”Three strands in a braid of sweet grass. They represent three spiritual qualities—-maybe love, kindness, humility. When I smudge myself, I purify myself in those qualities. I prepare myself for my day with the strength of those spiritual qualities. The smoke clings to my hair, my clothes, and it remains in the air of my home. As I move through the day and smell that fragrance, I am reminded of how I have chosen to live—-and in that is the power of greeting each day with reverence, calm, and prayer. That is how I learn to direct my humanity toward peace, equality, and harmony: one day, one person, one circumstance at a time.”
—-Richard Wagamese, Embers, One Ojibway’s Meditations p.45
prayer
Morning Trip (324)
“How many times in our lives have we had that unfortunate moment when we realize that no amount of prayer, wishful thinking, incantations to the gods or promises of remorse is going to reverse the irreversible.”
–Curmudgeon at Large
Morning Trip (318)
“…’I think about religion, most of it is same-same.’
‘Not everybody thinks so, Ketut. Some people like to argue about God.’
‘Not necessary,’ he said. ‘I have good idea, for if you meet some person from different religion and he want to make arguement about God. My idea is, you listen to everything this man say about God. Never argue about God with him. Best thing to say is, “I agree with you.” Then you go home, pray what you want. This is my idea for people to have peace about religion.’….”
–Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat Pray Love
Morning Trip (305)
“Faith and prayer are important elements of my belief in God. Faith is my rock, but it is also the way I align my thoughts, my heart, and my actions to realize my goals. Prayer is the way I connect with the energy of God, it is also the way I clarify to myself what i am asking for. Thus, when I enter a challenging and uncertain situation I say, ‘I’m putting my trust in my faith, Dear Lord, and I am stepping out on Your Word.'”
–Maya Angelou
Morning Trip (258)
“There’s nothing wrong with the world. What’s wrong is our way of looking at it.”
–Henry Miller
Morning Trip (202)
“Inspiration is there all the time.
For everyone whose mind is not clouded over with thoughts, whether
they realize it or not…
Inspiration is pervasive but not a power.
It is a peaceful thing.
It is a consolation even to plants and animals.”
–Agnes Martin
Morning Trip (131)
“Abraham Joshua Heschel, a very interesting rabbi and mystic, said he didn’t pray for faith; he prayed for wonder. That is also my prayer. Wonder is the heaviest element on the periodic table; a tiny fleck of it stops time. My periodic table of the heart also has many other elements, still unidentified by science. One of them is unattainium. That’s the one that continues to drive us forward whether or not we expect to succeed.”
— Diane Ackerman Going on Faith: Writing as a Spiritual Quest
Elisa's Spot 