Arunachala

Dear All,

Venkataraman Iyer, 1879-1950, more commonly known as Ramana Maharshi, is one of India's most profound and beloved sages.  The story of his early awakening and his subsequent teachings have inspired millions.  Ramana was only 16 when he realized that Arunachala, in Tamil Nadu in southern India, was real and sacred and actually calling to him in its silent mountain language.  He couldn't rest until he traveled there.  His radiance and the radiance of the holy mountain have merged ever since.

This week, we will consider the call of place, whether it's about a city, or a river, or a mountain, or some other specific location on the earth's surface.  Have you ever felt the landscape speak?  Have you spoken back to it?

I met someone who visited Wendell Berry on his farm in Kentucky and as she drove to find him she sensed that the countryside was permeated with his work, his love for it.   And he was permeated in return.

As you sit where you are right now, reading these words, let the place you are call to you.  After all, you are there, as if in response to its specific call.  And let yourself call to it, intending it as the terrestrial destination of this moment, a destination to which you have just arrived. 

all blessings to all,

Michael