The art of seeing everything as divine
Meditations from Einstein, Akbar, and Massey: three small doorways, into the infinite
Today, I’m sharing with you three meditations, from physicists and poets alike, on mystery, beauty, and the sacred.
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But first: a reminder that we have a Candlelight Chat this Sunday, on Zoom, at 1 pm ET! This one will be a cozy “Just Us” session - I’ll take your questions, and we can also discuss topics that are on your mind.
If you have questions for me to consider in advance, or suggestions for our time together, please leave a comment, at the bottom of this post. As always, you’ll be able to participate actively if you wish to (via the written chat, or by coming “onstage” to talk), but you can also just watch and listen.
Log-in instructions will be sent to all paid and scholarship subscribers, the day before the event. I really hope to see you there! (And if you’d like to subscribe to a Quiet Life membership, and join us on Sunday, you can do that here.)
“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed. This insight into the mystery of life, coupled though it be with fear, has also given rise to religion. To know that what is impenetrable to us really exists, manifesting itself as the highest wisdom and the most radiant beauty which our dull faculties can comprehend only in their most primitive forms — this knowledge, this feeling, is at the center of true religiousness. In this sense, and in this sense only, I belong in the ranks of devoutly religious men.” — Albert Einstein
“The great Persian poet Hafez wrote, ‘Start seeing everything as God, but keep it a secret.’ I still have no idea what I mean when I say God, but I see it everywhere. I mean it intensely.” — Kaveh Akbar
“Art, poetry, music, all forms of true beauty, prayer, and meditation—these are the things that will save us as individuals and, if we're lucky, civilization.” – Joseph Massey
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I’d love to hear your thoughts:
*Do you resonate with these quotations?
*Do you practice the art of seeing everything as divine?
*On the spectrum of beginner to master, where do you think you are in this practice?
And - a reminder, that you should also please share, in the comments section below, any questions you’d like me to address on Sunday, as well as suggestions for what we all might like to talk about together.
You can also share today’s post with a friend, here:
I’m really looking forward to seeing you on Sunday!
xo Susan
One of the challenges for me is that although I can see the grace and divinity in nature all around me, and am in awe, I still struggle, at times, with recognizing the divine in me, the divine in all of us. Lately, I particularly struggle with making sense of the cruelty and violence in our country and in the world, and it brings me to tears. Divine tears, I would say, of compassion and overwhelming sadness. I imagine God must indeed be weeping these days.....
I find it easy to connect with Massy's quote. Art forms, prayer, meditation - they have all saved me in a sense. I feel closer to God through these practices. And even when not practicing them, the peace they give extends outside the actual "doing." Seeing everyone as divine is more challenging. The woman who gave me the finger on the road yesterday and the president who treats human beings as cattle do not persuade me to see anything divine in them. I try, but it is beyond my current level of imagination.