, other than to reflect the relentless flow of the raw landscape of the mind.

One follows with a kind of masochistic fascination, not expecting meaning or point to emerge, but rather to enter, temporarily, this reeling display, a fireworks of language and image captured from this outpouring of the unfettered “self.”

This is the reflection of a mind that has not found its center of organization—not connected with the “Thou” that exists as stabilizing force, but rather subsists in the turmoil of the unsorted responses of the “lost” spirit, turning hopelessly in its maelstrom of confused memory and sensation.

Michael asks:

What would you do
if you were already
free?

Outside, high-flying birds
swoop in and out of formations,
perhaps playful, perhaps purposeful.

Suddenly I'm up there,
with them, held in an
invisible net of generosity.

What would I do if
I were already free?

I would laugh and laugh,
and the laughter would
hold it all, generously,
in an invisible net of
regret and revelation,
of resistance and relief,
and together we would
swoop in and out of
enigmatic formations,
giving thanks for
the blessing of being
a precious human
touched by the divine.

Jan Elvee

I received the following from the Shift Network--truly worth your time.

THIS WEEK ON SUMMER OF PEACE:

**TODAY** SATURDAY, June 21, 11:30am Pacific: World Peace Prayer - Igniting the Season of Prayer and Meditation with David Nicol, Fumi Johns Stewart, Chief Arvol Looking Horse & Avon Mattison
SUNDAY, June 22, 9:00am Pacific: Spirituality & Peace Sunday with Chief Arvol Looking Horse

Dear Dorothy Walters,

Tuesday’s “Beyond Right and Wrong” session was one of the most powerful interviews on how we can create peace in our relationships and the world! Please, please, please listen to and share the recording with your loved ones! A dear friend of mine heard the interview and is now helping his wife forgive her father for childhood trauma. (See below for more information about the session and free resources.)

It is such a profound opportunity we have to really learn how to embody and create peace in our lives and the world.

And now – this Saturday and Sunday – we can celebrate the solstice with Chief Arvol Looking Horse from the Lakota Nation by joining him and thousands of people in global meditations and prayers for peace and honoring of sacred sites.  (The first meditation event will be Saturday at 11:30am Pacific - see below.)

We can do it, we must do it – be the peace we want to see in the world and take practical action.

Please join the meditations and prayers this weekend!

Read on below to catch up on what happened. But first!...


TODAY ON THE SUMMER OF PEACE:
(Click here to see the full schedule.)




SATURDAY, June 21, 11:30am Pacific
World Peace Prayer - Igniting the Season of Prayer and Meditation with David Nicol, Fumi Johns Stewart, Chief Arvol Looking Horse & Avon Mattison

In honor of World Peace and Prayer Day, this special global teleconference/webcast is co-sponsored by the World Peace Prayer Society (WPPS), Gaiafield Project, Pathways to Peace, and the Evolutionary Leaders, and it will help launch the Summer of Peace Program. The World Peace Prayer will feature prayers of peace from Chief Arvol Looking Horse, the Evolutionary Leaders, Minute of Silence invocation by Avon Mattison of Pathways to Peace, an Attunement meditation by David Nicol of the Gaiafield Project, and May Peace Prevail on Earth Prayers by Fumi Stewart of WPPS.
Your dial-in number and PIN for all of the Summer of Peace Summit sessions are:

Call in number: +1-530-216-4294 (click here for other access numbers and methods)
Your access PIN is: 489865# (backup PIN: 669279#)
If you’ll be listening over the internet instead of on the phone, click on the links in the schedule above - or you can always click through to the webcast from the program page.


AND HERE’S WHAT HAPPENED IN THE LAST SoP SESSION:

Beyond Right and Wrong
This is by far one of the most powerful interviews that provides practical insights on how to create peace in our personal relationships and the world. Lekha Singh shared why she created the film Beyond Right and Wrong. It looks at how people reconciled and found forgiveness after horrible atrocities in Rwanda, Northern Ireland and Israel-Palestine. Lekha said the film inspires viewers to examine themselves and to take steps to address torn relationships in their own lives. Mitch Warner and the Arbinger Institute provide people who watch the film with a user guide with proven methods on how to heal wounds and create peace with others. This is a powerful “one-two” combination – inspiration with the film and how-to from Arbinger Institute. Ambassador McDonald then joined the conversation and said he has used the film and guide. He shared the story of how he helped create the International Day of Peace. He’s now working with Costa Rica to make the International Day of Peace a national holiday around the world!


POWERFUL RESOURCES FROM TUESDAY’S CALL

I strongly encourage you to watch Lekha’s film Beyond Right and Wrong. It’s available free online and when you watch it, $.50 is donated to a nonprofit organization - click here. After you watch the film, please go to The Reconciliation Project to get the user guide available from the Arbinger Institute - click here.

Also, Ambassador McDonald wants people to see the U.N. Resolution that he drafted for Costa Rica, calling for September 21st to be a global holiday for all member states in celebration of the International Day of Peace. Here is an article Ambassador McDonald wrote for us - click here.


SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS

Each day you'll have many rich opportunities to learn and implement strategies to bring peace — from the personal to the planetary — to the next level. We invite you to comment, ask questions, share resources, and connect with us and others throughout the day on The Summer of Peace’s Facebook page. The hosts will be watching that page for questions, so if you have questions or comments for the hosts or guests, post them there.


SHARE THE SUMMER OF PEACE

This is a perfect time to share this great free offering with your friends and colleagues. Even if people miss the start of the summit, they'll have free access to the replays forever, so they have plenty of time to listen, learn and be inspired by these illuminating sessions.

We’ve set up a beautiful page which has all kinds of resources to help you help us get the word out about The Summer of Peace. Email your friends, share on Facebook and Twitter, post on your blog… click here to see what we have for you!

Here’s to a truly inspirational summer — transforming conflicts in your heart, your relationships and our world!


  Pax,
Philip Hellmich
Director of Peace, The Shift Network

I am indebted to the writer of the following for allowing me to publish this personal account.  As we know, each experience of awakening is unique, but we learn by sharing, thus becoming teachers to each other.

    I was shy in sharing the experience with A. because I don't talk about it. I tried to look up similar experiences on the web and of course i did find Kundalini. But many of the descriptions seemed full of drama, of rules, of hierarchy. Some said one had to be pure and go through initiations to have the experience - I'm a middle age woman, I eat meat, I drink wine, I don't have a yoga practice. I didn't find anything that resonated with me, so I  let it be my private thing.

 Like you, I don't know why it happened to me, like you, I think the events of my life did create a framework for it. My first experience was actually fairly young, 17, when I had a Christian conversion experience at my boarding school at the hands of two handsome young Stanford grads who were born again and came to teach. :) It was an authentic surrender to Christ, however, and in that surrender, I didn't get just peace, or relief - I got an ecstatic, undeniable, full body almost orgasmic experience that [put] me on the floor - and left a sweet perfume that lasted for a long time.  In college at Dartmouth I studied religion and philosophy rigorously, finding a real home in Taoism which i practiced, I lived in silence for a year at a Buddhist meditation center, and learned vipassana, I went on to "achieve things" in the world as a journalist.

 But I didn't have another full on experience until my early 30's. It shocked me just as much. I was in a rare yoga class, and at the end, in the rest period, I just casually asked myself, can I give up my fear? Can I give up my body? With every question I could feel this tension, until finally I asked, "Can I surrender everything?" And at that moment, there it was again. Full on ecstatic electric body takeover. I had had it before but I was still surprised. After that it started coming regularly in meditation, and I could feel it in its parts, this lightening ecstasy starting in my loins and at the base of my spine, shooting up through my head. Sometimes it travelled all through out my body, sometimes it lingered a while in my heart.

 I think I assumed it was a common experience, I tried to bring it up to others I knew meditated, and realized it wasn't. I often kept the experience limited or at bay, I didn't feel that I could feel it fully all the time. And then it came at other points during the day. I recently - last year - decided to truly invite it for the first time. And the invitation was - I am open (to anything happening) and i am ALSO open to nothing happening. And I had to really open myself up to being so open to anything - but also to nothing. And man did I get a light show. Instead of trying to guard myself from it, or think about it with my brain, I tried to enter the energy itself. Not labelling, not analyzing but being one with it. It would slow down for a moment and I would repeat my "openness" - and it would start up again. Sometimes it would start in my groin and the base of my spine and shoot up my head, but sometimes it would flow down from my head to the base and back. It would travel all over my body, circle my heart. I let myself convulse and twitch openingly, as opposed to trying to contain it, which I sometimes do.  It was very intense, lasted 20 minutes, and I passed out cold for about a half hour. When I woke up I was infused with the deepest love, and the twinkly beauty of all things, I moved though the days with an effortlessness.

 I now can invite it any time I like. I don't have to be aligned or even in a good mood to receive it. There is such grace with it, it demands nothing but the openness, and the surrender. I feel it now throughout the day.  I recently was at the homeopath, on the table, and when she was working on me I decided to invite it in. And she stepped back and said, "What the heck was that?" And I said, "Can you feel it?" She said, yes, and that she was so glad I came in, because I obviously needed the release of her treatment. I told her I didn't think it was something I needed healing from.

 But I was still not sure exactly what it WAS. Your book is the best account of the most similar experience, and I was so grateful to read it. And I'm still not sure what to "do" with it. I think I am lucky enough to receive it "at will" by which i mean, "the surrender of will" -- because I've never made it mean anything, and Ive never "needed" it to be there. It's been with me for so long, it's been a beautiful private gift. But A. suggested I start working with it. He also said it could be healing - I'm starting big symptoms of menopause.

 And I'm wondering if it could be of service in the following way: I feel like I'm being called to share my spiritual knowledge in the world. Because privately I've had a non traditional and intuitive but very rigorous practice for most of my life. Through many teachers in books and private investigations, I do feel this stillness, this connection and love, often most of the time,and of course this gift of this amazing kundalini energy.

The following announcement from the Shift Network is extremely important.  Corporate power is in fact taking over our world, proceeding almost unchecked in "destroying our planet."  Only if the people band together to oppose this takeover will we survive.

COMING UP!

FRIDAY, June 20 at 12:00pm Pacific - Challenging Corporate Power: Locally! with Stephanie Hervey, Sustainable World Coalition
Dear Dorothy Walters,

Can you believe we are almost sliding into the last week of the Sustainability Action Program? Before the home stretch next week, though, we’re addressing the very important topic of transforming corporate control. There was an amazing call on Monday on corporate personhood (still time to listen in!), and Friday you’ll hear from the mayor of Richmond, California about how their town is transforming. Check it out!


COMING UP NEXT on Spring of Sustainability
THIS FRIDAY, June 20, 12:00pm Pacific



Challenging Corporate Power: Locally! with Stephanie Hervey, Sustainable World Coalition

Can cities challenge corporations? Yes! Leveraging the creative power of local municipalities – where personal connections still matter more than big money – is a viable means to reinvigorate democracy and challenge corporate greed. But, as Mayor Gayle McLaughlin knows, it’s not easy. The citizens of Richmond, California have taken on big oil, big money, and big sugar. Join our live conversation with Mayor McLaughlin to learn how a working class town of predominantly low-income people of color has mustered the people-power necessary to become a more sustainable, equitable, and corporate-savvy city.
All sessions are available by clicking on the name of the session above to listen live from your computer, or by dialing in:

Call-in number: +1-530-216-4294 (click here for other access numbers and methods)
Your access PIN is: 606684#  (Backup PIN: 435107#)

Here’s what happened earlier this week:

Corporate Personhood: The Constitutional “Right” to Environmental Destruction with Move to Amend - Listen in to this powerful session recording to learn about what can be done to overcome the rights of corporations to destroy our planet in the name of profit.


TRACK YOUR ACTIONS

During the Sustainability Action Program, you’ll learn about many different actions you can take to live more deeply connected with your commitment to sustainability. We’ve gathered some of these ideas in a personalized online Action Tracker for you. Here’s the link.


SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS

Throughout the week, you'll have many rich opportunities to learn about new sustainability practices and insights. We invite you to comment, ask questions, share resources, and connect with us and others on The Spring of Sustainability Facebook page. We’ll be watching that page, so if you have questions or comments for the hosts or guests, post them there.


LIFETIME ACCESS TO THE RECORDINGS

A recording of each session will generally be made available within 24 hours, and the replay will be available for 48 hours after the initial broadcast, so you have plenty of time to listen to this important and valuable content.

And we know that having permanent access to the wisdom of the summit can really help you integrate and practice what you learn here. We have created three affordable options for you to get access to the downloadable recordings and transcripts so you can access the information any time, and as many times as you want. There are some great bonuses, too! It includes all the sessions from both the Earth Day Celebration, as well as those in the 9-week Sustainability Action Program.

Find out all the details on our Sustainability Action Kit here:
http://springofsustainability.com/upgrade


Share The Spring of Sustainability - Outreach to your networks

This is a perfect time to share this great free offering with your friends and colleagues. Even if people miss the session, they'll have free access to the replays for 48 hours after the broadcast, so they have plenty of time to listen, learn and be inspired by these illuminating sessions.

We appreciate your help in getting the word out about this powerful free offering. We want this event to have the maximum impact on building a sustainable, thriving world for all. You can help by using the following links:

Here are all the ways you can share with your networks:

Email your friends - Visit our Invite-a-friend page for help with that.
Facebook - Like our page here (click "Like" at the top) and share our recent post about the program with your friends.
Twitter - We'll be using @theshiftnetwork when we tweet updates from the Summit. You can also use the hashtag #SoS2014 to mark tweets related to The Spring of Sustainability and find others who are tweeting about it.
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Here’s to a truly inspirational Sustainability Action Program — turning crises into creative solutions and co-creating a sustainable new world for all!

  Alison Marks
Director of Telesummits, The Shift Network


Join Our Facebook Community


SPRING OF SUSTAINABILITY CO-SPONSORS

Move to Amend

We the People,
Not We the Corporations

Formed in September 2009, the Move to Amend Coalition is an alliance of hundreds of organizations and hundreds of thousands of individuals committed to creating social and economic justice, dismantling corporate rule, and building a vibrant
democracy that is genuinely accountable to the people, not corporate interests."


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NOTE: Dr. Swanson will be presenting in Boulder this coming Friday, but he has many talks available on Youtube, as well as the books mentioned below. He is one of the "forward thinkers" coming in "out of the cold' of mainstream science and turning to more nontraditional areas for investigation.  He is well worth your time.


Dr. Claude Swanson presents on The Spiritual Dimension of ET Contact
Friday, June 20, 2014
7:00 PM

Solstice Center
302 Pearl St, Boulder, CO (map)

SE Corner of 3rd and Perl St.


The Spiritual Dimension of ET Contact


Dr. Claude Swanson, anMIT and Princeton University educated physicist, has pursued a conventional professional career in applied physics for the last twenty years, interspersed with investigations into "unconventional physics". His principal interest has been unified field theory, the so-called "Theory of Everything" which could explain the universe at the deepest possible level. This led him to investigate many aspects of the paranormal, which appear to be completely real phenomena that violate our present science.

Dr. Swanson will explore the connection between the spiritual dimensions and ET contact in this presentation byrevealing the remarkable parallels between these two realms.


Many of the themes and structures found in modern scientific research on spirit phenomena are strangely reminiscent of the content in ET contact cases.  In both spiritual Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP) and ET contacts, there are often messages about the unfolding global consciousness shift as well as changes in the earth itself. Interdimensional and paranormal phenomena are frequent topics in both fields, including teleportation, levitation, PK and telepathy.  It is possible that a much better understanding of ET goals and motivations can be achieved by considering these connections.

Dr. Swanson has written two books, “The Synchronized Universe” and “Life Force, The Scientific Basis” and his upcoming new book will expand on these to include the topic of this presentation.



When:    Friday, June 20th at 7:00 P.M. (door opens at 6:00 P.M.)
Solstice Center--$10.00

One of the Ways

“It is one of the many ways
to enter fire.”
                   Mary Oliver

And, yes, we enter,
either by our own volition
or the command of the gods.

And then we flare,
 a small frenzy of color,
until we are finished—
a glowing silhouette,
ready for what awaits—

the sunlit music of the world
with its insistent curves
and turnings,
or else—
a withdrawal,
the all consumng silence
that comes only
to those
who have known
the flames.

Dorothy Walters
June 13, 2014

(picture found on internet)

Calling All Women

Calling all sisters. Calling all
Righteous sisters.
Calling all women. To steal away
To our secret place. Have a meeting
Face to face. Look at the facts
And determine our pace. Calling all
Women.
We want to reach – first and second
And
Third world women
Come together!
Women in and outside the power structure –
Working women,
Welfare women,
Women who feel alienated and isolated
Women who are all frustrated
Women who have given up – women – women
Questioning women – women
Unpolarized and unorganized.
Ostracized. Tired of being penalized
Come help us start to bridge the gaps
Racial, cultural, or generation
We want some action and veneration.
These men, these men they
Just ain’t doing it.
They’ve had hundreds of years
Now they ’bout to ruin it.
Kitchen, office, ex-prison women
Old and young and middle-aged women
Make this scene
Oh yes, and bring your lunch!
Problems, problems common problems
That we make and cause each other
Sister, daughter, old grandmother
Female child you can bring your little brother
Take the subway, grad a cab
Saddle your mule
Bike it, limo
Take a choo-choo, fly
Or pick ‘em up and lay ‘em down.
Socialism, capitalism, communism
Feminism, womanism, lesbianism
Here-and-now or futurism
We just can’t afford a schism
We got to get together or die.
Now is the time for an evolution
Let’s all search and find a solution
For how we’ll make it to the next revolution
Or die.
Oh yes. And don’t forget your lunch!

   - Ruby Dee
(1923-2014)
________

This World

I would like to write a poem about the world that has in it
nothing fancy.
But it seems impossible.
Whatever the subject, the morning sun
glimmers it.
The tulip feels the heat and flaps its petals open and becomes a star.
The ants bore into the peony bud and there is a dark
pinprick well of sweetness.
As for the stones on the beach, forget it.
Each one could be set in gold.
So I tried with my eyes shut, but of course the birds
were singing.
And the aspen trees were shaking the sweetest music
out of their leaves.
And that was followed by, guess what, a momentous and
beautiful silence
as comes to all of us, in little earfuls, if we’re not too
hurried to hear it.
As for spiders, how the dew hangs in their webs
even if they say nothing, or seem to say nothing.
So fancy is the world, who knows, maybe they sing.
So fancy is the world, who knows, maybe the stars sing too,
and the ants, and the peonies, and the warm stones,
so happy to be where they are, on the beach, instead of being
locked up in gold.

- Mary Oliver
__

Start with Roses

Start with roses.
No matter if they have become
almost a cliché
available in
every garden.

Don’t worry that every bride
and bridesmaid
that you have ever known
carried them up the aisle.

Don’t fret that often divas receive
huge armfuls from the stage.

Sometimes whole gardens
are nothing but roses.

On certain occasions
their petals are strewn
over the dead.

Roses have many meanings:
Christ in cathedral windows,
the final secret for those
who dabble
in occult realms.

For Dante, the rose was the emblem
of heaven itself.

Go there,
become a rose.

Dorothy Walters/June 11, 2014

On Prayer

You ask me how to pray to someone who is not.
All I know is that prayer constructs a velvet bridge
And walking it we are aloft, as on a springboard,
Above landscapes the color of ripe gold
Transformed by a magic stopping of the sun.
That bridge leads to the shore of Reversal
Where everything is just the opposite and the word 'is'
Unveils a meaning we hardly envisioned.
Notice: I say we; there, every one, separately,
Feels compassion for others entangled in the flesh
And knows that if there is no other shore
We will walk that aerial bridge all the same.

~ Czeslaw Milosz ~

(New and Collected Poems)

(image from internet)

Let us try what it is to be true to gravity,
to grace, to the given, faithful to our own voices,
to lines making the map of our furrowed tongue.
Turned toward the root of a single word, refusing
solemnity and slogans, let us honor what hides
and does not come easy to speech.  The pebbles
we hold in our mouths help us to practice song,
and we sing to the sea.  May the things of this world
be preserved to us, their beautiful secret
vocabularies.  We are dreaming it over and new,
the language of our tribe, music we hear
we can only acknowledge.  May the naming powers
be granted.  Our words are feathers that fly
on our breath.  Let them go in a holy direction.
- Jeanne Lohmann
_

Lawrence Edwards: Awakening Kundalini (book from Sounds True)


If someone were to pick up a rock, put it in your hand, and ask you if it was real or not, you’d likely say, “yes, it is real!” without hesitation and probably wonder why a person would ask such a question. The ordinary mind, our ego mind, is almost always certain that it knows and understands basic reality—but being so convinced that we know something, as unconscious and unintentional as that attitude may be, makes us blind to all that we don’t know. Holding on to that rock, the ordinary mind has no sense that the stone is 99.99 percent empty space, and what is perceived as a rock is actually pure energy bound in that form! The same can be said of the one holding it.

Cutting through the blindness of the ordinary mind, cutting through ignorance and the pride-of-knowing delusion, requires a force of wisdom beyond the closed mind’s tangle of ideas and beliefs. Cutting through the mind allows us to directly know the highest truths. One term for that force of wisdom and ultimate knowing is Kundalini. Kundalini is a Sanskrit yogic term for the unimpeded power of wisdom, transformation, and revelation inherent to us all. It is the power of universal, unbounded Consciousness as the potential for the individual to know all that lies beyond the confines of the mind and body while discovering a new vision of the mind and body revealing hidden dimensions with unimagined clarity.

The term Kundalini translates quite literally as “the coiled one” and symbolically points to our innate potential power of consciousness, which is represented by a coiled spring or a snake, ready to be unleashed. The unfurling of Kundalini’s power occurs through the process of Kundalini awakening, which releases the power of Infinite Consciousness to impact the mind and body in countless transformative ways. It unleashes the power and potential of your mind and body to function at their very best. More importantly, from a yogic perspective, this power, your power, opens experiences of boundless love, compassion, wisdom, and grace. Ultimately Kundalini brings you to the highest state of consciousness possible.

The aim of this book is to support people on their path of spiritual awakening, regardless of the tradition they follow. Kundalini is given different names in different spiritual traditions Holy Spirit, Chi, Sophia, N’um, Saraswati, Tara, Prajnaparamita, bodhicitta, and many more—but the power of grace, revelation, and transformation to which these terms point is one and the same. Each language has its name for gold, but gold is always the same substance. All spiritual traditions speak of the power beyond the mind that draws one through the profound process of transformation and revelation to the very source of the highest wisdom and boundless love. That power, in the yogic tradition, is known as Kundalini.

I received the following from Stephan Dinan of the Shift Network:

Dear Dorothy Walters,

I hope this email finds you well and that you're having a great week.

I wanted to send you a quick note to let you know about a special Christ Path event that's taking place this SUNDAY, June 8 from 10:00am - 1:00pm Pacific.

It's a FREE online mini-summit called "The Christ Path Conference" -- and will consist of 3 one-hour-plus sessions that we've recently recorded with the renowned mystic and scholar, Andrew Harvey.

The central theme for this unique 3-part teleconference will focus on the advanced teachings and practices of esoteric Christianity, as well as the questions people have had about about living Christ Consciousness or participating in Andrew's upcoming 9-month Christ Path Advanced Intensive -- which starts next week on June 11.

We recorded each of these sessions over the this past month and people LOVED them -- so much that we wanted to make them available in one special event to be sure that everyone had a chance to listen to Andrew's powerful message and insights.

It's truly time for us to reclaim the higher possibility for the Christ Path, and no one is more brilliantly pioneering this pathway than Andrew Harvey. This work is at the core of living a divinely human life. Here is the schedule for Sunday's call:

10:00am Pacific
    Living Christ Consciousness

11:00am Pacific
    Advanced Teachings and Practices - Coaching + Q&

12:00pm Pacific
    The Christ Path Advanced Intensive - Coaching + Q&

Feel free to listen to the whole event or drop in anytime!

Here is your call in info:

Listen in on our free webcast at http://InstantTeleseminar.com/?eventid=54067953
You can also join us by phone: Dial (425) 440-5100 and enter the PIN 862166#

If you would like to delve deeper into the heart and soul of Christian mysticism or The Christ Path Advanced training, I strongly encourage you to attend this special event.


  In spirit,
Stephen
PS - If you're interested in learning more and reserving your space for Andrew's upcoming Christ Path Advanced Intensive, please visit the course page below. We have a terrific international group of 150 who are already registered -- and it's promising to be stellar. And remember, when you sign up this extended course, you'll also receive all of the recordings and materials from my 7-module introductory training.

Reserve your space now >> The Christ Path: Advanced Intensive (9-month Practicum)

 

When a bulb burns out
we just change it--
it's not the bulb we love;
it's the light.


 ~ Kate Knapp ~

(image from internet)

"The following description of the chakra system - by the Hindu Master Sai Maa - provides a glimpse of the importance of our subtle body to every aspect of our lives. To translate this into the language of Taoist Yoga, simply think "dantian" each time Sai Maa writes "chakra," and think "meridian" each time she writes "nadi."  (Elizabeth Reninger)

"If our understanding is that consciousness is primary and matter is secondary, then consciousness, the Divine, is transforming itself into matter at every point in the universe. However, at certain points, this transformation is more intense, more active. On the planet we refer to such a point as a vortex. On the human body, they are called Chakras. The word Chakras literally means wheel, so a Chakra is where the Unmanifest spins itself into the manifest. There are many Chakras in the human body but we usually focus on the seven major ones, located along the spine. Each Chakra has its own qualities which influence our physical and emotional well-being. Past karmas relating to those qualities are also stored at the level of the Chakras. In an Enlightened body, the Chakras spin freely, allowing for an effortless process of transformation and the unimpeded flow of energy throughout the body. However, for most of us, there are blockages in these areas leading to a loss of Wholeness in the quality of life.

Surrounding the physical body are the layers of subtle bodies, often collectively referred to as the aura. These subtle bodies completely mirror the physical body, and everything we experience in the physical body is first experienced in the subtle body. By keeping the subtle bodies perfectly aligned with the physical body, we can maintain balance and harmony in life. The subtle bodies also act as a kind of protective shield to the physical body, so keeping them strong and healthy is important to our well-being.

Running through all of this is a network of energy channels, known in Ayurveda as nadis. According to Ayurveda, we have 72,000 nadis in our physiology. The nadis radiate out from the Chakras, acting as the lines of communication to all parts of our physiology. Keeping these channels clear is important to the free flow of energy and information throughout the physiology. There are three major nadis in the body. The Ida Nadi is on the left side of the spine. It is cooling, feminine and purifying. The Pingala Nadi runs along the right side of the spine. It is heating, masculine and cleansing in the way fire cleanses. Balance between these two nadis creates balance in our lives. The Sushumna Nadi is located in the center of the spine and is the channel through which the spiritual energy or Kundalini Shakti will eventually rise from the Root Chakra at the base of the spine to the Crown Chakra, opening the door to Freedom."

Every so often an event occurs that is well out of the ordinary.  Recently two such came to my attention.

The first event occurred like this:  my friend and her husband (who live in Boulder) had gone to bed, but kept hearing voices outside their house.  They went out to see what was happening, and found several of their neighbors congregated outside, all looking up at the sky.

First, there were several smaller lights overhead, but these merged with one of two larger, red lights, which hovered above for several minutes.  Finally, one of the larger lights took off at a very high speed, and the other simply disappeared.

As always, there are questions surrounding these anomalous events.  Were these lights indeed emanating from alien craft?  If so, why were they here, above our home town?  What was going on?

The second anomalous event was this:  On a recent morning, I happened to be listening (via my computer) to a YouTube feature of Krishna Das singing kirtan.  Before I knew it, I was again drifting into familiar bliss, first around the face and head, then moving into the hands and arms.  Once more, I floated off into a state of soft rapture--and then something inspired me to write the poem that I posted recently (it is named Krishna Das).  I quickly wrote down the poem (like taking dictation, more than composing), then went back to listening, but by now the spell was broken.  I enjoyed the remainder of the program, but never recaptured the bliss state of my earlier experience.

Question: did the pause to write the poem simply shift my brain from a "right brain focus" to a "left brain focus"?  And, furthermore, what is it that occurs (chemicallly or physiologically) in the brain that causes it to "shift"?  Do other people experience such changes?

Kundalini is, I believe, primarily a "right brain" experience.  At times music can awaken the rapturous inner energies.  Since this  state is essentially a subjective response, it is beyond the capacities of science to measure it or even verify that it takes place.  Whatever it is, it is a "self validating experience," one we long to repeat as often as possible and something that tells us we are part of a reality far greater than ourselves.

Thus--both the seeming alien aircraft encounter and the rapture aroused by Krishna Das are themselves "mysteries," fascinating but ultimately inexplicable.

Foreign Travels

I am trying to think
of somewhere foreign.

Some place where I did not
know the language
or gestures,
where everyone was
taller or shorter
than I was
and their skin color
was not the same as mine
and the street signs
never matched the streets.

Fact is, I never went there.
I stayed home,
“traveled much in my own living room.”

Wherever I went
was always inside,
ever further and further
into the interior
of the—mind?  self?
the dark continent of
fathomless mystery--
whatever it is
that resides within,
places that resonate
in delight or pain,
cities with no names,
locations not listed
on any map.

Roses so beautiful
that not even the gardener
knows their beginnings.

Dorothy Walters
June 2, 2014