a Sufi passage on Love...

[liquidocean]

Let the eye of your heart be opened that you may see the spirit and behold invisible things.
If you set your face toward the region where Love reigns, you will see the whole universe laid out as a rose garden. What you see, your heart will wish to have, and what your heart seeks to possess, that you will see. If you penetrate to the middle of each mote in the sunbeams, you will find a sun within.
Give all that you possess to Love. If your spirit is dissolved in the flames of Love, you will see that Love is the alchemy for spirit.
You will journey beyond the narrow limitations of time and place and will pass into the infinite spaces of the Divine World. What ear has not heard, that you will hear, and what no eye has seen, you shall behold. Finally, you shall be brought to that high Abode, where you will see One only, beyond the world and all worldly creatures. To that One you shall devote the love of both heart and sould until, with the eye that knows no doubt, you will see plainly that "One is and there is nothing save One alone."
(by Ahmed Hatif, taken from Essential Sufism by James Fadiman, HarperSanFrancisco)
Please reflect on this and add your comments.

 

[liquidocean]

This passage jumped out at me last night on the drive from SF to Marin, moved me enough to fold the corner down, which i have yet to do to this book that i've had for some while. There's something about reading in a car that doesn't allow for full concentration. Got to read it in a warm house with a special friend, and the full meaning of it was easily revealed.....
"What your heart seeks to posses...." Can you recall truly recognizing that you want something, then catching a glimpse of it, then deeply wanting it with a pure, clear heart? The magnetic force of a unified heart is unstoppable. For me, a major blockage is finding my heart's line between two options. It's hard for me to just pick one and go with it. But it feels so good to release.....
"Love is the alchemy for spirit"..... In love, whether in reflective or friendly or brotherly or romantic form, the love itself is not a end, but a means of transformation. In movies, there is a climactic or ecstatic experience that becomes the destination, and the characters decide to live in the shadow of that climactic moment until the credits roll.
But is that the way love operates in our life? How about awesome experiences with your friends? What about multiple trancendent experiences with good people? What about the love and trust that develops there? Does it end at the experience? When the e wears off what happens?
Things change. Your soul changes over time and experience. Those who are accostomed to partying on a deeper level are usually easily recognized by their peers.
You lose the rough edges on your soul, the edges that are inconvenient, if not potentially dangerous, when slipping through the dimensions of spirit.
Your smile becomes second nature.
You remember the divinity within yourself and others that you meet.
You value experience over material, realizing that your soul is your container vessel.
You seek to transform others, and receive a great joy in seeing others realize the gift of their existence. When you are with friends and lovers, you seek to mutually polish each other's mirrors to better reflect the divine light that passes by.
Your dance evolves, your gestures evolve, your thinking evolves....

 

[HartfordRaver]

I also had like a revelation last weekend. Guess it was an eye opener. Our hearts will only lead us in the correct direction if you only listen to what it’s saying. Not only for face value but sometimes you have to read between the lines.
PLUR
HartfordRaver

 

[Guru Daddy]

Another interesting post from liquidocean! What really grabs me about this passage is what seems to me to be at the core of all the religions, beliefs and other isms I've been exposed to:
We are all one. We are all "divine sparks", individual as sparks but one as the great fire.
There are two basic forces in the universe: love and fear, and as John Lennon said, "Love is the answer."
Whatever we are looking for, the answer is not "out there" its "in here". Or as JC said, "The kingdom of heaven lies within you."
There is no right or wrong unless I decide it. "Nothing is good or bad, but thinking makes it so." - Hamlet
The more I know this in my heart, the more I realize how simple it all is, and how long people have "known" this. What truly heartens me is that so many more people seem to know it now than ever before. Look at the posts on this board! Thanks liquidocean - keep us thinking about the big picture!
Love and Peace,
Guru Daddy
Disclaimer: All quotes are probably mangled but you get the idea.

 

[mona]

I have, once, experienced such clarity of emotion, a feeling so strong, that all I could do was cry uncontrollably.
I had never EVER felt anything like this before. It scared me, but it also calmed me somewhat. I was amazed that I could feel something so overwhelming, so total. It took over my entire body, I couldn't speak except for the words 'Oh my god', 'wow' and 'fuck'.
At first I didn't understand what was hapenning, and then it all became SO CLEAR, like nothing else in my life had made sense up until that point, and suddenly, this feeling that I had never experienced before, grabbed hold of me and a squeezed me into a state of total..ugh, I don't know the word. Submission?
It was like I had been put on this earth to feel like I did just then, if only for just a minute, then my whole existence would be worthwhile. It was. If I ever come to that point of existence in my life again, then I will believe that I have been blessed. I think I already have been.
I thank the person who got me there, if only for a brief moment in my life, they made me cry tears of happiness, tears of total and utter bliss. I finally UNDERSTOOD, everything. Anything that I had questioned before, wasn't answered...just accepted. Acceptance into my heart, that sometimes things should just, be. They did. I let them be. I took that person, along with those feelings, into my heart, and my life forever. There they will remain forever.
I opened the eye of my heart, and beheld invisible things.
Although now, it's just a faded memory.
[This message has been edited by mona (edited 20 December 1999).]

 

[mona]

back to the top.

 

[liquidocean]

Wow, Mona, some very strong emotions there. Life can get so confusing when you follow your feelings without intervening. It takes you places and definitely makes you grow, but it definitely shakes you up quite a bit. But it's so much better to open your heart, let yourself see the world from there, to feel real pleasure, and to feel real pain. No other force can really have the power to transform us, other than death or extreme psychedelic experiences, but who wants those?
The sense of self dissolves, so that lover, love, and beloved become indistinguishable. The self fights this, and trys to maintain it's separateness. And it will give you every reason to run away in fear. Every reason to refuse to let go.....

 

[rapture]

liquid ocean..your posts humble me...wish i was in sf so could give you a bear-hug and give back the love you are feeling and sharing...

it is all so true and always has been...LOVE IS ALL THERE IS...love never lies...never fails and is the strongest force imaginable...never never never try to stand in the way of love, for you will not stop it.
love is energy and EVERYTHING is comprised of energy...vibrations fast and slow..love moving at different speeds for different situations...sharing this ONE divine energy at partys is what we've been doing!
(love doesn't care how baggy our pants are, or how many plastic trinkets we've been wearing, but it's happy that we are at least headed in the right direction)

liquidocean..you have the soul of a poet and the heart that all humans should have
3 tons of love

 

[ruthie]

The eye of my heart has been opened and my world will never be the same. I am overwhelmed not sure what to do with my emotions and amazement at what is. I laugh and cry and am thankful for this moment of joyful bliss. Fighting the fear that one day it will be a faded memory. Yes, fighting to maintain my separateness. Afraid that such incredible beauty will leave an indelible mark on my heart. And it will.
I feel the energy of love between us and the fear dissolves to appreciation for this gift we have been given. Whether it lasts an hour, a day, a year or lifetimes I will stop fighting and delve into the journey. I am thankful for the portal into “the infinite spaces of the divine world”. I am blessed with a drink from a beautiful soul.