UNCONVENTIONAL FORMS OF SPIRITUAL PRACTICE

NATURE #1

 

Behold all creation with awe - seeing into it its sacredness.

"Those of us who have spent time in wilderness are aware of the fact that there is something more to wilderness than we ourselves can express. Wilderness is an instrument for enabling us to recover our lost capacity for religious experience."
L.Van der Post

"I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay until sundown, for going out, 

I found, was really going in." John Muir

 Nature meditates us, when we have that intention, by being in the present moment with our surroundings.  Moreover, utilizing any form of spiritual practice as well, allows nature to meditate us even more profoundly (chanting, singing, drumming, dancing, playing a flute ...) 

“Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.” Kahlil Gibran

For some being in nature is the best sensory meditation. Most, however, go into nature to work out, for adventure, to develop skills and almost unknowingly feel better for it but going inward usually is not their objective. Activity is based on self-mastery (mastery of the small self) and sometimes we recognize an almost militaristic language such as; bagging peaks, running rivers, conquering  mountains or I crushed that ... It is difficult to go inward with the wrong intent and receptivity. The same is true with incessant chattering or when listening to music - these shut out the connection.

“To achieve is to be externally oriented but to attain deeper effects we need to let go of the attachment to accomplish anything. Goal orientation and a deeper connection to nature are mutually exclusive in the present moment.” Dave Cumes. (Inner Passages Outer Journeys.)

 We have enough  goals and tasks and other manifestations of the "outer" at home and at work. Why take them with us into nature's sacred space? When we venture into nature we begin with an inner intention but once set, let go and immerse in all that is around us. This is the crux between balancing the inner and the outer. Receptivity and intention are everything. 

If we want to find equanimity we should avoid company that is counterproductive this state of mind. No matter how strong our intention to go inwards is, it can be sabotaged by those whose energy is outwards. Their focus is acquisitive of the latest technologies for the task at hand as well as sometimes being competitive. For others a camera gets in the way, as well as the concept of “getting to know”... what bird is that, which animal made that track? These also inhibit the experience by making us observers rather than fully immersing in the wonder. It's best to walk alone in silence, even if accompanied.

We are immersing in the Creator's temple or Garden of Eden archetype where we can begin to connect, with humility, to the signs, and metaphors that rocks, plants and power animals present to us. These are best received in a relaxed, alfa state of consciousness. The longer we are out, the more we release the impediments to transforming spiritually and we can begin to feel our-Selves again.

Here are some guidelines for the inner journey. 

Keep it simple. Take only the basic necessities. Avoid survival situations, goals and if possible time restraints. Minimize the need to know. Avoid photography unless the process is meditative and turn the smart phone off unless there is a critical need to use it. Let the wonder speak for itself.

For those taking time out for a deeper experience (five days or more,) formulating the encounter in terms of the three phases of the hero/ine's journey can be profound. Use of the Four Directions and their polarities can also enhance the journey (refer back to prior blogs or dvd's on the website.)

“May the hero/ine awaken from forgetfulness and transcend all anxiety and sorrow.”  The Upanishads

Isaiah had a vision of the Four Directions (Six, including up and down.) Each direction has its specific Being (Still, Growing, Wild and Talking,) as well as Element and Archangel, all of which are constantly being animated by the Breath of the Creator. Uriel is light, Gabriel, strength and courage, Rafael, healing and Michael lovingkindness.

We can enlist their help at any time in nature (or outside of it.)

The directions are also associated with their respective power animals. We should adopt our own which often come to us in metaphors with subtle messages. We can connect with the Four Beings of nature as follows...

To experience the still beings you must touch them, 

to experience the growing, sprouting beings you must listen to them, 

to experience the wild beings you must dance with them 

and to experience the talking beings you must feel with them.

We are all connected, some of all in each. All are spirit manifestations and exist in one another.

The fundamental notion of equilibrating the opposites is omnipresent in all beliefs. This universal truth is crucial to our understanding of how we keep balance, transcend, and heal.  

Dave Cumes

(Inner Passages Outer Journeys)

Nature is a sacred space with many doors and windows to spirit. When we go out into wild places for prolonged periods we are of necessity balancing the many polarities that nature offers; up/down, hot/cold, terrified/tranquil, exhausted /rested, hungry/satiated, thirsty/quenched, night/day, sun/moon, wet/dry... This can help us find the middle way of the Buddha

 

God’s rivers of pleasure and good are not placid waters of insipid purity. They have currents of all strengths, frequently forming into wild twists and turns alongside gentle flows, all churning and tumbling into swirling pools too deep to fathom. They are for reflecting, playing and rejuvenating and then continuing endlessly onto their source.