If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
Mother Teresa
Co-Creative Mandalas have a vibration that anchors, activates specific qualities, and represents something about ourselves, the natural world, and the energy in the universe at a particular time. This year the mandalas support Aligning with Wisdom,
within mind, body, and spirit,
with the natural rhythms in nature,
and with the Great Mandala.
The mandala archetype for this month is Convergence.
It's been fun, illuminating, and surprising to explore Convergence and all the ways it supports
aligning with wisdom:
Your wisdom--mind, body, and spirit--by listening to your inner guidance and finding joy, peace, and wonder.
How is your wisdom calling you
to embrace Convergence?
This Co-Creative Mandala, Convergence, is from a photograph of coleus (symbolizes unconditional love) and is associated with the sacral, heart, and crown chakras. It reminds us that during times of apparent divisiveness there is something unseen happening. Even though our goals, aspirations, and hopes at times may appear to be in conflict, we are all seeking connection with something greater than we are. View life from a more expansive perspective. Look for ways to make connection, to join rather than separate. You may find that you have more in common that you ever dreamed possible.
Welcome the Season of Gratitude:
At this time of year we're offered opportunities to gather with loved ones and reflect on the meaning of the season. We are reminded how powerful gratitude, compassion and community are.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to you, our Co-Creative Mandalas community--for investing your time and energy toward reading our posts, blogs, and newsletters. Your presence and deep spiritual work toward bringing more love and light to the world is seen and appreciated.
The channeled mandala and the archetype for November revealed itself as Convergence. I must admit, I didn't know which direction to go with this post because I haven't focused on the meaning of Convergence since I traveled to Tibet for the Harmonic Convergence in 1988. Even then, I wasn't familiar with the concept. I just knew I was meant to be in the Himalayas. Being there during that powerful cosmic event was a deeply transformative experience.
All these decades later, when I watch or read the news (yes, I believe it's important to stay informed about what's happening in the world of the world--because this is where we reside as spiritual beings having a human experience), my heart sometimes feels heavy. I worry about the present and the future. I've discovered that I find peace in the midst of those feelings when I remember in Tibet I experienced my goodness and connected with goodhearted people from all over the world who, like many of us, are working toward aligning with wisdom. And, there were also those who appeared to be doing the exact opposite.
I'm reminded about what A Course in Miracles says about war and conflict--"the war we see out there is the war within,"--our internal state is what we see in the news, social media, and other people--bliss and blisters. It's a battle between our human and spiritual selves, our ego and Wisdom. So, of course, if we're not at peace, what we see "out there"--is judgement, conflict, anger, fear, a feeling that we're separate from the Universe and from each other--until we choose love over fear.
This isn't about shaming or blaming ourselves.
Like all aspects of our spiritual journey, it's an inside job. We start where we are...with curiosity, realizing and accepting that we may not know what is true for another person, and often, even for ourselves.
It's challenging holding sacred space for a world that bombards us with negativity from the news, social media, other beings...and from within. Even if we don't watch the news or follow social media or we live in a cave somewhere in the Himalayas the energy of the world is clamoring for our attention. It's up to each of us to choose what we place our attention on. "Our experience is shaped by what we attend to". William James, Psychologist. And from the Hawaiian Huna principle of Makia--"Energy flows where attention goes".
How do we hold the belief in goodness alongside all that appears to be the opposite in the world and within? I believe it starts with acceptance for what is. Not everyone sees the world through the same lens. Acceptance means that’s okay. (I hear the gasps--even within as I write those words). Let me be clear, I'm not saying harmful actions or unkind words are okay, they aren't. Acceptance isn't giving up or giving in--it's our pathway to freedom.
I believe--and often forget--that we humans, even those with whom I disagree, are here for one purpose: Remembering our wholeness. Our paths are diverse, and often times at odds. But our goal is the same. What if we could agree to disagree about the form our paths are taking, while recognizing that on another level we are all seeking to bring the darkness to the light?
I know...it's a tall order. I face that challenge every day.
I'm asking that we see each other from a spiritual perspective, from which we may find common ground in oneness rather than separation, in love rather than fear. I get it--this isn't something that all people will be on board with. That's okay. Not all hearts and minds will embrace this opportunity. The best we can do is offer loving kindness, compassion, and acceptance--even when we disagree.
Let's trade in our judging for appreciating.
Let's lay down our righteousness and just be together.
Ram Dass
What matters is that we're being honest with our self. This is the time to recognize and honor that you may be at war in your mind. It's the time to come back to your Wisdom, to what’s true for you, to return to your inner sense of home, and to affirm what you want to plant going forward.
Do you sense that you're awakening to the part of you that has been feeling… something?
Maybe it’s been subtle. Maybe it’s been loud. Maybe it’s been with you for years.
That sense that there's more you're here to do. That there's a part of yourself that you have yet to discover and fully express. That there's a deeper purpose to your life than what you're living right now. That's where we find our shared belonging and the sacred thread that binds all of life. This is a reminder when we're feeling separate, life always invites us to connection, into the truth of our Wholeness, and to co-creating deeper Convergence.
Convergence, by definition, creates an inner spaciousness. It brings together opposites to create something new. It brings the expansive (not constricted) feeling that you’re connected to yourself… connected to other people… connected to nature, connected to the Universe… it reaffirms and embodies your soul-guided purpose.
The power to birth a new story has always been right here, right now, in the intentions that I - You - We dare to hold, in the choices that I - You - We passionately make, in the courage to love into being a breathtaking, inspiring story that is worthy of who we truly are.
David Brand, The Everything Kid
When we see with the heart, with Convergence, the world softens. We recognize how we belong to each other, where we once walked parallel, separate paths we now find peace in knowing that Wisdom is guiding our way.
That inner spaciousness comes with bigger, deeper, and more soulfully inspired perspective about how Convergence can shape life now and in the future. When we feel safe enough, spacious enough, and connected enough to align with wisdom--we see ourselves and each other in the same Light.
I invite you to give those feelings space...
I wonder if it's possible that whatever our beliefs, values, and practices we can recognize that all beings are seeking a deeper connection with the Universe or whatever name is given to the Creative Intelligence, the Source, of all life? Convergence shifts our focus to shared experiences of love, peace, and connection.
For those looking for a way to join, rather than separate, and are looking to bring Convergence into your daily life, into your spiritual practices for bringing peace to the war within--I encourage you to explore the Buddhist concept of Metta--loving kindness. The practice consists of four prayers; First for yourself (that can be a hard one); then for those who support and love you, and then for those with whom you disagree or believe have wronged you (often the most difficult and challenging beings for whom we choose to extend loving kindness) , and finally, for the world, all beings, and the Universe.
The practice is simple, the words are profound. Feel free to change and add to the loving kindness prayers. Incorporate this practice in your daily rituals and/or whenever you recognize you're not experiencing peace.
Start with centering, grounding breaths. Then offer the following prayers:
1. Focusing on the prayer you offer for yourself (sometimes this is the most difficult of all the prayers). May I know...compassion. May I know peace. May I know kindness. May I know well-being.
2. Focusing on those who love and support you. May you know...compassion. May you know peace. May you know kindness. May you know well-being.
3. Focusing on those who have wronged us, for those for whom we are unable to find common ground. May you know...compassion. May you know peace. May you know kindness. May you know well-being.
4. Focusing on the world at large, the Earth and all beings. May you know...compassion. May you know peace. May you know kindness. May you know well-being.
There are many routes to experience the creative, life-giving force from which we are made, for ending the divisiveness created by the war within. I believe from that place of peace, there is no division- only Convergence, connection, and expansion. At that point of Convergence there is unity--we realize we belong to each other. We're not alone. I believe as more and more people find their unique way to embrace and practice Convergence, peace will spread to every corner of the Earth, to all beings, and throughout the Universe.
Let us meet these insights with compassion and forgiveness, for ourselves and for others. Let’s move forward with no blame. As Native American Grandmother Agnes Pilgrim, "Grandma Aggie" said,
We’re all in this leaky canoe together.
Blessings of love and light,
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