Shalom

Where do we find shalom? Inside ourselves, then exhaled as life-giving breath for others.

Poem of the Day: The Universe Breathes

Louise Bogan, “Night” (1954)

The cold remote islands,
And the blue estuaries
Where what breathes, breathes
The restless wind of the inlets,
And what drinks, drinks
The incoming tide,

Where shell and weed
Wait upon the salt wash of the sea,
And the clear nights of stars
Swing their lights westward
To set behind the land;

Where the pulse clinging to the rocks
Renews itself forever;
Where, again on cloudless nights,
The water reflects
The firmament’s partial setting;

–O remember
In your narrowing darkhours
That more things move
Than blood in the heart.

“God”

Instead of using a word for “God,” perhaps we should simply form an out breath–a glottal stop, like the Hebrew letter, “alef.”  When you want to say “God,” just speak with an exhalation.

Gateways

Space between breaths, dawn and twilight, midnight, change of seasons, a new moon, being born, marrying, dying:  Gateways where the Source reveals Itself.

Breathing

Rather than working to breathe, let yourselves be breathed. Then you’re not an I, but a We.

Pause Between Breaths

A pause between breaths: silence, the voice of God, the Source.

Holding Your Breath

Holding your breath is a way of putting your life on hold.

Breath and the Life Force

To feel your breath is to feel the life force not only inside you, but inside all that is.

Breathing

Breathing is a rehearsal for both living and dying.

Breath, Words, Creation

Breath + words = creation (Gen 1)

Life and Death in Every Breath

There is life and death in every breath.

Full Breath

Full breath means full life.

Adam’s Breath

The Source breathed life into Adam (Gen 2.7). Every time we exhale, we also bring life into others.

Breath of the Earth

There is always a humming sound even in the quietest places: this is the breath of the earth.

Inhaling, Exhaling

Inhale-Exhale: breathe in-breathe out; go down-go up; hold-let go; receive-give; live-die.

Breathing

Breathing is three-dimensional: depth, height, width. So is life fully lived.

Breath

Breathing is life. Breathing is words. Conscious breathing draws us closer to creation.

What Underlies Existence

A beating heart, light breathing, oxygen, carbon, the earth, a puff of wind, the hum of life, gravity, quantum waves, dark matter: that which inconspicuously allows existence to exist.

Breath

When I feel my breath, I feel the presence of the Source. Awake and asleep, I inhale and exhale divine scents.

Breathing

I breathe. The earth breathes. The universe breathes.