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Author: Tom Stella Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers ISBN: Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 184
Book Description
The term "mediocre mystics" seems a fitting way to refer to those who yearn for the nameless but do not qualify as full-blown mystics. I realize that because there is nothing middling about mystics, "mediocre mystics" may appear to be an oxymoron, but the root meaning of "mediocre" is not second-rate. From the Latin mediocris, the word means moderate or ordinary and has been used figuratively to refer to one who is halfway up a mountain. Unlike ordinary folks, sainted mystics have reached the mountaintop; they are on a first-name basis with the nameless! But just because we haven't arrived at the heights, just because our lives unfold in the valley of ordinary, everyday life doesn't mean that we cannot or do not experience the desire that has fueled the mystic's climb.
Author: Tom Stella Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers ISBN: Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 184
Book Description
The term "mediocre mystics" seems a fitting way to refer to those who yearn for the nameless but do not qualify as full-blown mystics. I realize that because there is nothing middling about mystics, "mediocre mystics" may appear to be an oxymoron, but the root meaning of "mediocre" is not second-rate. From the Latin mediocris, the word means moderate or ordinary and has been used figuratively to refer to one who is halfway up a mountain. Unlike ordinary folks, sainted mystics have reached the mountaintop; they are on a first-name basis with the nameless! But just because we haven't arrived at the heights, just because our lives unfold in the valley of ordinary, everyday life doesn't mean that we cannot or do not experience the desire that has fueled the mystic's climb.
Author: Tom Stella Publisher: Wood Lake Publishing Inc. ISBN: 1773435221 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 149
Book Description
The term “mediocre mystics” seems a fitting way to refer to those who yearn for the nameless but do not qualify as full blown mystics. I realize that because there is nothing middling about mystics, “mediocre mystics” may appear to be an oxymoron, but the root meaning of “mediocre” is not second-rate. From the Latin mediocris, the word means moderate or ordinary and has been used figuratively to refer to one who is halfway up a mountain. Unlike ordinary folks, sainted mystics have reached the mountaintop; they are on a first-name basis with the nameless! But just because we haven’t arrived at the heights, just because our lives unfold in the valley of ordinary, everyday life doesn’t mean that we cannot or do not experience the desire that has fueled the mystic’s climb. “All my life my heart has yearned for a thing I cannot name.” –Andre´ Breton All my life I have experienced the yearning to which French writer and poet André Breton refers. For me that yearning is composed in part of a subtle discontent, a quiet feeling that something is missing despite the fact that nothing is missing. Significant relationships, meaningful work, as well as material and monetary security have never been enough to satisfy the desire for that which I cannot name. I know I’m not alone in my discontent or my longing for the nameless, for mystics of every spiritual and religious tradition have spoken of their desire for and experience of union with a spiritual entity that is as real as it is surreal. I am not claiming that just because I share their yearning I consider myself a mystic, but neither do I believe that the term “mystic” is entirely inappropriate for those of us who might glimpse briefly what certified or canonized mystics have been blinded by.
Author: Paul Vincent Publisher: iUniverse ISBN: 1450282423 Category : Language Arts & Disciplines Languages : en Pages : 163
Book Description
From an early age, author Paul Vincent has been drawn to the night. With hope and joy, he has looked forward to sunsets and oncoming nights, a attitude counter to a thousand common religious metaphors. In The Star at the End of the River, Vincent shares his important life experiences in order to illustrate how to transform conventional religious ideas about darkness. Bringing to bear his forty years' experience as an amateur astronomer, Vincent shows how sustained night-sky observation enhances the human receptivity to transcendent departure. He examines one of the many treasures of the heavens, a star-which, under the paradoxes of the mystical journey, is the most apt symbol of the human hope for eternal happiness. The Star at the End of the River proposes a new kind of mysticism-an ascent, not of a mountain, as in the traditional metaphor, but of an inclined plane. Vincent sketches a spiritual journey of marked gradualism and invites contemplation of the mystical power of such pedestrian experiences and objects as supermarket aisles, interior stairways, gooseflesh, and penmanship.
Author: Hildegard (von Bingen) Publisher: Inner Traditions / Bear & Co ISBN: 9780939680122 Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 136
Book Description
Medieval mystic Hildegard of Bingen's timeless writing and divine inspirations invite us to celebrate life and delight in the goodness of creation. Here is an excellent introduction to her words.
Author: Eknath Easwaran Publisher: ReadHowYouWant.com ISBN: 1458778606 Category : Body, Mind & Spirit Languages : en Pages : 270
Book Description
Pioneered by spiritual master Eknath Easwaran, passage meditation consists of memorizing an inspirational spiritual passage and then sending it deep into consciousness through slow, sustained attention. It keeps meditation fresh and varied because readers can select the passages - from one tradition or many - that embody their chosen ideals. Many readers also enjoy the passages for their poetic and intellectual appeal. This form of meditation offers all the richness and depth of traditional wisdom, together with a practical method for bringing that wisdom into daily life. The book situates passage meditation as part of Easwaran's eight-point program that, based on traditional spiritual practices but adjusted for modern lifestyles, shows readers how to stay calm and focused at work and home. This edition includes a new preface of previously unpublished material by Easwaran and an epilogue that explains the story behind the book and invites new readers to join the author on this adventure in the ''world within.''
Author: Daniel Ingram Publisher: Aeon Books ISBN: 1780498152 Category : Body, Mind & Spirit Languages : en Pages : 715
Book Description
The very idea that the teachings can be mastered will arouse controversy within Buddhist circles. Even so, Ingram insists that enlightenment is an attainable goal, once our fanciful notions of it are stripped away, and we have learned to use meditation as a method for examining reality rather than an opportunity to wallow in self-absorbed mind-noise. Ingram sets out concisely the difference between concentration-based and insight (vipassana) meditation; he provides example practices; and most importantly he presents detailed maps of the states of mind we are likely to encounter, and the stages we must negotiate as we move through clearly-defined cycles of insight. Its easy to feel overawed, at first, by Ingram's assurance and ease in the higher levels of consciousness, but consistently he writes as a down-to-earth and compassionate guide, and to the practitioner willing to commit themselves this is a glittering gift of a book.In this new edition of the bestselling book, the author rearranges, revises and expands upon the original material, as well as adding new sections that bring further clarity to his ideas.
Author: Meister Eckhart Publisher: SteinerBooks ISBN: 9780970109712 Category : Philosophy Languages : en Pages : 292
Book Description
In this remarkable work, Reiner Schürmann shows Meister Eckhart, the thirteenth-century Christian mystic, as the great teacher of the birth of God in the soul, which shatters the dualism between God and the world, the self and God. This is an exposition of Eckhar's mysticism--perhaps the best in English--and, because Eckhart is a profound philosopher for whom knowing precedes being, it is also an exemplary work of contemporary philosophy. Schürmann shows us that Eckhart is our contemporary. He describes the threefold movement of detachment, release, and "dehiscence" (splitting open), which leads to the experience of "living without a why," in which all things are in God and sheer joy. Going beyond that, he describes the transformational force of approaching the Godhead, the God beyond God: "A man who has experienced the same no longer has a place to establish himself. He has settled on the road, and for those who have learned how to listen, his existence becomes a call. This errant one dwells in joy. Through his wanderings the origin beckons."
Author: Tom Stella Publisher: Wood Lake Publishing Inc. ISBN: 1773431560 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 77
Book Description
What does it mean live “in sync with the sacred”? For Tom Stella it means living an authentic life. It means “stepping to the cadence of the sacred, ” which usually requires courage: “the courage to be different, to stand out, to be considered odd and perhaps even a threat by those who find their identity, comfort, and security in the status quo… The good news is that we can do this within our daily lives. Unlike Thoreau, who felt he had to retreat to Walden Pond “to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach,” we don’t have to retreat to the woods. According to Stella, “authenticity is first and foremost a matter of being attuned and responsive to the sacred within – to an instinct, an intuition, a sixth sense, a deep, voiceless voice that can be ‘heard’ even in a crowd. This inner guide may at times call us to live apart from others, but it surely summons us to follow a road less travelled; that is, to turn away from the conventional wisdom of society, those ways of thinking, believing, and behaving that go unquestioned – busy is good, more is better, success equals wealth…”
Author: Tom Stella Publisher: SkyLight Paths Publishing ISBN: 1594734852 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 162
Book Description
Do you describe yourself as spiritual but not religious? Whether young or old, church connected or not, are you spiritually restless for an authentic faith life but do not find conventional religious teachings pertinent to you? This accessible guide to a meaningful spiritual life is a salve for your soul. It reinterprets traditional religious teachings central to the Christian faith - God, Jesus, faith, prayer, morality and more - in ways that connect with people who have outgrown the beliefs and devotional practices that once made sense to them.
Author: Tom Stella Publisher: Harper Collins ISBN: 0062113208 Category : Religion Languages : en Pages : 227
Book Description
How can we have an authentic faith when we no longer have well-defined, codified beliefs? Where do we turn to better understand our relationship with God when the messages of the Church seem simplistic? This book is for all those who are asking the tough questions and are not satisfied with the answers they are receiving.
Author: Tom Stella
Author: Tom Stella
Author: Tom Stella
Author: Paul Vincent
Author: Hildegard (von Bingen)
Author: Eknath Easwaran
Author: Daniel Ingram
Author: Meister Eckhart
Author: Tom Stella
Author: Tom Stella
Author: Tom Stella