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When Every Voice is a Prayer
July 14, 2008
Prayer Flag 1 ~ Canon 30d
Prayer Flag 2 ~ Canon 30d
Meditation is a holiday for the heart. These words, spoken by one of my teachers during the Insight Dialogue Retreat I attended a few weeks ago, continue to echo within the chambers of my heart. "Aaaahhhh!" my heart responded, "Why don't you take me on holiday more often? You get just as much out of the deal as I do, so why not put your conceptual mind to bed and wake up to being with me a little more often? Can you pull off the mask, take a load off your tired, anxiety-prone persona, and simply notice the inner and outer landscape without all of the incessant, hungry commentary?"
Hungers – the continuous inner dialogue they produce, the needy or controlling interactions and clinging they inspire in our interpersonal lives – are the root cause of suffering in the world. Having trouble with someone? There's probably an unwholesome desire and a hunger to feed it hiding just beneath the surface.
This retreat gave me my first formal introduction to the Four Noble Truths. It took four years, but there's no time like the present, especially since the first sermon given by the Buddha following his enlightenment was about them. My teachers have touched upon them in their talks, so I knew what they were, but the seeds which were planted hadn't sprung to life or made sense to me until now – probably because my recent training provided concrete, real-life, practical application for the Buddha's Big AHA Moment.
I'm still assimilating what I learned and am not quite ready to post on the meat of what I encountered... mainly because I've just not had the time to reflect on a level that would allow me to share in a skillful way. I do, however, believe the kind of interpersonal meditation this practice provides is a powerful tool to cracking open one's awareness of the root causes of our suffering in community. I'm really looking forward to sharing what I've gleaned from my experiences here.
For the moment, I'll draw your attention to the prayer flags, which were hung outside the door I walked through for the retreat registration. The Tibetans believe when the wind blows through these flags, the prayers associated with them fly across the world. After sharing such introspective and open time with my fellow meditators, I can't help but see a metaphor here. Each of us is like one of those flags, tied together with our like-minded quest to wake up to the truth and find happiness. The wind is the zeal and inspiration which motivates us to speak the truth with compassion, understanding and wisdom with others in the world.
May we be inspired to speak the truth and listen deeply
May a spirit of hope and compassion move through us
bringing the peace we uncover within us into a misguided, suffering world.
Posted by susan at July 14, 2008 1:25 PM
Comments
I really like the idea of wind through the flags and the prayers within them blowing across the world. Where can I get those flags????
Posted by: janet at July 15, 2008 5:34 PM
I so identify with this post and love the photos.
Posted by: yolanda at July 18, 2008 1:12 PM
I like the flags too. They really jumped out at me when I saw the post, even to the point that would like to get some, I think you can find them at the Tibet Shop at Adams Morgan or the Himalayan House at Dupont Circle. ~~ Bob
Posted by: Bob at July 21, 2008 10:13 PM
