human suffering, lamentation of mystic heart and utterance of oneness mystery

1.
scrutinize the mystery
underlying all things

seek in higher dimensions
of understanding
a meaning
behind all our sufferings

unmask
what appears to be
the caprice of human destiny

how we long to become that
which we hardly believe we are!

- Sufi Master Vilayat Inayat Khan (1916 - 2004)
may God bless his soul

2.
when one's consciousness is no longer tied
to a particular being
consequently one extends one's consciousness
from the cause of one's being to that of all,
all beings!

.. having hoisted oneself from the causal level to the one we are now describing, one grasps with crystalline clarity the laws governing all happening.

if consciousness is conducted beyond the point where it operates from an individuated center, perception of the immediate vicinity falls out of focus and one discovers not only the laws governing the autonomous functions of atoms, cells, or even the reflex action of the whole organism of the creature, but the enlightened intention of an overriding yet compassionate will.

should one identify one's self with all created things, these enhanced dimensions of awareness only transpire thanks to a shift in the focus of consciousness.

consciousness recedes into subliminal states - trance condition - unless one knows how to maintain the continuity of consciousness by relating one's focus center of consciousness to the ocean of cosmic consciousness of which it is a wave. enabling one to identify with the self of all selves which can only be perceived by consciousness in its unindividuated state.

- from teachings of Vilayat Inayat Khan

3.

know that its a harder and steeper path to love God's creatures than to glorify God by lips only or even when we convince ourselves that we are glorifying Him.

But he made no haste on the path that is steep!
Ah, what will convey unto thee what the steep path is!
- The Quran 90:10,11

step up the ladder and rise up from that which is merely lip service, and ascend to the station of loving His creatures. 'to love for others what you love for yourself' is the key that unlocks a secret of what it really means to love God. and when we understand the meaning of that, our heart can not stop but lament at the suffering of fellow human beings.

the secret of this feeling the suffering of other as one's own suffering is spoken in the book, Toward the One:

"when the consciousness decentralize itself, scattering its center in the cosmos, the sense of localization can become so transformed
one feels as though one's center is everywhere,
one's circumference nowhere."

there is no limit or boundary to compassion and love as the door of God's mercy and compassion is Infinitely Wide. Ya Rahman (O Universally Merciful), Ya Rahim (O Singularly Compassionate), Ya Wasi (O Vast without Limit) - chants the sufi mystics.

4.
"Lo! I AM Near" speaks God in the Final Testament, Quran.

Only if we knew how near and where, we would hasten to serve our neighbors even if it only means simply to offer the thirsty stranger - a cup of drink, the homeless at the corner of your road - a meal or even to carry the heavy grocery bag of the old woman at your apartment staircase. Never forget the Divine saying "Lo! I AM Near" and serve the Near, you will indeed serve Him.

and on the day of Return & Final Judgment when all of humanity will come to reckon what they have done with their gifted, precious divine breath - life, those hands that served will shine with pure light because it served His creation, thus served Him alone!

5.

When Inayat Khan gave his formula of "Towards the One: the Perfection of Love, Harmony and Beauty" he summarized in this short formula the divine theory of everything. When this applied to one human family, Harmony of humanity comes through removal of injustice; by establishing equality and human dignity which is birth right of all children of God. And that harmony of equality and justice comes from Love. the alchemy of Love and Harmony gives birth to Beauty - and then, only then the very earth becomes kingdom of God, and human being become that which is destined for him: kalifatu'Llah, the vicegerent of God, the perfected reflection of divine.

- written in remembering those who are suffering now with the indiscriminate slaughtering of people in Gaza (The Gaza Massacre) by Israel with its continual effort of terrorizing the people of Palestine, poisoning them with depleted uranium and occupying their homeland. So far the conflict have killed more than 600 Palestinians in 10 days and injured 3000. Indeed the suffering of Gazans are suffering of whole of humanity. may God give victory to the oppressed ones over the oppressors.

:: Gaza Update: Israeli shells hit a UN school sheltering civilians in Jabalya refugee camp

# Related:
. I Am in all My creation

. Unity of Being in Ibn 'Arabî - A Humanist Perspective
. Sami Awad on Non Violence in Holy Land (video)
. Global Justice and To Meet As Human Beings
via Global Oneness Project
. How to stop Wars
. Universel: A Course of Meditation

art credit

The sanitized illusion of falsehood against the burning fire of truth, justice and freedom

"Whoever sees evil should set it right by means of his hand; if not, by his tongue; if not, then by his heart and that is considered to be the weakest of faith."

"If my nation are afraid to say to the oppressor, 'O oppressor!',
then there is no hope in them."
............................................ - Sayings of Final Messenger

1.

Before Moses went to the demand the freedom of the captive slaves of the children of Israel, Moses had two choices. Once choice was to be among the Egyptian power-structure, to be part of that structure which made the mighty Kings as gods who were worshiped; where pictures of kings, prince and queen were made to be inscribed on the Pyramids, on grand palaces by the very slaves who were demanded to bow down before those Kings, Queens and their icons. It was a sanitized, so called ‘religiously’ holy regime where Moses could find himself easily as being one of them, after all he was raised by the Pharaoh’s wife as one of the family members.

The other choice was less sanitized and less glamorous. It was the role of a person of truth with just demand to free the slaves, to ensure their human rights and freedom. He decided not to bow down to this morally corrupt power structure that made themselves oppressors and enslaved hundreds and thousands against their wills, constantly murdered their men, children and women whomsoever they wished in blink of an eye. So he left the corrupt palace, left the land of Egypt to an uncertain direction of the east only to come back inspired and aspired to free the oppressed and dehumanized slaves. Just imagine how dare he had to be to face the King who ruled as god on earth to demand the release of the slaves – all of them! If there was anything that is more telling about the mission of Moses, its exactly this episode of his siding for the oppressed against the mighty oppressor.

He stood against the sanitized illusion of falsehood and stood for the burning fire of truth, justice and freedom; and it was literally from a burning divine fire that he received his inspiration to speak out and firmly act against the greatest narrative of human injustice of his time.

2.
When Jesus Christ entered the main temple of Jerusalem and saw it have been made into a place of immoral business transactions, where the so called “people of religious garb” were robbing people, monopolizing the religion, abusing the rights of the orphans, poor and widows of the society – he didn’t became part of that corrupt power structure as one of them. Rather it was he who drove out all those who were buying and selling there, overturning the tables of the money changers and even the benches of those selling doves.

His overturning of the table of money changers in the temple, which was part of concrete mechanisms of oppression within a political economy that doubly exploited the poor and unclean (those who suffered from leprosy). Not only were they considered second class citizens, but the temple obliged them to make reparation, through sacrifices, for their inferior status - from which the marketers profited. Jesus utterly repudiated the temple state, which is to say the entire socio-symbolic order of Jewish power structure. His objections have been consistently based upon one criterion: the system's exploitation of the poor.

He could well also be a Rabbi just like the Pharisees – as he was often called by such title as Rabbi. Even many senior Rabbis of his time accepted him as a major religious leader because of his genius and knowledge of the Jewish sacred laws. But he didn’t side with the falsehood and social injustice that was widespread. The high authorities of the temple were the seat of power in all sense in that particular society where Jesus was living. They were authority in politics, social and religious matters. Thus when Jesus Christ spoke out against the corrupt Pharisees, it wasn’t only about religious hypocrisy he was protesting, he was speaking out against rampant social, political and religious injustice and hypocrisy.

Many have systematically undermined the role of Jesus Christ as a fierce advocate of social and political criticizer and radical advocate of reform. He was not even interested in religious identity that was unjust to the common people of the society; nor was he interested in religious hypocrisy that the organized religion of his time was pressing on to people and using as manipulation tool for their own selfishness and greed. It was precisely because of his speaking out against the (political and social) corrupt power structure that he had to pay his price that he paid at the end. It was neither about theological position nor about anything religious, (although it was painted that way for convenience in the trials) but it was exactly about his speaking out against injustice and exposing the lies and hypercritical nature of the power structure that led to his trial and what followed afterward.

What is important lesson here is his standing up against the injustice. As the prince and advocate of peace, he well realized that peace in the society can not come without justice and freedom including that of the least fortunate ones in the very society. When a power-structure devour the wealth of the orphans and widows (which the Pharisees of his time did and it was Jesus Christ who strongly voice against it), he very well realized the need for the burning fire of truth against falsehood. Its exactly from that perspective he said when he said, “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.”

It was the sword of justice and freedom that was the reference Jesus was making symbolically. And he demonstrated it and witnessed in its full glory and perfection by siding for the oppressed in his embracing of the fate of an oppressed.

If there is any greater teaching in the elevated sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the teaching is to be on the side of justice, to be on the side of truth and never to be afraid to speak against oppression.

3.
The world has always had those overly greedy; ‘dog eat dog’ people who are never satisfied and who go on devouring constantly by oppressing others, specially the weak and poor ones. There was not a single time in known human history when one group of people didn’t unjustly dominate another group of people by oppressing them, by invading their lands, robbing their human dignity, making them humiliated or made them into slave. The most recent phenomena of this trend is to bomb ‘the other’, to use a very convenient term called “terrorism” and looting their land (invasion and occupation) and what is below their land (oil and gas) in the name of ‘spreading democracy’.

This is a pitfall of human greed and oppressive nature that becomes a monster when a society is unjust and at the same time its knowledgeable, able people decide to be mute against such injustice. When people of conscience become deaf and blind to the injustice this monster becomes uncontrollable.

But whenever an enlightened world teacher has appeared among the humanity, their birth has always happened amidst the oppressed and its precisely their speaking out, standing against the oppression was the acid test of their character. We see that very role in the life of Moses, we see that that very role in the life of Jesus and every single enlightened world teacher you can think about, you will see their role as someone who always strived to bring social justice, to bring unity among people and irradiate social, political and religious injustice. There is not a single exception to this.

Somehow we have developed this dualistic view about religion that its so utterly private that religion is all about a private relationship and it has nothing to do with society or people. Somehow we have convinced ourselves that spirituality is all about feeling good privately while not realizing how stupidly ignorant and selfish such attitude is.

This notion is a far away from how and what the major teachers of all world faiths held in their core of being. For them religion and spirituality has always been about human relationship, about building up a society or community based on ideas of equality, unity and harmony of people. Not a single religion is there that didn’t speak about equality and justice, because without justice there is no peace. And without peace in the community, society and mankind the private consolation of peace by mock spirituality or religious disguise is simply a disguise.

Somehow we think that peace is an abstract idea and itself is the starting and end point of a human being’s relationship with God, therefore that’s all about religion or spirituality. It’s nothing but an example of our delusion about ideas of religion and spirituality. This is exactly the kind of view point which creates religious fanatics who disregard humanity and human relationship and think its ok to kill people to please God or its ok to kill certain group of people because they are immune by being so called chosen people of God.

If your neighbor is afflicted and you turn away from it, all your devotion and lighting candle to an altar at your home or church means nothing. If you have failed to love for your neighbor what you love for yourself, meaning the human beings of the human family - you have failed to recognize the Divine who dwells in every human being. If the unjustly killing of other human being somehow, somewhere make you think it doesn’t matter and you can go about your religious devotion or spiritual meditation practice or your yoga class without being concern or take an action about it, then you haven’t understood what it means to be human and religious or spiritual in that matter. The invaluable saying pregnant with great mystical meanings that 'whosoever take the life of an innocent person, it is as if he has killed the whole of humanity' - is the burning statement of oneness of humanity through the divine bond.

Just as the pain and affliction of one part of a body is felt through all over the body, in the same manner the pain of your neighbor, the pain of any section of humanity if not echoed in your human heart, you have not only failed to reach the meaning of your human birth, you have also failed to realize what oneness mean in its human archetypal sense.

As it is taught in the sacred tradition: “When you see an injustice, an evil - prevent it by physical, active participation in a way you are able; if you are unable to participate physically then speak out against it and if you are even unable to speak out, then in your heart protest against it (know that its wrong and unjust).” May all of us become a voice against any injustice imparted to any section of human race no matter who take up the role of becoming the oppressor and no matter who in the human family is the victim / oppressed.

May justice and freedom bring peace to the one human family. May whole of Palestine, the holy land be free from all oppressions and may peace descend upon the city of peace, Jerusalem and its neighboring towns and cities and villages. May all the inhumane walls erected to cause sufferings to civilians and to create ghettos and concentration camps - come down. May this year be the year when Palestinians have their own free state and their full right of their motherland.

Amen. Amen. Amen.

4.
Truth is on the side of the oppressed.
- Malcolm X

5.
Mystic is what they call me.
Hate is my only enemy;
I harbor a grudge against none.
To me the whole wide world is one.

Whatever you wish for yourself
Wish for the others,
This is the meaning of the four books (Torah, Psalms, Gospel, Koran)
If there is any meaning.
- Yunus Emre, Turkish Medieval Humanist Mystic

Sadiq Salim
January 3, 2008

:: Further

. Amnesty International: Palestine
. Qumsiyeh: A Human Rights Website
. Human Rights Watch: Israel and occupied territories
. Americans united for Palestinian human rights
. Human rights group accuses Israel of torture - 16 Apr 2008 (youtube)
. UN: question of Palestine

. Whats happening in Gaza, Palestine?
. War on Gaza

# Related
. Art, Truth and Politics by Harold Pinter
. Gaza Massacre and Conscience | there is no peace without justice and freedom
. Stop killing the children in Lebanon

Art, Truth and Politics | Harold Pinter (1930-2008)

"When we look into a mirror, we think the image that confronts us is accurate. But move a millimeter, and the image changes. We are actually looking at a never-ending range of reflections. But sometimes a writer has to smash the mirror, for it is on the other side of that mirror that the truth stares at us.

I believe that despite the enormous odds which exist, unflinching, unswerving, fierce intellectual determination, as citizens, to define the real truth of our lives and our societies is a crucial obligation which devolves upon us all. It is in fact mandatory.

If such a determination is not embodied in our political vision, we have no hope of restoring what is so nearly lost to us: the dignity of man."

- 'Art, Truth and Politics' by Harold Pinter

The invasion of Iraq was a bandit act, an act of blatant state terrorism, demonstrating absolute contempt for the concept of international law. We have brought torture, cluster bombs, depleted uranium, innumerable acts of random murder, misery, degradation and death to the Iraqi people and call it "bringing freedom and democracy to the Middle East."

How many people do you have to kill before you qualify to be described as a mass murderer and a war criminal? 100,000? More than enough, I would have thought. Therefore, it is just that Bush and Blair be arraigned before the International Criminal Court of Justice...
- Harold Pinter, in his speech for Noble Prize for Literature in 2005

Democracy Now in their broadcast of 30th and 31st December played a remarkable speech of Harold Pinter. The last part of his speech is nothing short of the most telling truth about the hypocrisy of world powers and tremendous injustice. Harold Pinter gave the speech in December of 2005.

[>] Watch and Listen to this extra-ordinary speech here.

Source: Full transcript (and other media format) from Democracy Now December 31st archive

About: Harold Pinter, the Nobel Prize-winning British playwright, screenwriter, poet, actor, political activist, died at the Christmas eve of December 2008, at the age of seventy-eight after a prolonged battle with cancer. Blessed be his soul. He’s considered one of the most influential and provocative dramatists of his generation, often compared to his friend and mentor, Samuel Beckett.

Born in 1930 into a Jewish family in London that had fled persecution in Poland and Odessa, Pinter began his career as a stage actor and wrote his first play, The Room, in 1957. Pinter was also well known as a vociferous critic of British and American foreign policy and an activist against nuclear proliferation, political repression and censorship. As early as 1948, Harold Pinter resisted joining the British military national service and registered as a conscientious objector.

Harold Pinter won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2005. In his Nobel acceptance speech, titled “Art, Truth, and Politics,” he strongly denounced the United States, its actions in Iraq and its policy of backing groups like the Contras in Nicaragua.

. 1st part of his speech can be watched and listened here.

. Transcript of his speech, video and audio: part 1, part 2

the madman: crucified

1.
"We all are born mad. Some remain so."
- from Waiting for Godot, Samuel Beckett

2.
I cried to men, "I would be crucified!"

And they said, "Why should your blood be upon our heads?"

And I answered, "How else shall you be exalted except by crucifying madmen?"

And they heeded and I was crucified. And the crucifixion appeased me.

And when I was hanged between earth and heaven they lifted up their heads to see me. And they were exalted, for their heads had never before been lifted.

But as they stood looking up at me one called out, "For what art thou seeking atone?"

And another cried, "In what cause dost thou sacrifice thyself?"

And a third said, "Thinkest thou with this price to buy world glory?"

Then said a fourth, "Behold, how he smiles! Can such pain be forgiven?"

And I answered them all, and said:

"Remember only that I smiled. I do not atone -- nor sacrifice -- nor wish for glory; and I have nothing to forgive. I thirsted -- and I besought you to give me my blood to drink. For what is there can quench a madman's thirst but his own blood? I was dumb -- and I asked wounds of you for mouths. I was imprisoned on your days and nights -- and I sought a door into larger days and nights.

And now I go -- as others already crucified have gone. And think not we are weary of crucifixion. For we must be crucified by larger and yet larger men, between greater earths and greater heavens."

- Khalil Gibran, The Madman

# Resources:
. Real meaning of crucifixion
. Sufi reality of Fana, Baqa and Symbology of Cross
. Quranic verses on Jesus, peace be upon him

Gaza Massacre and Conscience | there is no peace without justice and freedom

1.

The code name of USA's 51st state, a.k.a. Israel's operation that has killed about 400 people (wounded nearly 2000) in Gaza, Palestine since 27 December and even today continually bombing the Gaza strip is called Operation Cast Lead, in reference to a Hanukkah poem by Israeli national poet Hayyim Nahman Bialik. The outrageous murder of human conscience is utterly depressive!

2.
How on earth someone can bring Hanukkah reference (a sacred day in Jewish calendar) to murder in cold-blood hundreds of people including innocent civilians, women and children is unthinkable. Already Bethlehem is a city on siege by Israel driving out the Arab and native Christians in silent mass expulsion. Such total disregard for anything sacred (and what is more sacred than human lives?) reminds me of Khalil Gibran's Madman:

The Good God and the Evil God met on the mountain top. The Good God said, "Good day to you, brother." The Evil God made no answer. And the Good God said, "You are in a bad humour today."

"Yes," said the Evil God, "for of late I have been often mistaken for you, called by your name, and treated as if I were you, and it ill-pleases me."

And the Good God said, "But I too have been mistaken for you and called by your name."

The Evil God walked away cursing the stupidity of man.

3.
What is Gaza Strip?

I don't blame you if you ask, what Gaza Strip is because the media is so utterly censored in this country from the major injustices and crime against humanity committed around many parts of the world. Just so you know, Gaza Strip is the world's largest concentration camp created by the state of Israel (some call it the world's largest open air prison). Gaza's reality shows a little glimpse of it.

Since 27th December, 2 days after the world celebrated the birth of the Prince of Peace, Israel used F-16 jet fighters and Apache helicopters, approximately 100 tonnes (110 short tons) of explosives to rain in to people of Gaza in the very holy land of Palestine. Close to 400 people have died including women and children and thousands are critically injured. They used the bunker buster bombs sold by US with the billions of dollar of tax payers money of ordinary US citizens and these are the bombs which were used on concentrated civilian areas in Gaza. Israel gets 3 billion dollar every year in aid from USA to buy weapons. During the Bush administration, from 2001 to 2005, Israel received $10.5 billion in Foreign Military Financing—the Pentagon's biggest military aid program—and $6.3 billion in U.S. arms deliveries. (credit)

Due to a nearly hermetic Israeli blockade already reduced the 365 sq km coastal territory into a real concentration camp. The cruel blockade hermetically seals the area, with its estimated 1.5 million human beings, from the rest of the world by a fence guarded by watchtowers, trigger-happy snipers, and tanks, with their big guns trained toward Gaza's population centers. There are people inside Gaza who have never been allowed to be out of the walls set by Israel more than decades. Israel also controls Gaza's coastal waters, airspace, border crossings as well as food, electricity, and fuel supplies. Nothing may get into or out of Gaza without an Israeli permission. The cruel siege, which many Palestinians and some foreign visitors are likening to the Ghetto Warsaw plight in 1943, has already caused catastrophic effects on every conceivable aspect of life in the Gaza Strip. (credit)

Whats been happening in the Gaza Strip, an occupied territory of Palestine by Israel is really depressing. AFP reported: "There was no space left in the morgue and bodies were piled up in the emergency room and in the corridors, as many of the wounded screamed in pain." Because of the U.S.-backed Israeli blockade and strangulation of the people of Gaza for the past 18 months there is little or no medicine to treat the wounded, electricity for hospitals, or food or clean water for much of the population.

So far close to 400 people are killed and thousands are injured. The medical facilities in Gaza can not cope any more. They have run out of medical supply and a recent boat carrying medical supply to Gaza was rammed by Israel.

This is NOT A WAR. A war is a reciprocal military interaction between two parties. This is an indiscriminate attack which has led to the deaths of scores of innocent civilians and particularly children. This is Massacre.

4.
Where to know about the real situation?

Blessed are the Peace Makers, for they shall be called the Children of God. - Beatitudes of Christ

Know the true reality and be a peace maker, policy influencer and policy changer towards peace. And there can be no peace without justice and freedom.

Its our human obligation, as part of this human family to know about the suffering caused by injustice, specially when its done by those who we elect to represent us. The weapons sold and gifted to Israel comes from USA and by the money paid by US citizens who has nothing to do with Israel's unjust policy to Palestinians. The least you can do is to know the real truth and do your part to raise awareness and consciousness to stop this madness. It was through mass public awareness and protest that Vietnam war had to stop. Only when majority of American people know the real situation regarding Palestine and Israel, whats happening there for real, only then can they pressurize the US govt. to change their foreign policy and be a true broker of peace and not just an exporter of cluster bombs, F16s and encourager of more and more massacre.

Suffocated in their tiny strip of land, Gazans of Palestine are not allowed to travel, trade with the outside world, or even complain about the inhumane conditions imposed on them by Israel. Their painful narrative has never found its way to Western media, which has managed, to the determent of Western long term interests, to conceal the Palestinian narrative while amplifying the Israeli’s. (credit)

There are very few media in the west that reports honestly whats really happening. It is precisely because the same interest group that sells arms and ammunitions around the world, cluster bomb and f-16 and bunker busters are the same interest group that owns the media, runs it and pays for it.

Stop watching totally dishonest media such as CNN, MSNBC or Fox. They are filled with propaganda to the max. Following are couple of sources where you can watch objective and real news online, specially when it comes to issues that contradict the interest of corrupt power structures:

(One.) Al Jazeera English Service broadcast from Doha, Qatar (Watch free live stream online)
(Two.) Democracy Now broadcast from Washington, USA

. Al Jazeera English also have their youtube channel.

5.
What can you do?

'The evil only exists because the good remain silent'

Sheila Musaji writes in her article, Inaction is a Choice: "You can contact your elected officials and tell them that you support the Palestinian right to freedom from occupation, demand and end to the blockade of humanitarian supplies to Gaza, demand International support for a just resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, demand an immediate end to the violence, demand that the U.S. stop funding military aid to Israel - tell them what you think by going to the Congress.org site putting in your zip code and sending a message."
>> Read details Inaction is a Choice.

And understand the history of Occupation of Palestine by the creation of Israel and its continuous violation of human rights, watch Occupation 101.

Know that there is no peace without justice. You can not treat people inhumanly and rob their human dignity and continuously violate human rights and at the same time talk about peace. Peace talk can not succeed from them who are not peaceful, who are arms dealer and don't understand what peace is.

May all wars STOP, may all injustice to all part of the world STOP. May the oppressors perish. Please keep the people of Palestine who are victim of this injustice in your prayers.


# Reference & Resources:
. Gaza Massacre Slide-show: what main stream media won't show you

. December 2008 Gaza airstrip strikes
. Mustafa Barghouti - Palestine's Guernica and the Myths of Israeli Victimhood
. Eyewitness from Gaza
. Operation Cast Lead - A familiar story in Gaza By Hugo Foster
. The Silent Violence of Gaza's Suffering That Candidates and Congress Ignore by Ralph Nader
. Mohamed Khodr - The Hanukkah Massacre in Gaza: The Sacrificial Lamb to Israeli-American-Arab Interests
. Global Voice Online coverage of Gaza Strip Bombing
. Israel, Stop! Just. Stop.

. Palestinian Holocaust
. Gaza: world's largest prison
. Ben Cohen writes in Huffington Post: Obama's Silence on Gaza is Deafening
. Gazans: 'We are living a nightmare': Voice from Gaza

. Israel world's 4th top weapons exporter
. Israel ignores its own history in Gaza

. Picture Below: Palestinian loss of land since 1946 to 2000: Hostage and Refugee in own land

Thou shall not steal. Thou shall not covet your neighbour’s house.
- Old Testament, The 10 Commandments

How about thou shall not covet your neighbour's land? Well, 'not coveting neighbour's house' actually implies that already I guess.

"It is precisely because we are Jews that we march with the Palestinians and raise their flag! It is precisely because we are Jews that we demand that the Palestinians people be returned to their homes and properties!" - Rabbi Mordechi Weberman

The Work of Becoming Human | Kabir Helminski

Surely We created man of the best stature. - The Quran 95:4

There is a great deal of human nature in man. - Charles Kingsley

In Sufi conference 2004, Kabir Helminski of Mevlevi sufi order started his talk titled, 'the work of becoming human' with the following opening lines:

"And our subject today ... is a subject of humanness. Its not an accidental subject. its really at the heart of this path that we call Sufism.

I remember when I first encountered this path, my first and most beloved Shaykh said, 'you know, you need some work to be a human.' in one sense its given to us, but there is also work of being human.

So those of us who are interested in Sufism, you and me, this is our business, its nothing less than the education of the whole human being. So that makes it a vast subject. It touches on every aspect of life, its nothing so small as meditation and meditation is immense. Its more than any spiritual practice, its how we live our lives, it is how we incorporate into our consciousness all the levels of being on which a human being can be conscious. In another words it expands our whole notion of life, from a limited dimension to a multi-dimensional reality.."

To listen to this talk, follow the two audio links:
[Audio] Part 1 (click to play the mp3 audio file)
[Audio] Part 2

. More talks from Sufi Conference 2004 is available via Golden Sufi, Recorded at the May Sufi Conference, Black Mountain, North Carolina

In his article. What is a Human Being?: The structure of the self within spiritual psychology Shaykh Kabir Helminski mentions few important aspect:

Psychology means “knowledge of the soul (psyche).” Our best contemporary psychologies are mostly a collection of subjective and culture-driven conjectures. There are dozens of theories of personality, theories of learning, and so on, but a true science still proves to be elusive.

The psychology of traditional spirituality provides a vocabulary with which we can know and understand ourselves and our relationship to the Divine Being, Allâh. This sacred psychology and its spiritual vocabulary offer an implicit model of humanness as well as a map of a spiritual landscape.

Education as it is currently understood, particularly in the West, ignores the human soul, or essential Self. This essential Self is not some vague entity whose existence is a matter of speculation, but our fundamental “I,” which has been covered over by social conditioning, and by the superficiality of our rational mind. In the world today we are in great need of a form of training that would contribute to the awakening of the essential Self. Such forms of training have existed in other eras and cultures and have been available to those with the yearning to awaken from the sleep of their limited conditioning and know the potential latent in the human being.

.. What is most characteristically human may not be guaranteed to us by our species or by our culture, but is given only in potential. A person must work in order to become human. What quality makes us most distinctly human? What is most human in us is something more than the role we play in society, and more than the conditioning (whether for good or bad) of our culture. What is most human in us is our heart, which is our point of contact with infinite Spirit.

The human being is the end product of a process in which this Creative Spirit has shaped and evolved a witness who could embrace the covenant it offered. If the human being is the most evolved Care-taker (Khalife) of the Creative Spirit - with the potential for conscious presence, will, love, and creativity - then our humanity is the degree to which this physical/spiritual vehicle, and particularly our nervous system, can reflect or manifest Spirit. That which is most sacred in us, that which is deeper than our individual personality, is our connection to this Spirit, Cosmic Life, Creative Power, or whatever name we may use.

[>] You may read the full article here courtesy Kabir Helminski's book, The Book of Language

. The Threshold Society and Mevlevi Sufi Order

. Rules of being Human
. Complete Human
. Guest House by Rumi

. art credit: painting of khalil gibran

The Prayer of Thomas Merton

1.
fa 'ayna
tazhabün?

So,
Where
Are You
Going?

- The Qur'an 81:26

2.
My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself,
and the fact that I think I am following Your Will
does not mean that I am actually doing so.

But I believe that the desire to please You does in fact please You.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.

And I know that if I do this You will lead me by the right road,
though I may know nothing about it.

Therefore I will trust You always though I may seem to be lost
and in the shadow of death. I will not fear,
for You are ever with me,
and You will never leave me to face my perils alone.

- Prayer of Thomas Merton, Father Louis

# Thomas Merton's connection with Sufis