thought this was quite unique in the swirl of recent email. still thinking it through for myself, but think it might have something about invitation-writing and the opening of space. also perhaps related to my previous wonderings about those times when open space is perceived as more threat than opportunity. michael
Birrell Walsh wrote: > KQED, San Francisco's Public Television station has a weekly > news show called This Week in Northern California. On > October 12, 2001, one of the guests by telephone from > Islamabad was Asra Nomani, an Indian-American journalist for > Salon.com working in Pakistan. She said: > > "America isn't just fighting the Taliban and Osama, it is > also fighting the spiritual warriors, the grandmothers, > aunties and mothers that are all gathered in living rooms, > and in their own private prayers invoking these du'as, > they're called, actual prayers the Quran tells them to > recite against enemies. And sadly in this case the enemy is > America. It's not Americans; it's American foreign policy." > > And people are praying here in the United States, as well, > against terrorists and enemies of America. > > I asked my friend and frequent teacher Deborah Klingbeil > (who does prayer research within the Christian Science > tradition), "Do you have anything you might want to say to > be forwarded to others, about prayers to bless and transform > the prayers of others and comb them into accord with > kindness and goodness? I really wish I had something to > send to people on lists that I am on, that they could send > on to others, about this kind of transforming... > > And Deborah Klingbeil responded: > > Hi, > > This is not difficult in theory, but in practice the > simplest things are the hardest. > > The way to transform the prayers of others who pray against > you is to first transform your own prayers into prayers that > cannot hurt anyone. > > We often think our own prayers cannot hurt others but in > fact if we pray to get a certain job we are praying against > others who also want or need the job. If we pray to land a > funding proposal the same holds true. If we pray for our > crops we are praying that insects and weeds, parts of > creation, should die - unless we are wise enough to pray by > loving them all and knowing that we can only bless one > another. Or wise enough to pray for what is best, no strings > attached. > > That is the crux of the matter. This notion that one > person's interests, (or the best interests of one part of > creation human or non), can be opposed to the best interests > of another person or part of creation, is a shaky basis for > prayer. > > Even in the simple lab tests we do the interconnectedness of > all things is becoming obvious. You can heal yourself by > praying for a seed. Why? Because we are all connected. > > My teacher used to say that if you are going to be a target > be a target out of range. Rise to a place where you love and > the prayers aimed against you will fall beneath you. And > pray for everyone, because prayer that means well, but has > anything not of love in it (and this includes our own > prayers without our knowing it) will boomerang and come back > to the one who prays. We don't ask that it is so, it is > simply the nature of such prayer. We should work to > neutralize this, both for our own prayers, and for the > prayers of others. > > This is "prayer scat", what I was telling you about when we > were talking about prayer tracking some time ago. It is a > waste product of prayer. Carry a pooper-scooper and clean up > after your own prayers, and after anyone else's prayer who > leaves a little something on your mental lawn, and do so > without malice, for the dog doo is not the dog, and the evil > effect of such prayer is not the prayer - the prayer, like > the dog, may be something you could get along with if you > got to know each other, and got past the growling stage. > > A good pooper-scooper prayer is "I cannot harm anyone, and I > can not be made to harm anyone. No one can harm me, and no > one can be made to harm me." Such a simple prayer, yet when > realized with real love, very powerful. > > There is good news. Laboratory findings show that most > prayers at this stage are compounds, they have a mix of > different kinds of prayers in them. The most militant > grandma praying her du'a against an American or anyone, yet > gives some blessing to those very people, because she is > really praying for right to be done, and right cannot be > done to one country and not another, love is universal. She > is praying because she loves her sons, and those sons are > mentally connected to our sons, so we get some benefit too. > > The most arrogant American (and arrogance is violence, it > terrorizes also) praying that Bin Laden rots in hell, > nevertheless blesses that man - without wanting to and maybe > without him wanting the blessing. Because in with the > ugliness is a seed of good, of our highest sense of right at > this stage of our spiritual journey. And that seed is more > powerful than the un-love. > > To protect yourself against the evil which is also in the > prayer, rise in prayer until you see that all things are > interconnected, and to where you can love the good in all > things. Then the evil falls wide. > > Also, say thanks for the good, however embryonic, in any > prayer that is uttered anywhere. > > And pray that the evil, the un-love, be dissipated, instead > of turning back to hurt those who are praying as sincerely > as they know how, but may be sending boomerangs of hate out. > And that includes us. > > We are kin to the Pakistani grandmas and their prayers, we > too are sincere, we too are sometimes mistaken in our views, > we too are dedicated and are "true believers", our prayers > too are a mix of good and evil, we have a lot in common, > only our world view is different, and political world views > are not such a matter of importance when it comes to prayer, > the prayer is bigger than the world view of the person > praying. > > We can help on all sides by blessing them and blessing us, > and rising above prayer-as-an-agenda to prayer that is a > knowledge, acceptance, and gratitude for the > interconnectedness of all things. > > I do think this is a reason why prayer research is needed. > There are different mathematical markers to different kinds > of prayers. Certain kinds of prayers are more fallible than > others and some boomerang more eaisly. It has nothing at all > to do with denomination or theology. But people should know > this, just like they know what is a poison and what is not > physically, and what is an antidote, they need to know this > about mental power too. Then they can do what the like with > that knowledge, but at least we will not all be working in > the dark with a vague notion that anything that is mental is > prayer and that it all works alike. > > Wars do not come about because someone attacks you. They > come about because of both sides, because evil turns on > itself and boomerangs. You cannot heal only half the > problem. People want to do that, and it is impossible you > know. > > We can kill all the terrorists and more will just come - > most of these current ones I believe were the children of > the Pakistani refugee camps of a few decades ago; and the > refugee camps, and many other places, are filled with new > generations, there will be lots more to take their place if > we go that route. > > Both sides must be healed together because the healing is > one. That is why the healing is so hard. People want to be > healed , they want peace or health or whatever, but they > want this without changing. They want to keep their finger > on the hot stove but just not feel the pain. > > And of course that wouldn't be good for us because our > finger would burn off without our knowing it if we didn't > feel the pain. > > The self-destructive power of un-love is a merciful thing; > it keeps us all from burning our fingers off. I am getting a > little murky here, but we must see this as a process, not a > battle, a process in which both sides will be blessed and > both sides will change. Not just them. And a process at > which both sides have had some input. Not that it's all > their fault, or its all our fault. This war is being caused > by mental factors, conscious and unconscious, and not by > bombs or planes or the poor men killing each other at the > front. > > Part of the impetus of my work is I have always felt the > process was inefficient and rather cruel, and that the > process could be improved. We can, I hope, rise to the point > in society where we learn not to touch the hot stove, rather > than waiting for the pain to get so bad that we take our > finger off. > > In our prayers we can call on every molecule of love, every > force of love, whether we recognize it as such or not, from > both sides, and side with that, with the love in all created > things, and not with the Americans or the Arabs, or the > grandmas or the soldiers. The grandmas love their sons and > their country just like we do, and they hate those that they > think hurt them, just like we do. Let's harvest their love, > and ours, and put the un-love in a plastic bag and take it > out to the curb. Let's pet the dog and clean up what he > might have left on the lawn, without making a big deal of > it. > > I do not mean to trivialize those that have lost lives on > either side, or those that are in emotional pain on either > side, I am just saying the pain is one and the love is one, > and it is connected, you cannot heal one side only any more > than you can pick up one side of a penny only. > > Pray, "Those who pray to hurt can only bless themselves and > others," and include your own self in such a prayer, and > mean it, and you will not only keep from being hurt, you > will keep the pious if militant grandmas from hurting > themselves too, and you will keep the "my country right or > wrong" Americans, and also anyone indifferent to the fate of > anyone else, from burning their fingers off. You will help > to bring out the best in us all. > > So I guess my answer is very much what you know already - > and it is one word, and that is love. > > NOTES: > > about the ads...if we decide to keep this list > going, we'll pay the $60 fee and get the ads > removed. thanks for your patience with that. > --michael > > The Zapchen WEBSITE has Julie's workshop calendar and links to lama sites > (under resources): > http://members.aol.com/zapchenma > > To SUBSCRIBE to this list, send an email to: > [email protected] > > To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list, send an email to: > [email protected] > > TO CHANGE SETTINGS SO YOU CAN GET A DAILY DIGEST > OR READ THE LIST ON THE WEB AND GET NO DAILY MAIL, > GO TO: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/zapchen-list > > > > Your use of Yahoo! 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