I was recently at a retreat where my dear friend and teacher Abraham spoke about tuning the heart. He said that sometimes circumstances and events in life cause us to go out of tune, like a musical instrument goes out of tune when the weather and the temperature change. We do spiritual practices to help us get back in tune with our heart and soul. Sometimes we play music and chant, say prayers, repeat the names of God while counting on our prayer beads. We light incense and place fresh, fragrant flowers in a beautiful vase on our altar, with pictures of special beings who uplift our hearts. We can take a walk to a sacred place in nature, breathing in the elements, taking in the natural beauty. When we want to move our energy and change our vibration, we can look to those things that we know uplift our spirits.
Sweat Lodge
Sparks flying straight upward
Amidst tall spruce and hemlock,
Carrying our prayers
To the bright stars.
Snow piled high around us,
Forming a cathedral
Surrounding us
With the purity of white.
Great Spirit
Filling us with gratitude
A circle of prayers
Heartfelt.
A moon shining bright
Surrounded by a halo
A rainbow
Lighting our path home.
Nina Massey
Nearly every spiritual path in the world today has some kind of ritual for the purpose of attunement and healing. All rituals require a deep spiritual harmonization with the path being used. Some rituals are meant to lead us into a deeper communion with our heart and soul, and with the Divine. They can take us from the worries, trial and tribulations of our daily lives and into a deeper state of being.
Sacred music is frequently used to evoke a change in state. One begins to feel inspired and more peaceful while singing hymns, chanting, etc. Music therapy is also gaining popularity. Bathing in the sounds of a gong can move energy, as well as listening to a recording of sacred music. Drumming circles are frequently used to move energy, especially moving and dancing in rhythm to a beat.
In the Christian rituals, one is helped to attune to the being of Jesus, following some of the ways He showed in the bible, such as Mass, Baptism, communion, confession and anointing with oil. Contemplating the being of Jesus Christ and his teachings brings him into the heart brings a deep sense of peace.
Pagan and goddess rituals often take place out in nature, using candles, incense. A circle is cast through calling in the god/desses of each direction and asking for their protection. Perhaps the five elements, earth, water, fire, air and ether are invoked.
Cleansing with water is very common. A hot soak with bath salts is a simple and easy way to clear energy. A shower can also work. A quick dip in the freezing North Pacific will knock a lot of ‘bad’ energy from your field. Native Americans use a sweat lodge ceremony for purification.
Some place all their difficulties and burden into a bowl or a basket and in a ceremonial way empty it.
There are many different rituals and ceremonies held in every community for healing. Setting a clear intention to hold others in the Divine light is one of the most powerful healing methods. Inhaling Divine Light and exhaling Divine Light is another. Just make sure you are believing and participating with your whole heart. Wanting to be healed and being willing to let go and perhaps change something is also an important part of the success of healing ceremonies. Always do this work from deep in the heart.
The Flower of Jesus
As a flower opens it petals to the sun,
I open my heart to the light.
The beauty of the flower still appears
Even though some of its petals are bruised.
My heart feels raw from the strength of the light.
And yet the beauty of the love still glows
And fills my being.
Jesus came to heal us with love,
A flower of beauty growing in the garden,
Continuously nourished by the gardener
He is both the flower and the gardener.
Nina Massey
Concentration Practices
One of the most important ways we can train our minds to invoke clarity and purity is through concentrating on something which we find beautiful, something we love. In today’s world many allow their minds to wander from one distraction to another. One of the most common diversions is allowing your cell phone to ding with notifications from all your apps, and looking at it every time a message comes in. Learning not to look at your device until you are finished with a project increases productivity and creativity. Focusing is a skill we can learn through practice. It is one of the most important skills we can teach our children.
Being able to focus is important for developing deep relationships and learning more than superficial knowledge. Every relationship needs the caring that comes with being present and attentive, giving the fullness of being, knowing that there is something we can learn from each other.
Being able to reflect on the points of view of others with careful, loving consideration opens the door to deeper relationships. Critical thinking requires that one be able to consider and study concepts and ideas beyond simple facts, in order to analyze and discriminate in order to make good judgments. While being engaged in a discussion, one is able to consider arguments and appraise their value.[1] If we can tactfully notice inconsistencies and determine if saying anything back is going to be effective in helping another, we can preserve the love and caring.
All of us can improve our ability to focus. Putting down our devices while engaged in conversation with those we love is a great place to start. Reducing the distractions in the environment is always a helpful strategy. Learning to do one thing at a time and complete it before moving on increases productivity.[2] Beginning with short bursts of focusing, for 3 min., 5 min., 15 min., allows the brain to adjust and restructure itself. Spreading our work and practices over longer periods of time, such as once a day, or morning and nighttime, enable us to improve by getting enough practice to change our brain without tiring or arduous work that causes us to avoid the exercise.
The nautilus saw a pearl
In a drop of the ocean.
Opened his mouth to breathe
And became the pearl.
Every cell of its innermost being
Radiating luminescence.
Nothing exists that is not God.
There is no reality but the One.
La illaha il allah.
Out of the silence
Into the pearly essence.
Breathing out and in
Just being the Reality.
Eternally floating in the sea,
Riding the waves.
Nina Massey
Meditation
According to the scientific studies in the book, How God Changes Your Brain[3], 12 minutes of meditation daily can have significant positive affects on the neurological structure of the physical brain. It may also reduce stress enough to slow down the aging process. There are many meditation methods and practices. The main point is to relax the body and the mind, to quiet the mind enough to feel stillness and contentment. And perhaps, to open our hearts and minds to listen and feel a response from the Divine.
Many people find it easiest to get started by joining a group. There are many Buddhist groups in most towns. Using the Hindu practice of Kirtan, chanting a simple mantra over and over again, as a concentration practice, followed by sitting quietly, watching the breath and feeling the heart can be a good way to start. Sitting in silence out in nature after a walk, watching the breath, listening to the natural sounds, feeling the fresh air is another way to begin.
There is a place
Between sleeping and waking,
Between the worlds.
There is a sound, a tone.
Listen and you will hear it.
The pulsing wave of energy
Rising and falling into silence.
The stillness comes as a relief.
A release of movement and tension.
The calm inner stillness of total peace.
Nina Massey
[1] Critical Thinking Skills. From website Skills You Need. Retrieved from https://www.skillsyouneed.com/learn/critical-thinking.html
[2] Fighting for Focus: How to help you child learn to focus in school (and at home). From website Oxford Learning. Retrieved from https://www.oxfordlearning.com/how-to-help-child-focus-in-school/
[3] Newburg, Andrew M.D. and Waldman, Mark Robert. How God Changes Your Brain. 2010: Ballantine Books.