WHAT’S SO GOOD ABOUT MINDFULNESS ANYWAY?

Mindfulness is no longer the flavour of the month. I’m not entirely sure why that is the case but, as the Bible says, ‘To everything there is a season’ (Ec 3:1).

Now, don’t get me wrong. Mindfulness is still very popular and it’s taught and practised everywhere. Anyway, to get to the point, some people say to me, ‘What’s so good about mindfulness anyway?’ Hence, this post.

Mindfulness is really nothing extraordinary. It is certainly nothing mystical or otherwordly, whatever the latter means. Mindfulness is simply living with awareness—and with the awareness of one’s awareness. How often do we get in our car and drive from place A to place B. We drive along certain roads. However, is it not the case that all too often, when we get to our destination, we have no recollection of going down Road X or Road Y. Our awareness while driving was intermittent and there was little or no actual awareness of our awareness.

Mindfulness is being grounded in the here-and-now.
Golden Jubilee Bridges over the Thames. London, United Kingdom. December 2018.
Photo taken by the author.

Mindfulness is the direct, immediate and unmediated perception of what is. By ‘direct, immediate, and unmediated’, I mean that our perception of both internal and external reality is no longer filtered (‘mediated’)—and in the process distorted—through such things as our beliefs, conditioning, analysis, interpretation, and judgment. Mindfulness helps us to not identify with, or build up a resistance to, those mental images in our brain that deflect us from the task of being and remaining in direct, immediate and unmediated contact and relationship with what is happening in us and outside of us.

Mindfulness is being grounded in the here-and-now, in what is. Mindfulness has nothing to do with ‘expanded consciousness’, so-called higher orders or levels of reality, and supposed notions of transcendence. Mindfulness is grounded firmly in everyday reality—the only reality that there is—that is, in the one order or level of reality in which we all live and move and have our be-ing-ness. I am sure you have heard of the words, the ‘eternal now’. We have our presence, our very be-ing-ness, in the eternal now. The eternal now is that ‘present’ which is forever renewing itself in and as each new moment. The regular practice of mindfulness enables us to live more fully—and, yes, more mindfully—in the eternal now.

Mindfulness is a journey in self-discovery.
Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland. December 2018.
Photo taken by the author.

To the extent that the practice of mindfulness is concerned with knowing and understanding what is, and observing (among other things) the content of one’s consciousness—that is, our thoughts, feelings, desires, and so on—the practice is a spiritual one. By ‘spiritual’, I mean non-material or non-physical. The English word ‘spirit’ comes from the Latin spiritus meaning, among other things, breath, breathing, air, inspiration, character, spirit, life, vigour, and courage. Spirituality does not require or depend upon notions of ‘supernaturalism’. On the contrary, spirituality is all about the development of the mind, the emotions and the will.

Mindfulness is not a religion or even a philosophy but rather a way of being, a way of life, a journey in self-discovery, and an education. Mindfulness, being devoid of all notions of religiosity, is entirely experiential and unlike most if not all religions it is empirically based. When the Dalai Lama addressed the concluding session of the International Congress on Mindfulness in 2011, he reiterated that mindfulness is not a religious practice. He also made the point that all of us, whether religious or non-religious, needs to practise mindfulness every day. In saying that, the Dalai Lama is simply urging us to live with non-judgmental, choiceless awareness, from one moment to the next.

Of course, there are many tangible benefits in the regular practice of mindfulness. Changes in the body associated with the practice of mindfulness include but are not limited to a reduced heart rate, reduced blood pressure,  lowered cholesterol, reduced muscle tension, increased cardiovascular efficiency, improved circulation of blood and lymph, improved gastrointestinal functioning, reduced sensitivity to pain, an enhanced immune system, improved posture, and an overall relaxation of the body and sleep. Changes in the mind include an increased cortical thickness in the grey matter of the brain, a calmer, more patient, stable and steady mind, overall relaxation of the mind, an enhanced feeling of wellbeing, an improved ability to cope with and release stress, enhanced cognitive functioning and performance, improved concentration and attention to detail, faster sensory processing and increased capacity for focus and memory, increased learning and consciousness, increased openness to new ideas, greater responsiveness in the moment, reduced mental distractedness, increased verbal creativity, and delayed ageing of the brain.

Mindfulness is the choiceless awareness of what is.
Easter cactus (Hatiora gaertneri). Bilgola Plateau NSW Australia. November 2016.
Photo taken by the author.

As a spiritual practice, living mindfully makes us more aware of who we really are. By self-observation we gain invaluable insight into our thoughts, feelings, and actions. We become more directly aligned to the flow of life of which each one of us is a part. That can only be a good thing. Let me read these words from Sayadaw U Janakābhivaṃsa, a Theravada Buddhist monk from Myanmar and a leading authority on meditation and mindfulness:

Why should we observe or watch physical and mental processes as they are? Because we want to realise their true nature. [That] leads us to the right understanding of natural processes as just natural process. ... When our body feels hot, we should observe that feeling of heat as it is. When the body feels cold, we should observe it as cold. When we feel pain, we should observe it as it is—pain. When we feel happy, we should watch that happiness as it is—as happiness. When we feel angry, we should observe that anger as it really is—as anger. When we feel sorry, we should be mindful of it as it is—as sorry. When we feel sad or disappointed, then we must be aware of our emotional state of sadness or disappointment as it is. 

In short, mindfulness is simply living naturally and realistically—and with choiceless awareness of what is … from one moment to the next. The influential Indian teacher and lecturer J. Krishnamurti spoke of 'meeting everything anew, from moment to moment, without the conditioning reaction of the past, so that there is not the cumulative effect which acts as a barrier between oneself and that which is'. That, my friends, is what living mindfully is all about. So, if you're not into mindfulness, you're not truly living from one moment to the next.

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LOVELY LADY DRESSED IN BLUE—A VISIT TO WALSINGHAM

Our Lady of Walsingham, Pray for us.

On a recent trip to England my wife and I visited Walsingham in the northeastern part of the county of Norfolk. It was a most impressive and uplifting place. Indeed, I will never forget the place, for it left a very powerful impression on me. It was a combination of the beautiful countryside, the quaintness, old-fashioned religiosity and piety of the place, and an intangible something-or-other within me crying, 'I believe; help my unbelief' (Mk 9:24)). For the most part, my wife and I walked around the village in noble silence, with the knowledge and in the awareness that we were walking on 'holy ground'. Words are so useless at the best of times, but especially when talking about matters spiritual.

In this post I discuss several different lines of symbolism concerning Our Lady, each of which is devoid of superstition. I claim no originality for the ideas discussed, all of which are firmly grounded in esoteric and metaphysical Christianity. Now, the word 'esoteric' is often misunderstood. When used in the present context it simply refers to the fact that sacred scripture, mythology, folk tales and similar writings and ideas generally have an 'inner' and deeper meaning: cf Gal 4:24 ('Now this is an allegory'); 1 Cor 3:6 ('we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God'). The early Christian theologian Origen wrote that every religion has a body, a soul and a spirit and that scripture can be interpreted in three different ways, the first according to the letter (‘the body’) of the scriptural text, the second according to the allegorical meaning of the text (‘the soul’), and the third according to the esoteric interpretation of the text (‘the spirit’). Of course, there are some texts that can, sensibly, only be interpreted literally. However, some ideas only make sense when interpreted allegorically or symbolically.

Now, Walsingham. In medieval times the village of Walsingham was one of the most important pilgrimage sites in the world and a rival to even Rome. That changed after the Reformation, but a revival during the 19th century put Walsingham back on the pilgrimage map and thousands now visit Walsingham each year, especially at Easter time.

While at Walsingham I got to thinking about ‘Our Lady of Walsingham’. The latter is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary venerated by Roman Catholics and some Anglicans associated with certain alleged Marian apparitions to one Richeldis de Faverches, a pious English noblewoman who was Lady of the Manor of Walsingham, in Walsingham in 1061. Lady Richeldis is said to have been requested by Our Lady to build at Walsingham a replica of the house of the Holy Family in Nazareth in honour of the Annunciation and as a place of pilgrimage where people could come to honour the Virgin Mary. So, Richeldis had a building structure named ‘The Holy House’ built in Walsingham which later became a shrine and place of pilgrimage. Nearby, in Houghton Saint Giles, there is the Roman Catholic Basilica of Our Lady of Walsingham, also known as the Slipper Chapel or the Chapel of Saint Catherine of Alexandria. The Orthodox Churches also have a presence at Walsingham.

The Bible tells us that Mary ‘magnifies the Lord’ (Lk 1: 46) and her spirit ‘rejoices in God [her] Saviour’ (Lk 1: 47). What are we to make of all that—especially those of us who have trouble with talk of the so-called supernatural and even God? Well, one thing I learned from my study of metaphysics is that the words ‘the Lord’ where used in scripture refer not so much to God per se but to our own understanding or concept of God which, for better or for worse, will have a great bearing on what happens to us and how we view it. Take, for example, the verse that says that ‘the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart’ (Ex 9:12). Now, God did not really harden Pharaoh’s heart. If you think that, you have a horrible concept of God. No, the truth is that Pharaoh hardened his own heart, by attaching his ‘I Am’, that is, his consciousness, to hard-heartedness, obstinacy and stubbornness.

So, let’s start with the word ‘God’ itself. Who or what is God? Some theological abstraction? Yes and no. For starters, the Bible tells us that God is love (1 Jn 4:8). Listen to these words: ‘Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love’ (1 Jn 4:7-8). The Bible also tells us that God is Spirit, that is, the very spirit of life (Jn 4:24).  Another way of understanding the spirit of life is as pure Being. All things come from the One Source of all Being. God is pure Be-ing—the self-existence and self-consciousness of life itself—and we have our be-ing-ness in God. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being' (Acts 17:28). 

So, if you think that God is a giant man 'up there' or 'out there', some supra-personal Being with a face, body, arms and legs and genitalia, you are horribly mistaken. In short, God is love, life, truth and power—and the very ground of our being. The English metaphysician and judge Thomas Troward referred to God as undifferentiated Consciousness—that is, the formeless awareness that creates by Itself and becomes that which It images Itself to be. I like that. That makes sense to me. If quantum mechanics has shown us anything—and it has shown us plenty—it has shown that consciousness or mind is fundamental, eternal and all-creative.

If God is love and life then Jesus is God in a form that we can understand. That's more than enough for me. He is Way-Shower, indeed the way to an abundant life (Cf Jn 10:10). Jesus is the embodiment of love and life. Is Jesus God’s ‘only-begotten son’ (cf Jn 3:16)? In a special sense, yes, but listen my friends. We are all begotten of the Only One. There is Only One – that is, the omnipresence and omnipotence of life itself – and everyone and everything is the only-begotten son, that is, the offspring of life itself. The spirit of life is forever taking shape and form as you and me and all other living things. 

Do you think that the Incarnation happened just once, some 2,000 years ago in Bethlehem, when Jesus was born? Think again. The Incarnation is forever happening! Yes, the spirit of life is forever being incarnated into new and fresh manifestations of life. The Roman Catholic archbishop Fulton J Sheen would often make that point in his sermons and writings. Some say that God spoke His final word in Jesus but the truth is that God, the spirit of life, is forever speaking. And God speaks just one word—his son—and God is forever begetting the son. God begot you and me and all other forms of life. Yes, we are all divine, being sons and daughters of the Most High. Even Jesus himself affirmed, ‘Is it not written in your law, “I said, You are gods; you are all sons of the Most High’’’ (Jn 10:34; cf Ps 82:6). So, despite what others may have told you over the years, the ‘only-begotten son’ is every son and daughter begotten of the One Father-Mother God. The son is your real self, the person that in truth you are.

Now, in Christian metaphysics the phrase  ‘only-begotten son’ refers to something else as well, namely, a saving idea, thought or desire in our mind or consciousness, the latter being the ‘father’, metaphysically speaking. Here is a simple illustration of this truth. Let us say that you are ill. In your mind (the ‘father’) you have a desire for health (the desire being your ‘son’). The realization of your desire is your saviour. So, we have mind (the Father), idea, thought or desire (the Son), and expression (the Holy Spirit). A metaphysical Trinity, analogously.

And what of Mary, the mother of Jesus? Is she a real presence in the world today? Well, as I see it, she is truly present in a special sense, namely, as the embodiment of something else that is very real indeed. You see, Mary signifies the ‘virgin soul’, the soul – that is, the mindset (both consciousness and personality) – that is in love with God and that has come to an awareness of things higher than the material. This mindset puts spiritual values and principles (eg the importance of love and family, courage and self-surrender) first and is completely concentrated and focused on those things. With the virgin soul there is a total orientation of thought, affection and will towards love and truth combined with humility, a lack of guile and a radical detachment from all earthly, material things. The virgin state of mind, signified by Mary, is capable of conceiving and producing countless conceptions of itself in the forms of thoughts and desires ('sons').

‘Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us’ (Mt 1:23). The virgin birth occurs by perception. In other words, we are changed, not so much by what we do, but by our willingness to be changed, our willingness to surrender, give up, and let go. This requires a real change in consciousness. In order to grow spiritually, we must be prepared to give up everything in our lives that holds us back and keeps us in bondage to our lower selves. Our lower selves are also known as false selves, being all those ‘I’s’ and ‘me’s’ -- our likes, dislikes, views and opinions – that we wrongly take to be the real person each one of us is. Just as the Virgin Mary said, ‘Let it be to me according to your word’ (Lk 1: 38), so we must open ourselves to the possibility of growth—and to the action of a power-not-oneself. So, let us magnify the presence of the spirit of life (consciousness) in us, for in so doing we will find the solution to all our problems.

According to one great line of symbolism, Mary signifies our subjective self, that is, our subconscious mind. According to another, Mary signifies the great Deep, that is, the great Sea or the waters of space over the surface of which the Holy Spirit brooded and upon which It acted. Our Lady Mary is the Star of the Sea which is why she is almost always depicted in robes of the blue of the sea and the sky. The name Mary in Latin is, of course, Maria. The word maria is the plural of mare, the sea. More directly in origin, the word Mary is derived from the Hebrew mar, 'bitter', or 'the sea'. Water is a common symbol of the soul. There is a metaphorical bitterness in the soul being imprisoned in matter when its destiny lies elsewhere (as does our own), but the soul (the 'higher self') can escape from the bondage of flesh and limitation and give birth to a more exalted existence. Make of that what you will. Suffice to say there are a number of ideas here including the idea of the seas of virgin matter from which the universe was created and the idea of the birth of the Christ Child. Actually, these lines of symbolism are quite interconnected. The womb of the Virgin Mary, in which the as yet unborn Christ Child grows, and the waters of the deep (the sea of virgin matter) at the dawn of creation over the face of which the spirit of God moved are symbolically one and the same. On another level, Mary represents the feminine aspect of the Godhead, something Protestants tend to overlook to their detriment. On yet another level, Mary signifies the Spirit of Wisdom: ‘She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honour’ (Prov 3:15-16).

The Roman Catholic Church and certain other branches of Christianity teach the perpetual virginity and immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary. I am unable to affirm either of these dogmas in a literal sense, but allegorically they reinforce the notion of Mary as a symbol of the ‘virgin soul’. The first dogma – Mary's perpetual virginity – speaks of a lifelong commitment to, and communion with, God and as such symbolises our ongoing commitment to the spiritual life. The second dogma – Mary's immaculate conception – attests to the sacredness of human life as well as purity and innocence. Mary is immaculately conceived from her mother Anne because all life proceeds from one source, which is pure Spirit. Hence, all birth is immaculate for that reason. Mary is often spoken of as the Mother of all, the Virgin Immaculate, crowned with stars and clothed with the sun, for she signifies, among other things, that all manifestations of life proceed from and out of the ether of space. We start as virgin or immaculate matter, so to speak. According to this line of symbolism Mary represents the immaculate, unblemished presence of life (God) in us—indeed, our very I Am-ness. When we awaken to the truth of our be-ing-ness, our I Am-ness, the Christ Child is born in us. 

And what of the dogma of the Assumption? The Assumption of Mary into heaven, according to the beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and parts of Anglicanism, refers to the bodily taking up of the Virgin Mary into heaven at the end of her earthly life. Once again, I cannot affirm the truth of that proposition in a literal sense. Indeed, I have a real problem with the whole idea of there being higher planes of consciousness and angelic hierarchies with Mary being the 'Queen of the Angels', but I am able to accept the idea of a completely purified personality symbolicially 'rising' in its nobility and beauty. 

However, I generally interpret the idea of the Assumption as follows. The Bible says: ‘Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it’ (Ecc 12:7). We come from God, we belong to God, and ultimately we shall return to God. Life is indestructible. There is only life and there is no place where life is not. We are life. Life is energy. Life is expression. Life is in all, through all and around all. It cannot cease because it is ceaselessness itself. Yes, we will change form and ultimately vanish from view but we cannot cease to be. We never cease to be—not for a moment. We cannot be separated from life. We cannot be less than life. And life cannot other than be.

Here is a truth—perhaps the most important truth of all. The One—that is, the One Source of all Being—becomes the many so that the many may know themselves to be one. There will be a universal restitution or restoration of all things and people—that is, all things and people will eventually be restored to their source and original essence. This is referred to in the Bible, in Acts 3:21, as the ‘restitution of all things’ or the ‘restoration of all’ (apokatastasis panton). In Greek astronomical and philosophical literature apokatastasis refers to the actual re-establishment of the order of the universe. By what means? Another Big Bang or a series of Big Bangs? At some point, an ever-expanding universe will come to an end—unless there be another Big Bang to keep things in motion.

I will finish with the following poem-prayer by Mary Dixon Thayer (1889-1989) which has always been a favourite of mine. Fulton Sheen loved it as well and popularised it on his TV show and in his talks. The poem is very sentimental but I love it all the same:

To Our Lady

Lovely Lady dressed in blue—

Teach me how to pray!

God was just your little boy,

Tell me what to say!

Did you lift Him up, sometimes,

Gently on your knee?

Did you sing to Him the way

Mother does to me?

Did you hold His hand at night?

Did you ever try

Telling stories of the world?

O! And did He cry?

Do you really think He cares

If I tell Him things—

Little things that happen? And

Do the Angels' wings

Make a noise? And can He hear

Me if I speak low?

Does He understand me now?

Tell me—for you know.

Lovely Lady dressed in blue—

Teach me how to pray!

God was just your little boy,

And you know the way.

Note. The photos in this post were taken by the author. The poem ‘To Our Lady’ is included in Mary Dixon Thayer's The Child on His Knees (New York: Macmillan, 1926). All rights reserved.

THE WISE (WO)MEN—ARE YOU ONE OF THEM?

The Biblical story of The Wise Men is an interesting one. It’s a story very rich in symbolism and meaning.

There are some who would question whether any man can truly be said to be wise. I have an interest-based opinion on that matter, so I will express no view, except to say that although the Biblical account of the story refers to the persons as ‘men’, there may well have been at least one woman among them. But does it really matter? No.

The Bible does not say there were three of them. That is simply an assumption, in light of the three gifts presented to the Christ child—namely, gold, frankincense and myrrh. I will have more to say about those gifts shortly, but even if there were three wise (wo)men, one of them may well have presented two gifts with one of the others presenting the third gift. Who knows? It doesn’t matter.

We are not told the names of the wise persons, although church tradition tells us that their names supposedly were Melchior, Balthasar and Gaspar. Although at least one church tradition says that the wise persons were kings (Melchior being a king of Persia, Balthasar a king of Arabia, and Gaspar a king of India), the Biblical narrative does not say so. They may have been rulers of Arabian states but it’s more likely that they were magi, wizards or astrologers and, so it is said, members of the priestly caste of Zoroastrianism. Suffice to say that these people were on a journey—a journey in search of truth and wisdom. They were following a star—and no ordinary star at that.

So, we have the image of wise men following a star, attending upon the birth of someone famous, and presenting gifts to the baby. This, my friends, is the stuff of myth and legend, but that does not mean that the story is not true. Myths are not not true. Myths have their own level of truth and meaning, and this story is no different in that regard. The births of other famous persons—real or imagined—were hailed by wise men or aged saints who presented gifts to the newly born. I am thinking of the Buddha, Krishna, Rama and Mithra, for starters.

The star was, of course, the Star in the East. Esoterically, a star symbolizes some spiritual truth, at first dimly perceived. The East is where God is. The source of all life, truth, power and love. The Star in the East is the morning star, the first gleam or dawning of truth. For some, for example, scientists, the star is the light of reason. We need such people in our world, now more than ever. There should be no place for superstition. For others, the star represents hope and aspirations. They are important as well. Others consult the stars for guidance in their lives. I see no evidence or good reasons for doing that, but that is just my view.

The wise persons were in search of something greater than themselves. Relying perhaps on a combination of intuition, insight, reason, knowledge and wisdom – the last two things are not one and the same – they knew that a great event was taking place in Judea. Furthermore, they were prepared to follow their star wherever it led them. Are you prepared to do likewise?

And what of those gifts—gold, frankincense and myrrh? Gold symbolizes that the Christ child was a king; on a deeper level, gold represents the light of truth as well as the gift of wisdom. Frankincense denotes Christ’s divinity; on a deeper level, it symbolizes the sweet fragrance of sympathy, empathy, compassion, self-giving, understanding and healing. Myrrh is one of the spices used for burial and thus is a kind of prophecy of Christ’s death; more esoterically, myrrh symbolizes the love that sustains and heals. 

Some have interpreted the three gifts a little differently. For example, some commentators see the gifts as representing our three-fold human nature, with gold denoting our material (i.e. physical) nature, frankincense our emotional nature (i.e. our hopes, wishes and aspirations), and myrrh our mental nature (i.e. mind or intellect). However the gifts are interpreted, the really important thing is this—it is incumbent upon us to give of ourselves to others. We find ourselves to the extent to which we give ourselves away, in self-giving to others and to a cause or power greater than ourselves. Millions of people have found that to be true in their lives.

And what of the Christ child? Literal-minded Christians see that child as synonymous with Jesus—and he alone. However, I see the Christ child as denoting more than just Jesus. A ‘child’, in sacred language and literature, represents a spiritual idea or truth as well as indwelling power, potentiality and inner light. The Christ child, of course, is no ordinary child but represents our inner potential, our real self—what the Apostle Paul refers to as the ‘Christ in you, the hope of glory’ (Col 1:27). The Christ child represents the person, as yet unborn, that you are nevertheless capable of becoming and being. When the Christ child is born in us, we awaken to our real self.

The birth of the Christ child takes place, not in the crowded inn of materialism and worldly values and opinions, but in a humble, receptive and childlike manger. There is so much meaning in that alone.

Once the wise persons had attended the birth of the Christ child, they returned to their country ‘by another way’. When a person has experienced a truly life-changing experience, in which they discover their real self, they are never the same again. He or she is permanently changed—for the better.

In summary, here are five important ‘lessons’ from the story. First, the wise (wo)men were wise because they were following a star, wherever it may have led them. Secondly, there is no limit to the number of people—men and women—who are capable of becoming and being wise. (In my view, that’s partly why the Bible doesn’t tell us how many there were of them.) Thirdly, those who are wise bring forth gifts—parts of their own human nature offered in sacrifice and love to a cause or power greater than themselves. Fourthly, wise men and women are on a journey—a journey of self-discovery. Fifthly, once a person finds the ‘Christ child’, they always embark upon another way of living—a new and better way of living characterised by sacrificial self-giving, love, compassion and service to others.

May you have the spirit of Christmas which is peace, the gladness of Christmas which is hope, and the heart of Christmas which is love.

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