In reading Whitman’s “Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking” today (actually I listened to it on a bike ride), I realized something new about the oldest nemesis, death. At the end of the poem, the poet listens to the sea, hoping to hear the “word final, superior to all”, and he finally does. It’s the “delicious word death”, which the poet repeats nine times for emphasis. As the finale of this long poem about love and loss, the concluding truth, the ultimate power, the last word, is “death”. Years ago, I might have thought Whitman was being pessimistic here, but today I have another view. It seems to me that the poet is saying that death is the most important reality, the strongest “word”, not because it destroys life, but because, on the contrary, without it there would be no life. Death, in a real sense, prepares the way for life. It’s the doorman who opens the door for life to walk through and continue on with its endless procession. After listening to those nine repetitions of the word “death” today, I began wondering where we would all be if there were no death. To start with, there would be absolutely no vegetation on earth, because all plant growth depends on the food provided so dependably by the dead “bodies” of other vegetation. The daily death of billions of plants actually makes it possible for new plants to unfold into life. In addition, consider the population problem on earth were death to disappear. If no one died for a single 24 hour period, the earth would be a heaving and thoroughly destructive mass of humanity. The death of millions of people each day literally opens the door to life for millions of newborns. Finally, don’t we all experience death each moment, and shouldn’t we be grateful for that? Every second of our lives, old cells die and new ones are born, new oxygen sweeps into our lungs and “dead” carbon dioxide leaves, thank goodness. Not only that, each moment is born anew and fresh only because the last moment dies and disappears. “One second ago” is always totally dead and gone – and let us be thankful for that, for only with the death of the past split-second can newness arrive in our lives moment after moment.
So, yes, Whitman understood something wonderful, and this morning, as I pedaled my bike along the dappled roads of the Connecticut countryside, I came to understand it too. Death, death, death, death, death, death, death, death, death … As sad as it renders us personally, let us try to be thankful for the gift of new life that it offers us. With each death, death says, “Let us begin again.”
MP3 File
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Three Meditations
“Selfishness keeps God hidden, as thick clouds blot out the sun.” -- Psalm 36
Whatever the weather’s like today, I can be assured that a very bright sun will be always shining. It’s the sun of Truth, the sun of ever-present spiritual power, the sun of always new Creation. No matter what is happening outside, this great sun of reality will be blazing away inside us, and all around us, and everywhere. It’s the way things are, and it can never be changed. What’s sad and mystifying, though, is that my selfishness persistently blinds me to this shining light. I am often so utterly wrapped up in thinking of my supposedly separate, vulnerable self that I am virtually blind to the astonishing spiritual reality that I’m a part of. My separate “self” seems so huge that it does seem to blot out reality, just as clouds can seem to cover the sun. But of course, I must keep in mind the important truth that clouds only seem to cover the sun. The sun still shines, always, behind the clouds, and the truth of spiritual reality still shines, always, behind my seemingly enormous self. All I have to do is open my inner eyes, and I will then see what’s always been all around me – the forever-present and omnipotent power of Spirit. The light might be so bright that I would ask, “What clouds?”
POSTED BY HAMILTON SALSICH AT 5:28 PM 0 COMMENTS
“He’s not far; he’s near.” -- Acts 17:24
Today I would like to focus my attention on nearness instead of far-ness. This will be a big change, because far-ness is usually a significant reality for me. Because I often think of myself as a separate, isolated, physical individual, everything else in my life seems removed from me – unconnected, different, far away. That’s especially true when it comes to the really important things in my life. Money, friendship, power, security – all the essentials of life usually, for me, seem far rather than near. This morning, though, I’m thinking more about nearness. I’m trying to hold in thought a new way of looking at my self – not as an isolated material entity, but as a spiritual idea in a universe of ideas. When I do this, I see that a wondrous thing happens. Suddenly, far-ness absolutely disappears, and the only reality becomes nearness. For if I am a thought in a universe of thoughts, then there are no material boundaries to separate anyone or anything. In this mental universe, nothing can be “far” from anything else because nothing is separated from anything else! Everything is literally as near as a thought. Whatever I need today is as in close proximity to the next moment. Wealth, friendship, power, security – they are all as near, as close at hand, as my own hand.
POSTED BY HAMILTON SALSICH AT 7:24 AM 0 COMMENTS
OUR HOME FOREVER
“God, it seems you’ve been our home forever; long before the mountains were born, from “once upon a time” to “kingdom come”, you are God.” – Psalm 90, 1-2
On this mild, rainy morning, I’m thinking about the wonderful fact that I am always home, and that my home is the safest and most comfortable home there can possibly be. I’m fortunate in this way, because all of us yearn, above all, for a place we can call home. We want to be in a place where we can feel utterly safe and unconditionally loved – a place where all our needs are lovingly met. It’s probably our greatest wish – that we always have a reliable, protecting home to turn to when we need it. The astonishing fact that I’m meditating on this morning is that I do have this type of home, and I have it present with me at all times. The most amazing fact is that this home is not made of anything material, and therefore can never be damaged, taken away from me, or destroyed. And because it’s not material but mental (spiritual), its supply of happiness and comfort will never exhaust itself. Like a rich man, I live in a vast and beautiful home, but unlike the rich man, whose material wealth and home will perish eventually, my home will last forever. What is this home that I will have with me all day on this rainy school day? It’s simply the infinite and spiritual Present. I always live in the Present (it can’t possibly be otherwise), and this Present, like a good home, provides me with everything I need – qualities like peace, joy, patience, and courage. Some people call this all-powerful Present by the name of God, or Allah, but whatever it might be called, it is where I live each and every moment. Today, like every day, it is my wonderful home.
MP3 File
Whatever the weather’s like today, I can be assured that a very bright sun will be always shining. It’s the sun of Truth, the sun of ever-present spiritual power, the sun of always new Creation. No matter what is happening outside, this great sun of reality will be blazing away inside us, and all around us, and everywhere. It’s the way things are, and it can never be changed. What’s sad and mystifying, though, is that my selfishness persistently blinds me to this shining light. I am often so utterly wrapped up in thinking of my supposedly separate, vulnerable self that I am virtually blind to the astonishing spiritual reality that I’m a part of. My separate “self” seems so huge that it does seem to blot out reality, just as clouds can seem to cover the sun. But of course, I must keep in mind the important truth that clouds only seem to cover the sun. The sun still shines, always, behind the clouds, and the truth of spiritual reality still shines, always, behind my seemingly enormous self. All I have to do is open my inner eyes, and I will then see what’s always been all around me – the forever-present and omnipotent power of Spirit. The light might be so bright that I would ask, “What clouds?”
POSTED BY HAMILTON SALSICH AT 5:28 PM 0 COMMENTS
“He’s not far; he’s near.” -- Acts 17:24
Today I would like to focus my attention on nearness instead of far-ness. This will be a big change, because far-ness is usually a significant reality for me. Because I often think of myself as a separate, isolated, physical individual, everything else in my life seems removed from me – unconnected, different, far away. That’s especially true when it comes to the really important things in my life. Money, friendship, power, security – all the essentials of life usually, for me, seem far rather than near. This morning, though, I’m thinking more about nearness. I’m trying to hold in thought a new way of looking at my self – not as an isolated material entity, but as a spiritual idea in a universe of ideas. When I do this, I see that a wondrous thing happens. Suddenly, far-ness absolutely disappears, and the only reality becomes nearness. For if I am a thought in a universe of thoughts, then there are no material boundaries to separate anyone or anything. In this mental universe, nothing can be “far” from anything else because nothing is separated from anything else! Everything is literally as near as a thought. Whatever I need today is as in close proximity to the next moment. Wealth, friendship, power, security – they are all as near, as close at hand, as my own hand.
POSTED BY HAMILTON SALSICH AT 7:24 AM 0 COMMENTS
OUR HOME FOREVER
“God, it seems you’ve been our home forever; long before the mountains were born, from “once upon a time” to “kingdom come”, you are God.” – Psalm 90, 1-2
On this mild, rainy morning, I’m thinking about the wonderful fact that I am always home, and that my home is the safest and most comfortable home there can possibly be. I’m fortunate in this way, because all of us yearn, above all, for a place we can call home. We want to be in a place where we can feel utterly safe and unconditionally loved – a place where all our needs are lovingly met. It’s probably our greatest wish – that we always have a reliable, protecting home to turn to when we need it. The astonishing fact that I’m meditating on this morning is that I do have this type of home, and I have it present with me at all times. The most amazing fact is that this home is not made of anything material, and therefore can never be damaged, taken away from me, or destroyed. And because it’s not material but mental (spiritual), its supply of happiness and comfort will never exhaust itself. Like a rich man, I live in a vast and beautiful home, but unlike the rich man, whose material wealth and home will perish eventually, my home will last forever. What is this home that I will have with me all day on this rainy school day? It’s simply the infinite and spiritual Present. I always live in the Present (it can’t possibly be otherwise), and this Present, like a good home, provides me with everything I need – qualities like peace, joy, patience, and courage. Some people call this all-powerful Present by the name of God, or Allah, but whatever it might be called, it is where I live each and every moment. Today, like every day, it is my wonderful home.
MP3 File
Saturday, August 9, 2008
ON NOT KNOWING WHO I AM
In the news we’ve been hearing a story about a man who claims to not know who he is, and, as sad as his situation is, it started me thinking about the advantages of admitting that you don’t actually know who you are. I, for one, have no idea who I really am. For most of my 66 years I thought I knew who I was, but in the last few years it’s become clear to me that my supposed self-knowledge was entirely superficial. I now realize that I no more know who I am than I know what the sky above this earth is. When I used to think I knew who I was, all I actually knew were the labels that had been attached to me. I knew “Hamilton”, “man”, “father”, “teacher”, and so on, but these are merely labels. They don’t reveal my true nature any more than the word “sky” discloses the infinite mysteries of what surrounds us on this planet. So, if someone were to ask me who I am, I might have to honestly say I don't know – and I would feel good about doing so. In fact, I might have to say I am utterly dumbfounded about my identity, and I think I would feel relieved that I can finally admit my own profound ignorance. Like the sky – and like all of us – I’m vast, complex, ever changing, and ultimately inscrutable. I call myself “Hamilton”, but who I am is farther from that name than the stars are from where I’m typing these words.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
A FOUNDATION FOR A DAY
I realized this morning, as I was sitting at my desk under the light of my small silver lamp, that I have built most of my days on the flimsiest of foundations. A day, when I think about it, is a very important “structure” (I build one every 24 hours), and should therefore be constructed on substantial materials – materials that will support a day in even the worst circumstances. It’s strange, then, that I have built most of my days on rather undefined and random foundations. Actually, you might say I haven’t even consciously built my days, but rather just “thrown them together”, in the same way that my friends and I used to throw flimsy “club houses” together when we were twelve. I’m fortunate that most of my days haven’t collapsed in ruin by noon. (Actually, quite a few of them did.) The good news is that today, and every day from here on, I have the lucky opportunity to carefully construct a day on a foundation that will be secure and reliable. In the early morning, as I do my reading and writing, I can lay out a solid, unshakeable underpinning upon which to rest each hour, each moment, of the day. I can take my time and make certain that each element of the groundwork is securely in place to insure a “weatherproof”, enduring structure. And what is this foundation? It’s simply the Truth. All I have to do is rest today on the great facts of reality – that all power resides in the present moment, that this power is totally mental, not material, and that this power is infinite and therefore unopposed. If I set each hour on that rock-hard truth, I can’t help but experience a day that’s impressive in its grandeur and beauty.
Monday, August 4, 2008
"HAVEN'T YOU BEEN LISTENING?"
“Have you not been paying attention? Have you not been listening? Haven’t you heard these stories all your life? Don’t you understand the foundation of all things?”
-- Isaiah 40:21-22
When I asked myself the above questions this morning, my answer to each of them, I’m sorry to say, was “No”. I haven’t been paying attention to the simple, astonishing truth. I haven’t been listening to what this truth has been telling me, over and over. And no, I have not heard the stories of spiritual reality all my life. God has been telling them to me, but I haven’t really heard them, and therefore, no, I do not understand the foundation of all things. And that’s sad, because what is more important to understand than the foundation of all things? The simple, powerful truth has been trying to tell me amazing facts, like where all of life comes from, where all power resides, and the very nature of all things, and I have been largely deaf to it. I have turned away, day after day, from the most wonderful news there can possibly be. Yes, it’s true that I have a lot of time studying spiritual truths, but I have to admit this morning that very little of it has “sunk in”. I read about the harmonious nature of spiritual reality, and then I go blithely through the day in total ignorance of the truths I studied in the morning. Why would anyone do that? Why would anyone turn his back, day after day, on a treasure beyond imagining? Why would anyone turn away from the wide-open gates of paradise?
BEING READY
“I’m ready, God, so ready, ready from head to toe.” -- Psalm 108:1
If I want to enjoy the benefits of living in a spiritual universe, I have to be ready – really ready. As one dictionary puts it, I have to be “prepared and available for service or action.” At each moment of my life, today and every day, the spiritual universe offers me miraculous manifestations of goodness, but I won’t even notice them if I’m not ready. The joys of life will pass me by like beautiful scenes pass by a blind person. The word “ready” also has another meaning – “prompt in apprehending or reacting.” This is the meaning we intend when we say someone has a “ready intelligence”, or that a person has made a “ready response”. There must be no hesitation between my experience of something and my understanding that this experience is a gift from the Universe expressly for me. I must be so alert, so ready, that each moment appears to me as an absolute miracle. Of course, this kind of readiness is not easy to accomplish. Like the EMTs who spend years honing their readiness to respond to an emergency, I must constantly train myself to respond to God’s steady infusion of gifts. When I wake in the morning, I should say, “OK, Ham, this is another day of unexpected and amazing gifts. Are you ready?” My response, I hope, will be an enthusiastic “Yes”.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
THE KINGDOM OF NO-FEAR
It came to me yesterday, as it occasionally does, that the single enemy I must defeat is fear. Nothing else has threatened me in my entire life – just fear. It has caused every problem I have ever had. From as far back as I can remember, mixed in with the many joys of my life has been fear, and it is this fear that has stalked me and created every discord and difficulty I have experienced. What’s wonderful, though, is that I have the opportunity, each moment, to completely overthrow this fear. I can be totally free of it, starting now. For the rest of my life I can live in complete freedom. I can do this by making a simple analysis of the nature of fear and the nature of reality. All fear is based upon a belief – a firmly held belief that all of life is material, including me, and that I am continually at the mercy of a zillion other material forces. To remove the fear, I must simply change the belief. I have to believe – no, I have to understand and know – that life is not material in nature, but totally spiritual. I am not a thing, but a thought. I can’t be pushed around or defeated, because there is literally no “thing” – no materiality – in me to be pushed around or defeated. I am a pure thought in a purely mental universe – the
THROWN FROM A HORSE
Today I want to be “changed”. Like Saul of Tarsus, I want to see a new and truthful way of living so clearly that I feel like I’ve been hit with a blinding light. I want to be thrown off my “horse” of material living, a horse I have blithely and ignorantly ridden for 66 years. I want to discover a new way. And really, the new way of living is a simple way. There’s nothing complex or tricky about it. It’s just totally different from the way I’ve previously been traveling. The old way was the way of belief that matter has the only and ultimate power in the universe. The new way says very simply: Spirit, thought, has all the power. It’s as uncomplicated as that – as straightforward as a flash of lightning, or falling off a horse. I want to look at the lightning, be blinded, and then see again – really see. I want to get on a totally different horse. I want it to happen today. (Maybe it already has.)
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