I am a seeker of good things. Religion has always been a tough one to grasp for me on a personal level. I have always seen the lines of division and have a deep longing to understand things on a higher level. This movie talks to a variety of different religious leaders and seekers. It had some good lessons to share.
My hope is you can take something positive away. There are always good things if you look for them.
EVERYONE IS A SEEKER
We already are that which we are seeking.
“Ultimate freedom is not outside ourselves, it is not only within us, but it is our very nature.” -Buddha
“The intellectual can envision what a utopian society would look like. The mystic knows that paradise is within and that we can offer paradise. That we can offer the nectar of paradise. We can offer the banquet table of LOVE for all of humanity and we can all sit at the banquet table together.” -Sufi woman
If you were to bring in 10 lamps of light in to one place, each would be different from the other in form. But when you look at their light you cannot differentiate one from the other.
We make no distinction of our messengers Were you to count 100 apples, 100 fruits, the 100 would not remain, but become 1 when pressed together. In matters spiritual–there are no parts, no numbers, there is no division.
All the great religions of the world have communicated the same universal message–appreciate the diversity of spiritual tradition by seeing g their inherent unity.
Many religious differences stem from different interpretations of the followers. Ex: Jesus had 12 disciples. Those disciples are not on the same level of understanding [as Jesus], so they each create their own interpretation of a message, teaching, experience, etc. They then share their story to others.
IT IS INNER PEACE THAT LEADS TO OUTER PEACE
Hatred and all forms of aggression will cease to exist in the world. Peace in the world will become a reality when individuals realized that we belong to each other.
“Peace is our true nature. The only way to have peace in the world is when people find the peace from within and then share it.” -Swami Karunananda
“War is more about ABSENCE–an absence of care, community, love, etc. It is an aggressive way to state what is truly NEEDED. Humans want more than anything to be in LOVE.” -Dr. Malidoma Patrice Some
“Anger. Hatred. Fear is not part of our essential nature. Not being open to our spiritual nature that disconnection or dis-association, by itself, moves our experiences to the opposite–instead of LOVE there is HATe. Instead of PEACE there is AGGRESSION.” -A. Hameed Alu
Begin with one person–YOU. You affect those who are in the same room with you. Then they go out into the world and affect others and on and on and on.
“If one person feels deeply, sees deeply into the unconditioned nature of the human heart that experience liberates all human beings.” -Joan Halifax, Roshi
LOVE
“Love is the essence that makes thorns into flowers, which transforms vinegar into sweet wine. Transforms the devil into an angel.” -Dr. Mohammad F
“The only way to LOVE is by giving it.” -J Halifax
“Love is an infinite ocean.” -Sheikha Fariha
All spiritual traditions or practices converge in the belief that…we are one with the great perfection of life.
The mystic honors each spiritual tradition and realizes its importance in creating a medium for every person to discover their own personal truth.
THE MANY PATHS TO TRUTH
“The reason there are so many spiritual paths is because there are so many different cultures.” -John Daido Loori
“The many birds in the air, each have their own songs. I have yet to see a crow sing an eagle’s song. They were each given their own song.” -grandmother Lillian Pitwanakwat, Ahishinabe Kwe Elder
“A group of people are gathered together and one person stands up and says, “Salads are the only way.” Another stands up, “Pudding is the way.” Another, “Vegan is the only way to go.” We would think that is ridiculous, but we do the exact same thing with religions. -Swami K.
“Wisdom says I am nothing. Love says that I am everything. Between the two my life moves.” -Hindu
The beginning of Love is to know we are the other. True Love knows no boundaries and illuminates everyones heart. The beginning of Peace is to find it within ourselves. It is our own inner peace that leads to peace within the world. The beginning and end of this journey exists right here, right now.
“Is it possible to look around at all the people everywhere and see the gifts? Start with the gift of LOVE. What would the world look like if we converged our frustration into compassion. Our hatred into love.” -Dr.
SPIRITUAL TRANSFORMATION
“People seek external things.The main mistake people make in life–they seek happiness, they seek meaning in external ways. It is usually only when people have exhausted and convinced themselves that it’s not going to do it that the only other place to look is within.” -Swami K
“What has been invested for inner well-being? We spend so much time creating the external, fixing the outside…”
“Go hike. Stand still. Look at a tree. In the depths of quiet the greatest song can be heard.” -Dr.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
Sit. Look at what your mind is filled with—what are your thoughts? Are they filled with anger, frustration, kindness, love? That is what you are contributing to the world.
In the end, we are all mystics. We all share the longing to find our divine nature. We need only to look within our hearts and listen deeply, so that we will join the conversation and speak with one voice.
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