Kundalini Splendor

Savasana

Once again, the field rehearses how to die.
Some of the grass turns golden first. Some
simply fades into brown. Just this morning,
I, too, lay in corpse pose, practicing
how to let myself be totally held by the earth
without striving, how to meet the day
without rushing off to do the next necessary
or beautiful thing. Soon, the grass will bend
or break, molder or disintegrate. Every year,
the same lesson in how to join
the darkness, how to be unmade, how quietly
we might lean into the uncertainty
of whatever comes next.

~ Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer

from Terry Patton––Shift Network

I invite you to tune in to me and over fifty other visionary change agents for a free online summit: Vision 2020, on Dec. 5-7. You’ll discover a laboratory for the future, an incubator of genius, and a catalyst for creating a world that works for all.

Integral Spiritual Practice: Evolving Spirituality for the 21st Century
Dear Dorothy,

It’s easy to become disheartened by the injustice, tragedies and natural disasters unfolding in our communities and around the world.

If you find yourself questioning how we can possibly turn things around, you’re not alone.

I’ve tackled this “impossible question” deeply in my upcoming book A New Republic of the Heart: An Ethos for Revolutionaries. It is a major book, one I think will advance our practice and discourse, helping us understand the new more conscious political entity that is already coming into being, in our hearts, our friendships, and our creative projects.

But between now and March 6th, when that book will be released by North Atlantic Books, there’s a lot we can do. We can turn especially to spiritually-inspired activists. There are many. Hundreds of thousands of people like us are not only asking this "impossible question", they’re stepping up to answer the call and participate in manifesting the changes we need and are ready for.

This is a time for out-of-the-box thinking, startups, and unprecedented ideas.

What would happen if, together, we envisioned (and executed!) breakthroughs in the thorny areas that we’re facing — from homelessness to racism to war to poverty to sustainability?

What would happen if we aimed to create these major changes by the year 2020— for ourselves, our communities and for the rest of the world?

Something inspiring and potentially world-changing.

Last September, a group of people came together in Sacramento, California for the Vision 2020 summit, aiming to answer those questions in real terms. I was there, and I found it richly heartening.

I invite you to join me, and many others December 5-7, 2017 — where you’ll see me presenting along with more than 50 thought leaders at a virtual summit on grounded spiritual activism as it is already being practiced by practitioner-activists in California. You’ll discover a laboratory for the future, an incubator of genius, a catalyst for birthing new possibilities that has networked among a group of people committed to creating a world that works for ALL.

Participating will give you hope, inspiration and power to make a difference in your life and the lives of your community and our world.

Together, we have a chance (and a responsibility) to light the path to a brighter future.
Free Online Event
Vision 2020
December 5-7, 2017

I’m honored to be among this diverse group of community leaders — including Dolores Huerta, Marianne Williamson, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, Sister Jenna, Stephen Dinan, Rev. angel Kyodo williams, Joan Blades, Shariff Abdullah, Michael Lerner, Andrew Harvey and many others — revealing bold visions and strategies for shifting our world, scaling up our influence and impact and making new possibilities as attractive, successful and imitation-worthy as possible.

RSVP here for Vision 2020 — at no charge.

Here’s some of what the speakers, including me, will be sharing with you:

In a panel on spiritual activism, I advance our human conversation into important new territory, bringing to light the terrible truths of our time, but also the wonderful secret that evolutionary pressures are already transforming us, birthing us into a new stage and structure of human culture.
Marianne Williamson calls us forward to step in and stand up for our country's founding principles, and the sacred commitment that ALL people are created equal.
Sister Jenna offers a dynamic, enlightening transmission on how our thoughts have the power to create our reality — demonstrating that the awakening and shift in our country requires the transformation of our inner world.
Stephen Dinan discusses Vision 2020, a powerful movement to educate ourselves and each other — a solution-focused resource for designing and activating the more beautiful world we all know is possible.
Rev. angel Kyodo williams shows how the “American Dream” has been a nightmare for all non-Caucasian people throughout our country's history — while inspiring you to envision and create a brave, inclusive, new American Dream.
Joan Blades with John Gable will introduce a powerful practice for healing relationships that are broken or diminished because of divergent political orientations — offering communication techniques that build understanding across divides.
Shariff Abdullah addresses the complex topic of racial injustice… and expresses a vision for a future of equality and economic stability for all socioeconomic classes.
Michael Lerner with Cat Zavis will emphasize the importance of creating social change movements grounded in empathy and infused with love, compassion and spiritual wisdom and practices.
Andrew Harvey offers insights on sacred activism and how it can lead to deep shifts in our political evolution.
You’re invited to join this one-of-a-kind online event at no charge to connect with a larger community of spiritually inspired activists. You’ll witness many conscious change agents explore how they are bringing their inner work to the task so that, together, step by step, we’re shifting the way we do things personally and collectively to create a more compassionate, peaceful, accepting and just world.

Together, we are beginning to initiate a new wave of our social, political — and, yes — spiritual potential. This project is a beautiful example of the many new expressions of civic wholeness that are arising during this superficially “dark” time, and which, in my upcoming book, I recognize as strands in a much larger movement through which a new republic of the heart is coming into being.

RSVP here for Vision 2020 — at no charge.

To our evolution,
Terry

Go to Vision 2020 summit.us to register

A Prayer Among Friends

John Daniel

Among other wonders of our lives, we are alive
with one another, we walk here
in the light of this unlikely world
that isn't ours for long.
May we spend generously
the time we are given.
May we enact our responsibilities
as thoroughly as we enjoy
our pleasures. May we see with clarity,
may we seek a vision
that serves all beings, may we honor
the mystery surpassing our sight,
and may we hold in our hands
the gift of good work
and bear it forth whole, as we
were borne forth by a power we praise
to this one Earth, this homeland of all we love.

(image from internet)

Santa Fe (where I spent Thanksgiving week) is indeed a magical place.  The desert landscape is indescribably beautiful.  Near the city is a small village called Arroyo Seco, which is known for its remarkable ice cream.   Apparently Julia Roberts has purchased a ranch nearby from the previous owner, who was Donald Rumsfeld.  I can only say that it is easy to understand why celebrities would choose to buy land in this incredible location.

The city itself boasts an area known as "Museum Hill," which contains several museums dedicated mainly to native American art and culture.  The layout of the grounds and the design of the various museums is truly remarkable.  Through the remarkable exhibits you see that although these early peoples may have lived under austere circumstances, they were gifted in creating great beauty through their vases and other artistic productions. I was especially impressed with the various poems from the pueblo residents, including one which spoke of how the gods sang into being the land and its people. And, in addition, there is a lovely restaurant on the grounds that provides truly delicious food.

And, should you visit Santa Fe, be sure to stop at the "Tea House" for exquisite food and hot chocolate.  This restaurant is located on Canyon Road, the traditional location of various art galleries.  Years ago this area was inhabited by many poor artists, but today property values have shot up and only the financially well off can afford to live here.

The above picture was taken at Museum Hill, and obviously I am having a lovely time.

(picture taken by Gina Barnett)

What you seek is seeking you.
                                  Rumi

And it is always with you,
even now,
as your eyes graze the
desert landscape,
mountains layered blue on blue,
not just a painting
but the real thing,
the essence,
the sweep of colors blending
one with another,
cobalt, russet, mauve,
do you think all of this
happens to be happening
just by chance at this moment,
you the seer passing by,
the scene arranged
in splendor just for your eyes
at this instant
of what you think of as your life,
your time here composed of seconds
and hours,
always fleeing forward
to your beginning.

Dorothy Walters
November 26, 2017

(picture from Gina Barnett)

Notice:  I will be offline from November 18 to November 26.  Have a glorious Thanksgiving everyone and think of all the blessings in your life.  See you in about a week!

Dorothy

Invisible Light

Did you know
that your body is emitting light,
always, unnoticed, but
documented?

Constantly you are sending forth
unseen rays of yourself,
love streams to others,
joy in creation.

I wonder if that is what
the trees and flowers are doing
also, sending out light that
makes them shine from within,
seem to glow on certain days
with unexpected luminosity.

Sometimes when  I walk
among such radiance
I am not sure where
such brightness
is coming from,
an unknowable source
or else my own eyes seeing.

Seer and seen,
ever one.

Dorothy Walters
November 17, 2017

Good News from Lynne McTaggert

A Love Bomb Gets Dropped in the Middle East

It’s been eight days since our historic Middle Eastern Peace Intention Experiment, and shock waves are rippling across the Middle East, as well in the hearts of our participants.

For those of you who haven’t heard, we targeted the Old City of Jerusalem, largely because it is the spiritual heart of most of the world’s inhabitants of the three main religions, a place that belongs to everyone, but that can be possessed by no single faith.

We sent intention through my YouTube channel, as thousands of people from around the world joined the Arabs from eight countries and hundreds of Jews from Jerusalem at the Gerard Bechar Theatre in Jerusalem, both of whom were lit up on my screen.

I ran the experiment from Smarts Way Studio, owned by Dr. Salah Al-Rashed, the Deepak Chopra of the Middle East.  The studio has the capability of simultaneously connecting screens from nine different locations. We connected Arabs from eight cities – in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Oman, Bahrain, Jordan and Tunisia –and also an auditorium of Israelis in Jerusalem, who were attending a special peace event, all to my other screen, where everyone could see me running the experiment.

No horns in sight

The experiment itself was amazing, but even more amazing was the reaction of the Arabs and Jews, who began sending love, forgiveness to each other.

‘You have no idea how revolutionary this is,’ said one Saudi woman to me.  ‘We have never seen Israelis.  We’ve been taught to believe that they have horns coming out of their heads.’

After our experiment, the Jerusalem event carried on, with Dr. Noga Gazit, speaking about how inner peace leads to global peace; Imad Telhami, discussing the principles in business that support social ethics; and Lilian Weisberger, of the Women Wage Peace Steering Committee, and The March of Hope and The Journey to Peace – two projects that attracted more than 60,000 participants.

A rabbi and a sheikh spoke about biblical precedents for this coming together, and both Arabs and Israeli families shared their stories about how the conflict had impacted them, and offered solutions for lasting peace.

The story breaks
The story about the experiment broke immediately all across the Middle East. Dr. Al-Rashed showed me the Twitter feed from a prominent MP in Kuwait, who acknowledged the experiment as a wonderful mechanism for promoting peaceful relations.

Israeli press and television was also awash in the story.  As Time Out Israel wrote, ‘While peace in the Middle East is neither black nor white, it's the small efforts like this meditation event that slowly start to make a difference.’

And then there was the reaction of our thousands of participants on YouTube.  They came from all over the US, from Brooklyn to Los Angeles and the UK, most of Europe, the Arab countries and Jerusalem, but also more exotic, far-flung places: Australia, Brazil, Tokyo, Bangkok, Budapest, Finland, Columbia, South Africa.

Once again, about half the audience registered a mirror effect. Relationships were healing, participants felt more love for the entire world.

As Ross Watts wrote: The Middle East Peace Intention ‘energy’ is still affecting me today – smiles and LOVE Bombs just flowin- and glowin’ – doing acts of kindness without any thought – they just happen.  MERCY Lynne McTaggart, the ‘rebound effect’ is AWESOME!”

 ‘I experienced personal release of deeply held, old, old patterns dating back to my earliest childhood that subsequently came up into awareness, for acceptance and clearing out,’ wrote another. ‘Probably my deepest healing ever, and it has made a huge (HUGE!) difference to my relationship to my partner, which was already deeply powerful. Now it is a totally connected union.’

Healing the healers
People experienced their own physical healings: ‘After the meditation I experienced a severe headache, which I normally never have... I went to bed. It was the beginning of a realignment process in my neck vertebrae... my neck is getting better and better than years before!’

Now that we have this capability to connect audiences around the globe and allow them to interact, Dr. Al-Rashed and I are planning larger Peace Experiments involving every continent on the planet.

The powerfully transformational mechanisms at work in my healing intention groups appeared to be the unique power of group prayer coupled with an amazing mirror effect. Focusing on healing someone else brings on a mirrored healing.

And that’s the real point of all of this.  Yes, we might lower violence in Damascus Gate, and I hope we do.  But most of all, what we will have created is a ripple effect of peace in the hearts of the participants that extends out to the entire world.

I consider Sally Kempton one of the wisest teachers among us today.  She has spent years researching and experiencing the wonders of the phenomenon we call Kundalini.  Her depth of understanding of this divine love force is unparalleled.  This course is a rare opportunity to explore one of the fundamental texts of spiritual awakening.  She is well equipped to be your guide.


Sally Kempton's Awakened Heart News

November 2017

Save the dates!
NEW Telecourse: Your Heart is the Divine Heart:
Exploring the Tantric Teachings on Self-Recognition
January 10 to February 21, 2018

from Sally Kempton

Dear Ones,

"Stay where you are without worrying
For the goal is assured!
And who but the Self could teach this?
And to whom?"

Those are the words of a Shaivite sage from the 9th century. They point to a radically hopeful vision of human possibility. Yes, he is saying, our lives are tough and uncertain. But despite how things look, you ARE divine. You are God undergoing human experience. Even when things seem to be going horribly wrong, you and everyone else are on the freedom train. You're destined to know the truth of who you are, and to recognize that same divinity in the others in your world.

The sooner you accept this and decide to actualize it, the sooner you'll realize the miraculous beauty of your embodiment!

That's what we'll be doing together this winter, in the new teleclass that starts January 10th. The seven-week course is called Your Heart is the Divine Heart: Exploring the Tantric Teachings on Self-Recognition.

The course is based on the incomparable text, the Heart of the Doctrine of Recognition (in Sanskrit, Pratyabhijnahrydayam). This short work—it's only 20 sutras—describes how Consciousness manifests universes within herself, condensing her vastness to become your human psyche and body, then unfolds and expands back into complete embodied awareness of your own divinity.

Basically, it's about our journey, yours and mine. I don't mean our journey as psychological beings. Our journey as embodied divinity.

The text intends for us to recognize our own awareness as Shiva's Awareness, and our own heart as the abode of cosmic creativity—Shakti.

The sutras hold the empowerment of a lineage of enlightened beings, and they can awaken you. Each one of these sutras carries an entire world of truth, that expands inside you as you hold these words up to your experience. In other words, studying the sutras on Recognition creates an alchemical shift—especially when you combine your study with meditation and practical exercises.

So, our classes will include meditation, sutra contemplation, lectures, personal exercises, partner discussion and much more—always using the text to open us to a deeper understanding of ourselves.

We all know that we're living through a time of radical upheaval and change. The energy of this time can push us into despair, but it can also open up the highest possibilities of this incarnation. To harness the power that wants to unfold in us, we need to cultivate our understanding of what is real, of who we are and are not, and of who we can be if we are willing to see through the veils. The sutras on Recognition were written to help you do that.

I invite you to read the short description below, and see if you're called to deepen your awareness of these radical truths!

What is the doctrine of Recognition?

The Heart of Recognition (Pratyabhijna Hrydayam in Sanskrit), by Kshemeraja is the Cliff's Notes of tantric non-dual realization.

It explains in 20 pithy sutras the entire arc of the spiritual journey. Half the book describes the initial 'descent' of Shakti into embodiment as your mind, body, and the world. The other half reveals the path back.

As we contemplate these sutras and the teachings behind them, we realize that the physical and subtle universe is the playground within which we are invited to discover the truth behind our lives.

There are dozens of teachings about non-duality available these days. Many of them are reductive. They teach that human life to an illusion, and that only pure awareness is real.

Tantric Shaivism offers us a wider view. Rather than denying the reality of the body and the world, it shows us how to recognize the innate divinity that shines in the material world, including our own physical and subtle bodies. Tantric Shaivism is the teaching of enlightened beings whose hearts had opened fully to the radical sacredness of our own embodiment and the wonder of the universe itself.

The Sutras on Recognition can alchemically transform your consciousness, so that you begin to recognize what it really means to say that the great Self exists within you, speaks through your mouth, perceives through your senses, and constantly shows the path back to itself.

You are God living as a human body. This is true even when you don't realize it. When you do grasp the depth of your own sacredness, you can begin to consciously live the truth of what you are.

And, the world needs us to know this. Register now.

More on the 2018 Calendar

May 24-June 1
9-Day Meditation Immersion Retreat
Mount Madonna Center, Watsonville, CA
An in-depth exploration of meditation as a practice and a way of life, based on the most essential teachings of the Tantric and Yogic Meditation Traditions. Designed for teachers as well as practitioners who want to deepen and expand your practice. The retreat will include long practice sessions, deep journaling, small group for depth conversation on meditation, lectures on the philosophical basis of awakened heart meditation, chanting and yoga.

July 27-29
Weekend Workshop
1440 Multiversity in the Santa Cruz Mountains

August 24-26
Kripalu Center
Lennox, Massachusetts

August 30-Sept 3
Yoga International Conference
Honesdale, PA

September 9-14
Esalen Institute
Big Sur, CA

And check this out:

A Brilliant Album combining the Chamunda Mantras and a jazz-rock ensemble, with Elizabeth Rossa
Elizabeth Rossa, who teaches yoga at some of our retreats, is also a gifted musician (she plays the bass). A few years ago, after a retreat where we chanted Om Aim Hreem Kleem Chamundaye Viche Swaahaa, she was inspired to make a record with a group of other talented musicians, that combines these mantras with jazz and indy rock and blues grooves for a truly ground-breaking approach to sacred sound. (I also am on the record, as you can see from this clip. You can pre-order it, or listen to some of the tracks, by following this link.

With so much love,
Sally

from her newsletter: Sally Kempton teaches at the cutting edge of ancient and contemporary wisdom, unfolding the energetic practices of the tantrikas in an atmosphere that creates space for real inner change. A former swami in a Vedic tradition, she has been teaching for nearly 40 years and is known for her powerful transmissions of meditative states. Sally is the author of the recently released Awakening Shakti: The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga and the best-selling book Meditation for the Love of It. Her audio program of meditations on the Vijnana Bhairava Tantra, Doorways to the Infinite, was recently released by Sounds True. She offers regular retreats and workshops as well as teleconferences.

Privacy Statement & Subscriber Info
Sally's newsletter and announcements are sent only to subscribers who have signed up at sallykempton.com, at a retreat or workshop, or who have emailed a request to be added. We will never rent or sell your personal info.

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The Sage Reflects

This strangeness
Has entered my head
And I no longer know
If the veils are lifting
Or if I am finallly
Entering vastness.

Such perfume surrounds me
As must have been breathed
By saints long forgotten.

I think a message
Is trying to speak through me.
Yet I cannot hear the syllables,
Soft murmurs of music,
Gentle swaying of the dance.

I think I will go into the mountains.
It is time to become a river
Or a rock,
Or a bird singing
From a single tree.

Dorothy Walters
November 14, 2017

Question

"Am I a falcon, a storm, or a strong song?"
                                  Rilke

Am I a flower, a storm arriving,
or a wave dashing against the rocks?

Or perhaps a garden,
a forest path,
a mountain stream flowing
downward toward its
intended end?

Am I the drop that fell
into the ocean,
the child that cried aloud,
the jungle beast
seeking its prey?

The snow that hushed
the landscape,
the moon that silvered the earth,
the air that filtered the honey sun?

Am I a fading echo,
the music that
flooded the veins,
the scent of the rose
unfolding?

Am I all these and more?
Abundance of being,
plethora of selves,
eternity of becoming.

Dorothy Walters
November 10, 2017

When the Angel Came

Then the angel came.
It arrived in a halo of fire
so intense we hid our eyes.

Some dropped to their knees.
Others wept.

Then, although it spoke no words,
it gave us a message
that we all could comprehend.

It gave us truths
we had forgotten.
It reminded us of things
that we knew
but failed to practice.

For some, it quoted
from the holy books
they each revered.
For the rest, it gave old words
full of new meanings.

Finally, one of us
asked its name.

It paused, and then as it
swept away
(again in a blaze of fire)
it answered "Love"
and the sound echoed
through the heavens
and across the universe
before it became a full throated song
by the same name.

Dorothy Walters
November 12, 2017

(image from internet)

Even if No One

"Accept the miracle."
                     Mary Oliver

Believe it.
These things happen.
To you, to me,
to every one of us
every day.

That squirrel that lingered
in the grass to spy you
as you went by.
That tree with its
 marvelous curlicues called bark.
Those fallen leaves forming
a radiant mosaic on the ground,
violet, gold, soft scarlet,
each in its appointed place.

Are these not miracles?
Are they not perfect?
Isn't it a miracle
to be alive,
to hear this music and
move about the room,
to take in each breath
one after another,
even if no one
taught you how?

Dorothy Walters
November 12, 2017

The Transition

We had thought
it would be Wagnerian.
Lightening ripping the skies apart,
thunder leveling the hills.

We built high shelters,
readied our private planes,
made reservations on whatever
might still move.

But when it came,
it was instead
a vast silence,
a stillness so overwhelming
that we were overtaken,
transfixed in awe.

The trains were now, literally,
stopped in their tracks,
the networks stood still,
the planes were frozen
in midair.
We ourselves could
no longer move or speak.

The cities too were submerged
in quiet
as the markets halted their chatter,
 the subways ceased to run
and the cabs forgot
their destinations.

 Then the throat of the earth
opened
and a single sound
came forth
in an unknown frequency,
an unfamiliar mode,
and we waited to see
if the angel would come.

Dorothy Walters
November 10, 2017

The Unrepentant

You were born into a world
that had already decided
who you would be.

Your were given
rituals, ceremonies,
explanations,
beliefs.

All directed
to moulding you
into the right form,
an acceptable member
of the all.

Sometimes it was gatherings
in the forest,
sometimes arrangements in pews.

Everyone agreed
that these were sanctioned
ways of being.
teachings of infallible meaning.

One day you walked
out of the forest,
fled the church,
looking for truth.

The others were not happy
with your behavior,
threatened you with
expulsion,
exile into
the outer darkness.

That did not deter you.
You did it anyway.
You became who you were.

Dorothy Walters
November 10, 2017

On Betrayal

Of all life's challenges, betrayal is one of the most difficult to deal with. Whether it comes from lover, family, friends, teacher or guru, it leaves one with a sense of being bereft of something very valuable in one's life.

I think that when we offer trust, to whomever and to whatever degree, we then become vulnerable to possible betrayal. The lover may leave, the friend may become less than friendly for no apparent reason or may make a remark that wounds, the guru may turn out to have a very dark shadow.

Indeed, books have been written about the "corrupt gurus" (or shamans or "spiritual authorities") who misuse their powers to gain wealth or sexual favors. The problem is that the flawed guru (or lover or friend) is often extremely charismatic, perhaps bestowing great gifts such as constant bliss states or feelings of oneness with the divine, or, as with friends or lovers, a sense of total acceptance and love.

The guru as master is a prime example of the abuse of Kundalini power, for who does not love to receive shaktipat, or enter into states of unending bliss. Further, at such times, one often experiences periods of altered consciousness, in which judgment is impaired. When the rupture occurs, we feel as though part of our own identity has been ripped from us, and we are left to try to build a new life within and without. Sometimes physical illness may follow, as we try to console our "within" for the trauma it has suffered. It is as if we are "punishing" ourselves for what, at some level, is like a "self betrayal." Our pain is an expression of our grief.

These are indeed terrible life lessons. However, one good result may ensue. We may come to realize that we ourselves were likely to undergo this kind of experience at some point in our lives, for we were vulnerable as long as we were willing to give so much power to another. In fact, the inner guru is the more reliable guide. The inner guru (higher self, guiding spirit, intuition) will not betray, it will not wound, and it will listen whenever we pause to speak to it and tell it what we need. We will be healed when we realize our error and rebuild our inner spiritual voyager to avoid such excessive "surrender of the self" to others in future.

For this reason, I prefer teachers to (external) gurus. We attend, we listen, we gain whatever wisdom we can from the teacher, but we do not put our whole lives hostage to his/her dictates. Contrary to what many think, no external guru is needed to undergo spiritual transformation or to awaken and nourish Kundalini, once we are ready. Spontaneous awakenings are occurring at (what seems to me) an every increasing rate.

This path is difficult. It is indeed a lonely path, for we all yearn for the external authority or master to lead us ahead. We long for the community (the sangha) of like minded seekers. Yet the price of such connection is often severe disappointment at the end. Yes, teachers, especially those familiar with Kundalini and its processes, can be extremely valuable, but we must exercise caution in our selections.

And there will also be those near us who truly deserve our trust. It may be that "faithfulness" rather than "exciting charisma" will be their earmarks. We should treasure these for who they are, dear friends who offer some stability in a world of chaos.

I think we must all be teachers and students of one another. We must pool our collective wisdom to progress, for we live in the heart of mystery.

Buddha said "Be a light unto yourself." We should listen to what he said.

Note: I ran across this entry from a post of several years ago and somehow felt it was worthy of reprinting.

Golden Eternity

This world has no marks, signs, or evidence of existence, nor the noises in it, like accident of wind or voices or heehawing animals, yet listen closely the eternal hush of silence goes on and on throughout all this, and has been gong on, and will go on and on. This is because the world is nothing but a dream and is just thought of and the everlasting eternity pays no attention to it.

At night under the moon, or in a quiet room, hush now, the secret music of the Unborn goes on and on, beyond conception, awake beyond existence. Properly speaking, awake is not really awake because the golden eternity never went to sleep; you can tell by the constant sound of Silence which cuts through this world like a magic diamond through the trick of your not realizing that your mind caused the world.

~ Jack Kerouac

In this reflection, Kerouac summarizes one of the key concepts of Buddhism: life itself is a dream, for our own consciousness creates what we call "the world."  His comment also reminds us of the song of a few years back called "The Sound of Silence."

Ted Talks CU


Dorothy Walters––Kundalini as the engine for universal transformation into the New Human

Call it the life force, the God force, the Ultimate Source, the Unfathomable, the Goddess, the Bliss Flow––whatever you name it, it is what keeps us alive, what streams generally unrecognized through our bodies and connects all of humanity and indeed all sentient beings as one essence, manifestations of a single unity, ourselves but infinitesimal components of the unfathomable Mystery.  I myself think of it as the Beloved Within: She arrived in her full glory in May, l981.

At the time I was 53 years old and living as a professor of English and Women's Studies in a state university in Kansas.  I had of course studied the great canon of western literature through many years of graduate study.  I had inbibed the wisdom of such giants as Dante, Shakespeare, Milton, Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman, as well as the visionary Yeats and the majestic creations of T. S. Eliot.    A colleague and I had published one of the early anthologies of women poets, and we had established one of the very first women's studies in the country in one of the most ultra conservative parts of the nation.  I was now the director of this program and a dedicated feminist.

But with all of this background and experience, I was totally unprepared for what followed.  I was abruptly claimed and entered by a love force so powerful that my life was changed forever.  It was indeed (in the words of Porter) "the moment that changes everything."

What happened to me was a phenomenon well known in what was then often called "the mysterious East."   It was an experience pursued by many of those ancient practitioners who often would spend years in preparation, following an austere life of meditation and purification under the supervision of a "guru" who would at the proper moment give them leave to undergo the final moment of "enlightenment."  The means by which this momentous transition could be achieved was the arousal of "Kundalini," an internal energy virtually unknown in the West at the time.

I myself had barely heard of this mysterious energy called Kundalini.  I knew virtually nothing of eastern practices.  I had never done yoga and indeed did not know anyone who had, for at that time there were no yoga centers on every corner such as it seems today.  I had never meditated: it too was a technique almost unknown to most of us at the time.  I knew nothing of the "subtle body" and in fact had never had a massage.  There were no gurus or knowledgable teachers where I lived, and the internet did not exist.  I knew of one women who was a vegetarian and that was about the extent of my knowledge of the New Consciousness that was to stream into western awareness in the coming years.

Thus, without teacher or guidebook, I was catapulted suddenly into a new state of being,  a  love force so strong that it changed my life forever.

It happened in Kansas in 1981, when I was 53 years old.  One morning as I was reading a book that mentioned Kundalini I became convinced that I could raise this mysterious energy up my spine as the ancients had done.  I concentrated on opening the lower chakras and then  began to breathe very deeply and concentrated on bringing the energies up.

What follows is the story of how this state of rapture unfolded over time as well as reflections on the process that I was attempting to comprehend. Since I had no external guide, I relied instead on the "guru within," the teacher ever available for all who call on its powers.  For some fifteen years I relied on this inner teacher to lead me ahead, as I became a solitary practitioner, undergoing years of refinement, challenge and joy as my life was transformed at every level and dimension.  My inner guide was always without name or form, so I called her the Beloved Within and indeed, love itself was the power that led me forward into realms undreamed of and feelings not describable in words.

I did not know it, but I was a "seed" sent early to lead others through the  powerful transfiguration that was to occur word wide in the years to come.  Mine was not an easy task, but I managed to survive the many challenges and exaltations along the way and live to tell the tale.

Briefly, my awakening occurred as an abrupt, virtually spontaneous introduction into ecstasy, the signature of Kundalini when it is in proper alignment.  Such ecstatic states continued to visit me thereafter, at first intense and nearly overwhelming, later softening into a more subtle and refined and indeed higher vibration.  I was led to the writing of spiritual poetry and now have published several volumes of verse.  I also counsel those undergoing similar transformations of consciousness, at no cost to them.

We are now as a species undergoing massive transition into the New Human.  I feel that if what happened to me in the place (Kansas) and in the circumstances it did, then anything can happen to any one anytime at any place.  Global transformation into an evolved consciousness is possible.  I am living proof of that.  I am almost 90 years old and in excellent health.

The Traveler

This is not a journey
of the senses.

There are no landmarks,
no postcards and souvenirs
along the way.

It is a journey into
the cave of solitude.

You will enter realms
not on any map.

Your compass will fail,
and your vision will falter.

Even the stars, those
ancient guiding beacons,
will grow dim.

You will be
your own guide,
feeling your way forward
by the light of your own illumination.

Finally you will realize
you have been here before.

You will have reached
the center of your own being.

You will enter once more
through a door named
Love.

Dorothy Walters

(photo by Ann Rick)

Ted Murray

How determined are you to discover and fully complete your life purpose? You are on this planet for a reason, and that reason is very important not just for your own evolution as a soul but also as an important contributor to the extraordinary evolution taking place on this planet. You came here for a specific purpose and are being connected with the important people with whom you are meant to interact in order to fulfill that purpose.

What will happen if you choose to only fulfill that purpose part way. Will that affect innumerable others in a negative way? Perhaps it is time to take a close look at your purpose and ask yourself how committed you are to fulfilling it in an extraordinary way. You are here for this reason, and not any of the periphery reasons that seem so important in living a human life. Your purpose is much greater than this planet or this lifetime on Earth. You are part of an intergalactic and inter-dimensional team that is responsible for the well being of this planet and beyond. Your role is critical to the wellbeing of everyone involved even if they don’t recognize it. Are you prepared to accept greater responsibility for the shift of the planet from darkness into light?

Love and Light,
Ted Murray

Saints and bodhisattvas may achieve what Christians call mystical union or Buddhists call satori — a perpetual awareness of the force at the heart of things. For these enlightened few, the world is always lit. For the rest of us, such clarity comes only fitfully, in sudden glimpses or slow revelations. Quakers refer to these insights as ‘openings.’ When I first heard the term, I thought of how, on an overcast day, sunlight pours through a break in the clouds. After the clouds drift on, eclipsing the sun, the sun keeps shining behind the veil, the memory of its light shines on in the mind.

Scott Russell Sanders, A Private History of Awe

Note:  I fully agree with this quote.  However, I have often wondered if we were indeed perpetually in such exalted states of consciousness, would we then be suited to be active in a practical way in the world.  As it is, we are indeed nourished by our occasional moments, our "glimpses" of that transcendent reality, and this propels us forward.  My personal view is that this is the state we will enter when we transit to the other side of the veil.

Looking Back

Looking back,
I can say, yes, the journey
was never easy.

Somehow I kept losing the map,
got lost in jungles and swamps
of my own devising,
forgot where I had put
the instructions that someone
had given to me at the start.

Sometimes I met a friendly traveler,
and then maybe we enjoyed each other
for a time
and then each went our separate ways.
Often I assumed we would
companion each other forever,
but always that proved to be
a false hope.

Then things happened to me
that I could never explain.
An inner voice began to speak to me,
but there was never any way to share this
with others.
In fact, I and this presence
communicated without words,
feeling was enough,
and I knew that at last I had found
the right way.

Together we move ahead,
never knowing what will
lie around the next bend,
what essence or thing
will appear after the next turning.

And it is enough.
A wise person once said
"The journey is the goal,"
and indeed, that is so.

And thus I wait to see what
awaits us, what next unfolds.

Dorothy Walters

Seven Ways of Dying

Gentle clouds keep passing over the sun.
Light dims and brightens,
dims and comes back full.

This music carries us elsewhere.
Is this who we are?

Some call it bliss.
Others ecstasy.
Does the name matter?

This canvas has been painted over
many times before.
Now it is a tangle
of soft color,
seeking meaning.

This storehouse of memory
is being emptied
one by one waiting
to be filled
once more.

Somehow I seem to
know this place,
the heightened colors, the love
that infuses even
the tiniest leaf or flower.

Is this what I was before?
Or is it only silence
and darkness
that awaits?
These too are beautiful.

Dorothy Walters
November 4, 2017

Tonight

Tonight is the night
I have been waiting for.

The moon rising
has turned the world into other.

Light swims between the trees,
as if all things rested at the bottom
of a sea of endless radiance.

Soon I will sleep
and dream that I inhabit
that other unworldly world.

Voices will speak to me,
whispering secrets.

I will nod and smile and say,
"I know, I know."

Dorothy Walters
November 3, 2017

Speaking with Angels

What does it mean to speak with angels?  I have a friend who does, or, to be more specific, she speaks with and is guided by one
specific archangel (by name).  She herself is a highly intelligent and totally functional person who has undergone many unusual
experiences in her life.  Among other things she has acted as a channel to allow certain of her family members to
communicate with their dead loved ones.  She constantly experiences synchronicities that are difficult to explain.
She has even published a book about certain of her encounters.

One must ask, is she delusional or is she ahead of the rest of us in terms of her ability to break through the veil and
allow the unknown to come into own inner awareness?  Are we all going to  open to such esoteric encounters as we
move ahead in our common spiritual evolution?  Is hers a glimpse into the more highly sensitive beings we
may all become as we evolve into the new human?

Because of the internet, we are now able to share with one another such atypical accounts.  Near Death stories are becoming more widespread.  Out of Body descriptions are rather commonplace.  Some hear angelic music.  Others have visions of Jesus
standing before them, and these images are shared by others in their company.  Some report prophetic intuitions of coming events. Many believed that the veils between the worlds (seen and unseen) are getting thinner.

Personally, I feel that each of us should go only as far as our own comfort zone will allow.  I myself prefer the somatic experience of Kundalini, for I, being a skeptic, would likely try to discount certain experiences as being too far out of the “norm” for me to accept as real.  However, you cannot argue with a feeling.  I know from my own process that Kundalini does indeed restructure the brain over time, and we develop certain capacities and sensitivities that would previously have been far beyond our range of responses.  I believe that we are indeed in a time of acute evolutionary transition and that Kundalini is the driving force for this movement into a higher state of consciousness and being.

We are indeed living in exciting times.  I for one feel blessed to be included in this amazing phenomenon.

(image from internet)

A Walk into Joy

Yesterday morning I took a short walk and was captivated by what happened along the way.  It was a cold (40 degrees) but sunny day.  I was warmly dressed for the temperature so the cold did not bother me.  Here is what I experienced.

As I proceeded, each plant and stone, each remaining leaf, seemed to speak to me in a special way.  This was not a purely mental response.  I literally seemed to feel each color, each shape, inside, not as bliss, yet as somatic pleasure.  Mostly the feeling arose in the lower chakras and each moment awakened deeply felt joy.

I have occasionally had such experiences with flowers or even trees, but never so clearly delineated as was this. I am not an artist, but I wondered if this was what those with a highly developed esthetic sense might feel among natural forms and colors.  I thought of Monet and his gardens, as well as others who connected with such naked undiluted beauty.  I have, it is true, been a nature mystic all of my life, for even as a child I went into altered states in the paradise of the woods and streams.  Yet this was a different experience, another ineffable event in my life.  I felt blessed and blissed to discover such (for me) a new way of seeing/feeling.

Once more, Kundalini surprises and delights me.  Its gifts never end.  Always there is a fresh discovery, an awakening of a new capacity.  Each offers a taste of what is in store for us all as we undergo transition into the New Human.