Spiritual Qualities: Presence
[Exploring Life] An external presence means that we share some kind of proximity with other living force in our world. This kind of presence may be visible or invisible, readily perceptible to our senses or it may be intuited as a felt-presence that does not present itself as everyday sensation. The invisible tends to confound and confuse us. That is to say, if we cannot readily grasp a presence through our basic physical sensory apparatus, we have a tendency to conclude that it may not exist or at least in our imagination only. This is a strikingly crude and inert belief that misleads us into proceeding through life in a isolated and spiritless manner. When we invite and inhabit different forms of presence into our lives we expand our physical, mental, and spiritual horizons.
The Earth is the origin and basis for all life. Indigenous tribal cultures often maintain an intimate sense of connection with the natural world and believe that the Earth is a living presence. Modern cultures tends to use the Earth as if it can be “owned” and that whatever life is “present” on it can be manipulated and even destroyed at whim. Of course, this is an over-generalization, albeit with an unfortunate sense of accuracy about it. However, it is reasonable to generalize that the way indigenous tribal culture and modern culture perceives the presence of the Earth are remarkably different. The modern consciousness is delusional in that it tends to see the world as something that can be owned. Tribal consciousness lives close to the Earth, with the least amount of technological mediation, and tend to embrace a close affinity to their surroundings. They often believe that the Earth and everything it is alive and imbued with spirit, just as they are. Modern consciousness tends to perceive the Earth as an object of possession and commodification. To the modern consciousness, humanity is generally viewed as a superior life form.
Natural Presence: In the midst of the natural world we inhabit a different rhythm. The modern sensibility clings desparately to impetuous mechanical rhythms in which the time and space of experience are carefully measured and travelled. The natural world embraces patterns and cycles that leave room for breath and inspiration. We feel a different presence around us, a presence that embraces creativity and mystery. I often look out at Lake Simcoe, and I am always pleasantly greeted by a new variation of colour that seems to be at constant play on the water. Although I took this picture on a grey morning, the play of colour on the water invite a sense of mystery. In the natural world light is always at play in endless patterns of illumination. My perception of the lake’s presence varies; the gift of light is brilliant improvisation.
When I am a human-built environment I am in the midst of a different presence. Human-built environment, though sometimes compelling and attractive, lacks the substance of natural presence. This is not to say that the things we build are inherently bad for us, but these environments do tend to stunt our perceptual acuity. However well designed they may be, they are ultimately static. The creativity inherent in the natural world is forever evolving and changing its presence around, through, and in us. In the natural world creativity and life are inexorably unified and infinite.
In the natural world nothing is insignificant; in modern society we are awash in triviality. When we observe and offer our full attention to the Earth we are comforted by endless variations on the theme of beauty. When we watch television, the television screen is the retina of the mind’s “I.” More to the point, television embraces a startling absence of beauty and invites unrelenting patterns of banal consumerism. In advertising and marketing there is absolutely no art, only inane and vacuous scheming.
Something about the presence of the lake finds sanctuary within me. That is to say, my eyes are not only “seeing” the dance of colour my own personal sense of presence is altered by it. The lake is, in one sense, an external presence but my eyes also act as gateways that allow that it to merge with my sensibilities. I feel different when I watch the lake play; my internal rhythm becomes genuine. The nature of place is inexorably integrated with the nature of being. Presence, in this sense, is not only “out there” it is simultaneously “in here.” From a spiritual perspective, there is no way to separate our internal world from the external world – it is one unified phenomenon.
The Living Earth: One of the most important questions to ask about the lake is, “Is the lake a life force imbued with spirit?” Of course it provides a habitat for many plant and animal life forms that depend on it for their own existence. But is there an animating force that lies in the essence of the lake – in the very fabric of the water? How we answer this question (and other questions like it) for ourselves will shape the essence of our presence on the planet. This question is therefore primary and vital. Dr. Masaru Emoto, an internationally renowned Japanese scientist, proposes that water is alive, has intelligence, carries memories, and is directly affected by our thoughts, words, and feelings.
Selected Quotes from “The Hidden Messages in Water”
When water becomes trapped, it dies.
…water has the ability to copy and memorize information.
Water teaches us in a very clear way how we must live.
Water is the mirror of the soul.
Existence is vibration… everything is in a state of vibration… Water faithfully mirrors all the vibrations created in the world.
Exploring the brilliant work of Dr. Emoto is not the focus of this entry, but there are some essential points to present that are immediately relevant. The picture of the beautifully formed water crystal here is a result of exposing water to the words love and gratitude. Dr. Emoto has scientifically proven that water is literally alive. Water is omnipresent throughout all life and existence; it permeates every cell within our bodies and extends infinitely out into the cosmos. Water literally responds to our presence; how we live and the things we choose to do on this planet and mirrored within the structure of the water – the same water that is within our own bodies. If our presence creates destruction, the vibrations from these actions will affect the structure of the water around us and we effectively destroy ourselves. This is a very clear and precise example of how destroying the planet literally and scientifically means we are destroying ourselves. There is no possible way to separate ourselves from the Earth. Dr. Emoto’s work is a superior example of how science and spirituality can merge and interact in ways that render them indistinguishable. Water is a sacred threshold.
Water is a living presence that effortlessly permeates all life. Everything on the planet resonates, or gives off a vibration. Vibrations are unique signatures that form the basis for planetary communication and intelligence. To say that the lake outside my residence has an echo that is simultaneously poetic and scientific. The lake “speaks” through vibration and “mirrors” the nature of our relationship to it. If that relationship originates in love and gratitude the lake literally expresses that; if that relationship is one of disregard and arrogance, the lake will echo that message as well. In spite of the things we do, however, nature is immensely patient.
The Spirituality of Presence: A spirituality of presence asks us to consider the nature of our belonging to the Earth. The modern consciousness is desperately isolated in the midst of the hurried lifestyle of consumerism and materialism. Our superficial notions of progress have morphed into a collective obsessive-compulsive disorder that we have become so immersed in we have lost awareness of it. We sacrifice being for doing, yet rarely questions the feeble assumptions that are at the root of our business, and our busy-ness. The picture here one I took of the Spirit Catcher. Sculpted by Ron Baird for Expo ’86 in Vancouver, it is now an icon of the Barrie waterfront. I found it most appropriate to sit near it while taking the above picture of Lake Simcoe.
By embracing a spirituality of presence we can offer ourselves the possibility of reclaiming our awareness and sense of authentic belonging. This does not mean that we need to let go of our achievements, but it does mean we need transfigure our presence and welcome a new sense of belonging. Social and cultural assumptions, rules and traditions have failed to provide a meaningful presence in the world. Embracing a spirituality of presence means stepping outside of the none-sense and noise of the status quo and choosing to explore a different landscape of possibility.
Presence inhabits the mystery of life, or at least, what we consider life to be. A person that views a lake as not just an environment for life, but literally constituting a life-form in itself is in a much different spiritual space than a person who views water as a lifeless medium. If we believe that there is a Language of the Earth that has it own grammar, signs and symbols, and that we can learn to interact with that language we inhabit a rich and vibrant landscape that leads to endless discovery.
Science eventually catches up with wisdom, however slowly, and is now clearly demonstrating that there is both intelligence and language in nature. Dr. Emoto’s work with water crystals is both clear and compelling evidence of the life that inspires and animates water. In other words, even the most sceptical and spiritually hardened individual will find it increasingly difficult to deny the omnipresence of life throughout every element of nature. In the Language of the Earth we find our home, for it is the spirit of the Earth that created our presence here, and it is to the Earth that our presence will eventually return.