I Feel Like I Left Something Behind...

By Swami Emanio Satyakam
“I feel like I left something behind,” I say as we drive away from the camp.
“Yeah, we left all our baggage back there,” she says with a twinkle in her eye.

The sky is empty blue and crisp
Green summer trees sing songs to each other in the wind
To my right there is a huge field of yellow mustard flowers
Shining bright and blinding like the sun
The breath comes in and out from a distance
And thoughts fly by my vision like self obsessed birds
Presence is strong now, and the mind is weak in the vastness of this emptiness

“Welcome to the first day of the rest of our lives.” I say to a newly born butterfly named Prem Kala. She’s sitting beside me in the car with awe in her smile.

As we drive through the Northumberland hills, words come from our lips and minds, but they all sound rather insignificant and impersonal. Even the most fascinating stories have the distant ring of dullness. Even our own histories and identities appear as mere dreams now, dramas upon dramas that caused such attachment at one time.

We talk about the dramas of the past as if we’re walking out of a movie theatre into fresh reality.
As we drive back to Niagara, we talk and listen, and finally settle on a topic that is inspiring to us all: a full time commune in Ontario that is fuelled by peace, love and understanding. A place where people are encouraged to be themselves, a space for alchemy to happen. A communal garden, a shared living space, a celebration of nature and simplicity, a daily schedule of meditations and celebrations that lead us to ourselves and to each other. A place where weeds are uprooted and flowers are grown. A process, not a destination. A stage where dancers go in and dances come out. Where musicians transform into music, where artists become art. Where victims and patients become Masters of themselves through meditation and patience. Where truth is celebrated and illusions are transcended.

Perhaps this dream is also an illusion. But as long as these body-mind entities roam the earth it is the best dream I can think of having.

A dream that is on the threshold of the real.
A finger that is pointing to the moon.

Let us come together again and again and celebrate that which showers us with laughter and tears of bliss, which unifies us with All, which humbles our minds and empowers our Being. Let us join our love and resources together, because we are together in truth, beyond the fragmented egos and illusions of the world. And because flowers flourish when cared for in gardens of meditation.

Love,

Emanio Satyakam
emanio.veritas@gmail.com

ps. Thank you everyone for your openness and love during this meditation camp with Swami Arun, it was incredible. I look forward to seeing as many of you as soon as possible! Come visit Niagara!