A human being is part of the whole called by us the Universe, a part limited in time and space. We experience ourselves, our thoughts and feelings, as  something separate from the rest–a kind of optical delusion of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from the prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all  living creatures and the whole of nature in its  beauty.

–Albert Einstein

Welcome to The Light Weaver, a newsletter dedicated to planet Earth, and to all the individuals and groups around the world who are praying and meditating for peace.

Like many people, I am often overwhelmed by the state of our planet and sometimes I find it hard to begin my day. Sometimes my prayer and meditation practice gets short shrift as I try to focus on the practical things that need to be done or allow myself to escape into anything that will distract me from my worries. As if prayer weren’t the most practical thing that needs to be done and a powerful antidote to anxiety!

My friend Linda begins her day by reading a certain poem by the thirteenth-century Persian Sufi poet Rumi. It’s one of my favorites, too, and I find that every time I read it, my heart opens.  Here it is, in the English of Rumi’s preeminent twentieth-century translator, Coleman Barks:

This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and attend them all! Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture, still, treat each guest honorably. He may be clearing you out for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in.

Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.

Welcome difficulty. Learn the alchemy True Human Beings know: the moment you accept what troubles you’ve been given, the door opens.

Welcome difficulty as a familiar comrade. Joke with torment brought by the Friend.

Sorrows are the rags of old clothes and jackets that serve to cover, and then are taken off. That undressing, and the beautiful naked body underneath, is the sweetness that comes after grief.*

That’s a hard act to follow, but while I was copying it, I was guided to share with you another wise teaching I heard years ago that always helps me to put things in perspective, especially when I am faced with a difficult decision. This is the Four Fold Path to Enlightenment of the Zuni Indians:

1. Show up (very important–and you’ve already done that!)
2. Pay attention
3. Tell the truth
4. Stay open to outcome

Doesn’t that say it all?

Paying attention sounds a little less intimidating than meditation, but they’re really very similar;  and staying open to outcome is essential at all times. The Tibetan Buddhists have a prayer that goes “Whatever is to happen, may it happen! Whichever way it goes, may it go that way!”

We can’t always see the big picture. Even when we’re praying for peace, many people pray not for a specific result, but for the highest good of all beings, whatever form that may take.Whatever language we pray in, whether we pray with words or sit in silent  meditation, whether we sit alone or in a group, there is no doubt that  collective, positive human thought is a powerful tool for healing and  transformation.

If you would like to join the peace prayer network of planet Earth, there are many groups you can connect with on the worldwide web. I invite you to check out the World Healing website, www.worldhealing.co.uk/whd.  This group organizes worldwide meditations at specific times of the day, month, and year. There is a daily one-minute meditation at 12 noon local time everywhere which creates a kind of rolling effect, wrapping the planet in love every hour on the hour. There are meditations throughout the year timed to coincide with lunar and solar cycles.

And at least once every year, there is a special World Healing Day with specific time slots set aside to provide an opportunity for a massive simultaneous focus on the vision of world peace.

“This annual event, which began in 1996, has linked up thousands of people across the world in meditation, prayer, and mindful activity to help raise world consciousness and further world healing.

“World Healing Day seeks to promote a greater awareness of our interconnectedness as a global family, and to provide an opportunity for people to move beyond division and to express collectively their vision of a more harmonious and peaceful world.

“We believe that sufficient numbers of people sharing the same focused intent at the same time can have a positive effect on the wider world. Physicists have shown that subatomic particles respond to our intent, and recent experiments conducted by the HeartMath Institute in the United States have shown that dramatic changes are registered in the Earth's magnetic field in response to our experience of planetary love.”

For further information, go to the World Healing website at www.worldhealing.co.uk/whd

Tera Thomas of Hummingbird Farm, a 49-acre sanctuary in North Carolina, writes, “Imagine living in a world where all beings acknowledge their connection to each other and work together with mutual respect and harmony.” She asks all to join energetically on the Solstices and Equinoxes at 8-8:30 PM ET and 5-5:30 PM PT to focus on this vision of peace. For further information go to her website at www.hummingbirdfarm.org and click on Calendar.

With love and blessings, for one peaceful green Earth,

Helen

* I am deeply grateful to translator Coleman Barks and illuminator Michael Green for permission to reprint this page from The Illuminated Rumi, published in 1997 by Broadway Books, 1540 Broadway, New York, NY 10036