Thomas Merton - A Teaching on Realisation/Awakening - Christian Mystics
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- čas přidán 25. 10. 2020
- This is a brilliant and profound teaching from Thomas Merton on Awakening. It is an extract from his book "Seeds of Contemplation" (chapter on Pure Love).
Thomas Merton (January 31, 1915 - December 10, 1968) was an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist, and scholar of comparative religion. On May 26, 1949, he was ordained to the priesthood and given the name "Father Louis". Merton wrote more than 50 books in a period of 27 years, mostly on spirituality, social justice and a quiet pacifism, as well as scores of essays and reviews.
Music: Stars - Voces8
Heaven's Window - Peter Kater
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Dear Listeners, this is an old recording where I used some copyrighted music in this video so YT plays ads to collect revenue for the record company. Sorry about that. There are many ways to overcome this. On your end, you can simply install an adblocker on your device (search Google for them - many are free); change your browser to "Brave browser" - it blocks all ads on all sites; join YT premium and avoid all ads on YT. The other easy option is to listen to my recordings (and download if you wish) either on my Google Drive or the many Podcast platforms where there are no ads. You can find links to all of these in the top right-hand corner from my Home page on my You Tube channel. Hope you can find some good options. The ads will only appear on those readings where the music is copyrighted and I am trying to avoid this now as much as possible these days. Warm regards
I just find you amazing…
Thankyou
I’ve been guided here🙏
Thank you, your videos are all great. I was looking for something on The Imitation of Christ and came accross this videos which are all so good.
Thank you. The victory is indeed in the struggle.
Thomas Merton's writings guided me to the confluence of paths to enlightenment. I felt a sense of identity with him as he explored Catholocism's spirituality and chanced upon his own light within in his "Seven Storey Mountain", in his exploration of Zen and the deep draughts he imbibed of Eastern spiritual traditions like Dzogchen; I followed his travels in the Orient on the cusp of his passing, and, most precious for me, his struggle with his own humanity and his Western mind-set. He could meaningfully rhapsodize on the at once powerful and ephemeral ego we all experience because he understood and could point to his own experience with how all-encompassing, delusory and seductive the culturally consecrated and personally accepted ego can be. I think it can be said with confidence that he agreed with Miguel De Unamuno when the Spanish philosopher declared "The victory is in the struggle' in his Tragic Sense of Life. For me, most of all, I felt somehow at home and at peace with Merton's essay about the desert fathers of Christianity - "The Wisdom of the Desert". In this, I understood that in solitude, silence, naked openness and golden loving reverence one could feel-and be- the light within. It is joined with, and to, this recognition that I walk on through my days and do what I can to carry and share the light of this love that glows in each of us. Thank you for sharing your light and pointing the way for all of us who come as searchers to your work. It is through works like yours that I am reminded that there is no need to quest for and pursue, for what I am looking for is what I am indeed looking from. May you be blessed with each new dawn.
Exquisite reflection David. Thank you for sharing. You have encapsulated the humanity and Divinity of Merton's heart beautifully here - as well as your own beautiful heart. 🧡
You’re a wonderful writer. What a great reflection and review.
Thank you for sharing that.
❤️
Beautifully said
As I approach the abyss, guided there by many voices, mostly from Eastern sources, I still feel a certain fear of letting go my old identity. Can I trust the wisdom that comes from these sources that are valued, and yet alien from my childhood religious formation? Something very deep in me needs to be reassured that I am on the true path. Then I hear the voice of my "old friend" Merton, repeating the same truths as the Eastern masters with exactitude and confident knowledge. It is the voice of my Mother, teaching me the "Our Father" at the age of 2, the voice of a caring nun teaching me about Jesus in the 4th grade. The voice says, "Yes, it's Ok, you can trust.". "This wisdom is one, you can let it overtake you.". Please pray that it does.
You are already free my friend… safe travels and see you when I get there
I know what you mean! I feel like if I was born buddhist I would be buddhist. I was born christian and although I became an atheist, then spiritual I’m slowly coming back to christ because I loved the christ I knew as a kid and I just can’t let go of him and I trust that this is God’s way of guiding me. Maybe God doesn’t really need a specific religion or belief but just faith in him whether he’s a Personal God or just the consciousness behind all things. I trust in the love and wisdom that is guiding me. And may too follow the wisdom of the heart.
@@Jerry_064 that is the exact same path I took, I felt like spirituality lead me back to Christ.. I feel sad in the security of God already knowing my path and not judging me and forgiving me, so I can become something more than I have ever been… like a sweet returning back to myself… blessed be…I wish you peace
Please never stop reading from the Christian mystics. It restores my faith.
Thank you 🙏
❤ Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists.
Herein lies the Peace of God 🙏
I remember reading this in "A Course in Miracles" several decades ago. Two of my sweet young chickens were murdered last night, so either they were unreal or the threat to them was real.
@@janetf4755 Death is unreal.
Thank you so much. I live in louisville ky USA where Thomas Merton spoke of his realization of oneness occured on a busy street corner. I truly appreciate your reading of these masters. 🙏
Thy will be done...amen 🙏
This is one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard. Thank-you, thank-you.
Im in tears because of its beauty. And formost because of its reality.
This brought me to tears of Joy.. forever Loved
Merton has been on my wish list of ppl I would have loved to meet. Grateful for your uploads n always in awe of CZcams! The only social platform I live on. Hail the three men who created it. Your voice like Merton’s writings fill me. All peace ✌️
I take great comfort in the works of Thomas Merton, as well as in the compassionate recitation by our dear, benevolent sister.
Oh, Jayasara! This is overwhelmingly beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing these pointers with such gentle power. Blessings!
You are most welcome Joyce. I hope you and your mum enjoyed it! I thought of you both when I was inspired to upload it yesterday (I had it in my list of uploads) after your lovely email. It is a most potent teaching from this beloved, gifted monk. With all blessings
Beautiful narration. I sense that the narrator perceives reality something like Thomas.
I've never found any words quite like the ones Merton finds to describe spiritual reality. It's astounded me that he finds language to describe these things that we experience
How can one be the same after hearing this magnificent message with such a hauntingly intentioned narration?
Merton and Meister Eckhart are my two favorites, reading another Merton book at the moment. I absolutely love your work and I’m hoping to hear much more Merton and Eckhart in the future. Thank you for taking the time to make these.
Very few people ask about the word "mysticism." There's a simple answer. Begins with mist, ends in schism.
That's a joke. Ya know, begins with J, ends with oak!
So this is a great series. I've been using them as I fall asleep, so I can't comment on the end of the video. I'm trying to "re-learn" Merton. I'm finding him to be more and more interesting and informative as I've grown older.
Which books did you read?
Maister Eckhart is very difficult to read, he is so sophisticated and also he gets very deep in the understanding of the truth for most of us regular people there’s a teacher here in youtube that has some comprensible videos about him his name is Francis Lucille if you feel inclined
I definitely needed to hear a few background lectures and podcasts before I was able to start to absorb and really appreciate Eckhart…though as soon as I read some of his words, I sensed some profundity in it.
I always like to imagine if Eckhart would’ve been in communication with Hindu, Buddhist, or Taoist teachers, how it would’ve possibly influenced him.
I came to Eckhart and Merton after years of studying Eastern spirituality, and they made me realize similar currents and sentiments.
Having given up and moved out of the fundamentalist traditional bible-belt USA style kind of christianity or maybe I could say "churchianity", listening to the few tracks here of the christian mystics like Meister Eckhart and now Thomas Merton, I am pleasantly surprised at how he points to the same Absolute and so on as the great sages of the East, like Ramana M. and Nisargadatta M. Listening to many of these tracks here from all these different spiritual traditions kinda points to me the transcendence of God, What Is, The Divine, the Supreme Reality or whatever other label it can be called. It shows how just about everyone, in their own way and through and in spite of their "system" , their culture or order or church have intuited and realized truth and reality, regardless of the words used to point to it which is all they can do anyway.
I used to think that christianity, as I knew it, practiced and believed it to be, kinda left a "bad "taste in my mouth, so to speak. Of course, the ideas, beliefs, stories of the mental construct of the "me" were definitely there as well. I don't see my former life now as a "christian" as some kind of mistake or that there's some "baggage" of it still laying around here and there. Yes, the christian mystics do seem tp put a bit more emphasis on humility. Humility is good for the little ego-mind "me" because it helps us to first transcend it, then to "outgrow" it. No need to fight it, resist it or kill it. Just see through it and move beyond it. Just see the false as false and what's left is what's true and real. Meditative self-inquiry helps with this. It helped me to distinguish the little ego-me from That which 'I' truly am, which is actually nameless, formless, timeless, unfathomable and infinite.
The christian mystics were a smaller number people who seemed to have intuited that there has to be more to things than what the status quo church had taught them. They weren't satisfied with just going to church, hearing a sermon, singing some songs and throwing some money in the offering plate. To themselves at least, the christian mystics definitely questioned the "orthodox" christianity of their day. Also, what once may have been helpful to us at one points of "our" search will not apply to us later as we grow in our realization.
And I like what David Geocaris says below in his reply. . ."that I am reminded that there is no need to quest for and pursue, for what I am looking for is what I am indeed looking from".
Samaneri, here's another "Thank you!" for making all of these videos and making them available as mp3 tracks as well! . . . even though it's not a separate "you" that is doing all this ^^ : )
Well said. There is a vast reservoir of Christian mystical teaching both in the Christian West and Orthodox East . It has been mostly forgotten and ignoring our time. Merton was in touch with this and pointed many back to these treasures.
How moving to hear ! What a revelation of the true christianity. Thank you
For you, dear Silvia 💜🧡
So wonderful Samaneri,
You have a divine voice......I have often wondered how these different teaching,s affect your own spiritual practice....
I know for me when i hear all these teachings,i hear only one thing.....Love the lord with all your heart Be sincere and god will take you in...I have thanked you many times for the amazing service you do....It,s almost impossible to pay such a debt...but with a sincere loving thank you from my heart....
Yes, Merton's words and pointers here are incredible - glad you appreciate them Perry. In regards to your question as to how they impact me, there are so many subtle, yet profound parallels here with what he is teaching and the teachings on "stream entry" that one finds in the Buddha's teaching. However, at the end of the day, the key points for awakening settle on freeing ourselves of the delusion of this false self or ego by seeing clearly the places where these defilements or delusions operate, and empyting our minds and hearts completely from any clinging and self-identification. For me, the Christian mystics offer the most beautiful reminder of the need for humility and complete surrender to the Divine. I don't find that expressed so lucidly or so poetically in some of the other traditions - which have other strengths and give emphasis to other aspects - so for this I am most grateful for the reminder. Additionally, my roots are in Christianity, so it is affirming to revisit and reconnect with the profundity that is on offer but was perhaps not presented so clearly to me and others when raised a Catholic. However, the beauty, depth, and wisdom is there and it is reaffirming and humbling to reconnect.
@@SamaneriJayasara Thank you for the reply......I could not agree more Samaneri ,The aspect of the eastern teaching that i love the most are the teaching on Anatta [non-self].I am not the doer.The christian mystics I.M.H.O carry the space of mysticism .Anatta and seeing through my own practice has brought in a most remarkable sense of humility and letting go. Through this practice one can see the depth of attachment to "i am the doer...THIS i ...And slowly we can become more comfortable with this I am not the doer...Which is were i,m seeing the more you just allow things to be as they are the more you are taken in ,i feel that this is what practice is all about....Doing a about face and unwinding all we have gathered for many lifetimes .Anatta has been the most powerful for me....Thank you Again and look forward to your next video
beautifully said! 💜
@@SoftSpokenSecrets Thanks for commenting...
Just so amazing , grateful for sharing this knowledge so beautifully !!!
Thank you!
I love all your videos so much… thank you from the bottom of my heart… blessed be…peace
So spoiling with very deep insights and before the popularity of Eastern thought. It seems there are similar paths to the same place though differently labelled. Amen to that. God living in God. What a seed thought.
Breathtakingly beautiful, Pure Gold. Thank you so much. 🤎
John 15:1-5
1 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.
2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.
3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.
4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.
5 I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
"Love Loving in Freedom". Sums up the essence of all these videos. Thank you again ☮️❤️🕉️
Wow. Wow. Wow. (I feel like I am hearing this for the first time. Did I miss this Gem the first time around?) The wide open heart wisdom of these Christian mystics always brings me to tears ❤️🧡💜 Thank you as always for sharing your precious Google drive
Thanks for the perspective it’s assisting in unraveling the mystery in this loud and distracting society
thank you for helping me to be with God
Beautiful!!! Thank you … blessings and grace for All
so beautiful... joy and love arise as blooms of bountiful abandon....thank you
Thank you so much ..... this is so reassuring
You are an Angel.
Thank you.
Thank you so much ! It was really a joy and un relief !
Thank you, love you ❤
Samaneri... Thanks for your BeYOUtiful Soul ❤️
You're most welcome Paul - may the words of the Masters continue to inspire you 🤗
Thank you for reading this.
Woah.
Thank you 😇And bless you.
Just perfection
Thanks.
Wow!!!♥️♥️♥️♥️🙏❤️❤️❤️❤️
Another beautiful sharing, thank you! 💜
Thank you - a true gem
Truly beautiful. ❤
💐💐💐Milles Merci 🙏 🙏🙏
So many times I didn’t know how I got there or how I got back, and, they told me I have Dissociative Identify Disorder
Merton's "New Seeds of Contemplation" for me is sacred scripture.
so beautiful , thank you
So sweet 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
Thank you 🙏🏻 💕
A thing of real beauty
Love you!❤️🙏❤️
This is beautiful
Confidence is the immature best friend of ignorance, that's because confidence ALWAYS shows-up to class and childishly refuses to learn anything it doesn't already know.
Humility is wisdom lubricant.
Thank u very much.
You’re already there. Like sinking into the ocean and breathing underwater. Like reaching the bottom only to find you are rushing upward.
Very nice to meet you.
Beautiful
Yes it will always be ok
This reminds me of the Talking Heads Song, ‘How did I get here?.’
I can see that Fundamentalists will find this absolute heresy. They want above all to hang on to the SELF as the ultimate truth. The thought that the self is ultimately non existent violates the notion of creation, and the dogma of the entire Christian faith.
Thanks Jayasara. I am fearful that i am to much of a thinker to ever taste real freedom in this lifetime. I hate my thinking, it is all negative in fact i dont like myself. In your reading i get a taste of freedom every time. When will it last? Sometimes i know the One mind and feel free. Next day all is gone. Suffering starts again. What to do? Sri Ranjit Maharaj would say 😏
Hi Steve, the thought that you 'hate' your thought is just another thought. What to do - indeed? Well, for one, you can and should investigate the nature of thought itself. Instead of going into battle with them or hating them, you need to outwit them! They are fraudsters, there is nothing to them in Reality, but we empower them and feed them and they love that. A bit like a leech that grows fatter on our blood and if we try to force them off they get stronger and fatter and attach themselves even more. So, we need to outsmart them and they will simply drop off if we don't feed them. The other essential thing we all need is Patience. Big time! They will lessen and become less of an issue over time if we practice sincerely and correctly, but it does require the virtue of patience. I would recommend that you dedicate at least 30 minutes everyday sitting quietly somewhere simply watching and noticing the machinations of thought (without getting sucked in to them). You need to learn more about their nature, process, origin and cessation - not their content and message though! There's a big difference here. In your quiet time you can listen to meditations that might help guide you to stillness and insight as an aid to this understanding. This guided meditation that I compiled earlier this year addresses the nature of thought directly so you might find this one helpful too. Here's the direct link: czcams.com/video/q22fwf1wD-Y/video.html&ab_channel=SamaneriJayasara
With all good wishes and simply keep going with courage and determination. We have been spinning around in the dark in samsara for thousands or millions of lifetimes. Now you have found the Light - what's another birth or so before Liberation. Just don't give up or give in and keep it light Steve - Grace will work it out. With all blessings 🌺💚💜
@@SamaneriJayasaraHi Samaneri, thanks for your reaction and advice to search for the origin of thought, to be patient and be light about it all ✨♥️
🙏❤️
"The separate entity that is you apparently disappears and nothing seems to be left but a Pure Freedom indistinguishable from Infinite Freedom love identified with Love!"
Love you
Thank you so much for all these inspiring lessons. I would love to download all these lessons to listen whenever possible. But I tried under the community tab, no link to the google drive you indicated can be found. Please help me. Thank you so much.
Hi, here is the direct link but you have to click on "read more" and then scroll down to the bottom of the page to find them. You will see the Christian Mystics link amongst them:
czcams.com/channels/z6X8QK9_JG49hJxnzAu-1w.htmlcommunity?view_as=subscriber
🙏
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Every morning, as I sit in meditation with these teachings, I am filled with love and gratitude for you and the gifts you've given us with these recordings.
Do you have a podcast for this one or is it just on a video (the date is 2020, but I only see podcasts from 2021 on).
All of these readings are so relaxing to listen to, and you choose such lovely music to set them to. But doesn't it confuse you to be jumping about between all these many different religions ? xx
Personally, not at all! I only hear the Truth expressed in different ways with different concepts, frameworks, and paradigms. However, you are right - if you are only beginning on the path or want to keep it simple, it might be better to stick to one tradition, otherwise you could get confused. It depends on your capacity. As I studied comparative religion and spirituality for a long, long time at University I have trained my mind to be flexible and find the confluences. Personal insights and experiences also help the understanding. The other reason there are so many different traditions on offer here is to ensure there's something for everyone. Not everybody is going to listen and meditate to another tradition, and that's fine, so I am endeavouring to upload a variety. For myself, I enjoy it and benefit immensely.
@@SamaneriJayasara Thank you for such a direct reply. Maybe I could study comparative religion, but I suspect I am someone who won't benefit from mixing and matching. It doesn't seem to work like nutrition, where we're each advised to get a balance of each different nutrient
@@renethomas5757 And the key point to stress in listening to these masterful Dharma teachings is to listen with your heart, not your head/intellect. It makes a huge difference. It's amazing what the heart understands - in fact more and deeper than the head. No knowledge required!
@@SamaneriJayasara Thank you. That is perhaps the most valuable advice I've had on the subject. I have spent my adult life flitting between belief systems, but for the last few years have settled with Zen Buddhism. It seems like one of the simplest to practise but its theory and beliefs are very confusing to grasp.
Thank you for making this beautiful reading from Thomas Merton. Your voice, the pacing, and the music are perfect for this. One request though is that if it’s possible can you make the ad to only appear before the video instead of in the middle of it? At 16:30 or so I was jolted out of this space by a loud and fast paced ad trying to sell something! It’s like having a beautiful song interrupted.
Love and Blessings ✨
Hi there, I used a little bit of copyrighted music in this video so YT plays ads to collect revenue for the record company and this music is obviously in the middle of this amazing teaching and out of my control. Sorry about that. There are many ways to overcome this. On your end, you can simply install an adblocker on your device (search Google for them - many are free); change your browser to "Brave browser" - it blocks all ads on all sites; join YT premium and avoid all ads on YT. The other easy option is to listen to my recordings (and download if you wish) either on my Google Drive or the many Podcast platforms where there are no ads. You can find links to all of these in the top right hand corner from my Home page on my You Tube channel. Hope you can find some good options. The ads will only appear on those readings where the music is copyrighted and I am trying to avoid this now as much as possible. Warm regards
Thank you for your response!
Imagine: 1 country, 1 language, 1 religion, 1 purpose - self realization.
🙏💙🌎🌈
REAL RECOGNIZE REAL
God within God, is Creation living within Creator in union and relationship as one while remaining distinct? A paradox maybe?
Those that claim to believe in God in the U.S. have lost their way. I hope that these words and teachings are found by at least one of “them”.
It s hard to listen through constant interruptions.
Try listening here: anchor.fm/dashboard/episode/e10fcgm
No ads. The ads on YT are because I used copyrighted music so it's the music companies making some revenue.
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❤❤❤ Hare Krišna 💓🎉🫀❤️🔥🎉🦚🪷💥
Thank you.