I am on a social networking site with a variety of “friends” who have a diverse swath of interests. All are very interesting..and one can learn a lot and share a lot.
One group of writers are very interested in the “Life of the Mystic”, sharing back and forth all kinds of writings and quotes by the Desert Fathers of ancient times, deep ponderings on the nature of God in the Judeo-Christian traditions, and the finer points of theology and monastic life drawn from the Middle Ages.
While this is, in fact, part of my own original religious heritage and has much beauty and inspiration, my life’s experiences as a woman have unfolded in such a way as to draw me ever closer to the Feminine Face and Feminine Experience of God and the Sacred, which has been much ignored if not at times denigrated in the major traditions. The Path of the Mystic was somehow deemed to be somewhat rigorous, often apart from daily life and to be officially accessed and supported through practices , prayers and readings drawn from sacred writings and texts.
This past weekend, much of my time was spent rocking my newborn grandson, a tiny newcomer alternating between asleep and awake, between being “There” and “Here”, lying in deep peace and quietude upon my heart. His repose was awesome in those moments, full of Trust and just “Being”…nowhere to go, nothing to do, just to Dream as he continued to slowly emerge into the World, even after birth.
For this weekend, all schedules of mine, tasks and responsibilities were set aside to assist my daughter and gently rock my grandchild into this new Life, and the repose and quietude within myself brought me closer to the Holy than any reading of scripture or poetry at this time. Watching my daughter breastfeeding, nourishing and comforting this newborn in her arms while she was very still and present was a prayer of wonder and celebration, the little one just BEING in the arms, and on the Heart of the Mother, in the arms, and on the Heart of the Grandmother, and all of us (including Dad, who also is loving and strong), in the Arms of the Divine.
The Path of the Mystic does require “Time Apart” in order to witness the small daily miracles that are ever present, and that fill us with a sense of awe and wonder. The Path of the Mystic can immerse us in Beauty and move us to tears or prayers of gratitude and praise for the sacred surprises and Mysteries for which we often have no words. We may trust, however, that it is in this state of Presence and Soulfulness , blessed by Grace, that ordinary experiences are illumined and made extraordinary by stillness, awareness and just being. (As an indigenous teacher once said “We are here to become human Be-ings, not merely human Do-ings).
We need not always enter the desert to find the Holy. And that is something many Women have come to know since the lives of Mothers and Grandmothers often involve constant involvement in the lives of others. As the ones who physically give birth, and are often in charge of the care and feeding of others, giving out nourishment and support at all levels within the family system, the Time Apart to feed the Mystic within ourselves may be experienced in the brief and simple moments of being in the garden, tending a wonderful pot of soup…or rocking a newborn.
And that IS a form of very personal Sacred Scripture on the path towards the Feminine Face of God.
The Greening Spirit 