The Yogi of Harmony

When the mind of the Yogi is in harmony and finds rest in the Spirit within, 

all restless desires gone, then he is a Yukta, one with God.

Then his soul is a lamp whose light is steady, 

for it burns in a shelter where no winds come.  ...

He sees himself in the heart of all beings and he sees all beings in his heart.  

This is the vision of the Yogi of harmony, 

a vision which is ever one.

~Bhagavad Gita

Tired of Speaking Sweetly

Love wants to reach out and manhandle us,
Break all our teacup talk of God.

If you had the courage and
Could give the Beloved His choice, some nights,
He would just drag you around the room
By your hair,
Ripping from your grip all those toys in the world
That bring you no joy.

Love sometimes gets tired of speaking sweetly
And wants to rip to shreds
All your erroneous notions of truth
That make you fight within yourself, dear one,
And with others,
Causing the world to weep
On too many fine days.

God wants to manhandle us,
Lock us inside of a tiny room with Himself
And practice His dropkick.

The Beloved sometimes wants
To do us a great favor:
Hold us upside down
And shake all the nonsense out.

But when we hear
He is in such a "playful drunken mood"
Most everyone I know
Quickly packs their bags and hightails it
Out of town.

Rumi from 'The Gift'
Translated by Daniel Ladinsky

A Mandala To Color

Here is a really interesting and totally cool mandala for coloring.

The artist is skinnystraycat.

I think it's eally nifty the way picture illustrates the theme of harmony and cooperation!

Click to enlarge, then download, print, and color.

Natural Harmony

I love this picture!

It's looks like a natural mandala - and provides a great example of cooperation and harmony, as does the image below:

I do not know who the respective photographers are - if you know - please tell me so I can provide credit and a link.

Harmony

Harmonious living tells of harmonious thinking. A turbulent life reveals some kind of inner turmoil or lack of resolution. We may believe that we are positive, settled people, but if we notice troubles or conflicts in our outer conditons, we must look within to see what negativity is bubbling, or bubbled at some earlier time.

If you want to know what's in your subconscious, you don't have to go to a psychiatrist or a psychic. Just look at the condition of your bedroom, your car, your house, your health, and your relationships. They are photographs of your subconscious. Outer events are simply the skin and bones of inner thoughts, and to really take control of our lives, we must treat them as one.

~Alan Cohen

A Sufi Story about Competition

Once upon a time, a sultan set up a competition with a very rich prize for the most accomplished visual artistry. He invited teams from around the world. Both China and Greece sent delegations of artists. Each side could order whatever materials it wanted, and the wall of a room was provided for each to do its work. A curtain separated the two rooms.

The Chinese team asked for a plethora of paints made from many different plants and minerals, which provided an unimaginable array of colors. The Greek team asked only for materials for sanding and polishing.

When the two teams were finally ready, the Chinese unveiled their wall first. They had used every color of the rainbow, in a most harmonious design. The sultan was dazzled. Then the Greeks unveiled their work, throwing back the curtain between the two rooms. They had used no paint, but had polished their wall to such a degree that it reflected the work on the Chinese side. Through the play of light and air, the Chinese design seemed to move, and was even more fantastic and beautiful.

~Neil Douglas-Klotz

Earth Harmony Mandalas

Aloe Star

Bananas

Bee in Noni Flower

Kamani Leaf

Small Plants

These beautiful mandalas were created by Mark using photographs he took while living in Hawaii. You can find really nice things that he has created with his mandala art at Cafe Press. He also has a website: Earth Harmony Home.