Opening 1

Earth 19Mind 31Aspen 37Raven 51Rock 67Human 85Magic 105

Sources 125Quoted 129Author 131

. . . to see the ordinary as the extraordinary, the familiar as strange, the mundane as sacred, the finite as infinite.

Novalis German philosopher, late 1700s

opening

Listen close.Something other than the human mindis at play here.

David AbramCultural ecologist

I tread so delicately in the world these daysbalancing between commitment and despair

commitment to support thoseholding up the failing structures of institutionsdoing good and just work in the midst of disintegration

despair a too familiar companionwhose triggers are everywhere so plentiful they cannot be avoided

news reportsfriends falling illrefugee photosoutrages against good peoplefrightened angry protestors

and our silence

I am not interested in being hopefulor optimistic orworking diligently to reverse the patterned path of history we treadso reliably toward collapse

I am interested in being able to stayin the midst of this terrible travestythat degrades the human spiritor denies we have one

caught on the balance beam ofmeaningful work and terrifying timesI want to walk steady in the worldlearning what balance feels like

blessed by the active presenceof companions in sacred world

Just now the leaves with new rainshimmer a greeting to meand birds not seen this summercome sit with mejust for a momentin recognitionas a slug moves majesticallyon the wooden deck

they continue their greeting tell of us tell the whole story return rediscover we have never left you

The power of ravens to console with their presencehas astonished me into a worldthat is not newonly forgotten lost in separation and dominationas now we sit in ravaged relationship with the living world

it was never this wayin any other timewith any other peoplea world focused only on usfull of manipulationcreating extremes ofisolationlonelinessgriefterror

we are driving ourselves crazy

how am I so visible to you ravenat different times with different needsthat in a moment of acute distressyou ride the wind above my headhovering to teach me thatto be stable in a violent windis possible

how do you know to fly so near arching your back to the windjust for a momentso that I learnstrong backfacing gale gives power to my heart

and then you soarout of sight to a distant cliffgiving what I neededgone

36

We were together. I forget the rest.

aspen

aspens are graceful messengersfor how to endurefor how to persevere no matter what

they are called quaking aspens becausetheir heart shaped leaves rustlewhen the wind blows gently and they call out their invitation come be present

the oldest living organism on Earthis a large grove of aspen in Utahabout two hours from where I live on Aspen Way

it is said to be 80,000 years oldwhich may be a conservative estimate

before humans were ever on this continentaspens were flourishing herethey survive undergroundas root systems bound together that ignoresuperficial calamities

the many trees are just one organismmany shoots connected as one root systemindividual trees emerge from undergroundwhen conditions are hospitable we can’t see the tree for the forest

they travel through their root system a new tree appearing 100 feet from homeby root they travel undergroundancient aspen roots still dug up by farmersfrom their migration westward very long ago

in large groves nourishment is moved from where it is to where it is neededsharing without questionthey are all in this together

a green layer just below the white barkacts like leaves photosynthesizing even in winter elk deer moose who browse in shade in summerfeed on this inner bark in the cold times

individual trees die andthe absence of their hormonescommunicates their deaththe root system responds by generatingfar more trees than were lost

aspens crave instability they need fire to thriveafter the old has been swept awayand the ground is clearedby fire flood avalanchewhen the light returns to empty groundso do they

aspens are called a pioneering species

I am in a grove of aspens in the midst of hundreds of trees that wander all over the mountainI take strength from being among themstraight standing trees seeking sky

many groves I once walked in are now dying or so it appearsI look for the young shoots so as not to grieve

I don’t remember when I first learned of aspensbut I fell in love with them whenI knew to look below ground for guidance

rustling leaves invite me to be present and ask

how does it feel to be this rooted in community? what stability what confidence what strengthis drawn from knowing your roots?what does it feel like not to be consumed by worryfor individual existence?

what does it feel like to live in community where one does not fearliving aloneor dying alone

many indigenous people knew this well whatever their grief and lossthey are connected

severing their communitiesmoving them from ancient landshas caused deadly harm

in all human history exile has always been a terrifying punishment

What do you say in Athabascan when you leave each other? What is the word for goodbye? . . .

She looked at me close. We just say, Ttaa. That means, See you.

We never leave each other. When does your hand say goodbye to your heart?

Mary TallMountain Koyukon Athabascan

84

I should like to think that prehistoric man’s first invention, the first condition for his survival, was a sense of humor.

Andre Leroi-Gourhan Paleoanthropologist

human

it is not known how many years agowe humans set out to occupy Earthif we include Neanderthals who150,000 years ago werecaring for their sick andburying their dead with flowers and ritual

perhaps we as Homo sapiens sapiensour formal name says we are doubly wiseleft our African homeland 90,000 years ago

it is not precisely known when we leftbut we journeyed forthas other hominids had done one to two million years earlier

we settled every continent except Antarcticasurviving setbacks and natural catastrophesthat nearly extinguished everyone

about 40,000 years agoour Neanderthal cousins disappearedperhaps because of usand we took over Earth

sapiens sapiens?

this is not to romanticize our specieswhich merits no current honorbut to notice who we’ve beenand what we hominids didin deep history

I was introduced to this ancient worldin a local museum in Tuscany here there was a case of implements500,000 years oldI stared down into this displaywilling my imagination to take me there

Homo erectus began using firefor warmth then cooking at least 800,000 years agofire hearths still visible today fromancient ancestors who sat in circle round the fire so that no one was left out in the cold

I cherish this image as now we sit in circleregaining ancient intimacy

104

If there is no sense of rejoicing and magical practice, you find yourself simply driving into the high wall of insanity.

Chögyam Trungpa Buddhist teacher

magic

all living beings through all timehave needed to know the world wellknowing life depends on this

most peoples throughout time have seen beyond the visible worldthey and still we rely onsymbols objects rituals to summon forces of protection and plentyknowing to respect and evoke the unseen world with offerings

modern culture is an anomalyto the pattern of human cultureswithdrawing from everythingexcept our five material sensesarrogant with vision that sees about 1 percent of what the light spectrum reveals

seeing so little we grow morefrantic to know what is out thereyet push aside those who see

no wonder we are fearful ofbeing harmed as we harm the worldscared humans scarring sacred world

many years ago when studyingA Course in MiraclesI was puzzled by the teachingthere is no order of difficulty in miraclesI remained perplexed until my Tibetan teacher explained

those who perform miraclesare those who know the true nature of realityall miracles display that knowledge offering a glimpse intothe inner workings of this world and what’s possible here

stories of miracles are veneratedin all culturesexcept oursyet we are the champion purveyors ofmagical thinkingbelieving we can be savedby the very thinking that createdall this destruction denyingthe way things truly work denyingthe fact that nature demands obedience denyingshe has well-functioning laws

magical thinking is to believewe’re going to get away with this

we are told how wrong it is to imputeour intelligence to animalsbuilding them up raising their rankingattributing behaviors meant only for us

but what if we were as intelligent as animals?

if we had their intelligencewe would not push awaywhat we don’t want to knowwe’d know denial is a form of suicide

if we had their intelligencewe would notice who’s around usno longer duped into thinkingwe can make it on our own

if we had their intelligencewe would engage with everythingmindfulness not a fad knowingstaying awake means staying alive

we are a young specieswe would be wiser if werecognized our immaturityand used our intelligenceto take our right place on the planet

when I first moved to the mountainsa home of peace and plentywhat I wish for everyoneI remember sitting in an alpine meadowoverwhelmed with gratitudethat soon deformed to guilt

as an activist I lectured myselfyou should be living in the real worldnot hiding away herea crowded city somewherecoping with pollution fear and violence

from the grasses of the meadow andthe quaking leaves of aspensa voice sounded silent and clear

what makes you think this is not the real world?the other world is painfully distortedthis is what life ispeace that pervades through the cycles ofcreation and destructionharmony maintainedas great change happensrelationships recognized as the life force of creationthis is the real world

others have told me of receiving a similar message

I am standing by a window inwhat seems my darkest hourmy teacher standing with meas we gaze through treesto see the sea that turned to ice this winter

she and I are well-cared for by ravenwe have often shared stories of their presence andhow in turn we care for our trustworthy totem

she has come to help me walk through my despairto the unshakable confidence revealedthe other side of darknessbut here at the window with her I have yet to know the good that awaitsfrom my dark descent

and then the ravens appearall seven that have hovered round this winterin past years there had been more but this year only seven and here they all aresettling in the treesa raven circle of comfort

my teacher touches my back tenderly sayingthis is a good sign isn’t it andI can only ask

how does raven know

Ex cerpted from H OW D OES RA V EN K NOW ?ENTERING SA C RED W ORL D | A M ED ITA TIV E M EM OIR

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