The world is divided into people who think they are right. ~Tara Brach
It took me a few seconds to understand that there was no more to this sentence. Each side of the divide claims the higher ground of being right, being righteous, being morally superior, being more ethical, being smarter, being better.
This morning I drew three cards from a deck loosely based on the Yi Jing (I Ching), translated as the Book of Changes, a Chinese “oracle” that goes back thousands of years. I put oracle in quotation marks because we often think of the term oracle in connection to fortune telling. This is not a book that purports to tell the future as much as, at least to me, it sometimes offers insight into the movement and direction of energy in present circumstances.
The first card I drew is called Inner Truth, and is described as the wisdom of the heart, the wisdom that penetrates illusion. This wisdom draws us down from the busyness of thought in our mind, where illusion is generated, into the quiet intuitive awareness of awakened consciousness. Inner truth is revealed in stillness, a silence that allows us to hear the whispered guidance of spirit.
The second card is titled Peace. Peace results from inner alignment and balance, an attunement to the vibration and movement of creation. This inner alignment and balance is our natural state, which we experience when we cease to struggle and allow our natural harmony to emerge.
The third card is Opposition, which describes, as you would expect, conflict. This conflict could be external, between people, communities, nations. To me, however, the most basic and significant opposition or conflict, the one we most often overlook, is the one we experience within ourselves, which is then expanded and reflected by the conflict we experience with others and with our circumstances.
What I see when I put these cards together is a way of approaching an experience of conflict or struggle. When I perceive a situation as a vying for rightness between competing sides, I have a choice. I can get drawn into the combative tension, or I can step back into a quiet place of stillness and listen for inner guidance. This inner wisdom can penetrate all illusion and align me in peace. From that state of peace, I can respond rather than react. What that looks like in any particular situation is unknowable in advance. I will speak or act (or not speak or not act, depending on the guidance) from an awakened heart of fearless compassion.
I’m glad I drew these cards this morning. It seems like a good way to start the year, with a reminder that any resolution of conflict begins with an awareness of the struggle within, and ends with compassion, extended internally and externally, in whatever form that takes. I can allow inner truth to bring peace to opposition. I can be a repairer of the breach.
You shall be like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called repairers of the breach. ~Isaiah 58:11-12
Inner truth, peace and opposition . . . I do feel that this is a prediction for 2021, Galen. I know next to nothing about these card decks, but I truly believe that God speaks to us honestly and without reservation when He wants His message heard. May we be like springs of water never failing and repair the breach in our nation.
ReplyDeleteBlessings!
I love that phrase -- repairers of the breach. I love that whole verse.
DeleteI have several different decks of "oracle" cards, each with a different focus. They have beautiful illustrations and I enjoy using them in different ways. This deck, as I said, is based on an ancient Chinese book called the I Ching. If you look at the picture at the top of the post, you will see some hexagrams (each with six lines) in the bottom right corner of each card. These hexagrams are really the basis of the cards. Anyway, I often get some insightful guidance. As you said, God's message will be communicated one way or another if we are listening and paying attention. Happy New Year to you and your family.
What a beautiful life goal, to be a "repairer of the breach." Sometimes it's easy to wish others would choose to repair, but it must start within us. Thank you for this post, Galen. May you have a blessed 2021!
ReplyDeleteYes, Pam, it starts with us. Always. I often forget that, especially when I want someone or something to be different from what it is. That verse reminds me that any struggle or conflict originates in my own spirit. Repairing the breach within then allows me to engage with others and with circumstances with my whole self. Happy New Year to you too!
DeleteHi Galen! Thank you for such a good reminder of how everything starts with us. What's the saying? "We don't see the world as it is, we see the world that we are." Not that I'm crazy about this idea but that when I entertain the thoughts I can nearly always see that I am a common denominator. And thanks also for your interpretation from the I Ching. Back many, many, many years ago I bought the book (well an interpretation of it) and attempted to learn how to cast the sticks. The messages were just too complex for my young mind to comprehend so I gave it up. But I do still have that book. Maybe it's time to pull it out and see why I've kept it all these years. ~Kathy
ReplyDeleteYes, that is a great quote, Kathy. It is usually attributed to Anais Nin, but I believe she was actually quoting someone else, a Rabbi as I recall. I chuckled at your common denominator observation. I told a friend once that in reviewing all my relationships that had not gone well, both friendships and romances, I realized that I was the common denominator in all of them. Hmmm....
DeleteThe I Ching, like the Tao Te Ching, is cryptic and its fluid meanings are often elusive. There are some more modern translations that are a little more accessible, but of course, you are always then seeing it through the eyes of the translator. Paraphrasing the quote, you are seeing the text as the translator is!
Anyway, I like this deck -- you can use it in lots of ways. If you are interested, shoot me an email and I'll send you the link. galenpearl@gmail.com
Thanks for commenting, Kathy.
The catch is in being able to stay in that spot when the opposition ignores the rules. I am getting better at it, though.
ReplyDeleteYes, that is difficult, CW. Chapter 2 of the Tao Te Ching speaks to the illusion of opposites/opposition. I always find that chapter helpful.
DeleteHi Galen, I think for me these three cards are a good set up for the weeks and months to come in a new year which is going to be tough going. In the UK covid cases and deaths are accelerating due to the new strains, and there is a 'race on' to 'roll out' the vaccines as fast as possible. Full lockdown once again. So there is this, and Brexit, and the conflict over the pond and elsewhere. We can't control all this external conflict and associated oppositions but we can try to address how they affect us as individuals, bring some inner calm and balance to the inner conflicts which may be triggered off by the externals. The three cards serve to prime us for what is to come and to have compassion at the ready for ourselves and others - to connect instead of disconnect. (It's really interesting to see you using these cards) Cheers, Galen
ReplyDeleteAs I read your description of the issues we face at the beginning of 2021, I was struck once again by the contrast to how we began 2020. To think that a year has passed....
DeleteYou commented on my use of the cards. If you want to know more, send me an email.
Thanks for commenting, Lynne, and happy new year from across the pond!
I found your card very interesting. I liked your last thought below:
ReplyDelete"Inner truth to bring peace to opposition. I can be a repairer of the breach."
Isaiah is a wonderful prophet with deep thoughts. I feel like this scriptures is about the Savior and what he will do. However, to make it more applicable to our own life it is for us to help to be repairers of the breach in our lives and perhaps in helping others too. I did enjoy your thoughts today.
You shall be like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called repairers of the breach. ~Isaiah 58:11-12
Blessings and hugs!
Isaiah is my favorite book in the Bible -- such beautiful imagery and inspiration. As you said, we can all be repairers of the breach. Thanks for commenting, LeAnn.
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