The Still Center

A few years ago at an arts retreat, my wife (who may soon be doing a guest post here!) did a seminar on the idea of the “still center.” The gist of the concept is that many times the world around us is spinning wildly like a huge wagon wheel, but we can be the still center of the wheel, unaffected by the spinning and holding our position. It’s a great oversimplification, or course, but that’s the central metaphor.

And it’s one that I’ve found myself going back to often over the past several years. We all have times in our lives when that wagon wheel is spinning like a top; I certainly have. These are the times that we’ve got to be that still center, or we end up at the end of the wheel spinning out of control. Of course, this is easier said than done. I think sometimes we go through that spinning for a while before we begin the process of finding the stillness.

It’s often a matter of our attitude and our thinking. Honestly, how much can we influence the circumstances of life? But we do have control of our reactions, our attitudes, and our thoughts about those circumstances. Or at least we can. I think the key is to find that stillness within yourself and be able to tap in to it when necessary. Where does this stillness come from? It’s got to come from somewhere beyond the conscious mind: the spirit…the subconscious…God… Your mileage may vary.

The point is—and trust me, this was a LONG time coming for me—the conscious mind is often what gets us in trouble.  We worry, fret, and anticipate trouble to the extent that it cripples us. Again, I speak from experience. As I started to open up to contemplative thought and reading a bit about pioneers in it, both ancient and modern, some concepts really helped me.

One of the oldest is from Julian of Norwich, who lived in England in the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries: All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well. It’s very simple, yet I have found myself using it as a mantra. It may seem naïve or Pollyannaish, but it has proven quite profound.

One of the more contemporary people that I follow in this regard is Eckhart Tolle. Some of his quotes have become a second Bible to me, a real source of inspiration and comfort. To me, these thoughts cut to the real heart of my problem many times. I find myself going back to them often, particularly when I feel myself straying from that still center. Here are two of my favorites:

The primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation but thought about it. Be aware of the thoughts you are thinking. Separate them from the situation, which is always neutral. It is as it is.

Always say “yes” to the present moment. What could be more futile, more insane than to create inner resistance to what already is? What could be more insane than to oppose life itself, which is now and always now? Surrender to what is. Say “yes” to life—and see how life suddenly starts working for you rather than against you.

These ideas do nothing at all to change my circumstances; how could they? But they are invaluable in helping me to get back to the still hub in the center of life’s wheel.

Deliver Us

Thirteenth century theologian Eckhart von Hochheim (Meister Eckhart) once wrote “Pray God deliver me from God.” At first glance, this statement seems the very heart of blasphemy. But as is often the case, it demands a closer look. Eckhart was tried for heresy, which was a typical reaction in the Middle Ages (some things don’t change…).

At first blush, this statement seems to want nothing to do with God, which is undoubtedly where the heretical accusations arose. But if we think about this plea a bit rather than dismissing it outright, something else is there. Perhaps Herr Eckhart was thinking not of dismissing God per se. Perhaps he was thinking a little deeper. (In the Middle Ages, as now, “deeper thinking” was problematic in the eyes of those who hold the power.)

The thing that we may need delivering from is our concept of God. Ah…now perhaps we have something. I believe Meister Eckhart came to realize that the ideas/concepts/notions that we hold about God can easily become too entrenched. Most of these notions, I would venture, are learned from parents, elders, clergy, tradition, and, yes—scripture. The trouble is that God is not easily grasped by our little minds. We get ideas, we develop theology, we even come up with religions. And there’s nothing wrong with those things. We do well to grapple with spiritual things and to try to bring our very rational minds to terms with them.

But we need to be prepared for the eventuality that our ideas are wrong—or at least, incomplete. How often has human history shown that no matter how much we think we understand something, there will always come those “oh, wait!” moments? So doesn’t it stand to reason that we’ll have those realization moments with God as well? In fact, it’s very liberating. We may have our opinions, even our deeply held values, but there’s no pressure to get everything right—there’s no final exam at the end of it all. Come to think of it, is there really a way we can get it all right? I don’t think God expects that of us. So maybe we should let ourselves—and each other—off the hook, too.

Politics, Morality, and Other Dirty Words

"These are the times that try men's souls." Thomas Paine wrote these words to begin his American Crisis series of pamphlets at the dawn of the American Revolution.

There have been many crises over the past 200+ years to which that thought might also apply. The 911 terrorist attacks come quickly to mind, not to mention the two world wars and countless other wars since 1776.

In its own way, the Presidential election cycle has become a very soul-trying time every four years. It says a great deal about the soul of our nation, and about each of us individually. Sometimes it brings out the best in people. And all too often, it brings out the worst. It's saddening, and I must say embarrassing, to watch American politics these days. I'm all for debating the issues; there are often important things that need to be debated publicly. But the way some in both major parties demonize each other doesn't resemble debate so much as it does Jerry Springer.

As a registered Democrat, I am more than willing to admit to some childishness and vitriol from the leaders of my party. But recently those on the other side of the aisle seem to be trying to corner the market. And what bothers me the most is the usurpation and distortion of faith by the religious right. Many in the right wing paint themselves as the standard bearers of morality and truth, crying loudly about "family values" and decrying the left's "war on religion." Problem is that a lot of what the religious right props up as morality are far from the virtues that Jesus espoused in the Sermon on the Mount. In fact, they have become modern versions of the Pharisees for whom Jesus reserved his harshest criticism. And as a Pennsylvanian, I am rather embarrassed to be from the home of Rick Santorum, perhaps the chief Pharisee.

Now, I don't doubt that some of these folks have good motives. At least I hope they do. Perhaps it's just a product of the current political climate that engenders this vicious mentality. Somehow, we need to find our way back to respectful and reasonable political debate. But right now that seems to be a long way off.  

Easter

I had been working on a post about Easter, but I was not happy with it. I kept tinkering, but it just wasn't working.

I don't think I can say it any better than Richard Rohr: " Most of human life is Holy Saturday, a few days of life are Good Friday, but there only needs to be one single Easter Sunday for us to know the final and eternal pattern. We now live inside of such cosmic hope."

Happy Easter, everyone!

Not Just a Game

Like a good number of people over the last couple years, I am a big Game of Thrones fan.

I should say I am a big Song of Ice and Fire fan. I have read the first two and a half books in the George R.R. Martin series, but I've only seen three episodes in the first season of the HBO adaptation. I will say that I am very impressed so far. Everything looks and feels right. I had none of those "he shouldn't be playing that character" or "that's not how that should look" moments as I watched. I think the series is quite well done, and the casting is nothing short of superb. Sean Bean, Peter Dinklage, Kit Harrington, and Maisie Williams were particularly great, I thought.

At any rate, I think that Martin's books represent the best of speculative fiction: great world building, well developed characters, and thrilling stories built around strong themes and truth about humanity and society. One of the first things that struck me in the book (and was well portrayed on TV) was where Eddard Stark sentenced a man to death and did the deed himself. He tells his young son that the man who pronounces the sentence should swing the sword. Imagine if we followed that idea today! Maybe we wouldn't be so cavalier about killing.

Another thing that I find especially compelling in this series is that there are very few pure "good or evil" characters. The good characters all have their flaws, and the seemingly evil ones either have hidden hurts or secret motives for what they do. Just like in life. The older I get, the more I come to realize that the world is not nearly as black and white as I once thought. We almost never have the whole picture when we pass our judgments on people or events.

If you are not yet a fan of either the books or the HBO series, give them a try.