Kindness

As we come near the beautiful time of Full Moon (when the Sun has just moved into Taurus) there is a special radiation from the Lord Buddha. In my meditations over the last few days I have been very aware of the gentle feminine energy which often emanates from him/her at this time. Just over a week ago now I was in Texas at our Temple and Retreat Center, walking on the land and around the labyrinth. I felt this feminine vibration of Buddha shining from the central ‘rose-heart’ of the cross within the circle of the labyrinth. It seemed to me, as I walked, that this central rose took the form of an exquisite pearl at the centre of a soft white flower. Overshadowing the whole circle was an immense Buddha, ethereal and translucent, radiating the gentle nurturing love/wisdom of the Mother aspect of God, the pearl ray.
 
What struck me most, as this aura of pearly light spread out further and further, eventually embracing the whole world, was that as it touched all people’s hearts, it was stimulating the quality of thoughtfulness and simple human kindness in every heart. It made me think that maybe we don’t often fully realise how much this quality can uplift and change peoples’ days. A kindly word, a thoughtful gesture, can change a day (maybe a life) for someone feeling low and sad.

 A lovely aspect of the philosophy of the Buddha (and the same applies to the White Eagle teaching) is ‘metta’. Metta is a Pali word meaning loving kindness—or ‘the strong wish for the welfare and happiness of others…an altruistic attitude of love and friendliness, as distinguished from mere amiability based on self-interest.’ It is one of what are called the four virtues. White Eagle tells us: ‘It is one thing to talk about love and to say “Love one another”, but it is quite another thing to become love within. Yet the whole purpose of life is to bring forth love. There are many degrees of love, to love in any form is good. We look upon the children of earth and see the spontaneous kindness, the little thought, the little actions which are Godlike. You may not realise that such gentleness is a Godlike expression showing that the soul for the moment is expressing love, and God. The purpose is for the life to become accustomed to spontaneously expressing kindness to all—whatever the race, the cast, or religion; let us be kind and recognise the God in our fellow, the spontaneous expression of which is kindness and love; this is the key to all knowledge.’

 So let’s make a special effort at this time of year to focus on the gentle quality of altruistic kindness. What an extraordinary example our Pope Francis is setting in this! We cannot all do what he has done, maybe, in taking in refugee families, but we can all look around and see what simple acts of kindness we can offer our neighbours, family, and friends, and gradually we then develop in ourselves the spontaneous expression of that kindness.

The Power of God

‘The Power of God’ was the theme of a talk I recently gave at the Sunday Service in our beautiful Temple of the Golden Rose in Texas, USA. I quoted White Eagle’s words in Spiritual Unfoldment Vol.2, Chap. iv, entitled ‘Angels of Light and Darkness’. White Eagle tells us about the part the angels of darkness play in God’s plan for the evolution of life on earth. He answers the question: ‘Can the angels of darkness—these angelic forces perhaps not yet fully aware of the light and the power and the wisdom of the Most High—triumph over the angels of light, and cause the destruction of humanity?’ He replies: Our answer is NO. The dark angels can go so far and no further because then they are caught up by a cosmic law which renders them powerless…… God does not allow the universe to slip out of His-Her hands. Nothing can happen outside the will of God.

I find these words supremely comforting. When we look out at our world today, it can be tempting to feel despondent and fearful about the violence and suffering we see around us. Our work, White Eagle tells us, is to learn how to command ourselves, our thoughts and emotions, so that instead of giving way to negativity, we align ourselves to the forces of good and continually ‘will the will of God’. This is the first ray of power—divine power, God’s power, the power which created the world. We are part of God, part of this power—it is in us. Let us use it to create a new world of peace and joyful creativity.

I find it interesting to note that the word Islam means peace, and one of the most important aspects of Islamic teaching, one of the five Pillars of Islam, is devotion to Allah (God) and submission to His will. It is sad that this is not well known and there is so much misunderstanding about this beautiful religion—which in its true practice is a religion of peace, not violence.

And now some more inspiring words of White Eagle’s from an Inner Teaching:  He who would find an answer to every personal or world problem, let him practise the art of going into the spiritual state and becoming very still—as still as a lake. Let him remember that lake is his soul. Man must first learn to develop the will of God within himself. The will of God commands you to be still. Then you will without distortion see the reflection of truth on the waters of the lake which is your psyche. Be still and know that I am God.

Easter Resurrection

A few weeks ago, at our Anniversary time—eighty years since the first White Eagle Lodge was opened, I was talking in the Temple at New Lands about the power of God to do anything. In the White Eagle teaching we often read about ‘God’s omnipotence’. I remind myself that we all have a part of God, the Christ, within us, and the Aquarian age energy is actually helping us embrace this power to change and heal our own lives. God (the Christ Light as White Eagle calls it) is in us all.

At this moment, when sorrow at the events in Brussels is very much uppermost in our hearts, it is for me even more important to remember that Christ power within us which we can use to bring light to all involved. (It interested me that one of the messages at the ‘shrine’ in the centre of Brussels which a BBC reporter read out was: ‘Respond with Light’.)

In our Contact Healing Service we have the inspiring words: ‘When Christ within Jesus said: ”I AM the resurrection and the life”, he meant that the Christ Spirit, the recreative power and life, dwells within every one of God’s children. The life of God is within you, my child, and as you learn to say, deeply and strongly, from the Christ within your heart, “I AM the resurrection and the life”, that life-force rises within you and floods your whole being with light and healing.

‘The living Christ within the heart of every man and woman has the power to raise the body out of the limitations of physical matter. Every particle, every cell of the body is subject to the divine power and glory.

‘Hold fast to the certainty that Christ within you is King, and can overcome all weakness, all sickness, all inharmony.’

I often think of these words and at Easter time they are particularly relevant. So much of the story of Jesus’ birth and death is symbolic, and the resurrection is a demonstration of an eternal truth, a truth demonstrated throughout nature. A time of spring and re-birth follows winter and death, as surely as day follows night. And a reminder that the resurrection comes after all times of pain, and will do for our world, as much as for each one of us individually.

Jesus said: ‘What I do, you can do also’—helping his followers realise that the light of God is within us all. We can all learn to use the power of God to re-create our lives and our world. We cannot change our circumstances maybe, but we can change the way we think about them, and we can stimulate the light within others’ hearts too.

In an article in the Easter issue of our White Eagle magazine Stella Polaris last year our Australasian leader Lyn Edwards wrote about ‘Our Magnificent Intelligent Cells’. She quoted Professor Bruce Lipton in his book Biology of Belief. In this he explains that our individual cells have porous membranes which absorb the vibrations of our thoughts.  So our thoughts immediately affect every cell of our bodies. If we think harmonious and creative thoughts, we help our cells re-create in beneficial, healthy ways. We can literally bring resurrection into our bodies, and that same power can bring light out of the darkness in our world.

So, this Easter time, my resolution is to work even more on making my thoughts

positive, and as I affirm:

'I am the resurrection and the life'

to visualise the light of the Star (as I breathe it in) re-energising the Christ Light within me, so it flows even more powerfully to every cell of my body, bringing new life, new hope, new creativity.  I hope you may try this too! And as I breathe out so I see our Earth and all peoples in that Christ Light. We are all one!

Animals are our family too

This was the title of a talk I have given recently at our London Centre, during which we shared animal experiences and the joy of the companionship which our pets can bring into our lives.

 

We learn so many things through our relationship with animals, including of course, facing up to the reality that a loved physical body dies. I was lucky that along with the trauma of the first death I had to face at six years old, when our lovely Labrador, Sally died, my parents immediately gave me the comfort of a vision. It was of her stepping out of her sick body, as my grandfather in heaven (who had been a Yorkshire farmer with many sheepdogs) whistled to her and she went off happily with him in her new young body. My parents also taught me that ‘where there is love there can be no separation’ and it wasn’t long before Sally came back to our family as a lovely Dalmatian named Mandy.

In London we also talked about the changes in recent years in people’s awareness of

the need to look after our natural world and value the many different species of wild life which exist. Prior to my talk, my daughter Sara researched the WWF’s list of the fifteen most endangered creatures and we had pictures of these. Everyone chose one to particularly hold in their prayers, linking with the angel who has that species in their care. You might like to choose one too (*see list at end). I believe that working ‘hand in hand with the angels’, and using the power of the Star can truly bring about miracles and save more of ‘our family members’ from extinction.

The growing awareness in so many hearts of our oneness with the animal kingdom and natural world can reverse the sad destruction which has taken place over past decades. As we say on our Animal Healing prayer card: ‘I pray that the Light of the Star will awaken grater compassion and understanding of the brotherhood of all life in the hearts and minds of human beings as they walk on Mother Earth and with her creatures.’  In our White Eagle healing work for animals, we all have a wonderful opportunity to work together to change our world. Let’s do it!

*  The World Wildlife Fund’s list of the fifteen creatures in most danger of   

    extinction

1.   Ivory Billed Woodpecker.

2.   Amur Leopard.

3.   Javan Rhino.

4.   Northern Sportive Lemur.

5.   Western Lowland Gorilla.

6.   Saola – Asian Unicorn.

7.   Leatherback Sea Turtle.

8.   Tiger.

9.   Chinese Giant Salamander.

10.  Little Dodo Bird.

11.  Kakapo Parrot.

12.  Greater Bamboo Lemur.

13.  Mountain Gorilla.

14.  Hawaiian Monk Seal.

15.  Northern Right Whale.

Loneliness and Reaching Out

I think we all experience times of loneliness, especially when things change in our lives and we lose the physical presence of someone very close. Whatever our beliefs this is a very hard time.

The media can be full of sad and negative stories, but sometimes quite the reverse. Sometimes there are stories full of hope which demonstrate the resilience of the human spirit and that even when we are naturally grieving we can also use what has happened to embrace a new opportunity. I was very inspired by the story of a man called Bob Lowe, who lost his wife after sixty-three happy years together. He lives here in the south of England and our local TV took up his story. He decided that (even in his eighties) he would try to reach out to others who were recently bereaved and lonely like himself. He contacted his local radio, inviting others to get in touch. This led to him starting a little local charity and getting in touch himself with Esther Rantzen who had started her ‘Silverline’ charity for elderly, lonely people. Bob says that what has helped him most in his own loneliness is volunteering to help others.

To me this story is a demonstration of the way in which sadness in our lives can be turned into new opportunity and happiness, as well as the incentive to help many others find a way to alleviate their pain.

In White Eagle’s teaching we are offered the beautiful symbolism of the rose on the cross. Instead of a suffering figure hanging on a cross, the symbol depicts an equal-sided cross with the rose at its centre. This symbolises how sadness and loneliness will all be turned into joy, and brings the awareness that love is eternal. White Eagle often says, You are never alone. Your loved ones in spirit are always close,’ and ‘Where there is love there is no separation.’ Even if we are not able to ‘reach out’ in the way Bob has done, I think we can all ‘reach in’ as it were, and be as open as we can to the whisper in our hearts of our loved one’s voice. In White Eagle’s own words, ‘You will hear their voice, you will hear in your heart what they wish to say to you. Be happy that they are alive and free and can meet you clearly in the heavenly garden.’

[Quotation from our CD Comfort for the Bereaved, available from www.whiteaglepublishing.org]