Remembrance and Meditation

Dhikr and muraqaba (meditation) are two interrelated practices that produce an experience of timelessness free of the change and talwin (variegation) which are the effect of time. This experience is described by the following verses of Rumi's Mathnavi (III, 2072-2076):

At the time when in the company of that selected group I began to meditate,
Stepping out of myself,
The soul got rid of all time that turns youth into age.
All change arouses out of time:
He who gets rid of time gets rid of change.
Oh, my heart, for a while be out of time, get rid of change.
Oh, my heart, for a while be out of time to be free from "how" and "why."
Time does not know the nature of Timelessness,
Because only Wonder can lead to it.

Repeated experience of the timeless and spaceless dimensions through dhikr develops a realization, intrinsic to any mystical experience, that there exist more planes or spheres of being than the ordinary mind can recognize. Such an awareness explains why in the literature of most mystical traditions one finds an abundance of visions and poetic descriptions of the ascent of the soul through heavenly spheres, or its descent into the depth of the underworld. These visions and images reflect the wonder and awe with which mystics have experienced the timeless travel through the manifold planes of existence.

and yet...it leaves behind no cognitive traces...


Subhana'Llah




Tuesday, September 20, 2011 at 8:37am
SOURCE: The Taste of Hidden Things by Sara Sviri pages 129-131

Doorway

In my dreams, for many years now there has been an open doorway. Every dream, it’s the same door revealing many truths left unexpressed ‘til now. Where in my aloneness I can see what has always been there. The door ajar, entices me to explore the splendors beyond the stone gray wall. Dare I go? Lest I lose myself out there in a strange and unknown world? I catch whiffs of scents and hear sounds muffled in the distance, I do not recognize them but the door beckons me, ’Come hither, child.’ In each dream, I end up walking past this threshold; I wander its streets, long and narrow…cobblestone paths caressing my bare feet. I encounter familiar faces, yet I do not know them. They radiate smiles and a light glows from their chests. They speak without words, yet I understand. They speak of love and I feel a joy that enwraps me like a blanket. A white wool blanket, it’s so soft, so fluffy and so comforting. I wander further, caressing my white wool blanket…I catch the scent of the sea…alluring…a gentle breeze on my face…there it is…in all Its Magnificence. The Endless Sea, waves touching the shore…the moon so bright, illuminating this vision before me. Someone calls my name from behind me, there is no one there, but the open doorway awaits me. I kiss the air that I breathe and slowly make my way back to the doorway.


I have always thought that door led to the world outside; instead I find that it leads to the world within.



Jagakarsa, Jakarta.
September 24, 2011

In your eyes...

When our eyes met, I swear I saw the sun in his eyes. They were lit up like golden flares of sunlight that shone on the horizon of my heart. In that instant, time stood perfectly still as I gazed at eternity in his eyes.

In your eyes, I am complete. Your eyes.

~Peter Gabriel~

Soul Vacation

After a two year hiatus from the world of blogging, a soul vacation of sorts, I am back. I had to lose my mind to find my way home. This is the moment that I became aware of my own spiritual birth. (pic above)

When we come to this world, this is our physical birth. Seemingly helpless and at the mercy of those who love and care for us. This is how we are born into the world. This state of pure surrender is how we must return. It is in this state that we are connected to all things in the Universe, which is none other than Him. And our memories of Him, so fresh. Have you ever wondered why babies smile? They see His Face. Or why we come into this world crying? We move into this physical space, far from Him, but not separate.

As we live our lives, and begin to use the word "I" to identify ourselves, this marks our psychological birth. The kingdom of "I". As we interact with the world of phenomenon, we lose sight, or rather, forget our connection to that Universe, which was all we knew at birth. Most people spend all their lives here, never budging. Remaining in the realm of "I".

A third phase of life is a person's spiritual birth. When we become painfully aware that we are not who we think we are, and the things we see aren't as they seem to us. After a period of disorientation, a person can come to feel or witness Reality...and that nothing, nothing is outside of Him. This state requires that we (our souls) die unto ourselves in order that we may live in Him. The soul in sufi tradition is our ego and its desires. 

For seekers the arena where the mystical states are tasted and where the inner layers unfold is here; the time in which it takes place is now. As-sufi ibnu waqtihi, in Arabic. This is the realization. A child of time, or of the moment. To know this is to know that we already in the bosom of Eternity. 

Subhana Rabbika Rabbi'l-izzati'amma yasifuna wa salamun 'ala'l-mursalin 

wa'l-hamdu li'Llahi Rabbi'l-alamin.

I dedicate this blog to all whom are seeking this spiritual birth, whatever your religious tradition may be. All are welcome.

Special thanks to my spiritual brothers and sisters, who by igniting their light, I became aware. And to the teacher whom I have never met, but I know. :)

This is me if there is a me :) today...

"So glorify the name of your Tremendous Lord." 

[al-Qur'an, 69:52]