We are One, in Love, in Spirit

This pic was an attempt to pull together symbols from different religions to illustrate ONENESS. On first glance it may appear that Michael is being portrayed as a deity, but it's simply symbolic art. Michael is there to represent the humanity and spirit of each of us, in the awakening point, where one realizes the truth of unity with the divine. We came from God/All and will return. Just as you are your parents' child, the Divine essence is also carried within you ... we are each divinity in motion.

He/You/I sit in a lotus position, like Buddha (or any other adept or seeker) in deep contemplation, prayer and stillness. Surrounding us is the lush green of the forest primeval, of the garden... a place of creation, where renewal and growth take place. It is a place of peace and seclusion, yet of life, of Gaia, our connection to the Earth. It is the Garden of Eden and Gethsemane, the meditation retreat of bodhisattvas, the forests of Vraj on the banks of the Yamuna river. We sit upon the transcendent pink lotus flower as our consciousness expands inwardly and outwardly to merge with the All. Our skin is the color of the sky and we wear the tilak of Krishna on our forehead, as his and Quan Yin's companion and guardian, the royal peacock, dances nearby... a reminder of our immortality and that all colors blend in harmony as One. A monarch butterfly alights nearby, a symbol in many tribal and modern religions of strength, transformation, resurrection and spirit. In our hand we hold a red rose in full bloom to symbolize our ability to embrace fragility, hope and faith without crushing it, as we nurture it with compassion, as Mother Mary does when she comforts the grieving and downtrodden. As we focus on our 4th chakra we find the Sacred Heart, a symbol of Christ's suffering, love and compassion for humanity, qualities He asked us to embrace and exemplify. These qualities are amplified as our awareness reaches higher and higher into Cosmic Christ Consciousness. Merged with the Sacred Heart we find the symbol for OM, the Sacred Sound of God in Hinduism, Buddhism and other belief systems, the first vibration that resonated outward and created our entire universe. All are connected. All are one. As we center ourselves in LOVE, a halo brightens and glows around our head, a beautiful pattern of gold and white light, universally recognized. Above us flies the dove of peace, a symbol of the Holy Spirit (in whatever words you would choose to describe it), the animating force we first felt when we found OM, when we remembered that the sacred lies within us and all around us, in our garden of bliss, where we meet the Beloved, where WE ARE ONE.

"It is now I see and feel that calling once again to be part of a music that will not just connect, but make all feel ONE, one in joy, one in pain, one in love, one in service and in consciousness." ~ Michael Jackson 2009

The Lotus in Michael's Hand

"The honey in the flower or lotus does not crave for bees; they do not plead with the bees to come. Since they have tasted the sweetness, they themselves search for the flowers and rush in. They come because of the attachment between themselves and sweetness." ~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba

"O God, my mind is fascinated with Thy lotus feet as the bumble-bee with the flower; night and day I thirst for them." ~ Guru Nanak

When the background picture for this blog was chosen, it was basically on a whim because I had no specific plans for what it all should look like. The chosen pic turned out to set up the entire color scheme and simply felt right. To me this particular photoshop represents Michael being shone down upon from the heavens (the shining light) as he channels this energy through his being (as he often talked about himself - of being merely the messenger, the means to deliver what was already created above) and it concentrates into the gift within his hand, the gift he is extending to us and to all who are willing to reach for it and accept it. (In this sense it is not just Michael per se, but all who play the role of guide.) What is that gift? Certainly not something easily defined. Aren't we all still grappling with these questions? It's something universal and yet very personal. The lotus itself to me represented the feeling of cosmic awakening, the invitation to look beyond and yet to go within where we are one, something sacred and existing of love, held out for the seeker, brought to us from God/Higher Selves by a special teacher who has opened our hearts. It's a very spiritual symbol, after all. Here's some more information below about lotus symbolism. Thought it all rather fitting:

• The holiest of flowers for Hindus, the beautiful lotus is symbolic of the true soul of an individual. It represents the being, which lives in turbid waters yet rises up and blossoms to the point of enlightenment. Mythologically speaking, lotus is also a symbol of creation, since Brahma, the creator came forth from the lotus that blooms from the navel of Vishnu. (1)

• Pink Lotus: This the supreme lotus, generally reserved for the highest deity. Thus naturally it is associated with the Great Buddha himself. ..."In esoteric Buddhism, the heart of the beings is like an unopened lotus: when the virtues of the Buddha develop therein, the lotus blossoms; that is why the Buddha sits on a lotus bloom." (2)

• Because they emerge from slime and corruption, then grow up through the purifying water to emerge into the sunlight, they are seen as metaphors for the development of the individual being towards enlightenment. That is, the flower stands for renunciation of the entanglements of samsara, and for the pure aspiration that is the desire for enlightenment for the sake of others. ... The "lotus" depicted in tomb paintings of ancient Egypt ...is also known as the "lily of the Nile." It is not a true lotus, but a blue water lily Nymphaea caerulea.(3)

• The lotus is the pre-eminent symbol in the non dual traditions. In Hinduism it is associated with the creation mythology featuring the gods Vishnu, Brahma, and Lakshmi as well as most other dieties. In Buddism, the Buddha and various dieties are portrayed seated on and/or holding lotuses. In Egyptian mythology the term has been misapplied to the water lily by translators of their hieroglyphics and in references to its motif in art and architecture.(4)

• It embodies the Buddhist ideas of transcendence, purity, and non-duality. In point, the lotus is the symbol of the absolute, sustaining the phenomenal world. ... In Tibetan Buddhist art, it is very common for images of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and other prominent figures to be depicted as resting upon an open Lotus flower. ... The Lotus also acts as a metaphoric guide to those who are engaged in ...the direction of realizing complete, unchastened enlightenment. ... The flower gracefully accepts the pool that it is placed in and shines beautifully in negation of circumstance. (5)

• Hindus revere it with the gods Vishnu, Brahma and to a lesser degree Kubera, and the goddesses Lakshmi and Sarasvati . Often used as an example of divine beauty and purity, Vishnu is often described as the 'Lotus-Eyed One'. ...Its unfolding petals suggest the expansion of the soul. The growth of its pure beauty from the mud of its origin holds a benign spiritual promise. ... The lotus in both Egypt and India symbolizes the union of the four elements; earth, air, fire, and water.... The growth of a new flower directly from the earth-bound original may be interpreted as a symbol of transcendence: a spiritual emergence of a higher world directly from our physical manifestation.(6)

"You are the wildflower in bloom, You are the Life-throb That pulsates, dances, From a speck of dust To the most distant star, And you and I Were never separate, It's just an illusion Wrought by the magical lens of Perception."
~ Michael Jackson ('Heaven is Here' / Dancing the Dream)

August book recommendations (pt 1)

As some of you may know, I got myself an Amazon Kindle for my birthday this year. I was a bit reticent about it at first for various reasons, but now I am addicted to it, oh my word, lol. It comes with me everywhere. And I've READ so much more in the past months than I used to! :) I admit I rarely read fiction outside of Harry Potter, but here are some books I've loved recently:

Bridge to Terabithia (by Katherine Paterson) - Yes, this is a children's book. I first read it in about 4th or 5th grade and loved it, so I thought I'd re-read it as an adult just for curiosity. If you've seen the film from a couple of years ago, it's nothing next to the book (sorry). As a child this book was so magical, the king and queen of their own secret world in the forest, and the Sacred Grove, a place where "Even the rulers of Terabithia come into it only at times of the greatest sorrow or of greatest joy". How can you not love it? And once again it became obvious that when we read or hear stories as children we add so much with our imagination! A 150 page book becomes an epic novel in our minds! Our inner world fills in all the gaps, elaborates and fantasizes. It's really amazing. The end of this book is so sad, though. I sat here with tears running down my face at 5am, of course reminded of June 25th. Jess is left with a familiar situation: "She wasn't there, so he must go for both of them. It was up to him to pay back to the world in beauty and caring what Leslie had loaned him in vision and strength"...

Evidence of the Afterlife: The Science of Near-Death Experiences (by Paul Perry and Jeffrey Long) - This is one I highly recommend, although even more than this book I'd recommend reading some of the thousands of full accounts of NDEs on the website Jeffrey founded over ten years ago, nderf.org (try "exceptional accounts" first, then check out the constantly updated monthly and yearly archives). We've all heard of NDE's and have the general concept down, like being out of body, a tunnel, a bright light, but if you haven't really studied them, you have no idea what you're missing out on. Nooooo idea. Books (and this one is again, highly recommended on the topic, as is Pim van Lommel's book "Consciousness Beyond Life") can give you wonderful information and an idea of just how these are researched by serious scientists and doctors, but they only give you a limited number of accounts or short excerpts to illustrate points. In other words, to really have a sense of what it's about, read the science AND the actual accounts. And not just a few. Read hundreds. Read thousands. You will be amazed, I promise.

Saving Jesus from the Church: How to Stop Worshiping Christ & Start Following Jesus (by Robin R. Meyers) I loved this book! This is a must-read! First, I am not a follower of any particular religion, so don't think I'm trying to push one on you. ;) I believe that religion is manmade, often divinely inspired, but misses the mark entirely when it's corrupted into "my God is the real one and ya'll are going to Hell!" We are ONE and there are many mansions, many pathways to God. Reverend Meyers seems to understand this, while still maintaining his Christian faith. He's made a good study of scholarly Jesus material (another topic that's very interesting, especially now) and is encouraging those who declare themselves Christians to wake up and follow the man they say they believe in. Jesus wasn't about hate and categorizing and tromping on the poor with a belief in some kind of Heaven-sanctioned material wealth parade. Meyers points out that for those in Jesus' time, "the call of God was not propositional. It was experiential." They experienced the man! They were there when early followers grappled with the implications of their messiah figure's sudden death and what to make of it. They were the ones who were left to discuss and theorize and grasp for explanations. Their ideas were the basis for the formation of a new sect of Judaism that grew over the next few decades, leading up to the writing of the Gospels. Christ-centered living wasn't a mere concept with centuries of built-up dogma, turned into a power structure with little left of its origins. It wasn't something that happened 2,000 years ago in a different world. These people were the "timely born" ones and they witnessed divinity in the flesh, not as a far-removed creed to recite in order to be "saved". Meyers writes, "Today, worshipers of Christ agree to believe things about him in order to receive benefits promised by the institution, not by Jesus." So true! This is a call to action, to real discipleship, to walk the walk. It's actually very inspiring, no matter what your belief system. And you'll find out some things you may not have known about the historical Jesus on the way. And many of the things could remind you of other events and people you may be holding in your mind and heart ... (... I'll just leave it at that for now, ahem...)

I read a lot of books, so stay tuned for August pt 2, lol. I didn't include MJ-themed books because they deserve posts of their own :)