This week I've returned to contemplating the uniqueness of the individual spiritual path and its impact on relationship. As I wrote on our website (hillsidesource.com) , "The Hillside Source presents the idea that every individual has his/her/its own connection to the spiritual underpinning of life. Even though life has but one Source, God being the traditional term for that Source, life produces individuals--each distinct and unique. Therefore, though we share countless commonalities and are ultimately interdependent, there are distinctions in how we find and express the Transcendent. Life is one; paths are infinite." While religion has the cultural power to establish communities based on shared beliefs and practices, over time, the variety of interpretations create rifts and divisions-- new denominations and sects form and branch away from traditional roots. At the core, communities, spiritual or otherwise, are made of individuals, just as families are. Each path, regardless of depth of agreement, differs from another's. Yet, within our spiritual pulls, we have both the pull to be unique and the pull to belong to and with others.
Someone once wrote me: "One has to give up a part of one's self in order to be a part of someone else life." My response was, "It depends on your definition of self". Whether we are talking about daily worldly life, or whether we are speaking of the spiritual life, the issues are the same; we seemingly make compromises of our spiritual life, or our personal worldly wants and needs to "belong". But isn't this division an aspect of life itself? Is it possible to see that our spiritual life includes the flowing of life from separation to union, from giving to receiving, from accommodating to impeding, engagement to non-engagement and the reverse? With deepening awareness of an underlying unity and rhythm to life, our sense of self expands. As Walt Whitman put it, "Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself. (I am large, I contain multitudes)."
We tie ourselves in knots when we restrict our sense of self and spiritual practice too narrowly. But without some boundaries, it is impossible to navigate this complex world or follow our inner directive. The task calls for some elasticity that allows us to stretch the boundary of the self, and yet, pull back into shape to stabilize. Consider your own elasticity today as well as your unique path. (Susan Nettleton)
One form of this elasticity evident in contemporary poetry translations is in the translator's personal interpretation/meaning of spiritual poetry offered as a version of the poet's meaning.
Daniel Ladinsky's translation of St. Teresa of Avila (link below) is an example. Are the words hers or his? Does it matter? As history and religious authenticity, it may matter, as spiritual food perhaps not. Follow the link: https://thisunlitlight.com/.../24/i-loved-what-i-could-love/