Tag Archive for "ManKind Project"

Posts Tagged ‘ManKind Project’

This Man’s Heartbeat

Posted on: August 1st, 2018 by Alden

Alden on his triycle (circa 1960).

Another prayer in my series for men, inspired by my work with The ManKind Project. Here are links to two of more of my prayers for and about men: “The Descent” and “This Man.”

This Man’s Heartbeat
Let my heart beat
Gentle as a brook,
Gentle as a boy,
Seeing the world with wonder.

Let my heart beat
Strong as the tide,
Strong as a man,
Living these days with passion.

Let love flow through my veins,
Grace and yearning,
Humility and awe,
Kindness and power,
The melody of love,
The harmony of joy,
A baseline of truth,
The tempo of life.

Let my heart beat,
Gentle as a brook
Strong as the tide,
Gentle as a boy,
Strong as a man,
Seeing the world with wonder,
Living these days with passion.

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Please check out my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer,” and This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” To receive my latest prayers via email, please subscribe (on the home page). You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo Source: Solovy Family Photo

Vayishlach: The Descent

Posted on: November 28th, 2012 by tobendlight

“And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.” – Genesis 32:25

Sooner or later every man faces the trial of his life. This meditation is a metaphor for the inner journey, the inner struggle, the battle to find holiness and a new name. It’s another in my series of prayers and meditations for men.

The Descent
When your time comes
And you hear the call
To become a man of power and wisdom,
A warrior and a king,
You will descend beyond the shadows
Into the black cliffs of your soul,
Where fear stalks the hours,
And rage laughs at the abyss,
Where shame waltzes with pride,
And grief howls, unrestrained, with pleasure.

You will reach a narrow ridge
Above the hollows where other men were lost.
You will crawl on scree,
Cutting your hands and knees,
As you press hard
Against the trail,
Against the wind.

You will enter a cavern of darkness,
The unseen color of nothingness,
Where your voice echoes with dread,
And your heart beats with longing,
Where your breath smells of remorse
And your ears ring with lies and deceit.

When you reach bottom
Your enemy will attack,
With skill and cunning,
For you have set free the torment within,
The power of your anguish and your guilt.
The night will last beyond the rhythm of natural time
Until you forget if you are the holiness or the profane.
Only then the grip of unrighteous fury will weaken
And succumb to your strength.
Wounded but victorious,
You will be blessed by fire from the torch of heaven.
Its light will blend with the coming dawn.
In that moment you will finally see
The face of the man you fought.
You will know in your bones
That you must take him back with you into the light,
For it was you who invited him on the journey.

Postscript: Here are three more prayers and meditations for men: “My Work Remains,” “For the Lost” and “My Heart Knows What It Needs,” as well as a link to a list of all of my prayers for and about men.

Photo Credit: Artable

Powerful Men

Posted on: May 6th, 2012 by tobendlight

Here’s another prayer in my series for men. It’s a brief call to action — inspired by the men of ManKind Project around the world — summoning men to use their power in service of humanity. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Powerful Men
Men of honor,
Men of strength,
The world yearns for you.
Your wisdom, your courage, your vitality.
The call has come.

Men of conscience,
Men of understanding,
Summon the energy that is deep in your belly,
Steeped into your bones,
That heats your blood and fires your eyes,
And hold it as rod and staff,
Guide and compass,
To build, to heal,
To honor, to bless.

G-d of Majesty,
Teach me to use this power
In service to others
In the name of holiness and love,
So that I become a source of compassion and grace,
A light of awe and wonder.

Postscript: Click here for a list of prayer and meditations for men. Two of my favorites are: “My Courage” and “My Work Remains.”

Please check out my Meet the Author video and This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” To receive my latest prayers via email, please subscribe (on the home page). You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo Source: Photo is © Gregory Tapler Photograpy; poster designed by Boysen Hodgson for MKP

Fire Within

Posted on: January 21st, 2012 by tobendlight

The collective Jewish response to grief is joy, to attempt to live in joy no matter what. Not always an easy path, but it leads to a deep healing that allows the full spectrum of emotion into our lives. Joy and grief are welcome, because they are part of accepting G-d’s world as it is. Living in joy, with all our strength and energy, is part of claiming a stake in G-d’s future world, a world of complete happiness and peace, a world that is yet to come. This piece will appear in my forthcoming book, Song of the Spiritual Traveler. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Fire Within
My burns
Cannot be seen on my flesh.
They are in my lungs
And in my eyes.
What medicine will halt the smoldering,
The smoke that suffocates from within?

My cuts
Cannot be seen on my skin.
They are in my heart
And in my throat.
What medicine will heal the bleeding,
The tide that floods from within?

Ancient One,
Release me from the fire and the knife:
The flame that consumes hope and joy,
The blade that destroys time and seasons.

Holy One,
Rock and Shelter,
Your medicine is love.
Your salve is holiness.
Your balm is life.

Blessed are You, Adonai our G-d,
Eternal Source of wholeness and healing.

Postscript: I originally conceived this as a prayer for men. Many of us experience our internal struggles – fears, losses, shames, angers – as fire and knife. Although I don’t know if the metaphor holds for women, this piece seems more universally prayer for healing than other of my prayers for men.

If you like this prayer, post a link to your Facebook page, your blog or as part of a tweet. For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter. Please consider making a contribution to support this site and my writing.

Photo credit: zoeyryanthoughts.com

My Courage

Posted on: December 26th, 2011 by tobendlight

Men, here’s an amazing truth. You have a deep well of courage, power and majesty inside of you. The challenge: tapping that power in ways that heal ourselves and the world. The Mankind Project is dedicated to leading men into that adventure. With their help, I’ve found all the resources needed for me to live bravely and freely, following my dream and my path, wherever it leads.

This prayer celebrates my community of men, Warriors who teach each other the art and the responsibility of being men. Thank you for these gifts. To listen as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

My Courage
My courage is in my heartbeat
And my open arms,
In my wisdom and my pulsing veins,
In trusting my vision and speaking my truth,
Gifts from you,
Dear brother,
Who taught me to use fear as a sword
To guide me,
Uplift me,
To set me free.

My power is in surrender
To the unknown,
In travelling the long road out
And finding the long road home,
In my embrace of joyous adventure,
Gifts from you,
Dear brother,
Who taught me to use courage as a shield
To protect me,
Support me,
To set me free.

My majesty is in my deeds
My word and my mission,
In a breath of crisp morning air,
And the shimmering sky at twilight,
Robes of humility and service,
Gifts from you,
Dear brother,
Who taught me to claim honor as my staff
And wisdom as my crown,
The integrity and compassion,
The vision and blessing,
That set me free.

Postscript: January 2012 will mark the second anniversary of my participation in the New Warrior Training Adventure. I’ll also leave for three months in Israel, part of a journey and a dream that might have gone unfulfilled without the support and wisdom of the Chicago community of MKP. Here’s a link to more prayers for and about men. One of my favorites is “My Work Remains.”

Please consider making a contribution to support this site and my writing. For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

I am a King: A Meditation for Men

Posted on: October 24th, 2011 by tobendlight

In every man there is a king, a beautiful, wise and powerful man who sees, heals and blesses. Sadly, sometimes we become tyrants, and sometimes we abdicate our duties. This is a meditation to remind myself and other men that all of us have a deep well of spiritual gold. We are men of honor and integrity. We are kings in service to our families, our loved ones, ourselves and the world. Kings in service to the Holy One, G-d of All Being. To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

I am a King: A Meditation for Men
I am a king.
Not the king.
A king.
Like all men,
Born with a seed of majesty,
A gift of the Sovereign of Heaven.
This gift is mine to nurture,
To love,
To hold sacred in service to G-d.

Rock of Truth,
Some men fear this gift,
Hate it, reject it,
Abdicating Your call to heal and create.
Some men grab this gift with zeal,
Tyrants abusing their power,
Destroying and devouring
Land and people.

Rock of Life,
Make me a king with a heart of gold,
Holding my life and the world
As precious gifts,
To honor and to cherish,
To build and to sustain.

Rock of Love,
Bless me so that I bless.
See me so that I see.
Hear me so that I hear.
Then, G-d of Old,
I will be Your servant on earth
All the days of my life.

Postscript: Check out these prayers for men: “My Work Remains,” “For the Lost” and “My Heart Knows What It Needs,” as well as a list of other prayers for and about men.

Photo Source: Honey Badger Heart

Posts Tagged ‘ManKind Project’

This Man’s Heartbeat

Vayishlach: The Descent

Powerful Men

Fire Within

My Courage

I am a King: A Meditation for Men

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