Tag Archive for "quiet" | To Bend Light

Posts Tagged ‘quiet’

To Hear Me Sing

Posted on: December 20th, 2017 by Alden

This is a prayer of yearning, yearning for healing and for the support of others along the way.

To Hear Me Sing
Are you awake enough to hear me?
Are you alert enough to see me?
Are you present enough to stand with me?

Brother, I need your courage and your vision.
Sister, I need your strength and your wisdom.
The shadow of doubt
Has darkened my sight,
And the cold wind of despair
Has settled in my bones.
Loneliness and grief
Have wrapped themselves
Around my heart.

G-d of Old,
What secret truth
Have You hidden in this longing?
What Torah
Have You concealed in this yearning?
What moment of discovery will come
When this sorrow breaks
And I begin to sing again?

Brother, walk with me through this darkness.
Sister, walk with me toward the healing light.
Source and Shelter,
Guide us back –
Through troubling days
And sleepless nights –
To joy and wonder,
Awe and splendor,
Quiet and peace.

Postscript: See also: “We are Music.”

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: Amoré

Soul Shine

Posted on: February 1st, 2015 by Alden

This meditation is about allowing our souls to fill our hearts, to fill our minds and to fill our bodies with the radiance of heaven, so that we can bring that light into the world as tikun olam, the act of repairing the world. The meditation recognizes the majesty within each of us, declaring that that glory must be shared. This piece appears in This Joyous Soul: A New Voice for Ancient Yearnings from CCAR Press.

Soul Shine
Let your soul shine
In your chest.
Let your heart sparkle
In your eyes.
Let joy
Fill your limbs with radiance.
Let love
Fill your hands with splendor.
You are the instrument
Of G-d’s music,
The tool
Of repairing the earth.
You are the voice
Of wonder and awe,
The song
Of hope and tomorrow.

This gift,
This majesty within,
Is not yours to keep.
It is not yours to hold.
It is not yours to hide.

Let your soul shine
Luminous, elegant,
Brave and true,
A beacon of praise,
A lantern of song,
A summons for holiness
To enter our lives
And this world.

Let your soul shine.
Set it free.
Set it free to fill the space
Between the here
And the unknown
With abundance
And with blessings.

Postscript: If you enjoyed this meditation, you might also like: “Fresh Delights,” “Come Walk,” “Let Me” and “This is the Place.” And for musical accompaniment, here’s a link to the Allman Brothers Band singing “Soulshine.”

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Photo Source: tomboyArt on Esty

Sacred Cargo

Posted on: May 15th, 2014 by Alden

This new meditation is a reminder, a reminder that G-d gave us each gifts that are amazing beyond imagination: our souls, our bodies and our ability to bring holiness into the world. It can be used as a kavanah before prayer or engaging in a spiritual practice, such as yoga, or can be used as a reminder of our gifts from G-d before performing an act of tikkun olam, an act to better the world. This meditation will appear in my forthcoming book, Prayers for Healing the World.

Sacred Cargo
You carry sacred cargo within,
Your ruach, your nefesh, your neshama,
The spirit and breath of holiness,
Given to you by the One,
The Source,
Hakodesh Habarachu,
Blessed be G-d’s holy name.

You carry sacred cargo within,
Your heart, your lungs, your blood,
The vitality of holiness,
Given to you by the One,
The Source,
Hakodesh Habarachu,
Blessed be G-d’s holy name.

You carry sacred cargo within,
Your hands, your voice, your strength,
The instruments of holiness,
Given to you by the One,
The Source,
Hakodesh Habarachu,
Blessed be G-d’s holy name.

Postscript: I also have several pieces specifically designed as yoga meditations, including: “Breath: Yoga Meditation I,” “Strong: Yoga Meditation II” and “Pray and…: Yoga Meditation III.” If you like this meditation, you may also like “Come Walk,” “Bird is Bird” and “Leaving.”

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Photo Source: WikiMedia Commons

Pray and…: Yoga Meditation III

Posted on: October 16th, 2011 by tobendlight

This is a meditation on being, which is a lovely way to begin – or to end! – a day’s yoga practice. It can also be used to begin a meditation session. It has the same rhythm and feel as “Breath: Yoga Meditation I” and “Strong: Yoga Meditation II.” To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Pray and…: Yoga Meditation III
Pray and feel.
Pray and love.
Pray and heal.
Pray and be.

Breath and feel.
Breath and love.
Breath and heal.
Breath and be.

Hope and feel.
Hope and love.
Hope and heal.
Hope and be.

G-d and feel.
G-d and love.
G-d and heal.
G-d and be.

Postscript: Here are two more pieces with the same rhythm and feel: “River” and “Ethics.” If you like this meditation, you may also like “Come Walk,” “Bird is Bird” and “Leaving.”

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. If you use or like this prayer, please post a link to Facebook, your blog or mention it in a tweet.

Photo Source: Alden Solovy

I Am Breathing

Posted on: September 24th, 2011 by tobendlight

This is a meditation on the simple joys of breathing, hearing and seeing, but it’s really about the hope to embody in my own life the simple, gentle act of being. Here’s the piece, along with a photo I took of a sunrise over Lake Michigan one summer morning. To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below.

I Am Breathing
I am.
Breathing.
I am breathing.
A prayer runs through it.
A prayer of hope.
A prayer of love.
A prayer of wholeness and heart.

I am.
Hearing.
I am hearing.
A song runs through it.
A song of joy.
A song of wonder.
A song of thanks and praise.

I am.
Seeing.
I am seeing.
A light runs through it.
A light of hope.
A light of love.
A light of wisdom and grace.

I am.
Being.
I am being.
My life runs through it.
A life of mystery.
A life of awe and splendor.
A life exalting G-d’s Holy Name.

Postscript: Other songs and prayers of the spiritual traveler include: “Come Walk,” “Leaving,” “Remember,” “Bird is Bird” and “Soarbird.”

Photo Source: Alden Solovy

Strong: Yoga Meditation II

Posted on: August 20th, 2011 by tobendlight

This meditation is for use at the end of yoga practice to set the intention of taking a strong, loving, peaceful heart into the world. As an alternatively to reciting the meditation, try repeating each line or stanza to build on the meditative state created in practice. “Breath: Yoga Meditation I” is for use at the beginning of practice. See also “Pray and…: Yoga Meditation III.” To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Strong: Yoga Meditation II
Calm and strong.
Peace and strong.
Vital. Vibrant. Alive.
Loving heart.
Graceful mind.

Calm and strong.
Peace and strong.
Radiant. Luminous. Wonder.
Merciful heart.
Hopeful mind.

Calm and strong.
Peace and strong.
Grounded. Grateful. Healing.
Faithful heart.
Joyous mind.

Postscript: Here are two more pieces with the same rhythm and feel: “River” and “Ethics.” If you like this meditation, you may also like “Come Walk,” “Bird is Bird” and “Leaving.”

Photo Source: Alden Solovy

Breath: Yoga Meditation I

Posted on: July 22nd, 2011 by tobendlight

A friend asked if I had a prayer to set the mood for yoga practice. I didn’t, but the idea took hold. I wrote two: this meditation is for use at the beginning of practice. Each line can be said once or may be repeated to build a meditative state. The second meditation, “Strong: Yoga Meditation II,” is for use after practice. Later on, I wrote this: “Pray and…: Yoga Meditation III.” To listen along, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.

Breath: Yoga Meditation I
Quiet and breath.
Stillness and breath.
Ready. Silent. Waiting.
Easing into warmth.
Gliding toward surrender.

Quiet and breath.
Stillness and breath.
Patient. Open. Willing.
Easing into calm.
Gliding toward release.

Quiet and breath.
Stillness and breath.
Present. Here. Now.
Easing into body.
Gliding toward soul.

Postscript: Here are two more pieces with the same rhythm and feel: “River” and “Ethics.” If you like this meditation, you may also like “Come Walk,” “Bird is Bird” and “Leaving.”

Photo Source: Yoganonymous.com

Posts Tagged ‘quiet’

To Hear Me Sing

Soul Shine

Sacred Cargo

Pray and…: Yoga Meditation III

I Am Breathing

Strong: Yoga Meditation II

Breath: Yoga Meditation I

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