Love is Real

Love is Real

This evening I will share a beautiful poem that I read while visiting my Love on my last trip to New York...

A Lover's Call XXVII - Khalil Gibran

Where are you, my beloved? Are you in that little 

Paradise, watering the flowers who look upon you 

As infants look upon the breast of their mothers? 

Or are you in your chamber where the shrine of 

Virtue has been placed in your honor, and upon 

Which you offer my heart and soul as sacrifice? 

Or amongst the books, seeking human knowledge, 

While you are replete with heavenly wisdom? 

Oh companion of my soul, where are you? Are you 

Praying in the temple? Or calling Nature in the 

Field, haven of your dreams? 

Are you in the huts of the poor, consoling the 

Broken-hearted with the sweetness of your soul, and 

Filling their hands with your bounty? 

You are God's spirit everywhere; 

You are stronger than the ages. 

Do you have memory of the day we met, when the halo of 

You spirit surrounded us, and the Angels of Love 

Floated about, singing the praise of the soul's deed? 

Do you recollect our sitting in the shade of the 

Branches, sheltering ourselves from Humanity, as the ribs 

Protect the divine secret of the heart from injury? 

Remember you the trails and forest we walked, with hands 

Joined, and our heads leaning against each other, as if 

We were hiding ourselves within ourselves? 

Recall you the hour I bade you farewell, 

And the Maritime kiss you placed on my lips? 

That kiss taught me that joining of lips in Love 

Reveals heavenly secrets which the tongue cannot utter! 

That kiss was introduction to a great sigh, 

Like the Almighty's breath that turned earth into man. 

That sigh led my way into the spiritual world, 

Announcing the glory of my soul; and there 

It shall perpetuate until again we meet. 

I remember when you kissed me and kissed me, 

With tears coursing your cheeks, and you said, 

"Earthly bodies must often separate for earthly purpose, 

And must live apart impelled by worldly intent. 

"But the spirit remains joined safely in the hands of 

Love, until death arrives and takes joined souls to God. 

"Go, my beloved; Love has chosen you her delegate; 

Over her, for she is Beauty who offers to her follower 

The cup of the sweetness of life. 

As for my own empty arms, your love shall remain my 

Comforting groom; you memory, my Eternal wedding." 

Where are you now, my other self? Are you awake in 

The silence of the night? Let the clean breeze convey 

To you my heart's every beat and affection. 

Are you fondling my face in your memory? That image 

Is no longer my own, for Sorrow has dropped his 

Shadow on my happy countenance of the past. 

Sobs have withered my eyes which reflected your beauty 

And dried my lips which you sweetened with kisses. 

Where are you, my beloved? Do you hear my weeping 

From beyond the ocean? Do you understand my need? 

Do you know the greatness of my patience? 

Is there any spirit in the air capable of conveying 

To you the breath of this dying youth? Is there any 

Secret communication between angels that will carry to 

You my complaint? 

Where are you, my beautiful star? The obscurity of life 

Has cast me upon its bosom; sorrow has conquered me. 

Sail your smile into the air; it will reach and enliven me! 

Breathe your fragrance into the air; it will sustain me! 

Where are you, me beloved? 

Oh, how great is Love! 

And how little am I!

@LoveKaruna (Twitter)

Tai Chi changed my life!

Today was Tai Chi Sunday. I absolutely love this day of the week. I wake up early-ish, put on my Tai Chi clothes and head to the Taoist Tai Chi Society on Bathurst, just south of St. Clair. I've been doing this every Sunday for the last 4 months and it's probably one of my favourite things to do all week. It's kind of like a hot Epsom salt bath at the end of a tough day, except the tough day is actually a tough, long week of work, school and life stress compressing down into this one little area around the base of my neck and shoulders. Incredibly, Tai Chi has the ability to relieve a lot of that tension in just 2 hours! Each and every time I walk out of the building I feel centered, at peace and ready to take on the world again. I would say it's one of the most important factors in health maintenance that I've included in my regimen so far. 

(On a side note: Taoist Tai Chi is a form of Tai Chi - a Chinese martial art - which was modified by Taoist monk Moy Lin-shin to increase the health benefits of this internal art and with more of a focus on compassionate awareness for all beings on Earth.)

When I do Tai Chi my mind is clear, I am focused and I feel relaxed...but it hasn't always been this way. Tai Chi is not a physically challenging activity, at least not for a young, fit woman like myself, but it used to challenge me mentally quite a bit in the beginning. When I first started and I learned that there were 108 moves to the whole set that I was eventually supposed to know, the task seemed daunting and near impossible for me. (I can be the kind of person that doesn't like to make mistakes and I also want to get it fast, otherwise I just want to give up). I kept doubting myself or pressuring myself to work so hard to perfect each move and commit it to memory along the way. But the best advice that I kept receiving again and again was that I didn't need to memorize everything; I just needed to 'watch and do, watch and do' and eventually the little nuances would work themselves out. And how true that was.

I realized that it was all the thinking that was creating a barrier for me to fully engage in the experience and to learn. It even prevented me from really enjoying Tai Chi, which is what I was there for. Every time I thought to myself, "am I doing this right? what comes next?" or worse, when I criticized myself, "ah man, you messed up again! you should know this by now!", I was removing myself from the present moment, from what I was actually doing. (I don't know about you, but to me the present moment is where it's at. I am alive right now and I want to feel as great as possible for every nanosecond that it's true). So I made the decision to just let it all go. I reminded myself that the whole reason I started Tai Chi was to have just a couple hours a week out of my busy schedule all for myself to relax.

Now I simply watch and do, I let go and I let my muscles do all of the memorization. My whole being can now enjoy the experience as I allow myself to flow fluidly like a river through the sequence of moves. I often go into a meditational state when the whole group is doing a set, moving together in synchronicity. It is really beautiful. I guess that's why they call it a moving meditation. Anyway, I encourage anyone and everyone to try it. Contrary to popular belief, Tai Chi is not just for old people to be done in the park at dawn. If you're interested in learning more about Tai Chi, here's the website - http://www.taoist.org/ - where you can find more information about the founding principles of this internal art and a lot more of the benefits on the mind and body.

Here's a video of the founder, Master Moy, doing a full, 108-move set of Taoist Tai Chi. As smooth as silk!

@LoveKaruna (Twitter)

Embracing Love

Embracing Love

I wrote this today, very much inspired by J. Krishnamurti...

"When your mind is fully present, in its awakened state, only Love will exist. The so-called evils of the world will cease to exist since they derive from your lack of attention, which divides your mind. Begin with yourself, bringing your mind to a state of Love. Each time your mind becomes distracted by illusions of evil, return once again to a state of Love."

Every day I practice this, embracing thoughts of Love and Peace in my mind, and I see how they have become a natural part of my thinking, thus creating this as my reality. I still have moments where negative thoughts and emotions rise up inside of me, but I tell myself that I do not need to dwell on them, that they are only temporary. I know it is not an easy task, as most of us have been conditioned to worry and to harbor negative feelings when things appear to be going wrong, but these are often temporary and unreal. 

Deepak Chopra said "intention is a force in nature". We must remember that our minds were built to create. It is their job to create the world which our ideas produce and so the more we allow our minds to be in a state of negativity, the more we will produce just that. It is the intention behind your thoughts which holds power. The more we give to the collective consciousness of the world, the more we have the ability to create positive change. But the change must first come from the individual. It must come from you.

@LoveKaruna (Twitter)