We're in a spiritual transformation of astounding scope. It's equal in its enormousness to the control attempts by the powers that be. That is, it's f*%king unbelievable, hard to get your head around - and incredibly real. This is a divine process and we're part of it. Woo-hoo!
(image by Signe Ruddy)
I often discuss the intersection of our personal inner life and the deepening crisis out there, around us. The two are part of the same thing. Our understanding, our “awakening,” however great or small it seems to us, is connected to the great awakening in the world.
I love the observation that’s been around for a long time (originally from Barbara Marx Hubbard (?)) that our crisis is a birth. As I see it that’s deeply true. I think we’re at the turning of an age. We’re like tiny birds in an egg pecking our way out of the past into a whole new astounding world.
It’s God’s world by whatever name, far grander than we could or can imagine. We can’t figure it out or understand it but we do get to live it. We live in a world that has publicly scrubbed out all reference to divinity and the mystery that surrounds us. Publicly the modern world is all about what the spiritual traditions refer to as error, if not outright sin. This is everywhere in the official narrative - in fact it IS the official narrative. Witnessing this can be like being inside an egg in that there seems no where else to go.
Oh but there is. Our natures are already rooted in what we need to succeed in this emergence. They are that.
The way that’s been most helpful to me in finding my way has been hearing from others. Small groups and curated conversation that have been clear enough to make room for my voice and the voice of the other voice to be heard.
For me the game changer is “intimate” small group conversation. I have personally benefitted for a long time from conversation spaces in which I could publicly find and tell what’s coming up for me, and hear from others doing the same.
I’ll be saying more about that in comping posts but especially I’ll be inviting you into such speaking and listening spaces. There are many and many ways to do it. One basic form that cuts to the heart of telling our truth is “dyad meditation.”
What is dyad meditation?
Dyad means pair. Specifically here in the zoom age, “dyad” it’s the common designation for a conversation in which two people go into a breakout room and follow a careful protocol to ensure a rigorous in-it-together exploration of personal experience.
The dyad typically includes:
timed periods, e.g., five minute intervals of speaking and listening
a question or prompt to be responded to
The questioner is simply quiet and attentive to the speaker. They don’t drink, respond to notifications, nod or agree but witness. When the time is up and the speaker has finished they say thank you.
The speaker waits till s/he senses something true in their experience with respect to the prompt and tells it to the listener so that the listener gets it. Then they contemplate again and again tell it to the listener.
After some four rounds of back and forth, the dyad ends and the two come back to a common room.
There can be room for reflection on what’s noticed in the common space, both inside the dyad, and after. I personally find this helpful.
I’ve been doing versions of this dyad process for some years and especially the last two or three. I invite you to join with me and some others and explore it. You’ll need to attend a 30 minute or so learning before the first dyad as the clarity and intentionality of the space is important to the success.
The dyad and post-dyad time is 90 minutes. The first time you’ll need the half-hour tutorial before for a total of two hours. You can also take the tutorial on its own. (The time listed below includes the tutorial time; otherwise come in 1/2 hour later at the top of the hour.)
When: Sunday, Mar 31, 2024 11:30 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
You must register in advance for this meeting:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUtfuyorD8vG9euZOajMgEoN_J1sg2Vhlma
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
(There is also a dyad for men only this coming Sunday the 24th at 4pm Eastern, no registration required; come 1/2 hour early if it’s your first time. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81898465285)
I’m shifting over to including dyads (and related group evolutionary practices) in addition to celebrations of what’s going on around us. Your participation will help the success of the venture.
Mutual awareness processes have been a game changer for me and they can help shift your spiritual work from taking place in isolation to taking place in relationship.