October 30, 2022

Tomorrow is Halloween--a day and night mixture of traditions, history and spiritual tones, linked with both pagan practices and Christianity, as well as All Saints Day and Day of the Dead. It can stir up controversy, the genuinely frightening, often mischief, and simply fun. Today it has me thinking of Prasad and generosity. Prasad is a spiritual practice from Hinduism; it is the act of bringing food as a spiritual offering to the Divine. The Divine (or representative in various forms) in turn shares the food with the devotee, in a spiritualized process of exchange and mutual enjoyment. Visits with my friend and teacher, U.G. Krishnamurti, often involved spontaneous Prasad. It was well know that he had a preference for Leonidas Belgian white chocolates and visitors would unexpectedly arrive with a box, or someone would ship a delivery box to surprise him. Immediately, he would present everyone in the room with a piece of Heaven. Whatever the mood of the day would lift, had to lift, with this incredibly indulgent confection. Refusal was not possible. Those who tried to avoid calories or the fine ingredients of cream, sugar and coffee would find themselves coerced to eat even more in their resistance, as U.G. declared, "We need to sweeten you up." And sweeten it did. There was magic in those moments.

Halloween, it strikes me, is a holiday of generosity as well as collective fantasies. There are cultures which still practice a religious respect and hospitality to arriving travelers and strangers, because the stranger at your door may be a Divine being in disguise. Modern American life has one night of tradition that opens the door to disguise--in every imaginable form--rewarding the visit with candy. We have our community events as well, abundant with sweets. In spite of all the corn syrup, fructose, and artificial flavors and colors, one night of sweet overload is collectively understood as mysteriously useful. And there is a generosity of shared creativity, especially here in L.A. County, where neighborhoods are bursting with amazing transformations of Halloween decor, freely offered to all. Is it possible to approach all of this as a kind of Prasad, an offering that is shared, an exchange of wonder and delight in play and pretense, Lila (the Divine play that is life itself), a time of offering and generosity of spirit?

Even if you choose to turn out the lights and lock your door, and withdraw from the neighborhood parade (which I have done on many Halloweens), look for a moment of Prasad this week. Share your sweetness. (Susan Nettleton)

I shared this link previously in January, but it is worth re-reading this week as Oct. turns to Nov. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/.../the-season-of...

October 23, 2022

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/

October 16, 2022

It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” — Confucius

This morning I am considering the stops and starts of the spiritual journey. Actually, at this time in my sense of spirituality, there are are no stopping points; the spiritual is synonymous with life. Life and spirit are not two separate things. At some point, life as we know and experience it comes to a point we name as death, but death is not necessarily a stopping point. While we are living as the body and psyche of this individual identity in this world, we are living our spirituality. We may personally yearn for greater understanding, faith, or confirmation of spiritual states and transcendence, but despite our conscious striving and interpretation, we remain at the pinnacle of our spiritual life. Our longings and struggles are the exact movements that are opening life, creating and unfolding our individual lives as a creative spiritual process. Our times of insight and awakenings, in the same way, open and expand our lives further. Ebb and flow are principles of life and therefore of spirituality. Sometimes movement is dramatic and deeply satisfying, sometime movement is healing and deeply reassuring, sometimes life is devastatingly painful and hard--we feel abandoned-- and sometimes life is seemingly static and stuck. Is it really necessary to name any of these experiences as less than our spiritual good?

Emmett Fox offers the analogy of a boat that sails on the waves of high tide, but ends up running aground during low tide. Maybe some unexpected circumstances caused the grounding, or maybe lack of awareness. Sometimes it works to push the boat out, or seek emergency assistance, but what looks like one situation at low tide will be a completely different matter in 6 hours when high tide returns, which it will. The tide is nothing personal; it simply is the way of the water in the larger movement of life's gravitational pulls. We all have our times of being "grounded" in our spiritual life, caught up in social aspects, or responsibilities and duties that may sap our time, energy and spiritual focus. But these things are not separate, really, from the spiritual life. Time for spiritual practice and contemplation returns, especially if we don't fight with the ebb and flow, trying to force ourselves and everyone around us to align with our will or a rigid agenda. Instead, we stay the course set before us, and let our hearts remember the larger reality that all human drama is enfolded in--a spiritual life.

When new light shines on us, it often comes when we least expected it, not on demand. As the saying of Jesus (Matthew 24:44) directs, “Be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” Rather than the traditional interpretation that Jesus was warning of his Apocalyptic return to Earth, Emmett Fox interprets this teaching metaphysically as an interior experience of Christ consciousness (or a spiritual Awakening or Insight) that arises unexpectedly, like "a thief in the night". The point is that illumination doesn't fit our personal time tables, but happens when the time is right, when new insight and revelation best serve the context of our lives. Our part is to leave that inner space actually open and receptive, whether events are fast-tracked or slow, exciting or boring, at high or low tide. (Susan Nettleton)

For a short poem by Larry Morris, follow the link: https://hillsidesource.com/freshstart

October 9, 2022

“Do you have the patience to wait Till your mud settles and the water is clear? Can you remain unmoving Till the right action arises by itself?” Lao Tzu

This Sunday I am thinking about the parallels between deep immersion in nature and deep immersion in meditation. Both serve to renew us. Mounting research in the field of Ecopsychology shows that time spent in nature benefits human health. Various studies highlight the benefits: lower blood pressure, lower stress hormone levels, lower anxiety, enhanced immune system, increased self-esteem, improved sleep and mood, and lower risk of cardiovascular disease. When we look at the research on meditation, we find the same health impact.

A 2019 Nature research project (20,000 people) from the European Centre for Environment and Human Health, established 2 hours a week as the standard time to spend in nature to achieve these benefits. That breaks down to 17.14 minutes a day. Weekly cumulative time is what matters in nature, not daily time. I'm breaking it down only to compare with daily meditation. The usual recommendation for health benefits from meditation is 10-20 minutes a day, in either 1 or 2 sessions. (Over the years, I have recommended a meditation beginner start with 10 or 15 minutes daily, and then increase by 5 minutes each year, until reaching what you learn is optimal for you.)

But as beneficial as they are, these comparisons around health research only touch the surface of human experience. Time spent in a park is healthier than time spent in a treeless concrete parking lot. Taking 10 minutes out of your day to calm your breath and quiet thought is healthier than spending time with muscle tension, fighting a keyboard, or a co-worker, and rehearsing disturbing events in your mind. Consider beyond this: deep immersion. Consider that this Sunday holds the opportunity for deep immersion, maybe in nature, maybe in meditation...or perhaps both.

What is important here is the letting go of the structures of daily thoughts, habits, routines, and place--the world of social pressure and human expectations in a human-constructed world. Instead, we re-enter what is natural, a natural outer field and a natural spiritual interior. There we find not only healing, but also a discovery: the right action arises by itself. (Susan Nettleton)

For a brilliant commentary by poet Ivan M. Granger on Gary Snyder's meditation/nature poem, "On Top", follow the link:

https://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/.../Sny.../OnTop/index.html

October 2, 2022

Last night, reflecting on the 1st of October, I recalled an unusual October morning when I was an undergraduate, walking across campus at the University of Houston--unusual in the sense that it was an incredibly vibrant day, a day of crisp cool air and vast, rich blue sky. All around, life was filled with energy, students rushing to classes or sprawled on grassy fields; the lovely oaks, and hedges surrounding the buildings, the buildings themselves, seemed to vibrate with a new quickening. Something popped into my head that simply said, "This is Fall"! It was as though I had never understood what the shift of seasons meant. ( In sub-tropic Houston, seasons were subtle.) For those few moments, the full impact of a seasonal shift hit me. For the first time, I understood the seasons as part of a larger mechanism of life that continually self-renews. I was renewed. My life was changing. And change it did--that fall brought powerful shifts in my relationships, my studies and my spiritual life.

With the extreme heat this September, the days have not given much hint of fall, but they have shortened and just now there is a hint of that golden light that the changing angle of the sun provides as we move into October. Erratic climate patterns and weather emergencies, have disrupted our intuitive sense of shifting seasons--not necessarily by the weather itself, but by the internal alarm that frequent alerts, urgent warnings and catastrophic news (even if far from home) trigger in the culture. Yet, we have within us our own awareness of the movements of nature; we are part of the way life is renewed again and again through the cycles of seasons. This week is a good time to feel the stirrings of that renewal. To do that, we need to quiet the alarm enough to truly feel the quickening. It seems to me a vital part of the environmental changes we will collectively make.

At the same time we can stay open to the spiritual level that turns the wheel of life's cycles and seasons. Each awakening to nature is a spiritual awakening. Each awakening to our personal interior response to the cycles and seasons is a spiritual awakening. That October day in Houston, I didn't just discover the power of the seasons; I discovered joy. (Susan Nettleton)

For a poetic nudge in contemplation of fall, follow the links:

https://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/.../AutumnMoon/index.html

https://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/.../Autumnchrysa/index.htm

https://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/.../SecondPoemth/index.html

September 25, 2022

I have been reflecting on a poem I came across yesterday by Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1841) in his classic spiritual volume, Gitanjali, verse 88. Gitanjali is known as "Song Offerings", devotional verses that flow from the poet's spiritual journey. The book was Tagore's way of sorting through his relationship to God following a time of devastating personal losses.

Verse 88 (see link below) speaks of spiritual neglect in an abandoned temple where flowers and prayers are no longer offered, although flowers still bloom outside as festival days pass in silence. One lone devotee, who must enter the daily world of weary work, returns nightly with unmet longing. While the poem belongs to a larger context of verses, reading that specific one has me reflecting on the 21st century dynamic of spirituality and the world of work and material necessity. That is of course a timeless dynamic: the pull of the worldly life of commerce, of basic needs that morph into the desire for more than what is needed with the pressure to fulfill social expectations and/or achieve personal prestige and power. Urbanization, global economies, increasing technology and 24-hour nonstop "days" of availability, communication, shipments and deliveries, inflation and shortages, chip away at a rhythm of life that no longer supports time to nurture a spiritual life.

While ancient temples still offer a sacred space, even when abandoned (I am thinking of the moments I entered tourist-filled, exquisite cathedrals in Europe, and small abandoned neighborhood shrines in Japan and almost primordial cave temples in India), the real temple is the one we carry with us. We each have our own private place of prayer in our heart/mind, built of both intention and necessity. Today, if even for a few moments, stop to enter there. Bring your offering of gratitude and a new trust. The wearier you are, the better. This is where you truly rest and where you find there are not two worlds, the material and the spiritual, but one Source that supplies all. (Susan Nettleton)

for Tagore's verse 88, follow the link: https://project-tagore.blogspot.com/.../gitanjali-verse...

for a reminder that nature also provides it's own temple experience:

https://poetry-chaikhana.com/.../SecondPoemth/index.html

for Larry Morris' take on a Visionary Heart:

https://hillsidesource.com/dail.../2018/5/25/visionary-heart

September 18, 2022

Today's post is an excerpt from this morning's Zoom Talk, "The Way of Renewal":

The Way of Retrieval. This topic actually came to me when I was sorting through a section of books that I've been trying to downsize for years. I was flipping through Larry Morris' booklet "Glimpses of Grace", a thin stapled book of aphorisms, little ideas or, glimpses that came to him over time...I was flipping through it and my eyes settled on "Clear path, way of retrieval". That Intrigued me. Over the years, I have looked at aspects of the spiritual life from many angles and traditions, so it seems natural to look at the way of retrieval. Definition of retrieve leads us to the prefix re--which means again or describes something that is being repeated, but it also means back, getting it back; you have to go back to an object or a prior state. The trieve part as a verb is "catching, acquiring, accessing or fetch". The noun is treasure or bounty, or a goal, a mission. So the Way of getting something back, or going back to get something, bring something back, or recalling, getting something back from memory.

Then there's this phrase, "clear path". Why is it a clear path? Because retrieval implies the known, a prior state or condition as opposed to the unknown. There are layers to that in human experience and there are values that underlie the pull to retrieve. Retrieval is a response to loss or misplaced or out of reach; it carries the appeal of the familiar, the comfort and stability that familiarity brings. That seems especially significant in times of uncertainty or when traumatic events have disturbed and disrupted our "place", our safety, our belonging. The familiar brings less wear and tear, unless of course it is riddled with conflict. Much of the role of religion in the life of people and cultures is to give us a framework for dealing with loss and the disruption of life, by provide meaning, structure and community. Retrieval can re-establish order. The one photograph or notebook or old letters salvaged from fire or flood is external and yet internal material for re-establishing order and stability; it's like a stake for a tent, or setting a beam to support a structure. Trauma often means those emblems of stability fly off with the shattering experience, but some can be retrieved. So retrieval has roots in the known and our attachments, which weave our earliest sense of stability, control and resiliency. What we treasure as individuals, what is worth retrieval, varies.

In Spiritual retrieval as an individual, we have the idea of various forms of healing, redemption, return, sometimes experienced through our own insight, or pain, or just getting lost in the duties of regular life. We may realize we've misplaced or lost focus on our spiritual life and practice The thread of the spiritual is always available. Our willingness to find it again and again and again is an opening process. The significant thing is the decision to retrieve it. Pick up a practice again. Find the corner of time or space for prayer or meditation. Intention and action. (Susan Nettleton)

follow the link for Robert Bly's poem on retrieval, "People Like Us" https://mypoetryparty.blogspot.com/.../people-like-us-by...

September 11, 2022

Today is Sept. 11, now designated as America's Patriot Day in remembrance of those--almost 3,000-- who died in the 2001, Sept. 11 attack. Patriot Day has become a call to a day of service to the country and/or the larger collective Good, in the spirit of those who gave their lives in service and sacrifice during and after the attack. Today we are are called to both remember and 'give back'. The horror and tragedy of Sept. 11 united America. Now 21 years later, during 2 1/2 years of Pandemic, we have lost over 1 million people to Covid-19, and witnessed great sacrifices from essential workers and medical staff who have served the emergency needs of the country, yet we face increasing division in our country. Today is a day to remember 'giving back', in a way that defines unity. Prayer is one way, a cooperative spirit is another. We don't need to think so much of grand gestures of remembrance and service; it is the intent of gratitude and unity that matter here. That intent may also tug at you to forgive.

Here in Southern California we have come through another kind of test of unity and cooperation in the face of climate change. The extreme heat wave created a power grid emergency, which threatened the state's electricity supply to its limit. On Tuesday, my cellphone set off the alarm for emergency notifications from the state with a warning that if power usage continued to rise, rolling black outs would begin. The alert urged residents to take all possible measures to conserve electricity during the peak hours of 4-9 p.m. The instructions were respectful, clear cut, with links to specific data on the threat, and gently acknowledged that those with health issues might not be able to comply. In our household, we immediately switched off appliances and brainstormed how to work around inconveniences. The alerts were sent to 39 million people. Power usage plunged immediately! Rolling black-outs were avoided. Daily alerts continued through the week and so did immediate public response. As the weather shifted with Hurricane Kay's landfall and the heat receded, critics began their complaints. But in those days of clear information and an appeal to collective effort, there was really no space, no time for division. I'm sure there was grumbling and some wounds to entitlement, but the power of agreement, unity, and respect prevailed.

A mature concept of service includes understanding that the good of the whole, includes our good. Spiritually, this is not really about self sacrifice; the boundary of self doesn't shrink--it expands to Allness. (Susan Nettleton)

For a memorial perspective from Juan Ramon Jimenez (scroll to bottom for English translation), https://heardatdawn.blogspot.com/.../remordimiento-or...

September 10, 2022

Hillside Community Church Sunday Talk by Dr. Susan Nettleton

on Zoom

Topic: The Way of Retrieval

Time: Sep 18, 2022 10:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

11:00 AM Mountain Time

Email us at hillsideew@aol.com requesting the link for the Zoom talk, or contact us through our website at hillsidesource.com

September 4, 2022

This Labor Day weekend brings 2022's migrating extreme heat to southern California--another direct reminder of our collective dependency on the natural environment. As varying areas of the country wrestle with natural disasters and "un-natural" (unfamiliar) weather patterns, the consequences of a changing climate become more real. This is not a swift process, regardless of the urgency of immediate needs and genuine emergencies that erupt in extreme weather. Specific situations demand we act in the moment, but digesting and coming into alignment with global changes--a change of collect consciousness-- takes time. The collective change is an inner movement that impacts each of us, initially unconsciously, even as we attend to our private lives, personal concerns, and familiar routines. Extreme weather disrupts routines, disrupts expectations. At best we are unsettled, more aware of the hardships others face, and begin to prepare for a changing future. The more flexible we are, the more we can adapt and the more we can offer support for others.

But how do we adapt? What do we need to do? Those who have been immersed in ecological study for decades have one form of knowledge that offers road maps for reconstructing society's relationship with nature through regulation, technology and global cooperation. Cooperation may be the most difficult to achieve.

As individuals, living spiritually, consider this teaching from Anthony de Mello's, The Song of the Bird (1984). He retells the classic metaphor of the ocean fish who searched for the thing called the ocean, missing the reality of ocean all around him. De Mello writes of a seeker who complains of looking for God on mountain peaks, in the desert, in monasteries, and among the poor but never finding God. There was nothing the teacher could say, because the all-ness of God was alive in the sunset, the hundreds of gathering birds, the sounds of human traffic and the buzz of a mosquito near his ear.... He concludes with, "Stop searching, little fish. There isn't anything to look FOR. All you have to do is look."

Today is a day to look, hear, smell, touch, or taste life. We will grow into new social action. Spiritually, we don't have to look FOR nature's signs and directions; even as the collective consciousness is reckoning with the new, we are that new, that evolving shift. We are embedded in this living Earth.

Follow the link for Amanda Gorman's inspiring poem Earthrise https://www.sierraclub.org/.../earthrise-poem-amanda-gorman

August 28, 2022

The recent announcement of a White House summit next month to address hate-fueled violence brought to my mind these lines from Chuang Tzu (369 B.C.-286 B.C.):

...When the heart is right "For" and "against" are forgotten. No drives, no compulsions, No needs, no attractions: Then your affairs Are under control. You are a free man.

In an time when "for and against" has become a frighteningly common tactic to undermine a united sociability and basic human to human respect, Chuang Tzu's ancient philosophy gives a key to understanding: "When the heart is right, for and against are forgotten". The heart he speaks of is not about the circulation of blood, but rather the concept of heart in ancient China that includes both our feeling nature and our thoughts, each feeding the other. But how do we set our hearts "right"? Here we enter the spiritual realm. For Chuang Tzu there is a naturalness to this that comes with giving way to the flow of life and the Tao as the underlying principle of life. (See link below for the complete poem) This is an intuitive process, muddied by cultural pressures, schooled intellect, and a sense of separation. Taoism is a holistic response to the shifting sands of life--not piece-meal. Such an intuitive practice has it's own stops and starts and misfires. With practice, we find our way and even "for and against" struggles are simply forgotten.

This reflection reminded me of a case presentation I heard in a Mental Health conference on the impact of Covid. The patient was an older man who wasn't doing what he wanted to do as Covid restrictions faded. He was paralyzed in depression, with various health and aging issues complicating things and slowing him down. He perceived his life as worthless and meaningless, developing the attitude of "a countdown" to final incapacitation and death. The therapist, rather than directly tackling his despair, encouraged him to list the various ideas that had occurred to him that he kept rejecting-- things that he would like to do if only he wasn't old, ailing, and depressed. They were not extravagant fantasies of high adventure, but did involve interacting with others and risks of one level or another. They included visiting family out of state, going to dinner in a nearby town at new restaurant he had read about, taking a stab at writing and submitting an article on his philosophical musings, reading newly released books that pulled at some corner of his mind with a sense of intrigue. In therapy, he considered the activities that he had previously dismissed with "why bother, it's impossible". Now, he saw they did actually hold appeal; part of him wanted to try and part of him felt hopeless. He began to see that his failure to act created further hopelessness. As he actively engaged in planning the steps he would need to take for each item on his list, each step considered by itself was do-able. Bit by bit, he set new activity in motion, gathering momentum through positive experiences. Despair faded away. His heart became right. Impossibility and hopelessness were forgotten.

While the forces of hate are clearly exploited by larger undermining, anti-social agendas, we are more susceptible to them when we are personally frustrated, saddened and hopeless about our lives. Consider this Sunday, your own right heart and new ways to follow it. (Susan Nettleton)

For Chuang Tzu's complete poem (trans. by Thomas Merton) see: https://www.ayearofbeinghere.com/.../thomas-merton-when...

August 21, 2022

A student, filled with emotion and crying, implored, "Why is there so much suffering?"

Suzuki Roshi replied, "No reason." (Zen master, 1904-1971)

This Sunday I am urging you to cultivate positive experiences for yourself and for those around you and in your care. Paradoxically, a friend sent the quote on suffering to me early this morning. Let's begin with the quote, because positive experiences heal the scars of suffering.

The Suzuki quote is not what it seems on the surface. Centuries of deep philosophical thought and prayer have searched for and designed countless explanations for human suffering. These explanations, from karma to the fall of Adam, underlie all religious structures. They may satisfy many hearts, but breakdown when the onslaught of suffering becomes unmanageable and we are overwhelmed with the disconnect between modern life and religious thinking. We assume there is a reason, a cause and an effect; if we knew the cause of suffering then we could heal and prevent. But Zen is not linear logic--it cracks open the container of our assumptions. Suzuki's answer is not necessarily that there are no grounds or understanding to suffering, but rather that "reasoning" is not the way. We cannot arrive at the "answer" through such a question.

The very structure that asks the question has to give way to what is "unknowable".

That does not mean that we are left comfortless or without recourse. One of the bits of understanding being explored through modern psychology and genetic science is the benefit of positive experience. I recently attended an online medical conference that included an overview of pediatric trauma and the power of positive experiences to mitigate the impact of childhood trauma. The data was very impressive. This is increasingly important given the tragedies and turmoil that children have endured in the Pandemic and the surging numbers of mental health issues society faces. Neuroscience points to the role of branching neural pathways and telomeres (tiny protein chains that cap our DNA and prevent their unraveling) in health, healing and resiliency. Positive experiences in both adults and children lengthen telomeres; longer telomeres are strongly associated with healthier lives and longevity. Branching of neurons occurs when we have a variety of positive experiences--when our lives "branch out" beyond constricted repetition of thought, sensory input and relationship with others. This is particularly important in children whose brains are highly active in branching. Adults benefit from branching out as well!

Positive experiences are simply meaningful, rewarding and/or enjoyable moments of time. There is not one description that is defines "positive" for everyone, but rather follows your personal interests and then stretches into new paths of discovery. They include both private moments and shared experiences. They add a sense of gratitude for that time and they are indeed both protective and healing. No matter how far away you (or someone you know) may seem from enjoyment and gratitude, a positive moment begins the path of return. (Susan Nettleton)

Come, come whoever you are

Wanderer, worshiper, lover of leaving

Oh come, come whoever you are

This isn’t a caravan of despair

It doesn’t matter if you’ve broken your vows a thousand times before

Still yet again, come again come

Yet again, come----------Jalaluddin Rumi

August 14, 2022

“It takes a very long time to become young.”

― Pablo Picasso

While summer remains, consider a plunge into your youthful nature. The annual stirring of 'back to school' energy has already begun and despite the heat waves, mornings and evenings still bring children to parks and neighborhood gatherings. This is a time where you can feel the pull of the freshness of youth and the adventure of learning and discovery that still lies within you. It may be faint, lost under the burden of adult responsibility or an aging body or even the trauma of these years of Pandemic, or your own childhood, but it is there. Our capacity to feel young at heart is healing. It opens us spiritually to a renewed sense of wonder and expectancy. It brings us into a closer connection with God. We are more open--less cluttered with assumptions, disappointments, and mistrust. It brings us closer to those who are younger in a way that paradoxically frees us to give our support and life experience to the newer generations.

Years ago in India, I visited my teacher and friend, U.G. Krishnamurti, in a private living room packed with people. That night, U.G. was in a boisterous mood, spinning jokes with artist (and natural comic) Louis Brawley. U.G., who was then 85, had been ill and was still rather frail, but he suddenly astonished the crowd by asking Louis for a piggy-back ride. Louis, a big, strong guy always up for a challenge, quickly managed to get U.G. on his shoulders in an unbelievable scene that sent shock waves through the room. As they danced around the people huddled on the floor, U.G. on Louis' shoulders, the westerners began raising their hands and pumping their fists like at a wrestling match or rock concert, shouting/chanting "U.G.!, U.G.! U.G.!" The Indians were appalled. This shattered all the protocols for hosting an enlightened sage. Some were enraged; some were terrified he would fall. I sat there filled with grateful amazement, because I was witnessing an ancient archetype: the spiritual master, ignoring "the teachings" to play with children in the dance of life.

Today, despite the world's pressing problems, your troubles, or the troubles of the younger ones in your life, this day--everyday--holds joy. The world is not lifted by wringing our hands and fretting. Lift your heart instead. May you stay forever young. (Susan Nettleton)

follow the link to Bob Dylan's lyrics: https://www.bobdylan.com/songs/forever-young/

August 7, 2022

Last Sunday, I wrote of taking a Complaint Break; today I encourage you to consider the vaster field of struggling with people and situations and reach for a larger reality. Complaints are one of the ways our brains have developed to protect our sense of self--we deflect our difficulties and struggles and experience them as the fault of 'other': personalities, groups, the planets, or all sorts of ideas of sources external to ourselves. What then, are the boundaries of self? This is not by any means a simple question--it is a core question of human life in relationship to the Unknown. To me, the most natural way to expand our understanding of self vs. other vs. Other (Transcendent) is to circle around it again and again as life presents us with circumstances that spark conflict and confusion, as well as insight. So in that practice, I offer you some quotes to ponder today as you move about your life. This one is from Witter Brynner's translation of Lao Tzu's "The Way of Life":

"As the soft yield of water cleaves obstinate stone,

So to yield with life solves the insoluble:

To yield, I have learned, is to come back again."

Yielding to life is a central principle of Taoist thought; here the yielding is itself the solution. And that yielding involves return; we return over and over again, actively engaging in life as best we can from a spiritual perspective. In time, often when we least expect it, we gain insight, even expansive revelation. When the prospect of return seems overwhelmingly difficult or we are too deeply wounded, Ramana Maharshi's verse can be soothing. From Sri Muruganar's translation in poetic form ("The Garland of Guru's Sayings"):

" 297: Do not dwell in the desert hot of the non-self, eating arid sand. come into the Heart, the mansion Cool, shady, vast, serene And feast on the bliss of Self."

Now we have the idea that most of our struggles involve the non-self. Indeed spiritual practice is often about letting go of the non-self, defined in varied ways. But Self is not about knowledge and knowing; it is about Being. From Ramana (The Garland of Guru's Sayings):

"576: Knowing a thing is only drawing The boundary that limits it. Defining, measuring, is the mark Of knowledge. The all-transcending Self Cannot be measured and cannot be known."

If it cannot be known (or not known in the usual way we understand that), what are we to do? Consider this advice from Lao Tzu. (Susan Nettleton)

"There is no need to run outside

For better seeing,

Nor to peer from a window. Rather abide

At the center of your being;

For the more you leave it, the less you learn.

Search your heart and see

If he is wise who takes each turn:

The way to do is to be. "

July 31, 2022

This Sunday as part of summer ease, I'm suggesting you take a Complaint Break. I cannot claim the originality of the phrase; it was coined by self-help author Shad Helmsetter in his book Choices (1990). His point, as many others have made, is that frequent complaining is a habit of thought (and feeling) that over time undermines our well-being and shapes a distorted, one-sided view of life. It also undermines relationships, since people tire of hearing complaints, especially if directed toward them!

Complaining may seem only natural, particularly in 2022 when it has become increasingly difficult to find sustained positive news, and conflict can seem the norm. Don't confuse complaining with assertive action or honestly dealing with problems in relationship and work, and/or with your own mistakes. The key words that distinguish positive response from complaint are "problem solving" and "action". A Complaint Break is about letting go of repetitive thoughts that dwell on mistakes, resentments and grievances, bringing us dissatisfaction and emotional pain. Letting go of our complaints, may well include the spiritual work of forgiveness.

Today's focus though, is on giving yourself a break from your own dissatisfaction with yourself, others, life. Paradoxically, you may discover several complaints that have already started taking root in your mind, because when we pull away from any habit of thought, that habit can chase us, pulling us back. So we don't judge our complaining today; we don't fight it or put our mind to confrontation; we are taking a break and letting life, situations, and people be fine today.

Tomorrow we may pick up the challenge of really taking a look at a sore spot of complaint, and set our sights on resolving it with the tools we know. Those tools include sitting with it in prayer and meditation, setting aside time to problem solve, talking it over with another and taking action as well as forgiveness. But today we just shift our thoughts to enjoy a day of peace and awareness of the gifts of life around us. We can do our best to avoid the complaints of others, to be compassionate or stay neutral or silent as best we can. This last day in July 2022, we can all use a complaint break. (Susan Nettleton)

For "No Complaints" by poet Nikki Geovanni: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/90181/no-complaints

From our website:

https://hillsidesource.com/daily.../2018/6/20/complaints

https://hillsidesource.com/.../6/28/completing-the-complaint

July 24, 2022

(from Barry Cornwall, 19 century)

"Oh, the Summer Night

Has a smile of light,

And she sits on a sapphire throne..."

Every summer, the above lines return to my mind, imprinted very early in my life (probably from a high school English class), reminding me of the beauty of night in summer. Until I left for college, summer nights were a time of freedom and play, of long outdoor discussions with friends, of ocean moons and mysterious shooting stars. These words echoed again this week, when I realized how little I have ventured out at night during the Pandemic--mainly, errands in my car. Night does bring relief to the extreme heat of this summer, but postponing errands until sunset because of heat doesn't really touch the level of the power of a summer night. Luckily, the city here is offering movies in the park--and the poem pushed me to grab a camp chair and hike to the show. The evening was a throwback to simpler times, with families lounging on blankets in the grass, a few night picnics, crying babies, children at chase and elders in...camp chairs--a lovely evening, but the greatest part was my walk home with a flashlight and a renewed communion with night.

In his classic analysis of Indian thought, S. Radhakrishnan (Indian Philosophy, Volume I, pg. 138) quotes an ancient Buddhist proverb: "Long to the watcher is the night, To the weary wand'rer along the road, To him who will not see truth's light, Long is the torment of his chain of births." This is a jarring turn away from my night adventure! It is a reminder that many religious teachings, including early Christianity, with it's eagerness for the world's end in Christ's return, have seen life on earth as "torment". A key defining point of individual spirituality is our answer to the question: do we see earthly life as a treasure or a curse?

Night is often associated with the absence of spiritual Light, or a time of spiritual struggle, when we no longer fit in with the worldly pursuits of society, but have yet to come into a state of spiritual Peace and Acceptance. Night is the unconscious, imperceptible workings of God within. Beyond these spiritual metaphors, night is a gift and full of life that is different from day, even though we sleep. Take this week to discover it's wonder and beauty. I trust the power of night. (Susan Nettleton)

"Keep going; never stop; sit tight;

Read something luminous at night.”

Edmund Wilson Jr. (20th century) Night poetry, follow the links: https://poets.org/poem/evening-3

https://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/.../SongofSoul/index.html

July 17, 2022

This morning I gave a Sunday Zoom talk on "Coming Into Agreement." The talk will be posted in a couple of weeks with the audio files on our website: hillsidesource.com but I am posting a segment here to consider today.

One of the great world myths found in the Bible (Genesis) and other religious sources, addresses this issue of why humans have such trouble with agreement: The Tower of Babel. t is a story of how God decentralized the great kingdom of Babylon's power and authority. We are told, the people of this kingdom, at a time of great renown, all spoke one language, and in Genesis, this extends to whole of the earth or at least the known earth. A popular movement arose with the idea of building a tower to that would reach to Heaven. The fame and power of the Kingdom would expand, and it's people would never leave. But God 'came down' and saw that if they achieved it, nothing could restrain their power; they would do anything without his command, so he vowed to confuse language so they could no longer understand each other, and then he scattered them across the Earth.

Various versions are found in other texts. In the Torah, which gives more details, the Tower is spearheaded by Nimrod, the great grandson of Noah, with some interpretations suggesting Nimrod was resentful of the Flood and didn't trust God, so he strove to expand his own power. A Greek version, 'Apocalypse of Baruch' details a vision by a scribe and disciple of the prophet Jeremiah. In the vision, he sees the punishment of the builders of the “tower of strife against God,” who "smote them with blindness and confusion of speech." In the Qur’an there is mention of an official called Haman who built a great tower in Egypt with miraculous bricks under orders of the Pharaoh, who wanted to reach God. Because Islam's teaching that language is a sacred gift and that God taught Adam all languages, with Arabic as the most sacred of the Qur'an, the Genesis story of the Tower of Babel is seen as false. From Sumerian culture, within a story of two warrior-kings building competing temples, there is the story of a rivalry of gods in a utopian past, where multi-ethnic peoples of Mesopotamia all spoke the same tongue and worshipped the same deity, Enlil. Possibly out of jealously, the god of wisdom and mischief caused humanity to separate and speak in varied tongues.

In this myth, the root of disharmony is differing languages. We know people identify with their language as a fundamental structure of their culture, and take offense when someone refuses speak it, or ridicules it. What a metaphor for our emotions and our belief systems, our points of reference, our own sense of relationship or competency. Even within a culture and shared language, we misinterpret another's words and meaning. Learning another language is humbling; you make mistakes; others--the foreigners-- know more than we do. Yet, the need to speak another's language, pushes us to enter, to some degree, another's mind-set, different from ours.

The world's story is still in process from the various ancient myths of the Tower of Babel to 2022; perhaps this myth is not all punishment. To me, it is about the beauty and necessity of diversity. Nature exhibits diversity, an overwhelming abundance of variation of whatever theme is expressed. The people of the Earth too, come in abundant varieties. Diversity doesn't just separate; diversity provides a rich field of exchange and exchange increases our options for creativity, adaptation and survival. The tellers of the myth left out a crucial piece of meaning, the gift hidden in the scattered and divergent. The global scientific and medical exchange of the Pandemic--flawed and limited it may be--has saved lives. The global climate change debates and negotiations is another exchange in process. These kinds of efforts toward world-wide problems are not about coming into some universal collective mind, or world religion, or even unification. We are of one planet, but with diverse minds. It's astounding when you think of the varieties of microbial, plant, and animal life on Earth, and then turn to human expectation and demands that we all look alike, think alike, believe alike, or that we can rank the rich resource of variety that is humanity. What appeared as one thing centuries ago, may be something entirely different in life's unfolding. Scrambling the language and scattering the people was a good move. (Susan Nettleton)

July 10, 2022

Summer is now in its fullness. The last few weeks has been an interweaving of the shocks of change across America, as the concern of the Pandemic reappears and elections push to the forefront, crossing the threads of the Way of Spiritual Peace. Daily life continues and summer blossoms with intense heat, reminding us of global climate change. There is a pressure of coming events, a kind of bracing against a future wind, that humanity seems to carry. And then there is the Peace of the moment, the stillness of a summer afternoon, and the quiet of deep night that balances longer, erratic days.

This week, I find myself reflecting on the philosophy of Emerson: "To finish the moment, to find the journey's end in every step of the road, to live the greatest number of good hours, is wisdom." How in this July 2022, can we live the "greatest number of good hours"? For Emerson, that "good" must incorporate the Good; we learn to live in a way that integrates, undulates and often alternates, the reality of our present world with our spiritually transcendent one. As he put it, we learn to live in "the mid-world". There we find all the material needed for who we are to expand and grow a larger spiritual ground. "Face life as it really is. That is forever practical." "Save on the low levels and spend on the high levels. That is forever practical".

And particularly for Sunday, "Do not craze yourself with thinking, but go about your business anywhere. Life is not intellectual or critical, but sturdy...To fill the hour--that is happiness; to fill the hour and leave no crevice for a repentance or an approval." Let your Sunday, be filled with hours of Good. (Susan Nettleton)

"Human strength is not in extremes, but in avoiding extremes."

(all quotes from "The Gospel of Emerson" by Newton Dillaway, 13th ed. Unity Books, 2nd ed. 1978)

July 5, 2022

Our next Zoom talk on "Coming Into Agreement" by Susan Nettleton will be Sunday, July 17, at 11:00 a.m. Mountain Time, 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time. If you would like to receive an email invitation with the link for the talk, please message your email address, or email at hillsideew@aol.com, or leave as a phone message at 505-254-2606

July 3, 2022

Tomorrow is the 4th of July, America's celebration of Independence from British colonial rule and the Freedom that the new nation won. This historic drive for freedom included freedom of religion, incorporated into the U.S. Constitution in the Bill of Rights. The first amendment states: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

But religious freedom has never been an easy road in America or anywhere else. Religious fervor is a powerful human emotion that can be wielded to motivate action for positive change in one's own life and inspire collective action. But religious fervor can also be used to manipulate the individual by weaving destructive collective delusion. The history of religion, including American history, amply demonstrates this. When the social order has no religious freedom, or when spirituality is dictated and coerced, our innate individual capacity as well as our collective capacity to grow, discover, and expand life withers. No single human being, no school of thought, or religion has the complete, ultimate, final truth on Life or God. Life resonates with diversity in a weaving beyond our capacity to grasp its totality. This is the root of spiritual humility.

One of the great blessings of the 21st century is the availability of information and communication of varying viewpoints, including a vast array of ideas of spirituality, world wide religious history, ancient, foreign, and newly emerging concepts of Life--all of which can potentially contribute to a greater realization of transcendence and our own religious practice. Even the ideas we discard, shape and hone our understanding of our own beliefs and spiritual experiences. If we are courageous enough to grow beyond the safety net of fixed ideas and rigid belief systems, we enter a time of expanding consciousness where we (individually and collectively) just might find new answers and solutions to the problems we have created. Doing that requires freedom.

Let this Sunday reveal your own sense of spiritual independence and freedom. Consider the path you have taken and the role that freedom and independence has played. Keep it in your heart for the 4th of July, 2022. (Susan Nettleton)