Sunlight fell upon the wall; the wall received a borrowed splendour. Why set your heart on a piece of earth, O simple one? Seek out the source which shines forever.
Rumi
Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence, and I learn, whatever state I may be in, therein to be content.
Helen Keller
Zazen means just sitting at the very source, not moving anywhere, a tremendous force arising, a transformation of energy into light and love, into greater life, into compassion, into creativity. It can take many forms. But first, you have to learn how to be at the source. Then the source will decide where your potential is. You can relax at the source, and it will take you to your very potential.
Osho, The Zen Manifesto: Freedom from Oneself
Great Spirit, Holy Spirit, Power greater than self, way beyond my comprehension, Source of Infinite Abundance, thank you….
Patrick Little: Beginning of each daily dairy entry
During our Men’s Emotional Sobriety Retreat this week, I invited the participants to join me in drawing a tarot card from a set which had recently been given me as a gif
The „Osho Zen Tarot“ is a deck of 79 cards based on the transcendental game of Zen as reflected in the teachings of one of the Great Indian masters of the 20th century, Chandra Mohan Jain, also known as Acharya Rajneesh, Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, and later as „Osho“ (1931-1990).
Known affectionately in some quarters as the „Cosmic Clown,“ he was an Indian godman, mystic, cult leader, and founder of the so-called Rajneesh movement.
Compared to traditional tarot sets, there are many changes that reflect the Zen theme, including one extra major arcana card for „Osho,“ and the four suits newly entitled: fire, clouds, water, and rainbows. The cards span the entire range of human experience, from the extraordinary and stunningly beautiful to the ridiculous and mundane.
Gorgeously illustrated by artist Ma Deva Padma, each card is a vibrantly colourful feast for the eyes. The entire set of cards emphasizes Presence, i.e. being in the present moment and discovering the „here and now“ as the portal to limitless power.
The artwork is simply sublime. I have worked with many decks throughout decades of inner work and find this deck to be one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen!
In this respect, it is on a par with the „Motherpeace“ tarot deck I discovered forty years ago, a deck based on the wisdom of the indigenous peoples of North America –originally designed by women for women and often used by men today – to which I have referred in previous essays.
When my turn came, I drew the Ace of Fire, entitled „Source“.
The suit of fire corresponds to the wands of the traditional tarot and represents the realm of action and response, the energy that moves us into situations and out of them, following our gut feelings – our intuition – rather than our minds or our emotions.
This is the realm in which we engage in the co-creation of the Universe, breaking new ground, divesting ourselves of the chains of generational trauma which have been hindering the evolution of humanity towards the higher levels of consciousness which need to be attained and manifested, if our species is to endure –indeed thrive – and the calamitous destruction of our beautiful planet averted.
In the companion book supplied with the cards we read: „The Ace of Fire, entitled The Source, represents a vast, inexhaustible reservoir of creative energy. Instead of planning or thinking, you tap into this infinite power by remaining grounded, centred, and silent enough to connect with your inner core.
„The card signifies that you contain an indwelling „sun“ of pure, pulsating energy. When beginning a new project or facing uncertainties, drawing this card reminds you that the life-nourishing Source provides exactly what you need to move forward.“
This card reminds us that there is always a vast inexhaustible inner reservoir of energy available to us.
Should we choose to do so, we utilise this energy every moment of every day provided we are not otherwise distracted. Therein lies the challenge. We each need to find a way of getting grounded, centred, and silent enough to become aware of the presence of this „Source“, which I call the „Great Spirit“.
It is the essence of each of us, an immanent star that gives us life and provides nourishment. Pulsating pure energy, always available, it is ready to give us anything we need to accomplish the tasks at hand, whatever these may be.
It is also a sanctuary – a pit stop, if you will – open to welcome us back home when we want to rest. It is the state, beyond place and time, from whence we have come into this incarnation and to which we will return when the time comes, as it must.
The commentary continues: „Whether you’re about to start something new and need inspiration right now or you’ve just finished something and want to take a break, look to the Source. It is always waiting for you, and you do not even need to step out of the house to find it.“
„Zen asks you to come out of your head and go to the basic source… It is not that Zen is not aware of the uses of energy in the head, but if all the energy is used in the head, you will never become aware of your eternity…
„You will never know as an experience what it is to be one with the whole. When the energy is just at the centre, pulsating, when it is not moving anywhere, neither in the head nor in the heart, but it is at the very source from where the heart takes it, the head takes it, pulsating at the very source – that is the very meaning of „Zazen“.
„Zazen means just sitting at the very source, not moving anywhere, a tremendous force arising, a transformation of energy into light and love, into greater life, into compassion, into creativity. It can take many forms. But first, you have to learn how to be at the source. Then the source will decide where your potential is. You can relax at the source, and it will take you to your very potential.“
What an appropriate card to draw, here and now! A major motivation for hosting men’s workshops is the opening of the heart. We men tend to live in our heads and draw mainly from the energy of the hyper-rational output of our left-brain hemisphere.
In the PQ Mental Fitness modality, the Hyper-Rational Saboteur states that „the rational mind is the most important thing in life. It should be protected from the wasteful intrusion of people’s messy emotions and needs, so it can get work done….“.
This stance, like that of all our Saboteurs, originally evolved to protect the child from the overwhelming chaos in which we grew up. While the capacity to think rationally is a wonderful gift, when it becomes a fear-driven runaway train in the guise of the Hyper-Rational Saboteur, it limits the depth and flexibility of relationships in work and life by analysing rather than experiencing – and processing –.feelings.
When we operate in this mode, those with whom we interact tend to become intimidated, especially if the are less analytically inclined. We appear to them as emotionally cold, even harsh.
In doing so, we proliferate a pattern we experienced as children, whereby our feelings and perceptions are discounted and belittled. The tragedy in adult life is that we are now doing this to ourselves, in our own inner dialogue, as well as to others.
In the work of our circles, we men begin to transcend this old, ingrained pattern, get in touch with our feelings and – further underneath – our intuition.
This is the shift I have experienced in myself over the last few years. A powerful approach which supports such a shift is the work with the Inner Child.
Recognising that „the problem is never the problem“ – as my teacher Allen Berger is wont to say – it has now become clear to me that today’s reality is really an echo-chamber of my childhood. Those things I find agitating, annoying or fear-generating today, are, in fact, the echoes of my childhood woundedness.
The still unhealed wounds of the Inner Child are beckoning the attention of the adult self, calling on me to provide the necessary treatment such that the wounds may be healed and transcended.
So, while recognising that we need, as adults, to navigate each day as it unfolds, the real work lies layers deeper. By identifying the inner woundedness that seeks our attention, compassionately embracing the fact that it is there, and providing appropriate treatments in the spirit of loving-kindness, we can transcend these old wounds.
The array of insights, modalities, and treatments available to us today is unprecedented in human history. In this week’s retreat, we are drawing from the ancient wisdom of the Eastern mystics (meditation), practical applications from the realm of depth psychology (Gestalt Therapy), and the latest insights from neuroscience and behavioural psychology (PQ Mental Fitness), to name but a few.
The location here – in the wild expanse of the West of Ireland – helps us connect with the wildness within, an asset often overlooked in the rat race most societies have become. By immersing ourselves in the wilderness that surrounds us, we gradually become more aware of the infinite beauty and strength within.
In the words of the contemporary Franciscan mystic, Richard Rohr, we discover „our patient and trustful willingness to live without closure, without resolution, and still be content and even happy because our Satisfaction is now at another level, and our Source is beyond ourselves.“
Yes, indeed. Beyond and within…
