The best classroom in the world

It’s those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular.

This recently came into our inbox:

If you will take the time to read these. I promise you’ll come away with an enlightened perspective. The subjects covered affect us all on a daily basis. They’re written by Andy Rooney, a man who had the gift of saying so much with so few words.

I’ve learned…. That the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.

I’ve learned…. That when you’re in love, it shows.

I’ve learned…. That just one person saying to me, ‘You’ve made my day!’ makes my day.

I’ve learned…. That having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world.

I’ve learned…. That being kind is more important than being right.

I’ve learned…. That you should never say no to a gift from a child.

I’ve learned…. That I can always pray for someone when I don’t have the strength to help him in some other way.

I’ve learned…. That no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.

I’ve learned…. That sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.

I’ve learned…. That simple walks with my father around the block on summer nights when I was a child did wonders for me as an adult.

I’ve learned…. That life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes.

I’ve learned…. That we should be glad God doesn’t give us everything we ask for.

I’ve learned…. That money doesn’t buy class.

I’ve learned…. That it’s those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular.

I’ve learned…. That under everyone’s hard shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.

I’ve learned…. That to ignore the facts does not change the facts.

I’ve learned…. That when you plan to get even with someone, you are only letting that person continue to hurt you.

I’ve learned…. That love, not time, heals all wounds.

I’ve learned…. That the easiest way for me to grow as a person is to surround myself with people smarter than I am.

I’ve learned…. That everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.

I’ve learned…. That no one is perfect until you fall in love with them.

I’ve learned… That life is tough, but I’m tougher.

I’ve learned…. That opportunities are never lost; someone will take the ones you miss.

I’ve learned…. That when you harbor bitterness, happiness will dock elsewhere.

I’ve learned…. That I wish I could have told my Mom that I love her one more time before she passed away.

I’ve learned…. That one should keep his words both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to eat them.

I’ve learned….. That a smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.

I’ve learned….. That when your newly born grandchild holds your little finger in his little fist, that you’re hooked for life.

I’ve learned…. That everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you’re climbing it.

I’ve learned…. That the less time I have to work with, the more things I get done.

Do you have any lessons learned to add?

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Authors We Like: Rachel Naomi Remen

Rachel sees the practice of medicine as a spiritual path.

Rachel Naomi Remen is an honoured physician and a long time teacher. Her early professional life was spent immersed in the world of science. After four decades of working with cancer patients, medical academia, and her own chronic illness (the reason she doesn’t come to Australia) she has come to see that life is defined not by science, but by mystery.

She was one of the early pioneers in the mind/body holistic health movement in the US.

And like Petrea, she recognised the power and the role of spirit in maintaining health and the recovery from illness that can sometimes happen when this was not expected.

Rachel sees the practice of medicine as a spiritual path.

Teaching health professionals to remember their calling is her passion. Her holistic curriculum enables her participants to strengthen their commitment to serve life. That commitment can turn their practice around.

These same principles apply to her work with people with chronic and life threatening illness.

You can find part of this journey and revelations about her work in her two main books: Kitchen Table Wisdom and Stories My Grandfather Told Me. Both are best sellers, even though they have been in print for years. For a full list of her publications check out her website above.

Rachel has also has an audio presentation called The Will to Live and Other Mysteries which can be a good start to come to terms with her overall philosophy on life and how this applies to her teaching. If you are keen to get started try getting it on www.soundstrue.com

Her basic premise is that science cannot fully explain how we heal, and people who open to the mystery of how we heal, often against all odds, do actually heal. Healing is not always physical but in the stories she tells, many actually find peace and physical healing. Exploring the power of mystery of how we heal actually switches on the physical power to heal. “The source of wonder and hope is available to us all at any time.”

If you want to be more up to date visit her Facebook page: Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.

One of her presentations asked the questions:

What if the world is not broken?
What if fixing is too small a strategy for making a difference?
What if our power to make change is greater than the sum of our skills, our training, our education, our politics, or even our wealth?

These are great existential questions that can lead us to question the purpose and meaning of our individual lives. Whatever the questions or our path to engage with them, programs that give us a safe place to consider these questions are offered at the Quest for Life Centre on a regular basis. Those of you who have experienced a program may like to make some comments about your experience and what happened to change your view on your own life.

We welcome all contributions.

Wendie Batho

Wendie Batho

Wendie has co-facilitated residential programs with Petrea for more than sixteen years. Prior to that Wendie spent over 25 years as a teacher, school principal and was involved in educational leadership and facilitation of school executive groups.

Ten years of this time was spent in PNG where she taught and worked for the government. Wendie has been travelling since the early sixties and is especially attracted to Asian cultures. She holds degrees in Anthropology, Education, Sociology, Theology and Political Science. Her current passions are her grandchildren, travel biographies, exploring Asia, 4×4 driving, reading everything she can get her hands on, and watching movies on the big screen at home.

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Peace in our time – the joys of a blackout!

With candlelight multitasking ceases to be an option

Last night during the big storm we had a blackout for a couple of hours. As I went around the house finding matches and lighting candles, I noticed how quiet and still the house and the neighbourhood was in the dark and the rain.

I was reminded of Bernadette talking about preparing for the nighttime with a quiet ritual as we would have done in days before electricity. I imagined myself there.

There was only one thing to do at a time, you can’t see very far with candlelight so multitasking ceases to be an option! As I prepared the dinner by candlelight, I was able to be more mindful, listen to the wind, think quiet thoughts and enjoy the task at hand  (which is not how I usually feel about cooking).

I noticed a place in my awareness that seems to be always on alert, listening for the phone, hearing the tv or radio, thinking of an email needing to be sent.

I noticed a different pace in my movements as I needed to be more careful about where I was walking and placing objects and holding the candle at the same time.

I made a cup of tea and then sat down by the gas fire as there was nothing else to do. There I was, just sitting and being receptive, when my son came home and needed to talk, again, a peaceful moment presented itself to be enjoyed.

I am taking some inspiration from this unexpected experience and quietly looking forward to the next blackout!

Aurora Hammond

Aurora Hammond
M.A. Psych, B.A.Soc Stud.,Cert IV Workplace Training

Aurora Hammond has been a social worker, psychotherapist, group facilitator and trainer for over 30 years. She completed a Masters Degree in Holistic Psychology in the US in 1984 and was the founder and CEO of the College of Holistic Counselling for over 15 years.

She is the author of the book Good Grief, Healing the Broken Heart and the Pool Meditation CD.  Now working in private practice as a Medicare registered mental health social worker Aurora describes her way of working as holistic psychotherapy. She lives in Manly with her 24 year old son who has Aspergers Syndrome.

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The Role of Elders in Traditional Society

In telling the stories the Elders made sense of The People’s everyday lives.

Most traditional people just call themselves, The People. Other ways of describing traditional people is to say, First Nation People. These titles respect these people and indicate some sort of understanding of why identity is very important to THE PEOPLE.

In traditional lifestyles of our Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders the role of The Elders was paramount. The Elders held the stories and the wisdom of the past. In telling the stories the Elders made sense of The People’s everyday lives.

Knowing that the earth provides just as a mother does must be respected and cherished. It not only makes sense but it is not a mystery to be solved or ignored. Elders gave counsel to those in need; listened to the problems of the group; helped shed light on difficult situations; told and guided the young and in return they were revered, nurtured, respected and cared for until they passed on in to the spirit world.

The People looked forward to passing on; they didn’t fear it. Passing on was not dying. Life after you pass on is not an issue if your life on earth has meaning.

Meaning was in everything. Every part of creation had meaning and purpose. The People relied on each other for their very existence. Without co-operation life was impossible.

Without The Elders where would life be?

The Elders had the answers to the questions of:
Who are we?
What are we doing on the planet?
What do we need to do and who do we need to be to give our life meaning and purpose?
(Notice how it is we not ‘I’ who is asking the questions but ‘we’)

Without The Elders life was meaningless and had no purpose.

Oh Great Spirit

Make me ever ready to come to you,
With clean hands and straight eyes,
So when life fades like a fading sunset,
My spirit may come to you without shame.

Yellow Hawk
Sioux Chief

In traditional life The People had more fulfilment in their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual lives. Every part was recognised as important. They viewed their lives as whole. Surviving was about 5-10 % of their time and the rest was devoted to living and being with the group; telling stories, participating in ceremonies and rituals and having fun. In Australia it lasted for tens of thousands of years until the white people came.

What appeared to be a simple and childlike culture was actually a rich and spiritually alive life. When the white people came they saw only the externals of the life of the Aboriginal people, only the outside; and because they didn’t value or even understand their own spiritual life, the white people didn’t know what to look for in others. This pattern was repeated in Australia and throughout the world for hundreds of years until The People of the world were colonised.

In the white people’s ignorance, they almost wiped out completely lifestyles that were based on spiritual understandings.

It is that spiritual understanding that we all long for today but are too busy doing our lives to stop and reflect on what has happened to both peoples in the process. So now we have an opportunity to learn from the very people we almost destroyed.

We now long for this less sophisticated and more balanced lifestyle. It’s often called a tree change, a sea change, early retirement, getting out of the rat race, to name a few.

Some questions to reflect on:

Where do we look for some answers?
Have we finally done the full circle of development?
Are our current systems serving the people they were designed to?
Is our world working for us?
What does it take for us to embrace change?
The simple fact is that what we are doing in the world isn’t working for most of ALL the people.
What are you going to do about your life?

Change starts with each of us. As an old Jewish saying goes, “If not you, then who? If not now, then when?”

I remember reading, “when the last whale is left to die on the ocean floor we may well have killed the most intelligent species on this earth”.

What do you think about all this?

Please join us in a conversation.

Wendie Batho

Wendie Batho

Wendie has co-facilitated residential programs with Petrea for more than sixteen years. Prior to that Wendie spent over 25 years as a teacher, school principal and was involved in educational leadership and facilitation of school executive groups.

Ten years of this time was spent in PNG where she taught and worked for the government. Wendie has been travelling since the early sixties and is especially attracted to Asian cultures. She holds degrees in Anthropology, Education, Sociology, Theology and Political Science. Her current passions are her grandchildren, travel biographies, exploring Asia, 4×4 driving, reading everything she can get her hands on, and watching movies on the big screen at home.

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Carpe Diem – Seize the Day

Take a Stand for your life

Every so often, (and especially after we have encountered some life-changing experiences, whether they be illness, job-change, relationship disruptions and the like) it becomes valuable to take some time out to assess what it is that’s important and where you are headed with your life.

Having done that the next thing is to take a stand for those new directions.

Literally to take a stand for life. Your Life. Because if you don’t, no one else is going to, and you run the risk of just being another cork bobbing around on the great ocean of life.

To take such a stand for something involves being willing to take the next step on your own evolutionary journey – this precious journey that is life-long, full of surprises and unexpected events that challenge us to be more creative, more autonomous, more authentic, caring and wise.

It requires navigating and interweaving both the ‘inside work’ and our involvement with the world at large.

Almost by definition it’s the stand that you may have been putting off, avoiding, dancing around or outright denying, and yet, deep in your heart, you know it’s a step that must be taken if you are going to achieve what it is you have set out to do for yourself and your loved ones.

Taking a Stand is most powerful when taken after a period of reflection on three things: your journey so far, what’s important right now, and what will take you towards your goals and thus fulfill your sense of purpose.

It also requires that we develop new skills to overcome the hurdles that may have tripped us up in the past, or to speak some truths or set some boundaries that may have been too difficult to do up until now.

It requires courage and is not always easy… it’s often like trying to get out of the box you feel trapped in when the instructions for getting out are written on the outside of the box!

And yet, with the right reflection, taking time to slow down enough to contact the deeper places of clarity and simplicity inside, clarity does come, and with it, the commitment to step forward. To do this in the company of others who are willing to do what you are doing and in an environment that is both accepting and supportive of your process is a rare opportunity.

Such an opportunity exists on the ‘Take a Stand for Life Program’ being run by Quest for Life starting on March 12th.

You can expect at least two things from attending the Take a Stand Program:
• a powerful step forward along your evolutionary journey, and
• taking away with you a rich bag full of insights, understandings and skills that will support you on that journey right through your precious life.

For details of the March Take a Stand for Life program click here or call us on 1300 941 488.

But don’t delay, the Universe rewards those that are willing to take action. Carpe diem!

And if you’re one of those lovely people who have taken ‘Take a Stand for Life’ in the past and want to share your experiences of the course, please feel free to add your two bob’s worth below.

Thank you.

All the best StJohn
Facilitator of the Take a Stand for Life program.

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Oneness Meditation

Petrea wanted to share these events with you:

An opportunity to settle the chatter in the mind and to connect you with your essence

Petrea King, Bernadette Arena and Wendie Batho travelled to India in 2010 to meet with Sri AmmaBhagavan and to receive (and to give) the Oneness Blessing. It is now available to everyone here in Australia. You may find it a wonderful opportunity to settle the chatter in the mind and to connect you with your essence – or ‘first’ nature.

A New Deeksha being introduced worldwide by Oneness University is now available in Australia

Namaste Dearest Blessing Givers & Oneness Participants

The outreach of Oneness University and the gift of spiritual nurturing and awakening offered by Sri AmmaBhagavan has been released over the years in waves in accordance with Humanity’s response to the outflowing energies. The latest outpouring of Grace is taking the form of an eye-deeksha and is known as the Oneness Meditation. This new deeksha has only so far been introduced in a few countries around the world and now it is Australia’s turn.

To begin with Pasquo and I have been initiated to be instruments for this new deeksha, with other trainers around Australia to be initiated soon. We have begun facilitating this Oneness Meditation here in Adelaide with very powerful results and amazing feedback and reports of miracles from the participants. Oneness Trainers in different parts of Australia have invited us to come and share the deeksha with their groups so that the benediction of the Oneness Meditation can spread quickly to their oneness participants around the country. So programs have been scheduled for Sydney, NSW Central Coast, Melbourne and Perth, with programs also continuing here in Adelaide in the next few weeks. We have included the program details below.

What is the Oneness Meditation
This is a group Meditation where powerful Divine energies flow through the initiated person who acts as an instrument for the transfer of the blessing to the group through eye contact with each participant. The eye contact allows the Divine energies to flow, giving a very powerful Deeksha to the those present. This energy helps to awaken one’s inner Divine intelligence leading to an accelerated process of awakening.

As most of you are aware 2012 is a very important year. We are in a window of opportunity to accelerate our personal growth. We have the power of choice to steer our own destiny. This deeksha is potent enough to allow incredible breakthroughs in all areas of our everyday life. The feedback we have received so far verifies this with those who received this eye deeksha here in Adelaide reporting incredible immediate shifts in their consciousness and the way they experience their life. A lady who had experienced prolonged depression and loss of faith in life had a complete shift of consciousness and reported how if she revisits the thoughts that were troubling her previously there is no emotional charge present any more. Previously she cried every time she had these thoughts. When she got out of bed the morning following the deeksha, she felt good and had a completely positive outlook on her life with a complete shift in perception from the previous long-experienced despair.

Sri Bhagavan has stated that the power of this eye deeksha will accelerate the personal awakening of all who receive it. Conditioning and obstacles to spiritual growth can be removed plus positive gains in health, wealth and happiness can be experienced. The deeksha facilitates healing, on a physical, emotional and mental level and the healing required for the opening up into right relationships with all people in your life

The Oneness Meditation is offered to all people of all denominations, races, creeds and walks of life. No prior experience of Oneness events is necessary in order to participate. So please share this wonderful opportunity and invite friends, family and work colleagues to experience this new benediction and gift for all. We hope you can join us and experience this Oneness Meditation first hand and see the changes for yourself.

Program Details
Sydney – Saturday 18th February – North Sydney
Bookings & details:
Gaynor – Tel: 02 9411 6886   Email: info@sydneyoneness.com.au
Dinah & Kaya – Tel: 02 95686513 Email: dinah64@tpg.com.au

Central Coast NSW- 19th February – Terrigal
Bookings & Details:
Alun and Marion Vaughan (02) 4385 7672Email: alunv@optusnet.com.au

Adelaide – Fullarton – 26th February
Bookings & Details:
Lisa & Pasquo – Tel: 08 83385642 Email: info@onenesscentre.com.au

Melbourne – 2nd & 3rd March
Bookings & Details:
Brandon & Rochelle – Mob: 0400 619 785 Email: brandongiffard@hotmail.com

Perth – Fremantle – 17th, 18th  March.
Bookings & Details:
Isha – Tel: 08 93364684  Email: openheart@aapt.net.au

We hope that each and every one of you will take up this opportunity to participate in this new deeksha and encourage as many of your blessing participants, friends and family to do so also. It matters not whether you received the deeksha yesterday, years ago or you have never even heard of the Oneness Blessing before, this new Oneness Meditation is a gift  for everyone. Please find the flyer attached with all the details and some feedback below from those who have received the new deeksha.

We hope you can join us and look forward to coming back to Sydney this week and sharing this gift from Amma Bhagavan.

Love & Blessings
Lisa & Pasquo

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Now is the time to…

Now is the time....

Now is the time to…
value wisdom
Don’t underestimate the value of knowledge,
yours or others.
Seek out those who’ve been there.
Ask them what they’ve learned.
Listen to them.
Distil their wisdom.
Apply it to your journey.

From…..Now Is the Time – 170 ways to seize the moment
by Patrick Lindsay

Alexia Miall

Alexia Miall

Alexia’s career began in banking and then moved via advertising to a major career change in 1980 to Adult and Transformational Education.  She has been privileged to share this incredible journey with 1000’s of like minded souls through her extensive experience as a facilitator, trainer, life coach, therapist, and mentor.  She managed her own training company in Victoria during the 1990’s, and during this time was the Course Leader for a training program from which the Banksia Environmental Foundation formed.

Alexia has acquired further education in Adult Education in Training; Somatic Psychotherapy; Life Coaching; Conflict Resolution; plus Accreditation in many behavioural and culture change models. She is an Associate of EcoSTEPS, a niche Sustainability consultancy, which supports her love of the natural environment.

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Blessed with Life

Blessed with Life

I sometimes feel as though I have the weight of the world on my shoulders. After all, there seems to be so much to worry about.

For example, here are just a few of my incessant worries.

• Money – will we ever have enough? Will we be safe?
• My teenagers’ safety – will they come home again when I kiss them goodbye?
• The state of the world – will we blow ourselves up? Will we run out of water, clean air and clean food?
• Illness – will I get cancer, heart disease or diabetes?

It goes on and on doesn’t it? It’s enough to give anyone a panic attack!

I have struggled with worry all my life. As a psychotherapist, I have pretty well worked out the psychological roots of my anxiety and as a result, I can choose better responses to situations and I use various strategies to calm my over stimulated nervous system.

This has certainly helped but worry is still present and emerges in my dreams, in arguments with my husband, in ever-present fear and in my relationship with abundance and money.

In my heart of hearts I have always known that there is more to life than worry, which has inspired me to keep seeking ‘solutions’ to ‘problems’.

Thanks to my determination (and to the wisdom and love of my ever patient husband), I think I have found a large piece of the puzzle. Hallelujah! I must be a slow learner but after years of searching, talking, teaching, reading, meditating and praying, I think I understand the following…

Life is a gift

Life as me is really short

Every moment I live is one more blessed moment to delight in and love

Every breath is another gift to be deeply appreciated

There are plenty of people, now passed, who would swap with my circumstances for another moment of this precious wonder – life.

So, I intend to do what I can to address my issues as they arise and then I intend to live each day. Really live, rather than wasting this precious gift looking for quick fixes and lost in thoughts about future catastrophes that may or may not eventuate.

And I wish you the same bright awakening. I expect that there will be days when I do this well and days when I get lost again but I think I have finally found something worth tattooing on my arm…

Margie Braunstein

Margie Braunstein

Margie is a somatic psychotherapist and counsellor providing psychotherapy services to the people of the Central Coast and Sydney.  Margie lives on the beautiful Central Coast with her husband, two children, two dogs and a cat.

Over the last 12 years, Margie has also been engaged in the design, delivery and marketing of transformational learning programs. During this time she has regularly facilitated personal development programs for up to 50 people on weekend workshops, week-long intensives and advanced programs of 3-4 months.

Margie has a Graduate Certificate in Adult Education from UTS, Diploma in Psychotherapy from the Australian College of Contemporary Somatic Psychotherapy and qualifications in somatic therapy, executive coaching and relationship counselling.

Margie has a passion for personal development and regards people with respect, empathy and compassion in the belief that while we all do the best we can, a little bit more kindness and care can lead to even greater peace and joy in life.

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The absent mind

"You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you might find, you get what you need"- Rolling Stones

The other night I was watching a TV show in which the Rolling Stones were performing when they were young men. They were so full of energy. Mick was his usual cheeky / seductive self. Keith had that serious look on his face.  I noticed myself thinking “if only I had a DVD, I could watch them being so young and beautiful any time I wanted”.

I went off into a long daydream about when I would watch the DVD and how great that would feel. I could see myself reliving all my old favourite songs and I could just picture myself rocking to this great band who served as a back drop to my adolescence.  I started thinking about the group of friends I had when I was 16…

Then, in a blinding flash of awareness, I noticed I had missed the last 5 minutes of the program! I realised I was completely missing the experience of actually watching them at that moment, in the present.  I had a good laugh at myself when I noticed what I had been doing…

I did not buy a DVD of the Rolling Stones because I received something much better. The gift of insight. So I blew Mick and the boys a silent kiss of gratitude, put my credit card back in my imaginary wallet and enjoyed what was left of the documentary resolving to keep my busy mind present rather than absent more often. Now I can definitely get some satisfaction that way!

Watching the mind gives us so much information. I wonder, have you ever caught yourself doing something similar?

Much love and satisfaction to all

Margie

 

Margie Braunstein

Margie Braunstein

Margie is a somatic psychotherapist and counsellor providing psychotherapy services to the people of the Central Coast and Sydney.  Margie lives on the beautiful Central Coast with her husband, two children, two dogs and a cat.

Over the last 12 years, Margie has also been engaged in the design, delivery and marketing of transformational learning programs. During this time she has regularly facilitated personal development programs for up to 50 people on weekend workshops, week-long intensives and advanced programs of 3-4 months.

Margie has a Graduate Certificate in Adult Education from UTS, Diploma in Psychotherapy from the Australian College of Contemporary Somatic Psychotherapy and qualifications in somatic therapy, executive coaching and relationship counselling.

Margie has a passion for personal development and regards people with respect, empathy and compassion in the belief that while we all do the best we can, a little bit more kindness and care can lead to even greater peace and joy in life.

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Some Thoughts on Meditation

"if I could only find the right practice for me, my life would open up and I would find enlightenment"

I am constantly researching and wanting to simplify my ideas as I have spent years thinking that if I could only find the right practice for me, my life would open up and I would find enlightenment or at least a constant state of peace! Given all the people we talk to on our programs and in our lives, those ideals and similar ones have a lot of followers.

A lot of us are searching for the “right” path to peace. It goes something like this. “if I can only do this, THIS, THIS  and THIS, then THAT will happen.

I don’t know about you but life here on planet earth just doesn’t work like THAT at all.

In fact the opposite usually happens. It seems we all may be trying too hard to get it right.

So here are a few thoughts for your consideration from people who are meant to know something about meditation.

Buddhist meditation teacher, Jack Kornfield, says “When I meditate, I don’t really seek anything. I sit. I open myself. I don’t try to do anything. My life is my life and it’s not about changing it. That’s what meditation can do – it can help us find a great space of awareness that allows us to see the dance of life and participate in it without getting so caught up in it.”

What he is saying is that life is one circumstance after another in which to learn. It is the realisation that life is like this that gives us an opportunity to see life as not about success or failure but about experience that we can learn from. Jack Kornfield also says that in the ups and downs of life, there’s a place within us all that is still, wakeful, and compassionate. No matter what happens we can tune into that, rather than allow our mind to dominate the situation and take us in to negative territory.

He says that meditation empowers us to see things clearly and be gracious with the ever changing flow of life.

The message is that believing that if I follow this particular path I won’t suffer. It sets up an exam to try to get it right all the time.

What do you think and what is your experience here?

Sally Kempton, author of Meditation for the Love of It says the first step in loving meditation is to kindle a genuine interest, a relaxed curiosity, about what you’ll find when you turn inside. Sally says to take the attitude of an explorer, meditating to discover the pathways into your own being. She encourages people to take a playful attitude toward their practice instead of being terribly serious about it all. In other words engage the sense of humour and explore our inner selves.

What I like about her approach is our practice needs to be one that helps us to touch into the experience of essence, the inner self, the field of clarity and presence in our heart.

With practice we can return to this place all the time and it becomes more real than our emotions. So our inner self becomes a refuge from our thoughts, emotions and everything really. We are not our minds, we are not our emotions, we are not our bodies, we are consciousness, energy, spirit, however we want to describe it. Having a lightness about our approach and giving ourselves permission to be playful really appeals to me.

Again, what are your responses to Sally Kempton?

Tami Simon from Sounds True says Sally’s book is the best she has read on meditation. And Tami started Sounds True and has listened and read everything on meditation

Finally, Eckhart Tolle, says on his website that “the realm of consciousness is much vaster than thought can grasp. When you no longer believe everything you think, you step out of thought and see clearly that the thinker is not who you are”.

Isn’t that a relief? To find out who we really are requires finding a practice that connects us with our inner being, whatever we want to call it.

Most of us who have followed Eckhart know that the Tolle view of meditation and its ultimate essence is realising the precious spaciousness that is available in every moment.

Tolle says to be really here now requires practice, like any other skill worth learning. Meditation deepens the realisation of our essential nature – the unified consciousness that lives in all things. Meditation gives us freedom from the illusion of separation from the outside world.

The challenge of our time is to reconcile the inner movement towards stillness and being, and the outer toward action and doing.

What he is saying seems to be saying is the universe not only wants outward movement, but it also wants inward movement – the return movement to the One. Every human being also embodies these two movements. It seems that we are torn sometimes between the outward movement into form, and the inward movement to the source where it all started. The Source was never really lost, it is because it is timeless, and it is within us. We feel drawn back to that, and that is the pull toward spirituality, peace, stillness.

Not one or other is right or wrong. It’s only perhaps if we totally lose ourselves in one or the other. Perhaps this is the challenge, to reconcile the two movements, rather than to have them be separate.

I don’t know about you, but I can find something in all three perspectives.

The challenge for all of us is to find what works for us and just practice.

Wendie Batho

Wendie Batho

Wendie has co-facilitated residential programs with Petrea for more than sixteen years. Prior to that Wendie spent over 25 years as a teacher, school principal and was involved in educational leadership and facilitation of school executive groups.

Ten years of this time was spent in PNG where she taught and worked for the government. Wendie has been travelling since the early sixties and is especially attracted to Asian cultures. She holds degrees in Anthropology, Education, Sociology, Theology and Political Science. Her current passions are her grandchildren, travel biographies, exploring Asia, 4×4 driving, reading everything she can get her hands on, and watching movies on the big screen at home.

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