Pilgrim777: I was raised Methodist, and still go at times to a small group. They are tolerant of beliefs, though not really interested in the mystical approach. I read Eastern texts, and enjoy wisdom from any source I can get it, east or west. I emjoy Joseph Campbell's insights greatly. I have also been to India... and you?
Adam Southworth in reply to Pilgrim777: I don't follow a specific religion, but I pray and meditate an hour each day. There's so much to learn my beliefs are still not entirely clear to me. I still feel I'm gathering knowledge before what I believe takes final shape. The Bible and the history of Christian thought and Greek philosophers like Plato and Heraclitus have shaped my thought and practice, as have a number of eastern works, especially the Upanishads and Tao Te Ching. I also like a lesser known, more theoretical work called the Samkhya Karika. I haven't read Joseph Campbell, but from a brief search he seems worth a read too, so thanks for another great book recommendation. You've followed my path ahead of me! As an admirer of Indian religions, I would love to visit India at some point. I've been extending my meditation practice for roughly ten years now and thought about meditation retreats for a while. Have you done anything like that?
Pilgrim777: Adam. I am happy to cross paths with you. Forgive my slowness in responding. I am slow in working with Wireclub. Yes. I have attended a retreat in S Carolina, for purposes of meditation. It was not guided, or disciplined however. Just personal. It was meaningful, and has effected my life since I went there some 50 years ago. Some have a path that calls for a regimen. Some have a path that is personal, and they have to cut their own way. I am the latter. A great metaphor is the story of the Grail Legend of Parsival, as written by a German Knight Wolfram von Eschenback around the 12th Century. J Cambpell talks about it. I also find wisdom in the mystical poets. John of the Cross, Kabir, Hafez, Rumi, Kabir, Mira. More recently, T S Eliot in FOUR QUARTETS touches m deepy, though at times he is a difficult read. Oh also Tagore, who wrote in the early 20th Century. I do think that all souls are climbing the same mountain. Each on their own path. SOme have more detours that others, but over time, they all get there. I think that the Divine, call it what you will, infuses everything.
Yes. I have attended a retreat in S Carolina, for purposes of meditation. It was not guided, or disciplined however. Just personal. It was meaningful, and has effected my life since I went there some 50 years ago.
Some have a path that calls for a regimen. Some have a path that is personal, and they have to cut their own way. I am the latter. A great metaphor is the story of the Grail Legend of Parsival, as written by a German Knight Wolfram von Eschenback around the 12th Century. J Cambpell talks about it.
I also find wisdom in the mystical poets. John of the Cross, Kabir, Hafez, Rumi, Kabir, Mira. More recently, T S Eliot in FOUR QUARTETS touches m deepy, though at times he is a difficult read. Oh also Tagore, who wrote in the early 20th Century.
I do think that all souls are climbing the same mountain. Each on their own path. SOme have more detours that others, but over time, they all get there. I think that the Divine, call it what you will, infuses everything.