Oneness

Oneness

SOULEDOUT.ORG GLOSSARY

SOULEDOUT.ORG GLOSSARY

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This form of subtle activism is very simple. It consists of creating a line of supportive energy between yourself and another person and the sacredness that is the Ground of Being. Center yourself in sacredness, in the Sacred, whatever that means to you as a universal presence of compassion and love. Center yourself in your own capacity for compassion and love, and link these two together, connecting your branch with the trunk from which all branches come. Then imagine a line of Light extending from you to a neighbor in your community. This line of Light has as its sole intent communicating that that person is not alone but is connected to a source of support, which ultimately is the “trunk,” the Sacred. Do this with another neighbor, then another. Build a web of inner support throughout your neighborhood. Remember, this web is not anchored in you but in the Sacred, but you are the one spinning it out into your world.

Once you get the sense of this, you can simply spin these webs of Light out into your world; it need not be limited to your neighborhood, nor to people you know. Do this with the intent that the subtle connections of energy that naturally exist between all of us be filled with Light and “tied to the trunk,” so to speak, that is, attuned to the compassion and love within the Sacred. The idea is to support the arising of compassion organically and naturally within people’s hearts. You can’t make anyone be compassionate, and you wouldn’t want to (that would be an act of coercion, not compassion), but you can intentionally add your energy and thought to strengthening the lines of loving support that can weave between us and that bring compassion into the subtle environments in which we live and act.

In time you may find yourself naturally and automatically radiating these supportive lines of Light throughout your environment, to animals, plants, and objects as well as people. It primes the subtle environment to be responsive to compassionate and loving actions should an emergency arise.

I’m in the process of creating a free “Subtle Activism Starter Kit,” which consists of a small PDF booklet with some ideas and instructions on one way to do subtle activism, plus two audio files. One is an example of a specific subtle activism meditation I did with a group recently on behalf of the Gulf oil spill and the other is an example of a more generic subtle activism meditation. You will find the link below as well as posted on our website. If you go there and find it empty, come back in a day or so. As I say, I’m still working on completing it.

If you decide to download it, I hope you’ll find it useful.

May we all be webmasters of compassion. David's Subtle Activism Kit

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David's Other Articles

A Mystic Looks at Inner Citizenship

Part 1,The Soul of America

The United States of America is like a wondrous play. What we see of it on stage is compelling, dramatic, inspiring, and powerful: its vast landscapes, its abundant farmlands, its towering cities, its network of roads and town and villages, and its millions of people. This is the outer America, the visible America. But there is a part we don’t ordinarily see as well, an invisible part behind the scenes. If it were a play, this would be all that takes place back stage, including the writing, the directing, the financing, the organization, and the stagecraft that makes the play possible. This is the inner America.
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A Mystic Looks at Inner Citizenship,

Part 2, Inner Citizenship

We usually associate citizenship with the civic and political part of our lives. It may consist for most of us of such activities as voting, paying our taxes, fulfilling civic duties that may come our way such as serving on a jury, and obeying the laws of the land. With a bit more effort, it can include running for public office and serving as a public servant. It may for some of us include protesting what we see as injustice and faulty laws, campaigning for those who have been disenfranchised in some manner, fighting for causes, and championing issues in a public forum.
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A Mystic Looks at Inner Citizenship,

Part 3, An Anatomy of the Soul of America

Outer citizenship is usually conceived as operating primarily within our civic and political life. Inner citizenship is not so restricted to any particular domain. Whatever enhances the quality of life (both inner and outer) in our country is an act of inner citizenship. Being a nourishing and empowering father or mother is inner citizenship at work. Creating a garden that brings beauty to your neighborhood and good energies to the invisible lives that are part of the land and part of the inner realm of plants is inner citizenship at work. In a holistic spiritual vision, the land and the creatures who live upon it are also citizens with us, all contributing to the greater holism that is America.
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A Mystic Looks at Inner Citizenship,

Part 4, Working with the Soul of America

In this final part of this series, I want to explore one way out of many that we might work with the Soul of America as described in Part 3.

It begins with a question: Can I embody the Soul of America in myself?

A second, related question is, can I be a means, an ally, through which the spirit and energy of the Soul of America enters the psyche, the personality, and the active life of the United States without distortion?

It is followed by another question: Can I hold to my sovereignty, think for myself (and think holistically), and choose a mindful course of action in the midst of collective pressure to do otherwise?
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Now and Then

The Problem of the Eternal Now

I have always found the teaching or technique of the eternal Now problematic. Like many such ideas, I find it can have unintended consequences. It sounds so sensible and intuitive, the "spiritual" thing to do. Yet, when I practice this state, drawing my attention away form anything having to do with yesterday or tomorrow and being fully focused upon what is happening in the present, I find a diminishing of my creative and spiritual powers. I feel narrowed, not expanded. My soul seems further away to me, less rather than more accessible. The "Eternal Now" disempowers me.
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The Pilgrimage Dimension

What is a pilgrimage? Usually it is thought of as a journey involving time and distance to a holy place or a place of some special significance. Such a journey may require an effort that can be transformative, making the pilgrimage life-changing. This gives a pilgrimage a dimension that makes it more than simply a tourist excursion or a sightseeing trip
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Colleagues

These are a few of the individuals with whom I’ve worked over the years and whose teachings or writings I recommend. Some have also collaborated with Lorian as a whole, but others primarily have a relationship with me. For other recommended and important colleagues, please see Friends of Lorian under Boundaries.

John Michael Greer: John is the Grand Archdruid of the Ancient Order of Druids in America (AODA). He has been active in the alternative spirituality movement for more than 25 years, and is the author of some eighteen books, including The Druidry Handbook (Weiser, 2006) and The Long Descent: A User's Guide to the End of the Industrial Age (New Society, 2008). He is a scholar of the Western Hermetic Tradition. His blog, The Archdruid Report, offers “Druid perspectives on nature, culture, and the future of industrial civilization. I highly recommend it. http://thearchdruidreport.blogspot.com/.

Dr. Brugh Joy: Brugh is an old friend and one of the finest spiritual teachers around, a unique individual who offers classes and training unlike any other I’ve seen. He and I co-sponsored a New Year’s Conference for twenty years at the Asilomar Conference Center in Pacific Grove, California. His book Joy’s Way is a classic. You can find his website at http://www.brughjoy.com/.

Catherine MacCoun: Catherine is one of the clearest thinkers and finest writers I know in the area of inner growth, alchemy, and the hermetic tradition. With a background in both Tibetan Buddhist training and Christian Hermeticism, in addition to her own inner contacts and training in the arts of Focusing, she brings a unique sensibility and awareness to spiritual work of all kinds and particularly that of healing.
Her website is at http://www.catherinemaccoun.com/hermeticist/index.html.

Robert Moss: Robert Moss is one of the world’s leading authorities on dreams and dream work. His books are classics in the field. Dreams are one of the ways we access the Second Ecology of the non-physical worlds, and I know no better guide to this process than Robert. We have been friends for a number of years. For further information, see his website at http://www.mossdreams.com/.

Janet Piedilato: Janet is a transpersonal psychologist with an eclectic background that is grounded with a doctorate in biology, tempered with a doctorate in transpersonal psychology, and empowered by years of study as a student of shamanism, herbal therapy, and ancient dream ritual. I have known Janet for years, and she literally straddles the fence between the scientific and the intuitive, the waking and the dream realities. She has her own private practice, facilitates workshops and pilgrimages to sacred sites, is the founder and CEO of Immaginal, and founder/director of Temenos, a sacred teaching space. Her business website is http://www.immaginal.com/.

Arthur Zajonc: Arthur is professor of physics at Amherst College, where he has taught since 1978. He has been visiting professor and research scientist at the Ecole Normale Superieure in Paris, the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics, and a Fulbright professor at the University of Innsbruck in Austria. He is an optical quantum physicist whose research has included studies in parity violation in atoms, the experimental foundations of quantum physics, and the relationship between sciences, the humanities and meditation. He is also a scholar of the Western Hermetic Tradition, a former President of the American Anthroposophical Society, head of its International Esoteric School, President of the Lindisfarne Fellowship, and a participant and scientific coordinator for the Mind and Life dialogue with H.H. the Dalai Lama. His most recent book is Meditation as Contemplative Inquiry: When Knowing Becomes Love. Arthur’s website is http://www.arthurzajonc.org/.

Susan Stanton Rotman: Susan is a gifted intuitive and teacher who guides others in discovering and applying their inner resources. Her background is that of an attorney and mediator, and she brings outstanding skills and integrity to her work with inner contacts. I have always been impressed with her work. As she says in her website, she offers "heart-centered guidance toward self-discovery and transformation for engaged, creative and joyful living." For anyone seeking vision and strategic direction, Susan has a great deal to offer. Her website is at http://www.susanrotman.com

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