From John Main OSB, “The Oceans of God” (December 1982), THE PRESENT CHRIST (New York: Crossroad, 1991), pp. 111-112, 116-117.
Our life is a unity because it is centered in the mystery of God. But to know its unity we have to see beyond ourselves and with a perspective greater than we generally see with, when self-interest is our dominant concern. Only when we have begun to turn from self-interest and self-consciousness does this larger perspective begin to open.
Another way of saying that our vision expands is to say that we come to see beyond mere appearances, into the depth and significance of things. . .not just. . .in relation to ourselves but. . .to the whole of which we are part. This is the way of true self-knowledge and it is why true self knowledge is identical with true humility. Meditation opens up for us this precious form of knowledge, [and] this knowledge becomes wisdom. . .when we know no longer by analysis and definition but by participation in the life and spirit of Christ. [. . . .]
By stillness in the spirit we move into the ocean of God. If we have the courage to push off from the shore we cannot fail to find direction and energy. The further out we travel the stronger the current becomes, and the deeper our faith. For a while the depth of our faith is challenged by the paradox that the horizon of our destination is always receding. Where are we going with this deeper faith? Then, gradually we recognize the meaning of the current that guides us, and we see that the ocean is infinite.
After Meditation, selected stanzas from Seng Ts’an, “Believing in Mind” in TIMELESS WISDOM: Passages for mediation from the world’s saints and sages, ed. Eknath Easwaran (Tomales, CA: Nilgiri Press, 2008), pp. 161-63.
Don’t get tangled in outward desire
Or get caught within yourself.
Once you plant deep the longing for peace
Confusion leaves of itself.
Without meditation
Consciousness and feeling are hard to grasp.
In the realm of Suchness
There is neither self nor other.
In the one, there is all.
In the all, there is one.
If you know this,
You will never worry about being incomplete.
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