№ 459. The Guest House

The Guest House

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 entertain 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.

---Rumi

№ 441. Listen, O Drop

"Listen, O drop, give yourself up without regret,
and in exchange gain the Ocean.

Listen, O drop, bestow upon yourself this honor,
and in the arms of the Sea be secure.

Who indeed should be so fortunate?
An Ocean wooing a drop!

In God's name, in God's name, sell and buy at once!
Give a drop, and take this Sea full of pearls.”

--- Mawlana Jalal-al-Din Rumi (1207–1273)

№ 396. Freedom

"...freedom, I am told, is nothing but the distance between the hunter and its prey." --- from "On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous", Ocean Vuong

№ 248. Awaken; Live

"If you are fortunate enough to be awakened..., you will know why the finest language is the one that is not spoken, the finest action is the one that is not done, and the finest change is the one that is not willed." --- Anthony de Mello.

№ 235. Om, too

Be like water.

Water is fluid, yet it tends toward stillness, and it's reflective. If you can embody these characteristics, you'll be able to benefit anyone in need.

Becoming mentally fluid means allowing people and situations to exist as they are without judging or trying to change them. This acceptance is important—it's the beginning of healing.

Taken in a NIA White Belt Certification Class.
29 November 2015