AletheiaRivers

I can't recommend any sources for sure, because I don't own any books of Rumi poetry. BUT -- Barnes and Noble ALWAYS has Rumi at the front of the store on their "Spirituality" table. You know the one - with Hindu writings and books on yoga, Zen stuff, Knight's Templar stuff... They are books that are published by B&N for about 1/2 the price of the original publisher, kind of like the "B&N Classics, and they are usually in hard cover. For example: "The Essential Rumi" is around 15.00 I believe. From the B&N sale annex, it's 8.99. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearc...&WRD=Rumi&brg=Y

Greyhounds ARE couch potatoes. Funny huh? They make awesome apartment dogs (although they do need exercise). They are sight hounds, but not so inclined to run and run the way they are made to at the tracks. [Rant back on] I think the dang dog next door is PREGNANT to boot! Outside in the cold. No dog house. Lonely. I'm mad at the dog, but still. [/Rant off]

I find it very difficult to treat the "guests" Rumi spoke of with respect and love, because they are not visitors that I can see or touch. If they bother me, I cannot just toss them out the front door and "turning the other cheek" gets to be a bit tricky. They are visitors that arise within our hearts and within our minds: depression, meaness, shame, malice ... all are to be welcomed as a guest and invited in. They are to be treated honorably and listened to for the insight they might give from 'beyond.' I know it's a challenge for me, and I am desperately trying see what "the visitors" might be pointing at, rather than looking at the visitors themselves.

Awww man, what a cutie! I miss my sisters pit-bull mix (1/2 lab too) so much.

We all know how much the heart longs for spiritual sustenance in times of great difficulty. "Honor this longing," says Rumi. "Those that make you return, for whatever reason, to the spirit, be grateful to them. Worry about the others, who give you delicious comfort that keeps you from prayer." - After the Ecstacy, the Laundry

Awesome thoughts Fred. You should put that on a Blog somewhere. Delaying of gratification is one of the "tools of suffering" espoused by M. Scott Peck in "The Road Less Traveled." In it he says "Delaying gratification is a process of scheduling the pain and pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure by meeting and experiencing the pain first and getting it over with. It is the only decent way to live." Food for thought, eh? This sums up nicely the main point of my post: "harmless habits that mask deeper needs." Living on auto-pilot. I gained deep respect for the Jewish law and what it means from reading the book "To Life!" by Rabbi Kushner. Rather than seeing the law as a curse and a burden, designed to point out imperfection and sin, Jews view the law as a blessing and as a way to make every action sacred. Food is sacred. Days are sacred. Washing is sacred. Everything becomes ritual and filled with holy meaning. The Law isn't renunciation, per se, but it highlites what's poking around at the back of my brain: WAKING UP! And "renunciation" is something that I'm considering, in some form, maybe, perhaps ...

I've always had a bad taste in my mouth towards renunciation and ascetism. It seemed to me that the attitude of renunciation was man's pronouncing as evil and tainted, what God had pronounced as "very good." My days as a neo-pagan with it's "hug a tree" mentality furthered this idea in my head. It's is fair to say that some groups practice renunciation because they DO see this world and the human body as evil, to be crushed and to be overcome. I still don't agree with this premise. I don't see this world or humanity as evil (which isn't to be confused with being "fallen"). However, I've come to realize that not all groups that practice renunciation do so with the premise that the body is evil, in need of punishment. In this view, renunciation is more of a "spiritual house cleaning." It is also a way to wake ourselves up, to move ourselves out of the rut of being on auto-pilot. To quote Jack Kornfield: "We live in disordered times, complicated, distracted and demanding, yet to sustain a spiritual practice demands our steady attention. The first task, then, in almost any spiritual voyage, is to quiet ourselves enough to listen to the voices of our hearts, to listen to that which is beyond our daily affairs. Whether in prayer or meditation, in visualization, fasting or song, we need to step out of our usual roles, out of the busy days on automatic pilot. We need to find a way to become receptive and open. Great spiritual traditions offer us a hundred good ways to do this. Some practices use the breath to quiet the mind and open the heart. There are meditative disciplines of the body that transcend the grasping of our small self, and lead us to openness. There are mantras and rituals of devotion, prayers and rosaries, daily practices of sacred attention; there is the silent inquiry of the heart." What are your thoughts about renunciation, ascetism and discipline? Have you read any of the Desert Father's writings? Do you practice any form of renunciation daily or yearly (like at Lent and Advent)? Talk to me people!

Exactly! Two of my favorite breeds are border collies and golden retrievers. I would never adopt either because I don't have the time to spend with them (they are both hyper). I don't have a yard big enough to challenge them (imo), especially the border collie. I don't have anything for them to "do," ie border collies really need to work to be happy. (Plus, I didn't want the collie "herding" my cats). We figure we will either adopt a greyhound (lazy couch potatoes that they are) or a standard poodle. We'd make sure the greyhound was prescreened for cat friendliness as they are "sight hounds."

[RANT ON] I finally feel I have something I can honestly rant about. (Des, dont' read this one.) My neighbor to the north has a Weimeraner (sp?). I hate this dog. I truly do. I don't know that I've ever said that about an animal before. This past summer, he got left outside for a couple of days. (I'm assuming the family went on vacation.) For two days the dog howled. I don't mean a minute of howling followed by hours of quiet. I mean HOWLING non-stop, for hours and hours and hours, as if the dog is being slowly killed by a sharp object. Anyway, as of 3 days ago, for whatever reason, the family has been leaving the dog outside. They put him out at 7:00 AM and bring him in at midnight or so. We called the Sherrif's dept on Saturday. We called them again on Sunday. And now we've called Animal control first thing this morning. They will give them a 24 hour notice and if they don't comply, they will take the dog. I don't want to see the dog destroyed. I love dogs. Every family in this neighborhood has a dog. Heck, I WANT a dog. But right now, as I type this, I'm wearing ear-plugs just so I don't go insane! Get the dog a shock collar. They aren't inhumane if they are set on the lowest levels. Give it a zip when it howls. It'll learn. Pavlov was basically right. And what is particularly ANNOYING is the people are home through all of this. They are putting the dog outside and letting it howl, with no thought to their neighbors at all. [/RANT OFF]

Just call me Adrian Monk. Seriously, because of your saying this and because of what Fred said about Soduku, I think I'll be making a B&N run this weekend for a puzzle book. Great, just what I need. Like I don't have enough reading to take up my time right now.

This 'being human' is a guest house Every morning a new arrival A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor. Welcome and entertain them all Even if they're a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep you house empty of it's furniture. Still treat each guest honorably, He may be clearing you out for some new delight. The dark thought, the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in. Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been 'sent' as a guide from the beyond. -- Rumi

I LOVE Spider Solitaire!

Wow. You really really really really didn't like the female bishop. I haven't formed an opinion about any of the characters yet. I've only seen one show and I don't feel I have enough information to judge any of the characters one way or another. I liked Jesus. "My Tuesdays with Jesus" - coming soon to a bookstore near you.

I haven't played the little peg game since I was 10 or so. I've been thinking about it a lot over the last couple of weeks. I think I'll check and see if Parker Bros makes one or if I can find one on Ebay. Oh, I hadn't heard of Soduku until recently. Google it and click on the first link. WOW.

NOW I am impressed! I'm challenged by the little game where you have to move one peg all around the board, jumping over other pegs in such an order that you finally only end up with the one peg.

Was the new show Reality TV or more like Law and Order or CSI? Regarding Charlie. I'm FINALLY past The Santa Clause. Now though, I think of him as Charlie when I see him on other shows, like Serenity. "You can't stop the signal Mal ... "

We watched it tonight. It was OK. Too many cliches wrapped up in one family, in one show, in one episode. As my hubby said: "Boy, they sure have the stereotypical WASP family and neighborhood going don't they?" I'm willing to give it a try. We are going to record it next week too. If it ends up being a dudd, I've got NUMBERS to fall back on. Thank the networks for repeats.

I think that is a profound insight and a good point. I think of "dark nights of the soul" as "fingers pointing to the moon." If we are depressed, or going through some other challenging occasion, and God "disappears," what might that "finger" be pointing at? It doesn't tell me that God doesn't care. Perhaps it hints at something bigger about God and our relationship to him? And, on the other hand, there are occasions when just the opposite happens. A dark night situation leads to a feeling of profound presence and caring. Perhaps individual circumstances and mindset determine the outcome in any given situation?

I'm really looking forward to the show. I've got the DVR all set to record it. The show initially caught my attention because of Aidan Quinn (whom I love as an actor), and the Christian theme was just a side benefit. Now, because of the hype, I'm excited to see what all the hoopla is about. Someday I'm gonna get off my butt and get down to my local Epicopal parish on Sunday morning. They congregation seems quite cool. Each year they have a Lord of the Rings marathon.

Depending on the test, I either score as a 4 or a 5. My husband scores as a 7 every time.

What do I use as a replacement for attending the Kingdom Hall and the dogma I was taught there? I read ... A LOT. For the past few years, reading has been my "church." I read anything that touches my heart, brings me to "thin places" and closer to God. This includes philosophy, poetry, theology and science. I meditate. I garden. I sing. I pray. I talk to people on bulletin boards and with my husband. All that said, I'm seriously considering going back to church (probably a local Episcopal church), because Christianity is social, and I've been isolated for a long long time.

Actually, it's the message of the songs (although there are exceptions) that I think are horrible. The music is horrible too, but I don't really care about the melody as much as I do the message. JW's could take all the same words and put them to incredibly wonderful contemporary music, and I'd still think they were horrible.

Sharing would be cool ... only ... it would be more like you'd be sending me yours because I only have the two lectures. But when I got more, I'd share, I swear I would!

You are very welcome! There are so many lectures that I want: a couple on Augustine, a couple on quantum physics, a couple on philosophy, one on St. Francis, one on Dante's Divine Comedy, one on the Middle Ages ...