Skip to main content

A Powerful Heart

So much to say on this topic, but for now I'll leave it to the Sufi Master...


The wise man should keep the balance between love and power; he should keep the love in his nature ever increasing and expanding, and at the same time strengthen the will so that the heart may not easily be broken.
                        Bowl of Saki, January 21, by Hazrat Inayat Khan
Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:
Many seek protection from all hurting influences by building some wall around themselves. But the canopy over the earth is so high that a wall cannot be built high enough, and the only thing one can do is to live in the midst of all inharmonious influences, to strengthen his will power and to bear all things, yet keeping the fineness of character and a nobleness of manner together with an ever-living heart. To become cold with the coldness of the world is weakness, and to become broken by the hardness of the world is feebleness, but to live in the world and yet to keep above the world is like walking on the water. There are two essential duties for the man of wisdom and love; that is to keep the love in our nature ever increasing and expanding and to strengthen the will so that the heart may not be easily broken. Balance is ideal in life; man must be fine and yet strong, man must be loving and yet powerful.
   from  http://wahiduddin.net/mv2/XIII/XIII_14.htm

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Name of the New Game

Four years ago I moved home to be a part of a growing movement for civil rights and social justice in the South. I have learned many, many lessons and found great clarity along the way.  In these four years, I have confirmed that the Southern Powers That Be are— surprise —still quite conservative. Not only in political persuasion, but perhaps more consequentially in tolerance of risk, of trying new things, of investing in people and ideas that have moved the needle towards justice and equality.  In these four years, I have also confirmed my long-held belief that— surprise again —the South is not universally conservative. Courageous Southerners (native and adopted!) are working on reversing all manner of injustices incurred in this generation and those long past—from public education to women’s rights to justice reform and beyond. Many are my friends. All of them are my heroes.  And after four years of Life-As-A-Progressive-Southerner-Living-In-The-South, I ha...

The Incident

About two months ago, a man attacked me on my street.  I was walking home from dinner on a Tuesday night.  The street lights were bright, as was my mood.  I remember feeling particularly good about life.  And then he approached me from behind, grabbed me (not my purse), and turned my world upside down.  Three days after The Incident, bolstered by incredible support from friends, family and coworkers, I was in therapy.  Not the scary kind, but the comforting you-should-get-this-out-before-it-scars-you kind.  I couldn't stand the idea that this one person had instantly changed my character--that he had made me reconsider my notions of humanity and respect. Before The Incident, I was a person that loved someone before I met them; the girl who smiles and says hello to strangers on the street. All of the sudden, I couldn't bear sunlight on my own.  Walking from my front door to my car--a mere 100 yards away--was a journey of epic proportions, eac...

Delinquent/Standard

I have been a delinquent contributor to my own life.  Thus, my absence on my blog.  I've let go, lost focus.  Fumbling on the thread of balance, I am a distracted version of the self I want to be.  *** There's this Standard.  It's something I've always held myself to, even when I was a little girl.  I was always quick to admit guilt or shortcoming, even before my parents or teachers had a chance to point it out.  I figured if I fessed up ahead of time, I would be a step ahead in the right direction.  That much closer to being better.  I have always wanted to be better.  Never good enough as I am.  And so I have lived my days, pursuing a standard set only by myself, expected only by my own imagination, and threatened only by my own demons. I do not feel sorry for myself with this Standard.  Our world is filled with them.  Those we seek; those we avoid.  Standards we contrive on our own (hello, adolescent Caroli...