Posts Tagged ‘meditation on the journey of being’

 

Passages

Posted on: July 7th, 2018 by Alden

A new prayer about prayer as the doorway to eternity. The prayer is structured as seven six-word meditations, followed by a prayer for a life of blessings.

Passages
Prayer is the doorway to compassion.
Compassion is the entry to humility.
Humility is the passage to love.
Love is the gateway to peace.
Peace is the guardian of life.
Life is the invitation to now.
Now is the essence of eternity.

Source of all,
Creator of time and space,
Guide me through these passages
So I may serve you with dedication, awe and wonder,
Living Your mitzvot with my words and deeds,
Lifting my heart closer to the radiance of being,
Lifting my soul to the living waters of Your blessings.

© 2018 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

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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: National Park Service Photo Gallery

The Open Space

Posted on: March 3rd, 2013 by tobendlight

pillar_03 wwuThis is a meditation about opening the spiritual space for wholeness to enter. It is, of course, in the voice of the spiritual traveler, the one who hints at wisdom and loves the journey for its own sake. This prayer/poem will appear in my forthcoming book, Song of the Spiritual Traveler.

The Open Space

Wholeness is the open space,

The place between,

Where the rhythm of being

Enters, flows through,

In my vision and my courage.

Forgiveness is the open space,

Where yesterday meets tomorrow,

Where the tide waits to shift,

Where holiness blesses the mundane,

In my breath and my celebration.

Wisdom is the open space

Where the echo hears the wind,

Where the silence becomes G-d’s Voice,

Where all that I am meets all that I can be,

In my marrow and in my surrender.

© 2013 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

 

Postscript: Here’s a link to one of my favorite prayer/poems in the voice of the spiritual traveler, “Come Walk.” Here’s a link to more related meditations.

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Photo Credit: WWU Planetarium

Now

Posted on: December 29th, 2010 by tobendlight

This is the third of a three-part meditation about the rhythm and flow of life. These meditations are written to be recited in order: “Leaving,” “Arriving” and “Now.” Please listen along as you read. Click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

 

Now
This is now.
Always now.
Now and now and now.
The arrivals and departures
That bring me here
And take me way,
Are only dreams and memories,
Windows and smoky mirrors,
Distractions from the pulse of this moment.

What is this thing called now that always leaves,
That always arrives,
That changes and stays the same,
That is always present, ripe and waiting?
This is now.
Always now.
And the world is full of
Now and now and now.

Oh to live in this life,
This wondrous river of gifts.
This being. This becoming.
This shimmering light of awe and thanksgiving.
Let the currents flow,
Let the tides shift
And the moon rise and set,
So that now stays vital, vibrant and alive
With joy and grace.

© 2010 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

Postscript: Take a look at my book, Jewish Prayers of Hope and Healing.

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.

Photo Source: Alden Solovy

Arriving

Posted on: December 27th, 2010 by tobendlight

This is the second of a three-part meditation about the rhythm and flow of life. These meditations are written to be recited in order: “Leaving,” “Arriving” and “Now.” To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Arriving
I’ve already arrived
In the moment to come.
The yet-to-be opens before me
As a flow of gifts and blessings,
Wounds and losses,
Nights and days,
A steady stream of danger and wonder.
The blue white sky.
The moonless night.

What is this thing called arriving
That feels so uncertain, unsteady, unknown
And yet so full of promise and hope?
I am arriving, always arriving,
In the next shimmering sunrise,
The next afternoon shadow.

Oh to live in this heartbeat,
This amazing pulse of earth and sea.
This place.
This space.
This radiant sigh of being.
Let the world laugh,
The earth cry,
The seasons ebb and flow,
So that the space for now
Opens with gratitude and peace.

© 2010 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

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.

Leaving

Posted on: December 26th, 2010 by tobendlight

Bird and LakeThis is the first of a three-part meditation about the rhythm and flow of life. These meditations are written to be recited in order: “Leaving,” “Arriving” and “Now.” The text follows. Here’s the piece, along with a photo I took of a sunrise over Lake Michigan. This meditation will appear in my forthcoming book, Song of the Spiritual Traveler.  To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below.

 

Leaving
I’ve already left
The moment that just was.
I’ve already taken in new sights
New sounds,
The rhythm and motion around me.
The grey dusk.
The morning light.

What is this thing called leaving
That feels so much like a knife
That slices my safety, my solace, my peace?
I am leaving, always leaving,
And the world is always leaving me
In the next gust of wind,
The next quiet night.

Oh to live in this breath,
This joyous expanse of air and light.
This here.
This now.
This wonder and amazement,
This luminous pulse of being.
Let the world sigh,
Let the earth turn,
Let the currents flow,
So that the space for tomorrow
Opens with awe and surrender.

© 2010 Alden Solovy and tobendlight.com. All rights reserved.

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.

Photo Source: Alden Solovy

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