Spirit Matters Summer 2012-2013

There is one Object of Praise, the beauty which uplifts the heart of its worshipper through all aspects from the seen to the unseen.

Hazrat Inayat Khan

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What’s in the Summer issue 3

Letter from Nuria, SMIA’s National Representative

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Reflection on things past, and those yet to come – Azad Roddy Daly

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Food for thought; Message from the treasurer

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Sacred Reading on ‘The God Ideal’ – Hazrat Inayat Khan

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‘Song’ – a poem by Rabindranath Tagore

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‘Collect all that is good and beautiful’: November 2012 retreat at the Dargah of Hazrat Inayat Khan

– Zubin Leonie Shore

10-11 Impressions of Sufi Summer School – Talibah Josephine Mavec Lolicato 12

A visit to Murshid’s dargah – Janice Sabura Allen

13-15 The Frog Princess, part 2 – retold by Nuria Daly 16-18 ‘Glances of a rose garden’: organising a poetry event as an inner journey – Chaman-Afroz 18

Universal Worship in the Glasshouse Mountains – Sakina Kara Jacob

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Readings on the Universal Worship on the subject of ‘Gifts’

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Australian Sufi Retreat - March 2013

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Contacts

A message from the editor Dear friends We have a ‘bumper issue’ this season. A few of our members have sent in contributions, sharing their experiences from recent Sufi Summer School, the Delhi Retreat, and other Sufi events. I certainly have enjoyed reading them, and have been inspired by them. I hope you are as well, and by the other words of wisdom you find between these pages.

Remember that we will be looking for contributions in late March-April and you may have been to the Australian Summer Retreat! Photos of nature, and poetry, are also welcome.

I wish you all a very good year, and thank you to all our contributors.

Love ,

Sakina

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

Front cover photo and photos on this page: Azad Roddy Daly

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Letter from Nuria, SMiA’s national representative It has been an amazing and interesting season, beginning with the end of a huge cycle of astronomical processes on 21st December 2012. On this day we held a meeting at Arif’s. This was the longest day of the year – the Summer Solstice – and it was interesting because, as a result of this, we decided that we would focus our attention, as a group, on the Divine Light, Nur. We reflected on how, or what, this special day meant for us as individuals, and how we could carry these feelings into the New Year. There is something important about this process: being aware that we were at the end of the longest day, and that we were at the end of an almost 6000 year cycle. Because of this we each could imagine our projected wishes for the next great cycle in our lives. Our thoughts and imagination do indeed create a space, an akasha or potentiality, from which our lives unfold.

It is important that we acknowledge these special days and that we attach a special significance to them and act not only on the decisions but on the aspirations that we hold on this day and indeed hope will happen in the year yet to come. These thoughts play a necessary and important role in our development as ‘persons’.

Image from Avatar, the movie: Google Images

Looking to the future, the new cycle for us as Sufis begins with our Retreat in March with Murshid Nawab, and I admit to being very excited about this. I have a strong feeling that it will be an amazing retreat in which each of us can experience a new connection with our true Nature and the Nature of God. We have already got some registrations, so please consider attending and making this time and inner space sacred.

When I returned from our holiday overseas I found it difficult to get back to my usual rhythm of practices and to this ‘inner sacred space’. Murshid Nawab says that it isn’t so much that we lose something by not doing our practices, but that we have not had the experience and growth that we could have had if we had been doing our practices. I have a feeling that my main regret on my deathbed will be that I had not done my practice with enough regularity, concentration and devotion.

During the holidays, Azad bought the movie Avatar for us to watch in 3D and it reminded me of how moving

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

Photo: Sakina Kara Jacob

Beloved Sisters and Brothers,

and beautiful the portrayal of the Divine Unity can be.

In the movie the people did a form of Zikar around a huge ‘tree of life’ so that they could transcend being and consciousness from one level to the other. It is a reminder that the knowledge and experience that we have in our lives is also known by the One. I suppose it is that as part of the ‘Collective Unconscious’, everything we are and everything we know forms part of the Collective or the One, so that the more we do for the good of humanity and for God then the more this Collective knows and understands and informs us all.

Just before Christmas, I was sitting in the garden doing my practice, when the cicadas started their humming vibrations. I was right in the middle of those vibrations.

It was like a living example of what Murshid meant when he wrote that everything is related to vibrations. It is very easy to take so much for granted that we get lazy and allow our senses to dull, but once we become aware and tune in, so to speak, then a whole new world of sound and beauty can open up before us so that we are no longer passive observers, but we can become living parts of this wonderful experience. I am sure you all know what it is like to be in the middle of a cicada serenade. It can actually be painful as the eardrums vibrate, but it is also a reminder of how we really are a part of a vibrating universe and that we are all one.

So dear Sisters and Brothers, I wish you all a very happy, peaceful and ‘vibrational’ 2013 and beyond.

Love ,

Nuria

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Reflections on Things Past,and Those Yet to Come

by Azad Roddy Daly At this time of year perhaps it is a good time to reflect on the year that has just passed. A time to reflect on ourselves, our attitude, behaviour and perceived growth – or lack of growth – and also our potential for development. But are we, as individuals, capable of discerning this? Can we set our egos aside and make an honest and perhaps even brutal appraisal of ourselves? How do we, as individuals, measure up to our own, or anyone’s evaluation? Should we be concerned as to what others think of us? Does this even matter? I suppose a good start could be made by evaluating our daily (morning) practice.

Our Prayers: These should be said with sincerity while contemplating their meaning and their intent. How do these relate to our personal experiences? Can or do we keep ourselves focussed – without loss of concentration – on each word, phrase and the overall meaning of and within the substance of the prayer, or of the power that could be contained within it? Do we realise that the power or effect that each prayer possesses is for the benefit of us – for the uplifting of the human spirit rather than for the gratification of the One who is above and beyond all that we can, or ever could, imagine? One who is beyond all visualization or comprehension no matter how hard any human being would try to understand. Do we truly humble ourselves when placing our hands on our knees and reciting ‘to thee do we give willing surrender’ or do we fall into the trap of a shallow, meaningless, recitation which we hurriedly run through?

Our Breathing Practices: Possibly, although this is a purely personal opinion, this is one of the least appreciated practices or perhaps one for which the merit, or potential, is not fully realised or accepted. It is good to make the time, and I do stress ‘make time’, to do this practice. A lack of time as well as having a suitable place seems to be the obstacle, or the enemy, to a successful outcome for this practice. The importance of breath cannot be over emphasised and it should be pursued with diligence and determination to achieve the results that it promises and holds.

With regards to these practices, there is no shortage of material about these to be found but, just like this article, there isn’t anything new or revealing about these written comments. The questions posed here are rhetorical as the real answer lies with the efforts that anyone on the Sufi Path is prepared to make. At the beginning of any New Year we all make promises and resolutions that we plan to put into effect in the coming months; sadly most of our resolve fades as the year progresses. However, the most important point with regards to Sufism is that it is an experiential process rather than a cerebral exercise.

You can read thousands and thousands of books and make little or no real progress because the answer lies in surrendering to the will of the Divine Presence, casting aside or controlling one’s ego, withholding one’s opinion, or comment, until asked for, and opening the heart to the vibrancy of the Sufi Message.

Our Murshid has clearly articulated this Message and he has, in his writings, distilled some of the complexities of classical Sufism into relatively clear and concise terms whilst retaining their purity. Nevertheless, I will close, not with the words of our Master, but with the words of Ibnal–Arabi, who wrote: ‘My heart has become capable of every form, it is a pasture for gazelles and a convent for Christian monks, and a temple for idols and the pilgrim’s Ka’ba and the tablets of the Torah and the book of the Koran. I follow the religion of Love: whatever way Love’s camels take, that is my religion and my faith.’

Our Wazifas: Do we reflect deeply on the import or the great significance of the sacred words within each Wazifa? Can we or do we maintain our concentration as we pass over the beads while reflecting on whatever aspect of the Divine Presence that we are acknowledging?

Images from Microsoft Clipart

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

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Message from the Treasurer ANNUAL SMIA FEES DUE

SMIA fees are gratefully accepted now by the transfer of funds into the SMIA account.

Please deposit to:

Saint Teresa of Avila If you are seeking closeness to the Beloved, love everyone. whether in their presence or absence, see only their good. if you want to be as clear and refreshing as the breath of the morning breeze, like the sun have nothing but warmth and light for everyone.

Shaikh Abu-Said Abil-Khair You do not have to struggle to reach God, but you do have to struggle to tear away the self-created veil that hides him from you.

Commonwealth Bank Brandon Park

Paramahansa Yogananda

A/c Number: 063-587 10251994

O, friend! Nobody veils you, but yourself.

In your path there is no thorn or weed, but yourself.

You asked: shall I reach the Beloved or not?

Between you and the Beloved there is nobody, but yourself.

(the first 6 letters are the BSB)

Awhadoddin Kermani

On the subject of the Summer Retreat, please note that the close out date for registration and deposit is 30th January 2013 with full payment by 28th February 2013.

All those who are unhappy in the world are so as a result of their desire for their own happiness.

All those who are happy in the world are so as a result of their desire for the happiness of others.

Shantideva

Loving Regards,

Azad

Before you ask God for what you want, first thank God for what you have.

Talmud, B’rachot 30b MEMBERSHIPS & SUBSCRIPTIONS

Membership to the Sufi Movement in Australia is open to all.

If you find yourself drawn to the ideals of universal spiritual brother-and-sisterhood, you may be interested in becoming a member.

The Sufi Movement in Australia offers an annual Sufi summer retreat, classes in centres around Australia, and a quarterly newsletter.

In addition, members are affiliated with the International Sufi Movement, its teachers and activities.

Annual Membership Fees Single-$75 Family-$100 Please contact the treasurer for more details (see the back page for contact details)

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

offered by Nuria Daly

Alternatively, payment may be made at the Summer Retreat in March.

Food for Thought

The important thing is not to think much, but to love much; and so, do that which best stirs you to love.

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Sacred Reading - The God Ideal Hazrat Inayat Khan THIS READING IS TAKEN FROM VOLUME IX, THE UNITY OF RELIGIOUS IDEALS, PART II There is a story told of Moses. One day he was passing through a farm, and he saw a peasant boy sitting quietly and talking to himself, saying, ‘O God, I love you so; if I saw you here in these fields I would bring you soft bedding and delicious dishes to eat, I would take care that no wild animals could come near you. You are so dear to me, and I so long to see you; if you only knew how I love you I am sure you would appear to me!’

Moses heard this, and said, ‘Young man, how dare you speak of God in this way? He is the formless God, and no wild beast or bird could injure Him who guards and protects all.’ The young man bent his head sorrowfully and wept. Something was lost to him, and he felt most unhappy. And then a revelation came to Moses as a voice from within which said, ‘Moses, what have you done? You have separated a sincere lover from Me. What does it matter what I am called or how I am spoken to? Am I not in all forms?’

This story throws a great light on this question, and teaches that it is only the ignorant who accuse one another of a wrong conception of God. It teaches us how gentle we ought to be with the faith of another; as long as he has the spark of the love of God, this spark should be slowly blown upon so that the flame may rise; if not, that spark will be extinguished. How much the spiritual development of mankind in general depends upon a religious man! He can either spread the light or diminish it by forcing his belief on others.

We cannot say from outward appearances who believes and who does not believe. One person may be pious and orthodox and it may mean nothing; another may have a profound love for God and a great knowledge of Him, and no one may know of it.

What benefit does man receive from believing in the kingship of God? How does he derive real help from his belief? He must begin by realizing the nobility of human nature. Not that one should expect everything to be good and beautiful, and, if one’s expectation is not realized, think there is no hope of progress; for man is limited, his goodness is limited. No one has ever proved to be our ideal; but we may make an ideal in our imagination, and, whenever we see that goodness is lacking, we may add to it from our own heart and so complete the nobility of human nature. This is done by patience, tolerance, kindness, forgiveness. The lover of goodness loves every little sign of goodness. He overlooks the faults and fills up the gaps by pouring out love and supplying that which is lacking. This is real nobility of soul. Religion, prayer, and worship, are all intended to ennoble the soul, not to make it narrow, sectarian or bigoted. One cannot arrive at true nobility of spirit if one is not prepared to forgive the imperfections of human nature. For all men, whether

Very often a person thinks that other people should believe in and worship his God. But everyone has his own conception of God, and this conception becomes the stepping-stone to the true ideal of God. Then there are others who believe in God, but do not show their belief in any outward religious tendency. People often misunderstand them, and yet there is something very beautiful hidden in their heart, not understood and not even known. There is a story told in the East of a man who used to avoid going to the house of prayer. He showed no outward sign of being religious, so that his wife often wondered if he had any belief in God; she thought a great deal about this and was very anxious about it. One day she said to her husband, ‘I am very happy today.’ The man was surprised, and asked what made her happy, and she said, ‘I was under a false impression, but now that I have found out the truth, I am glad.’ He asked, ‘What has made you glad?’ And she replied, ‘I heard you saying the name of God in your sleep.’ He said, ‘I am very sorry.’ It was too precious, too great for him to speak of, and he felt it as a great shock, after having kept this secret in the deepest part of his being because it was too sacred to speak of. He could not bear it, and he died.

Sacred Reading continued on page 7

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

Page 7 Sacred Reading continued from page 6

worthy or unworthy, require forgiveness, and only in this way can one rise above the lack of harmony and beauty, until at last one arrives at the stage when one begins to reflect all that one has collected.

All these riches of love, kindness, tolerance, and good manners a man then reflects, and he throws this light on to the other person and brings out those virtues in him, just as watering a plant makes the leaves and buds open and the flowers blossom. This brings one nearer to the perfection of God, in whom alone one sees all that is perfect, all that is divine. As it is said in the Bible, ‘Be ye therefore perfect, even as your father which is in heaven is perfect.’ iv The pursuit of the impossible is inherent in man’s nature.

What man has he does not care for; what he has not he wishes to obtain. Certain things may have a greater or a lesser value, but man attaches most value to something which he cannot get. And of what he can get, however valuable it may be, the value becomes less. Since that is the nature of man, the wise have called the ideal of his pursuit, which can never be attained, God, by which they meant the Source.

Everything is naturally attracted to its source: earth to earth, water to water, fire to fire, and air to air: and thus man’s soul is attracted to its source. While the body is in pursuit of all that belongs to it and of everything that attracts its physical nature, the soul is continually in pursuit of its own origin. Rumi, in a lovely poem, tells us that when a person who has left his homeland and been away a long time, awakens, then even though he is absorbed in his new life, a yearning begins to make itself felt. He longs for his origin, the home from whence he came. And so it is with human nature. The earth supplies all the things that man’s nature demands except one, and that is his source; and therefore man remains dissatisfied all through life in spite of everything that he may obtain in answer to his desires: pleasure, comfort, rank, or wealth. He may obtain them all, but still the longing of his soul will remain because it is for home. Home is the source, which the wise have called God.

was searching for, and yet he has lost himself. He can only be pleased with what he has found for a certain time, and then his longing will be to find himself.

In answer to this continual yearning of every soul, the wise have given to humanity the God-ideal. And when we consider the past and present attitudes towards the God-ideal, we see a great difference. The former was that man believed in God; and if one among twenty thousand persons did not believe in the God-ideal, he dared not say so before others, as everyone else believed in God. So he could not help saying that he believed in God also. Today it is quite the contrary. Unbelief has become the pride of modern man. He thinks that it is intellectual to disbelieve and that it is simple to believe; that the believers in God are simple people. And if they are intellectual and believe, they do not admit it, fearing that other intellectual friends will laugh at them. Very few know what a loss it is to humanity that the education which in the past made it easier for a man to reach the fulfilment of his life’s purpose has now been taken away from him.

There have always been many different conceptions of God. It is for this reason that there are so many different religions and sects, each sect having its own idea of God. There were people who believed in offering their worship to the sun. There were others who offered prayers to fire or water or earth, and some to trees. Others considered animals sacred or looked upon certain birds as sacred.

Some made different forms and characters in marble or stone or metal, perhaps with the head of an animal, the wings of a bird, or the body of a fish. And these they have called their particular God.

Song In one salutation to thee, my God, let all my senses spread out

There is another simile: that of a man who went into a dark room to search for some object that he had lost. While he was searching he began to feel that he was melting in some way or other, and the moment he found the object he melted completely. He could no longer find anything of himself; the only thing he saw was that object. To his great sorrow and disappointment, though, he found the object he did not find himself.

and touch this world at thy feet.

That is the condition of man on earth. The innermost being of man is that which may be called the source itself, and the outer being of man is what we call ‘man.’ Being absorbed in things of the world he loses, so to speak, the sense of the inner being. What he knows of himself is only that yearning and searching. He may have found what he

Like a flock of homesick cranes flying night and day back to their mountain nests let all my life take its voyage to its eternal home in one salutation to thee.

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

Like a rain-cloud of July hung low with its burden of unshed showers let all my mind bend down at thy door in one salutation to thee.

Let all my songs gather together their diverse strains into a single current and flow to a sea of silence in one salutation to thee.

Rabindranath Tagore Offered by Ananda Bernadette Hogan

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‘Collect all that is Good and Beautiful’: November 2012 Retreat at the Dargah of Hazrat Inayat Khan

by Zubin Leonie Shore

Dargah Photo: Sakina Kara Jacob

In November 2012 travellers from Australia, Netherlands, Israel/Macedonia and India gathered for the retreat to “Collect All That is Good and Beautiful”. Murshid Nawab’s welcome on the steps of the oasis that is the Dargah of Hazrat Inayat Khan in Delhi was much appreciated after my 20 hour flight delay in China. At the Dargah, effectively managed in all its myriad aspects by Dr Farida Ali, the courtyard greenery was even more profuse, as were the welcoming smiles of the staff.

I sat in the dining hall as retreatants arrived “home” uplifted from their experiences of Quwali singers at the nearby Dargah of Nizzamuddin Aulia, or jubilant from tourism in Delhi. Activity outside the Dargah would be put aside for the week to come. However I found it more difficult to put aside the personal issue that had arisen a few days before leaving Australia, and I hoped for some guidance from this retreat.

Each day followed a pattern of rising between the first call to prayer and breakfast, possibly reviewing the typed page of individual instructions for that day, and possibly spending some, time in the Dargah. Breakfast was a treat of fruit, porridge, toast and tea with an egg or something cooked by Mr Naseem.

At ten, all twelve of us would gather to place fresh roses on the coffin or mazar of Inayat Khan and say the prayers, Saum Salat and Khatum. We walked to the hall where the entire morning was devoted to balancing, lengthening and lighting our breath, a break for tea, and wazifa. At 1.30 a cooked lunch served an afternoon of solitary practice using the wazifa, fikar and the reflection for the day.

During the late afternoon sessions we immersed ourselves in Murshid’s reading from one of five lectures taken from the Complete Works of Hazrat Inayat Khan, and presented to each participant in a book, beautifully bound by Nirtan Pasnak. The evening meal at 6.30, was well balanced Indian cuisine. Zikar followed at 8.30.

In his talk on the Inner Life and Self Realization (Chicago, May 1926) Hazrat Inayat Khan said one takes the inner life as a journey to a desired goal, a journey we have to make on foot through the wilderness, mountains, crossing rivers and risking dangers on the way – that is the nature of the journey in spiritual attainment. The first condition of the journey, says Inayat, is conscientiousness to the customs of the journey. As soon as one has to walk long distances, one gives up unnecessary burdens, which outwardly do not seem difficult. Yet inwardly when we begin to journey we realise how difficult it is to carry a heavy load. In the early days of the retreat we each surrendered what we could of the load we carried, and as the days went by I found it easier to stick to the program and leave God to sort out my concerns about matters outside the retreat.

On day one, we were encouraged to observe every impulse, “fast” from our usual habits and attitudes and orientate ourselves to the journey we were beginning. “Toward the one, the perfection of love harmony and beauty”.

Days two and three saw us taking stock of our lives and where relevant, asking forgiveness from the infinitely compassionate and perfect Divine Presence, and accepting the relief and peace of forgiveness. In the evenings we read the first lecture, on Prayer, from our booklet, and we would deepen our understanding of the power of prayer and the direction of prayer to assist the soul to rise above its limitedness and touch that perfect spirit in which abides self-realisation.

By day four the unity of the retreat was established beneath the music of (at least) five or six languages.

Murshid Nawab taught in English (thankfully) and made asides for Arifa from Columbia in Spanish, while our Dutch friends clarified amongst themselves in their mother tongue, Roshandil sang in her native Hebrew, Sabura and Salima compared notes in English and Shanti ordered “a pot of Masala tea” in Hindi from the staff in the afternoon.

All of this is set in the Urdu speaking quarter of Delhi which swelled daily with twenty busloads of pilgrims from Kashmir, on their way to the Urs of Moinuddin Chisti in Ajmer, camping out on the footpath, and flooding in to worship at the shrine of Nizamuddin Aulia.

“Thy words inspire me with divine wisdom; I follow in Thy footsteps which lead me to the eternal goal.”

In the Dargah of Hazrat Inayat Khan, nestled between the breathing, fikar and wazifa, in the morning and zikar in the evening, we gave our full attention to the words and phrases of Saum, Salat and Khatum, feeling the effect each line could have “if it were steadily alight in your life”. In the later afternoon we began reading the Tuning of the ‘Collect all that is Good and Beautiful’ continued on page 9

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

Page 9 ‘Collect all that is Good and Beautiful’ continued from page 8

Heart. Hazrat Inayat Khan told an audience in Chicago in April 1926 that one definition of spirituality could be considered the Tuning of the Heart.

The development of a sympathetic nature, changing the vibrations of the heart so that they reach a certain pitch, which is a natural one, where you feel the joy and ecstasy which enables you to give pleasure to others even by your presence.

Singing Zikr is one way of developing a more sympathetic nature, and each evening Singing Zikr was accompanied by retreatants on drum, harmonium and tanpura and we delighted in singing without a CD accompaniment, as the sympathetic qualities became finer and finer.

Having dug deep into the soil of our heart-minds, on day five our personal reflections were on thing/s that disturb us, and the positive value that gave rise to them. We read from a lecture on Control of the Body, covering the five aspects of the physical in connection with spiritual development. Aspects included health, balance, the fineness of our body, what we call “myself”, and exaltation, the joy that does not depend on the senses.

Our discussion covered the “wings” of interest and indifference in our likes and dislikes, and the words of Rumi: “To complain of the creature is to complain of the creator”. We were also reminded of the path of Vairagia yoga, the view that what we resist is already in us. Hazrat Inayat Khan said: “By disliking our dislikes we begin to like all things!”

Basti Photo: Sakina Kara Jacob

We further developed the breath and on day six, we observed the interplay of forms and circumstance around us, looking for harmony on the earth and in the spirit. We were asked to remember that every creation begins with a Divine impulse, and it’s for each person to remember the sacred impulse and create for/with the great creator.

Love gives rise to harmony, and harmony creates beauty.

Rhythm is harmony in time.

Saturday evening, we were enjoying an after-dinner stroll in the courtyard, when a beautiful large copper pot, containing about 5 gallons of the best biriyani (an Indian rice dish) in the Basti, was delivered to the gatehouse.

Suddenly it was action stations, with staff bringing plastic gloves, plastic bags, large ladles, and a huge metal laundry tub. We worked with staff to ladle biriyani into the bags and place them in the tub, probably 100 half kilo bags, as the children gathered outside and became increasingly excited. When the food was prepared the staff saw the children into an orderly queque, and then proceeded to distribute the langur (food offering).

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

On Sunday, prayers, practices and refinement of the sympathetic nature continued as we were prepared to visit four great saints. At each destination we were encouraged to pay close attention to the finer qualities of the atmosphere. We had many adventures on our way to the chila of Nizamuddin Aulia, the tomb of Bibi Fatima, and the Pots Baba. However nothing prepared us for the one hour traffic jam during which a cow/bull wandered through the vehicles and took a close interest in a fellow on a motor bike. When we arrived at the tomb of Baba Farid at dusk, lamps were lit and people praying, and it was a blessing to see the tomb as a centre of community prayer rather than a tourist destination. We travelled in a people mover, a small taxi and a sedan, and overall in each centre the atmosphere was very delicate, and yet as different as each of the vehicles we travelled in.

Monday 12th November was the final day of our retreat.

After the morning prayers and afternoon’s reflection focused on gratitude and areas of our lives where we may wish to make changes, there was an eloquent transition.

An Indian music concert transported us to sublime realms.

There was a special dinner to follow and while some celebrated with a trip to the nearby masala tea stall, others sat with Inayat to complete their retreat.

During the remaining days we realised that no matter where we are, this centre for the message of Hazrat Inayat Khan is continuously alive with devotion to the message and to the community, with students attending the music school several days a week and scholars visiting the library, which makes a retreat at the Dargah of Inayat Khan in Delhi a great blessing. The centre and the service to the community appreciates all funds as there are always improvements for community and buildings needed. This visit I noticed the beautiful green Baroda marble into which the prayers have been etched, replacing an earlier model which had deteriorated.

And of the retreat focus, “Collect all that is Good and Beautiful”, the concerns I had before leaving Australia appeared quite different, so much so it was now as if I viewed the whole situation from the inside out, and could maintain my equanimity, recognising the all powerful creator sustainer judge and forgiver of our shortcomings.

As Murshid writes: O Sufi, did you know that “inner realization” is like being on a ship with which one is sailing on the great waters of Love, Harmony and Beauty, guided by the compass of the Spirit of Guidance, and driven by the energy of Spiritual Liberty, heading toward the goal of the annihilation of the ego, where one may begin at last to realize that the sailor is a ray of the Divine Presence, sailing in the past, present and future on the waves of our illusions.

Page 10 Tai Chi loneliness Separate beings move air

Impressions of Sufi Summer School

Zikar opens the heart’s door

by Talibah Josephine Mavec Lolicato

A love song to the Beloved Welcome please come in Oh you are there already oh No separation La Ellah Ha El Allah Hu…u…u…u…u…u…u

Photos: Talibah Josephine Mavec Lolicato

A moment in time, thirteen days in Katwijk, The Netherlands, primarily for the Sufi Movement International Summer School in July 2012. Dreaming to give actualisation to places around which many stories have centred – the temple Universal Murad Hassil, the valley that Murshid Hazrat Inayat Khan had meditated in and the beach that he had walked last century.

As in any life experience, the personal impressions readily fill in the gaps. The temple stands not alone. The beach is thrashed by the winds from the North Sea. Death ships ride the horizon with no-where to go; old rusty tankers that have become homes for the poor from Russia. Paths in the dunes are designated for cyclists and walkers. Nothing is too far away.

Bronze sculptures along the boardwalk capture people frozen in a time gone by, each telling their own story. Summer does not feel like an Australian summer. Emails can be read in the library if one can get to one before a school student. It is quite acceptable to butter your bread and then layer it with chocolate and not at all unusual to go to bed in daylight.

There is only one Truth, and it being understood in a personal way creates the impression that there are many Truths.

In the temple beneath the golden dome, companions gather towards evening and together share in the gentle singing Zikar of Murshid Hazrat Inayat Khan. This one reality extinguishes impressions and personal stories. LA EL LA HA EL ALLAH HU. ‘Reflections on Retreats’ continued on page 11

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

Page 11 ‘Reflections on Retreats’ continued from page 10

Expansion of Consciousness Kasteel Slangenburg Lotus filled moat surrounds stone Benedictum Abbey chimes Distant welcome to Beloveds Source of all Beauty so varied

Photos: Talibah Josephine Mavec Lolicato

Loft high Morgenlicht Sobriety Ecstasy Constrict and expand Wild holiness of nature Broken and brilliant landscape

Unfoldment of soul Jade fortress bristling with light Speak for no one else Creative expression calls Thistle strokes as skin bristles

Early morning walk Fern edged path to the abbey Silent footsteps glide Linden trees fragrance the air War debris is the abbey’s wall

Beloved Teacher Gratitude quickens my heart Contemplative Guide Expansion of consciousness Reveals the Divine in all

What is the same in both images? What a blessing if there were more than one!

Suresnes 1926

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The Hague 2012

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A Visit to Murshid’s Dargah

by Janice Sabura Allen intensified and sustain experiential level. For me, that abidance is filled with a sense of the qualities love, peace, and acceptance. The atmosphere with Murshid is of such a depth that it really did not matter what was taking place within or without of the enclosure. Whether being in contemplation alone or with others, hearing wedding bands or hammers resounding in the neighborhood, or being charmed by Qawwali singing, the essence of Murshid was the same for me in that place – an inhabiting deep and abiding presence.

For those who have been to the Dargah, I am sure that we all have had a different experience. For me, my heart heard a call to go there four years ago and I was able to do so finally in November 2012. In my preparation for India, I tried to have no expectations at all. Being human, I found expectations were inherent despite self-deluding beliefs to the contrary. Yet, whatever my expectations were, being at the Dargah of Hazrat Inayat Khan (“Murshid”) was a rewarding experience in many ways, including the unexpected benefits of going to India. As a Westerner, I just felt constantly blessed with the comfort of my life back in Australia. I also realized how removed I was from the certain types of struggles that so many experience everyday as we all partake in the one Life. However, in the same moment, I also felt incredibly moved by the constant presence and beauty of God in the chaos of India.

Upon entering the Dargah compound itself, I was immediately struck by how it holds back the crushing activity around it. I came to understand that this is a common quality of the tombs of saints in India. Nawab and Hamida beckoned me in to the tomb itself the first time. However, I was unable to settle within myself to just be in the moment. This difficulty did not last and the second time I entered the tomb I remembered a line from the Vadan “Enter unhesitatingly, Beloved, for in this abode there is naught but my longing for Thee.”

What a beautiful line requesting the presence of the Beloved to come and abide with oneself. The true benefit for me of the Dargah was feeling that abidance or the connection I feel to Murshid more generally at a more

Image above: Dargah of Hazrat Inayat Khan Image right: Lane leading to the entrance of Dargah Photos: Sakina Kara Jacob

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

Over the course of the retreat, with the guidance of Nawab and the company of my Sufi friends, the atmosphere allowed me to move through many experiences and insights. Of course, it is not appropriate or useful to share such things here, however, I was struck by how I had a sense of the Unity partaking in the one Life, as well as the veils of my perspective clouding my vision of the Unity.

The remaining of the lines of Murshid’s raga relay this feeling so beautifully, I will leave it in his words: Enter unhesitatingly, Beloved, for in this abode there is naught but my longing for Thee.

Do I call Thee my soul? But Thou are my spirit.

Can I call Thee my life? But thou livest forever.

May I call Thee my Beloved? But Thou are Love itself.

Then what must I call Thee? I must call Thee myself.

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The Frog Princess retold by Nuria Daly Part 2 of 5

In Part 1, the three sons of the Tsar are ordered to take a wife. They must choose their wife by shooting an arrow and marrying the partner they find where the arrow falls. Because of the strict directions for taking a wife, the youngest son, Ivan, marries a frog princess. In order to test the wives’ worth, the Tsar orders each of his daughter-inlaws to make a shirt for him – one fit for a Tsar. Only the shirt with both gold and silver threads, made by Ivan’s frog wife, pleases him.

Now the Tsar sent for his sons again and told them: ‘Each of your wives is to bake a loaf of bread for me by tomorrow. I wish to find out which is the best cook.’

inner processing – if we do not contain our experience and pour it out into the fire of the world, it gets burned and destroyed. There is a way of working with the dough which we learn from and by doing our spiritual practice.

This part of the story of the pouring of the dough into the stove is very mysterious. In reality it cannot be done with a Russian oven, which is a huge construction that takes a quarter of the space of a Russian hut, an izba. It is made like a Swedish stove oven with many vents that go in circles inside this huge monster of brick and mortar to keep the heat inside the house rather than sending it straight out into the forest. There are various opening vents on the sides of the stove, but you would not be able to pour anything inside or scrape anything out of them.

Nawab suggested that it might again be a reference to the Middle East, where there are stoves dug in the ground and the dough is poured onto the side of this hole, while the fire is burnt at the bottom of the pit.

Image: taken from Microsoft Clipart

THIS STORY CONTINUES FROM PART 1, WHICH CAN BE FOUND IN VOLUME 16 NO. 3 OF SPIRIT MATTERS (AUTUMN 2012)

When Prince Ivan arrived home after seeing his father, he looked so miserable that the frog asked him what the matter was.

‘You have to bake a loaf of bread for the Tsar by tomorrow.’

Ivan answered.

Once again he is told to go to bed and he will feel better after a good sleep. There is always a truth in this i.e. go to bed and have a good sleep, but it is interesting to notice that Prince Ivan trusts the frog and does what he is advised. The answer often comes to us from the realm of the deep unconscious, from dreams or visions and many problems have been solved in this way. It is a direct knowledge which we have access to when our soul part is present.

First the elder sons’ wives had made fun of Prince Ivan’s frog wife, but now they had changed their minds, and wondered about the frog’s wisdom. They therefore sent an old kitchen woman to spy on how the frog was going to bake the bread. This story is about the feminine and, as in other such stories (Amor and Psyche), jealousy or envy rears its head among the women. The frog, being wise realises their scheme. After kneading the dough, it makes a hole in the top of the brick oven and pours the dough through the hole. The frog has tricked the other women and so guards its secret. To pour the dough straight into the brick oven means that the outcome of their work was put on the fire uncontained and unprotected by a tin.

It is also no small feat to make a hole in the top of the brick oven. The whole process is a metaphor for our own

What does it mean for the women to bake bread for the Tsar? Bread is an important symbol, which means life; the food of the body and the soul; the visible and manifest life. It is also a symbol of union as having many grains in one substance, in other words the multiplicity within Unity.

‘Bread in Russia had a religious and symbolic importance that went beyond its role in daily life. The word bread (khleb) was used in Russian for ‘wealth’, ‘health’ and ‘hospitality’. Bread played a central role in peasant rituals; bird shaped breads were baked in spring to symbolise the return of the migratory flocks. In the peasant wedding a special loaf was baked to symbolise the newly-weds’ fertility. At peasant funerals it was custom to make a ladder out of the dough and put it in the grave beside the corpse to help the soul’s ascent, for bread was the sacred link between this world and the next.’ (1).

The Frog Princess continued on page 14

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Page 14 The Frog Princess is continued from page 13 The frog princess had the dough kneaded and I think that all women symbolically know how to do this (it is the raw material after all), so it is in the baking of the dough that the frog then leads them astray. After all we all have to cook or process the material we are given to work with. I wonder what the old kitchen maid thought about pouring the dough directly into the oven. She certainly was not a ‘wise old woman’, so they chose the wrong person to spy for them, but then again they were not wise in their interpretation of what they thought was happening. They took it literally, which happens when teachings are passed on by third hand via someone who does not appreciate or realise the significance of what is taking place. Imagine someone watching us doing our practice and then telling someone else how it is done. They would not understand the inner truth and wisdom of the practice.

After I had finished working with this story, I had a very profound dream. In the dream I experienced an aboriginal ritual which was chanted in their mystical language of the Dreamtime. I could feel myself as part of the creation, of nature – it cannot be described. Then later and to my surprise one of our group was doing the same chant – she had seemingly written it down phonetically and she was attempting the same ritual without any understanding of what she was doing or even what the outcome should or could be. Her copy of the singing was very good but it was not ‘real’ – there was no numinosity.

transcendent perfection, purity, holiness, light and illumination, but most importantly spiritual authority.

It is soft and refined as befits a Tsar.

When the prince woke up the next morning the loaf of bread was already lying on the table.

Once again the inner work is done when we are ‘asleep’ or meditating in the night time when we are not taken up with worldly affairs. We aren’t open to the depth of our being and where the soul / frog can do her work. The bread was decorated with various fancy designs, and its crust was the shape of a city with walls and gates. The Prince was delighted, wrapped the bread in clean linen, and took it to his father.

The intricate designs on the load of bread are similar to the intricate designs on the shirt and are significant of links and connections, patterns as in sacred geometry.

They have a meaning. The city on top of the loaf, with its walls and gates, could signify protection – a place which is guarded or defended, and is the sheltering and enclosing aspect of the feminine.

Images taken from Microsoft Clipart

When Prince Ivan arrived the Tsar was already receiving the loaves brought by his two elder sons. But their wives had poured the dough into the ovens just as the old woman had told them to do, and all they had to show for their labour were two burnt cinders. The Tsar took both the loaves and sent them to the servants’ quarters. Sometimes people copy what others do without having the wisdom to know what they are really doing. In sacred and secret ceremonies or rituals an outsider watching would not see what is really happening nor understand, as there is a level of attainment needed to work at the various levels. So in mimicking such a ritual or ceremony, the result is a burnt offering and the outcome of the process can be dangerous or uncomfortable, like the burnt bread. It was lucky that they themselves were only wounded in their pride or ego.

The oven is said to be brick, so I wonder if the fact that it is made from the earth, is relevant. The old woman told the wives what she had seen, and they set to work to do the same literally and without any understanding.

After Prince Ivan went to bed the frog jumped out onto the veranda again, turned into the wise Princess Vassilisa and, clapping her hands, said: ‘My faithful attendants gather round and listen to me. Bake for me by the morning soft white bread like the bread I ate at my father’s table.’ Once again the bread is the same as the bread the Princess ate at her father’s table, so she knows what is fitting for a Tsar. It is white and soft, white is the colour always worn at a sacrament, and symbolising

When Prince Ivan handed his father his loaf the Tsar said: ‘Now this is such good bread, it should be eaten only on great occasions.’

The loaf, like the shirt, was only for special occasions, as befits a Tsar in the high role of his office.

The Tsar had arranged a banquet for the following day, and he ordered his sons to attend with their wives. The thought of his frog wife attending a banquet made Prince Ivan feel far from cheerful, and he returned home with his head hanging. As usual the frog was jumping about the floor. When it saw him it asked:

The Frog Princess continued on page 15

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

Page 15 The Frog Princess is continued from page 14 ‘Prince Ivan, what are you looking so miserable for? Has your father said something unpleasant to you?’

Versailles: Photo: Sakina Kara Jacob

‘How can I help looking miserable, frog? My father has ordered me to bring you to a banquet; and how can I show you to people?’

This time the feminine is asked to show herself and act in an appropriate way, and not to make something. She has passed all her tests so far, but this is a tricky one. Through the inner work, the beauty of the soul has started to throw out some light by creating wonders like the marvellous bread and the magnificent shirt while still remaining invisible. Now she is being asked to make herself visible.

How can the frog show herself as the princess she is?

What is being asked of it? To be seen as beautiful, noble and wise, as well as restrained in her being.

Again the frog answers: ‘Do not grieve, Prince Ivan. You go off to the banquet by yourself, and I will follow later. When you hear a knock and a clap of thunder, do not be afraid. If anyone asks you what it means, just say: ‘that is my little frog who is coming riding in a little box.’’

So Prince Ivan went off to the banquet alone. His elder brothers arrived with their wives dressed in their finery, wearing their jewellery, their faces painted and powdered.

They laughed at Prince Ivan and asked ‘Why did you not bring your wife with you? You could have carried her in a handkerchief. Where did you find such a beauty? You must have searched all through the marshes for her.’ Women can be so very bitchy, to and about, other women. This is one of the lessons that women have to learn not to do. As one of the copper rules states: Judge not another by your own law. And one of the silver rules: Use tact on all occasions, and the golden rule: When you possess something, think of the one who does not possess it.

It is also interesting that women are harsher judges of other women than men are.

Image taken from Microsoft Clipart

The Tsar, his sons, their wives, and all the guests sat down at the oaken tables, which were spread with embroidered tablecloths. But before they started to feast there was a

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

loud knock and a clap of thunder, so powerful that the palace shook. The guests were alarmed and jumped out of their seats. But Prince Ivan said: ‘Do not be afraid. It is only my little frog coming. She is riding in a little box.’ Once again I find it reassuring that prince Ivan really trusts his wife frog even though he does not really know who or what ‘it’ is. He trusts his intuition which he has already followed successfully in earlier parts of the story. It is important to trust our intuition even when it seems ridiculous. Once we have followed in this way and found that it works, we can have perfect confidence in this intuition which can come from our unconscious in meditation or in our dreams.

It is also interesting that a loud sound – a knock and a clap of thunder heralds the Princess’s entrance into the human world. Sound does indeed herald the deep unconscious and this sound can be so loud that it can shake the ground we are standing on – our inner groundedness.

The little box symbolises the feminine principle of containing; enclosure or the womb. This is important for the feminine principle which is diffuse and receptive and so needs to be contained and held. It is still small at this stage.

(1) Figes, Orlando. (2002). Natasha’s dance: A cultural history of Russia.

Penguin Books, p. 165.

‘THE FROG PRINCESS’ WILL CONTINUE WITH PART 3 IN THE AUTUMN ISSUE OF SPIRIT MATTERS.

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Glances of a Rose Garden: organising a poetry event as an inner journey

by Chaman-Afroz Poetry is the dance of the soul, and when, from a poet’s heart, an inspiration wells up and he writes it down, even his prose will be poetry. …it is the state of mind that makes one great, or feeble, or insignificant, strong or weak.

In the Hindu writings it is said, ‘Your success or failure depends entirely on your mind.

If your mind has failed, no one can bring success; but even if everything has gone wrong, and your mind is set on success, then the success is there!

In an Eastern Rose Garden, Hazrat Inayat Khan In December last year I organized a poetry evening. The idea was ripening in my head and heart for a while before it actually manifested. The previous year I had plans to bring some of the turkish mureeds from Germany for a concert of Sufi music and meditation to Ireland. Even the funding for the flight tickets was sorted. In the end it did not work out because of difficulties to find a date that suited everybody and I also broke my foot a few weeks before the planned time. It was good that it did not go ahead; the time was not right. But the seed was sown.

In the meantime the general mood here in Ireland was getting worse and worse due to economic hardship and one gets bombarded with bad news all the time by the media. It is a true blessing to have something to hold on to in times like these. There is always a guidance for those who are calling for it. And as Hazrat Inayat Khan reminds us how important it is to focus on Beauty to nourish our souls, I found this nourishment finally in Sufism and in Murshid. Through it came the love and appreciation of poetry. The words and inner light of the mystics of all ages.

The light of Allah. At some point I thought it would be good to share this joy with others who are willing to open their hearts and forget the hard and depressing “reality” for a moment.

In a small local cafe an open microphone session is held every two weeks and everybody can join in. Most participants bring their guitar and sing. People sit around a few tables, drink tea and coffee. Generally the atmosphere is of openness and listening. That encouraged me to read some poems of Rumi, Kabir and Hafiz. I was not sure how the people would take it and whether they would respond.

They did listen and respond often with a short two second silence after the poem ended. Some expressed how much they liked listening to the words at the end of the evening.

Of course they were not my words, but the words of more advanced souls. They strike a chord inside. But I did experience this a few times. Maybe I was nervous before I started reciting because there were new people there and I did not know if I had chosen the right poem for the situation. As soon I started reading and opened myself to the poem, the poem took over and all the nerves were gone. This is the hidden power behind the words of a true mystic.

Murshid says: But what is the word? Is the word just what we speak? Is that the word? No, that is only the surface of the word. Our thought is a word, our feeling is a word, our voice, our atmosphere is a word. There is a saying: ‘What you are speaks louder than what you say’.

In a way I tried to forget myself and only the poem was real in this moment.

‘Glances of a Rose Garden’ continued on page 17

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Page 17 ‘Glances of a Rose Garden’ is continued from page 16 After that I felt further encouraged to do a whole evening of poetry. Originally I was going to do it with the help of a musician. Again there was a problem to find a suitable date that worked. I was left on my own again. But this time I decided to go ahead.The date for the event was arranged finally and I could start preparing and selecting the poems. That was fun but it took some time. So much to choose from.

Rumi, Hafiz, Khusrau, Kabir and of course Murshid’s Diwan.

So the theme became clear: First the awareness of the spiritual, divine Unity of all beings, the Unity of religious Ideals, as Murshid calls it. The path to reach this goal. Or as th Muhammed Ibn Arabi put it in the 12 century: O marvel, a garden amidst the flames.

My heart has become capable of every form; it is a pasture for gazelles and a convent for Christian monks, and a temple for idols and the pilgrim’s Kaaba, and the tables of the Torah and the book of the Qu’ran.

I follow the religion of Love: Whatever way Love’s camels take, that is my religion and my faith.

Glances of a Rose Garden An Evening of Poetry and Contemplation

Or in the words of Yunus Emre: Ask those who know, what’s this soul within the flesh?

Reality’s own power. What blood fills these veins? Thought is an errand boy, fear a mine of worries. These sighs are love’s clothing. Who is the Khan on the throne?

Give thanks for His unity. He created when nothing existed. And since we are actually nothing, what are all of Solomon’s riches? Ask Yunus and Taptuk what the world means to them… The world won’t last. What are You? What am I? (trans. by Kabir Helminski and Refik Algan - ‘The Drop That Became Sea’)

Second was the theme of nature’s beauty. I always respond well to that. I love Murshid’s aphorisms about the divine beauty of nature in the Gayan, Vadan and Nirtan: Thy music causeth my soul to dance; in the murmur of the wind I hear Thy flute; the waves of the sea keep the rhythm of my dancing steps. Through the whole of nature I hear Thy music played, my Beloved; my soul while dancing speaketh of its joy in song.

Beautiful gorse-bushes, what are you here for? –We are little lanterns on your path. But where do you get your prickly thorns from? –Flowers from above, thorns from below.

In the swinging of the branches, in the flying of the birds, and in the running of the water, Beloved, I see Thy waving hand, bidding me good-bye. In the cooing of the wind, in the roaring of the sea, and in the crashing of the thunder, Beloved, I see Thee weep and I hear Thy cry. In the promise of the dawn, in the breaking of the morn, in the smiles of the rose, Beloved, I see Thy joy at my homecoming.

And also the poem “The Nargis plant” in his Diwan.

So by human nature my approach was a very personal one. Then I tried to find other poems old and new, eastern and western, that carry the same schemes. It is most amazing to see the constant flow or consciousness and awareness coming forth in poetry of all ages and of all different cultures.

Finally the list included early medieval mystics as mentioned above and others: unknown Irish poets, Yunus Emre and Mahmud Shabistari.Then later and modern poets: Goethe, Rainer Maria Rilke, Thomas Merton and Mary Oliver.

Tuesday, 04.12.2012 at the Blue Frog Cafe Ennistymon

8:00 pm Admission free Donations welcome and will go to the Dargah Hazrat Inayat Khan Hope Project

in New Delhi, India

So that was done eventually and the music/CD I was going to play (instead of live music). It was a Turkish Makam, Makam Saba.

The next step then was this: I realised to give justice to these lovely and at the same time powerful stanzas I have to adjust my Self. Otherwise the words would be lifeless.

The so called “every day life”, dunja, came to my assistance: it produced its usual distractions and provided challenges for my mind that was focused on organising this event.

Maybe even more than usual. Work, family and friends.

‘Glances of a Rose Garden’ continued on page 18

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Page 18 ‘Glances of a Rose Garden’ is continued from page 17 Family life was very stressful. The Tax Return needed to be done, the road test for my van and so on. Just “every day life”. Not very easy to ignore. In fact there was no way to ignore these issues. The situations and things had to be dealt with and I also had to find the inner silence to approach these powerful and beautiful poems with due respect. Family life, when it turns stressful, as I am sure you all know, was the biggest challenge.

with rugs and cushions and lit a candle to create the right atmosphere. The idea was to sit there and read the poems.

It turned out that it was not necessarily to sit there at all.

Things just fell into place naturally. We all sat around the tables. After I started reciting to the music, all nervousness fell off me and I could lose myself in the words and music.

I think I must have allowed myself to let go of controlling the situation and let Allah, The One, do His work.

But often I found that the poems, the words, did the work themselves when I sat down in my room at night, when the house was quiet. And that outer quiet turned into an inner quiet.

Murshid says in the Vadan: Let my plant bring forth Thy flowers, Let my fruits produce Thy seed, Let my heart become Thy lute, Beloved, And my body Thy flute of reed.

Then, on the actual evening, a wet and windy night with threats of icy roads, all went well. Another friend kindly agreed to read some of her own poems to start with. I was hoping from the beginning that she would join me for this evening. So I was very happy that she did. I felt that there was a guidance for me, for the event, for everybody there.

Finally it was suppose to happen. About twelve people came. Originally I had set up a little low stage covered

But also the listeners got into it and I could see a good few sitting with their eyes closed after a while. And again at the end there was a short silence. That was the best part for me.

When it all was finished I looked at the seemingly empty space on the small stage that I had set up and the candle was still burning. It looked like a symbolic seat for a guest of honor.

Universal Worship in the Glasshouse Mountains after Barb bravely lit the candles in the face of zephyrs scooting in through the windows and doors. Zubin led the service, and Shakti and Carol were our attentive audience.

Instead of a sermon, Zubin led our group through each room and the surrounding garden areas, blessing the spaces as we went. We each waved a candle or incense stick. We brought light and blessings everywhere, including the very honorable chook pen. Shakti advises that the house has felt lighter ever since. I am still waiting to hear the news that the egg yield has risen!

After our ceremonies, we retired in the time-honoured Christmas spirit to enjoy the gifts of the table, and, as true and devoted Sufis, we did it justice.

In December, just before Christmas, a small group of Queensland (and ex-Queensland) mureeds met in Shakti Celia Genn and Barbara Bowler’s beautiful home in the foothills of the Glasshouse Mountains for Universal Worship, a house blessing and a shared lunch. Despite the summer heat, we set up the Universal Worship table – with the most glorious golden orange roses provided by Shakti and Barb – and began our service. In attendance were Shakti, Barb, Zubin, Carol, me and a couple of interested felines.

I was honored with the task of choosing a topic and the readings, and I chose ‘Gifts’ because it was Christmas and I was thinking in particular about God’s gifts to us. I was also given the honour of reading during the ceremony

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

Photo: Shakti Celia Genn

From L to R: Carol, Barb, Shakti and Zubin. Image provided by Shakti but taken by Sakina.

by Sakina Kara Jacob

Page 19

Readings from Universal Worship on the subject of ‘Gifts’ HINDUISM Bhagavad Gita, 17:20 A gift is pure when it is given from the heart to the right person at the right time and at the right place, and when we expect nothing in return.

JUDAISM Ecclesiastes 3:1-13 He hath made every thing beautiful in its time; also He hath set the world in their heart, yet so that humankind cannot find out the work that God hath done from the beginning even to the end.

I know that there is nothing better for them, than to rejoice, and to get pleasure so long as they live.

But also that every person should eat and drink, and enjoy pleasure for all their labours, is the gift of God.

BUDDHISM MN 110.23 tr. Thanissaro Bhikkhu And how is a person of integrity a person of integrity in the way they give a gift? There is the case where a person of integrity gives a gift attentively, with their own hands, respectfully, not as if throwing it away, with the view that something will come of it. This is how a person of integrity is a person of integrity in the way they give a gift.

ISLAM The Holy Prophet, 11.108 And as to those who are made happy, they shall be in the garden, abiding in it as long as the heavens and the earth endure, except as your Lord pleases; a gift which shall never be cut off.

ZOROASTRIANISM CHRISTIANITY

Gathas: Song 8.1 May the Wise, Ruling-at-will God grant radiant happiness to the person who radiates happiness to any other person at large.

I pray for steadfast strength and courage in order to uphold righteousness.

Grant me through serenity the blessings of a rich life of good mind.

John 3.16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

The Gayan of HAZRAT INAYAT KHAN Palm-tree, what do your outstretched hands signify?

—I raise my hands heavenward when I pray, and then I pass the blessing on to the earth.

Photo of Universal Worship: Sakina Kara Jacob Photo of palm trees of North Qld: June Buchanan Other images:Microsoft Clipart

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

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Australian Sufi Retreat

‘A Natural Life’

18th – 23rd March 2013

Edmund Rice Centre ‘Amberley’ 7 Amberley Way,

Lower Plenty, VIC 3093 Registration and Enquiries to: Nuria Daly Tel: 03-9561 4861 irenenuriadaly@hotmail.com Join Murshid Nawab Pasnak, the International Co-ordinator and Madar-ul-Maham of the International Sufi Movement, and the members of the Sufi Movement in Australia in this annual opportunity to deepen and grow through the practices and teachings of Hazrat Inayat Khan. Murshid Nawab is an experienced Sufi teacher and has led summer schools and retreats over a number of years in many countries all over the world. We are privileged to have him with us again this year.

Our annual Sufi retreats are open those who are currently travelling on a spiritual path. It is preferred that participants have prior experience of a Sufi group, and / or Sufi teachings. Sufi teachings are the distillation of the same spiritual wisdom which has inspired all traditions throughout time.

This five and a half day retreat gives us all an opportunity to delve deeper into our practices and our own progress and insight on the path. It is also a community gathering of all those seeking to give their souls the taste of peace and harmony, to be found in an atmosphere of love, and beauty. We will share love and friendship, breath and concentration practices, spiritual walk, stories and music, silence and remembrance of the One Beloved, who is in us all.

This is a retreat, which is designed specifically to explore deep into our ‘selves’, we are mindful of the energy and containment within the community. Thus we encourage you to register for the whole retreat to gain maximum benefit. th

Commences 10am, Monday18 March 2013 rd Closes 2.00pm Saturday 23 March 2013 Costs: Shared room & bath facilities $695 Shared with en-suite $760.

Single Occupancy shared bath facilities $725 Single Occupancy en-suite $800 This cost includes full accommodation and all meals.

Deposit: non refundable $100

Registrations by 30th January 2013 th Full payment by 28 February 2013

Spirit Matters - Summer 2013

NATIONAL REPRESENTATIVE Nuria Daly Phone: 03 9561 4861 Email: irenenuriadaly@hotmail.com VICE-PRESIDENT Celia Genn Phone: 07 5494 0724 Email: cgenn@bigpond.com SECRETARY Sabura Allen Phone: 08 9533 4658 Email: sabura.allen@med.monash.edu.au TREASURER Azad Daly Phone: 03 9561 4861 Email: roddydaly@hotmail.com INTERNATIONAL SUFI MOVEMENT CONTACTS GENERAL REPRESENTATIVES 24 Banstraat, 2517 GJ The Hague, Netherlands Phone: +31 70 3657 664 Email: sufihq@xs4all.nl GENERAL SECRETARIAT 78 Anna Pulownastraat, 2518 BJ The Hague, Netherlands Phone: +31 70 346 1594 Email: sufiap@hetnet.nl SUFI MOVEMENT WEB SITES International: www.sufimovement.org Australia: www.smia.com.au

REGIONAL CONTACTS AND REPRESENTATIVES ACT Talibah Josephine Lolicato Phone: 02 6297 5107 Email: loliavec@ozemail.com.au NSW – NEW ENGLAND Karim and Bahkti Parkhurst Phone: 0429 996950 Email: sitaramanzil@bigpond.com NSW – SYDNEY Hamida Janice Phone: 02 9387 5263 Email: hamida.janice@yahoo.com NSW – ROCK VALLEY Zubin Shore Phone: 0478 679 533 Email: zubinshore@gmail.com QLD – GLASSHOUSE MOUNTAINS Celia Genn Phone: 07 5494 0724 Email: cgenn@bigpond.com TASMANIA Habiba Aubert Phone: 03 6223 6085 VICTORIA – MELBOURNE Nuria Daly (details above) EDITOR, Spirit Matters Sakina Kara Jacob Phone: 0448 839641 Email: klsjacob@gmail.com