Tag: ritual

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Buddha in the Boot

If they hadn’t torn down another beautiful home in my neighborhood, I never would have seen her. Beyond the rubble and construction equipment, nestled in the plants at the back corner of the garden, she serenely sat. I asked the construction crew if she was left behind. When they answered in the affirmative, I ran around the corner to get my car. Five minutes later the lady buddha was in my boot.

Initially, every time I popped the trunk, I was startled. Then I stopped opening the trunk, instead using the backseat for groceries and other things I had to cart around. For weeks I would hear her thudding about when I took a corner too fast or had to come to a quick stop. 

No longer sure I wanted her—she wasn’t in great shape—I googled how to dispose of a buddha statue. I was advised by a nun friend that putting her out with the bulk trash was not a good idea. She asked the caretaker of the park near work if we could take her into the woods. No, it was national parkland and therefore religious objects were not allowed. Our fate was sealed.

One quiet Saturday, I carefully lifted her out of the trunk and carried her to the backyard where I brushed the debris from her, bits of her falling off with it as I did. I washed her with warm soapy water, some of her stains impossible to remove. I rinsed her with the hose and left her to dry in the sun and began to make plans. 

I found a lovely spot on a table under the pergola. I texted a friend and asked if she was still interested in burning some of her old journals and told her I was planning on lighting up some of mine. 

The journals had been a weight on my psyche for a long time. Filled with laments and heartache, a litany of bad habits and promises to reform, I worried about dying before I had a chance to dispose of them.

We had a little dinner; night started to fall. The grill beckoned, an aluminum pan ready on the racks, matches at hand. We stood side by side and pulled apart our journals feeding pages to the flames, the broken pieces of our lives going up in smoke, a beautiful wounded buddha keeping vigil.

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Smudge Me

Several years ago, Sr. Kristin came into my office, and I greeted her with, “I feel like I could use a good smudging.” Without missing a beat, she said, “I think so, too.” And off she went returning a minute later with a sage stick, which she lit and with a feather proceeded to direct the smoke from it around my body, from head to toe, and throughout my office, moving slowly and with holy intent. Long after she finished, wafts of the sage’s earthy, bittersweet scent lingered.

Smudging is the practice of cleansing energy, a ritual said to pre-date recorded history. Used in ceremonies and for healing, purifying energy is still practiced today. Palo santo, incense, crystals, and sound vibrations are some of the other natural materials used to cleanse energy.

Energy is palpable. We are made of and surrounded by it. If you do the simple exercise of pressing your palms together, then pulling them apart and pressing them back together a few times, almost like you were playing an accordion, you’ll begin to feel the energy between your hands. 

We’ve all been confronted by unpleasant energy that makes us want to back away. The energy of conflict, even small arguments or tension is like that, or energy that doesn’t mesh with ours. We can magnify this effect exponentially when we think of the energy created by fear and paranoia, the energy that incites violence and war. 

Our energy reflects not only our physical health but our mental and spiritual health. It’s been said that our energy enters the room before we do, and everything flows from that. It affects the energy of the people and places around us, so it’s important to protect it and be mindful of it. What are we exuding?

And our combined energy can have tremendous power for good. “When we come together as a group, with a common purpose and commitment to mindful action, we produce an energy of collective concentration far superior to our own individual concentration. This energy further helps us to cultivate compassion and understanding.” (Thích Nhất Hạnh)

Sr. Kristin has since gone on to another realm, but I have been thinking of her a lot lately and wondering what she would make of what is happening in the world today. I like to believe she’s a spirit in the sky with other holy wisdom spirits, lighting divine sage sticks and smudging the Universe. We need to do our part and meet those divine energies at least halfway. So, yes, smudge me, please.

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Per·​se·​ver·​ance

According to Merriam – Webster the essential meaning of perseverance is: the quality that allows someone to continue trying to do something even though it is difficult.

I’m a compartmentalizer and a fan of distraction, and like millions of others, I am also addicted to word games like the NY Times Spelling Bee and Wordle. It’s no surprise, then, that I look at a word like perseverance, and other words start announcing themselves. Are you game?

Persevere like your life depends on it, because it always does but especially now in these challenging, changing times. You don’t have to do this alone. In fact, that is ill-advised.

You can stay the course, whatever that course is. Do not give in or give up. You’ve got this!

Serve, yourself first, by whatever means necessary to feed your spirit, keep your mind limber, and your body in good health. Then you will have the fuel to serve elsewhere when that feels right, including our ailing planet and of course, other people.

Perseverance sometimes requires ditching old patterns. Don’t be afraid to pivot when necessary. Veer right or left, take a new path. Think outside the box.

Sever from people and habits that no longer serve you. They only make it harder to persevere. 

Ah reverence… Use the vocabulary of the divine in your every day. Find what is holy in the ordinary. Can’t find it? Scan again. Wherever you are this moment, within your field of vision there is at least one thing you revere. Did you look inward?

Use ritual to persevere. Do what you know soothes. Break for the cup of tea, pause in silence, look out a window, step outside, breathe, play a game. I turned my writing table into an altar the other day. True, it was a distraction from the task at hand, but it also brought me to the altar to do the writing ritual. And not so secretly I like pretending to be a high priestess. Don’t be afraid to play—and laugh—in service of perseverance and the greater good. 

Presence is everything. Honor the moment. Stay in it. 

Best Wishes for a Happy, Healthy New Year!