One of themes or teachings that Joseph Rael/ Beautiful Painted Arrow speaks most about is inspiration. Joseph might say that inspiration grows out of our primary nature as listeners. Inspiration is not about listening to the noise of the world, but listening to the land, the True Self or the Vast Self. Following inspiration sounds like everything should be fun and light and easy. But perhaps this is a superficial understanding of what is involved in following the path of inspiration.
Many of the stories Joseph shared about his life had to do following through on what his elders or guides told him to do. I think about how he travelled around the world for 15 years encouraging people to build peace chambers. You can hear stories about how hard he worked to make sure the peace chamber in Swannanoa, North Carolina was placed just right, and how he personally re-dug the foundation to do what he was told by Spirit. He often gave his own hard-earned money to help people build a chamber. After he retired, he shared with Elisa that he realized, in retrospect, that he spent several years of his life jet-lagged from all of the travel!
A deep understanding of inspiration has to embrace one of his other most commonly used phrases: "Work is Worship". To fully embrace inspiration means that we may be required to actually do the work needed to manifest that which has come from the state of inspiration.
Vivid dreams and inspiration brought us to Abiquiu. At our first Sun-Moon Dance on the land, we marveled at how everything we needed just appeared - a cottonwood tree, sweat lodge stones, Bill bringing the needed tool at the right moment. I was amazed that when the notion of purchasing the land arose, so many people were happy to make a donation - some of them quite substantial.
In the past couple of years, we have been at a crossroads. In order to continue to offer ceremony on the land, we need a safe space: a space to prepare food, a space to get out of the elements for a time, a place to sleep that isn't a tent! We struggled with uncertainty about what to build, how to manifest the resources needed for building, how to manage time and travel, and the reality that many of us are getting older and have physical limitations (not me, though). It has been unclear to me so far how we should go about building local community.
A beginning...
Today, August 31st, work began on the roof of our 18'x24' adobe. We are in the "work as worship" phase of inspiration. We are in the trust what is in front of us phase of inspiration. We are in the place where we have started something but there is still a great mystery ahead.
So, what happened today? The lumber arrived on a very big truck. A snake appeared from the space where adobe meets wood on the top of the walls. It rained three times - the first a light blessing rain, the third a short burst of hail! There was a lot of measuring going on. A modern transit carefully examined mud and straw blocks glued together by earth and water. I learned that instead of having a 24-foot building it is actually 24', one and a half inches! My heart opened in gratitude for this gentle, patient and heart-centered crew chief named Gilberto.
There was not a lot to show for today's work. But let's take a moment to reflect on what we are doing using Joseph's key to the metaphors behind the letters/ sounds.
We are raising a ROOF
R = radiating light
OO or u = to carry, being carried
F = faith
So, to raise a roof is to embrace the "radiating light that carries faith".
Faith is something that is tested. Faith grows in the garden of mystery. As humans, we can approach mystery with fear and doubt. Or, we can approach mystery with love and fluidity and humility and curiosity.
We are moving forward with this building. I don't always know why. But when my body walks on this land and my soul drinks the beauty of the surroundings through my eyes, something happens inside. Maybe its love. Maybe its grace. Maybe its listening. Maybe its duty. To me, it's still a mystery. Who knows what tomorrow holds? Yes, truly, only HU (Arabic pronoun referring to God) knows what tomorrow holds!
Many of the stories Joseph shared about his life had to do following through on what his elders or guides told him to do. I think about how he travelled around the world for 15 years encouraging people to build peace chambers. You can hear stories about how hard he worked to make sure the peace chamber in Swannanoa, North Carolina was placed just right, and how he personally re-dug the foundation to do what he was told by Spirit. He often gave his own hard-earned money to help people build a chamber. After he retired, he shared with Elisa that he realized, in retrospect, that he spent several years of his life jet-lagged from all of the travel!
A deep understanding of inspiration has to embrace one of his other most commonly used phrases: "Work is Worship". To fully embrace inspiration means that we may be required to actually do the work needed to manifest that which has come from the state of inspiration.
Vivid dreams and inspiration brought us to Abiquiu. At our first Sun-Moon Dance on the land, we marveled at how everything we needed just appeared - a cottonwood tree, sweat lodge stones, Bill bringing the needed tool at the right moment. I was amazed that when the notion of purchasing the land arose, so many people were happy to make a donation - some of them quite substantial.
In the past couple of years, we have been at a crossroads. In order to continue to offer ceremony on the land, we need a safe space: a space to prepare food, a space to get out of the elements for a time, a place to sleep that isn't a tent! We struggled with uncertainty about what to build, how to manifest the resources needed for building, how to manage time and travel, and the reality that many of us are getting older and have physical limitations (not me, though). It has been unclear to me so far how we should go about building local community.
A beginning...
Today, August 31st, work began on the roof of our 18'x24' adobe. We are in the "work as worship" phase of inspiration. We are in the trust what is in front of us phase of inspiration. We are in the place where we have started something but there is still a great mystery ahead.
So, what happened today? The lumber arrived on a very big truck. A snake appeared from the space where adobe meets wood on the top of the walls. It rained three times - the first a light blessing rain, the third a short burst of hail! There was a lot of measuring going on. A modern transit carefully examined mud and straw blocks glued together by earth and water. I learned that instead of having a 24-foot building it is actually 24', one and a half inches! My heart opened in gratitude for this gentle, patient and heart-centered crew chief named Gilberto.
There was not a lot to show for today's work. But let's take a moment to reflect on what we are doing using Joseph's key to the metaphors behind the letters/ sounds.
We are raising a ROOF
R = radiating light
OO or u = to carry, being carried
F = faith
So, to raise a roof is to embrace the "radiating light that carries faith".
Faith is something that is tested. Faith grows in the garden of mystery. As humans, we can approach mystery with fear and doubt. Or, we can approach mystery with love and fluidity and humility and curiosity.
We are moving forward with this building. I don't always know why. But when my body walks on this land and my soul drinks the beauty of the surroundings through my eyes, something happens inside. Maybe its love. Maybe its grace. Maybe its listening. Maybe its duty. To me, it's still a mystery. Who knows what tomorrow holds? Yes, truly, only HU (Arabic pronoun referring to God) knows what tomorrow holds!
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