Journey of the Heart: An Anthology of Spiritual Poetry by Women Release Date!

Journey of The Heart: An Anthology of Spiritual Poetry by Women, edited by Catherine Ghosh and to be published this summer by Balboa Press, a division of Hay House, has woven together the voices of over 70 women of diverse ethnicities, nationalities and traditions. In meditative and insightful poems they offer us revealing glimpses of their sensitive souls engaged in meaningful dialogue with the world, others, themselves and divinity.

This spiritual poetry draws from the timeless wisdom, power and beauty residing deeply within the hearts of all women. Emerging within archetypal themes that deliver valuable messages, the inspiring and uninhibited chorus of voices beckons us to journey along with them into the wild, mysterious and uncharted territory of a woman’s heart.

This book emerged from an online project created by Catherine Ghosh, dedicated to encouraging and facilitating women to freely share their hearts, as they learned to express themselves through poetry. It is dedicated to the spirit of really listening to, and honoring, all women’s voices.

Journey of the Heart

So thrilled to announce the arrival of this beautiful anthology of women's spiritual poetry, of which I am proud and honored to be a part of, along with a group of amazing and beautifully talented women from all over the world! Official release date: August 10th

Below is the book trailer just released:

Om shanti shanti shanti,

Nirvani

Letting Go...

   

Today, I am really struggling to keep myself together. My youngest son Benjamin, who has always been my baby boy is leaving home next Thursday for good. He will be heading to Navy Basic Training where he will follow in his father's footsteps. On one side, I am so very proud of him and excited for all the new changes that are taking place for him, but on the other side I am truly struggling with letting him go. I know that I have no choice in the matter and even if I did would I stand in the way of my own child's progress just to ease my own suffering? Resoundingly no! Every mother must face these bittersweet moments and I am no different.
   
  Deep in my heart, I know this is just as much a growing experience for me as it is for him. Change is the guiding factor in this thing called life. It is the catalyst for all spiritual growth. If everything stayed the same there would be no challenge and thus we would all become stagnant. I must now cut the apron strings, and allow my son to spread his wings and fly...yes he may hit some turbulence along the way, but the moments of struggle will be what molds and shapes him into the man he is meant to become.
   
 As his mother I will send him out into the world with a Mother's blessing and my tears upon his cheek...for it is through those tears that he will always find his way back home and will never doubt that he is loved. May the Goddess bless his every step along the way and may she bless me to endure the pain of letting go.


Om shanti shanti shanti,
Nirvani

Surrendering vs. Submitting

This morning I had one of my many moments of clarity and I thought I might try to convey it to you in a way that you can best understand my thoughts. I was thinking about how human beings have the need to submit to the desires of the flesh, whether they be sex or alcohol or any other addictive behavior. I once read somewhere that every extreme behavior is just a manifestation of the soul trying to find its way back to Source/God/Goddess/Universe/Love. The mind is incapable of understanding what we truly are beyond the body and senses; this is why the mind must be surpassed to find our true essence. The mind/ego likes to act out in its never-ending thirst for thrills.

Everything we engage in, even the most extreme unhealthy behavior is a part of our spiritual evolution, whether we are aware of it or not. When we indulge in unhealthy activities, the mind/ego is appeased for a short time, until the longing comes back and we continue to indulge due to the impossibility of permanent satisfaction. We will never find satisfaction in the behavior, and we mistake submission for surrender. Submitting is giving in to the desire and allowing the desire to take control of the body. Surrendering is letting go of the control of the mind/ego to make decisions for us and letting the intuitive heart guide our actions.

Once we become aware of what is controlling us and accept responsibility for our actions we are then in a place of real spiritual growth. Just the mere self-confession is a step forward on the path of surrendering. We can then see more clearly that everything is Shiva/God nature, including the dark and lustful passions within us. In the past, I would beat myself up for the less savory tendencies that would consume me at times, pushing them further into my psyche, repressing them for a time, until the desire became so great that I would submit to the will of the mind/ego. This would happen over and over again.

I can’t say that I have already learned to surrender completely. I would be lying to myself if I did. Surrendering to Love is no easy process. As flowery as that might sound, surrendering to Love is just another way of surrendering to the Source. The mind/ego will keep us in a constant loop until we eventually stop submitting to its will. Knowing this now, I have developed a much deeper compassion for the addictive behavior in myself and others. I am less critical of others now and have learned that part of surrendering is not just loving others, but most of all loving myself just as I am, addictions and all.

Om, Aham prema...

Nirvani

Connectedness...

Good Morning!

       A few days ago I began a sadhana on the beach. I needed some inspiration not only for meditation but as a poetess as well. Each day for the next week I will spend an hour in the morning sitting on the beach meditating and contemplating. Of course I will have pencil and paper in hand to jot down any inspiring thoughts that should come my way. Yesterday after my return home this little piece of brevity came to me. 

  

      While meditating, I became aware of how the waves rolling up on the shore and then back out to sea 

sounded much like our breath while inhaling and exhaling. As I sat with my eyes closed noticing how my breath rolled back and forth in time with the waves, I also became acutely aware of the silence in between each crash of wave. For just a hair's breath did it occur and yet I was drawn to it. At the onset of meditation I was keenly aware of not only the waves but the sounds of laughter from nearby children playing in the water, an airplane preparing for departure off in the distance and the sound of birds. At first these sounds seemed separate and distinct, but after a while it was as if they were happening inside me, or me inside them. As if I had become one with the sound and I was no longer just me, but I was the wave, the children.

     “Just as the wave cannot exist for itself, but must always participate in the swell of the ocean, so we can never experience life by ourselves, but must always share the experience of life that takes place all around us.” ~ Albert Schweitzer

 This experience showed me, on a deeper level, how truly connected we are with everything around us.

Jai Maa,
Nirvani

What is a Mystic? (Caroline Myss)

  
 This is a video clip of Caroline Myss, the famed Western author of 'Sacred Contracts'. I just had to share. I read a great deal and watch many uplifting and inspiring video pieces online and often I come across something that just shakes me to the core. Well, this is one of those pieces. Caroline could not have described what makes a person a mystic and not just a spiritual seeker. I know that it is the driving force of every soul on earth to become a mystic. I am not speaking of the Ego-mind, but the SOUL to reawaken to its Divine Love. My purpose in life is to become a mystic...I may not achieve this in one lifetime, but I will do all that I can to bring me closer. Once you have tasted even a little bit of spiritual mysticism you can never go back to the ignorance of not knowing. 

Love&Light,
Nirvani

The Wild Heart

The Wild Heart

Effeminate one,

Equivocate no more.

Stop undermining

Your purpose.

That pretentious ego bitch

Has been stealing

Your identity.

De-domesticize the

Feline, sitting perched

And pretty, kept in

Ornate patriarchal cages.

You hold the key

Against your

Counterfeit heart.

Dig a little deeper.

The feral roots are there.

A woman's liberation

Is not found in deprivation.

The wild heart

Knows no boundaries.

Nirvani Teasley, 2013

She is a Goddess

~ Artist Rafael Espitia Perea

‎"A goddess is a woman who emerges from deep within herself. She is a woman who has honestly explored her darkness and learned to celebrate her light. She is a woman who is able to fall in love with the magnificent possibilities within her. She is a woman who knows of the magic and mysterious places inside her, the sacred places that can nurture her soul and make her whole. She is a woman who radiates light. She is magnetic. She walks into a room and male and female alike feel her presence. She has power and softness at the same time. She has powerful sexual energy that’s not dependent on physical looks. She has a body that she adores and it shows by the way she comfortably lives and moves in it. She cherishes beauty, light and love. She is a mother to all children. She flows with life in effortless grace. She can heal with a look or a touch of the hand. She is fiercely sensual and fearlessly erotic and engages in sex as her way to share with another in touching the divine. She is compassion and wisdom. She is seeker of Truth and cares deeply about something bigger than herself. She is a woman who knows that her purpose in life is to reach higher and rule with love. She is woman in love with love. She knows that joy is her destiny and by embracing it and sharing it with others, wounds are healed. She is a woman who has come to know that her partner is as tender, lost, and frightened as she has been at times. She has come to understand the scars of the boy in him and knows that together, love can be the relief, the healing of their wounds. She is a woman who can accept herself as she is. She can accept another as they are. She is able to forgive her mistakes and not feel threatened by another’s even when attacked. She is a woman who can ask for help when she needs it or give help when asked. She respects boundaries, hers and another’s. She can see God in another’s eyes. She can see God in her own. She can see God in every life situation. She is woman who takes responsibility for everything she creates in her life. She is a woman who is totally supportive and giving. She is a Goddess."

(Courtesy: Conscious Connections Now )

Seeker (ghazal)

Seeker (ghazal)

I seek night and day, for just a glimpse of that bliss,

To refresh my depleted soul, to end its weariness with that bliss.

I call near and far, with only echoes for my friends.

My spirit mellows, fatigued of unconsciousness of that bliss.

I shed tears, hollowed out spheres wanting to be filled with what?

It evades me, time and again, the insatiable kiss of that bliss.

I touched its flighty wings once and screamed ecstatic silence.

I fell delirious into its open arms and still I was dismissed by that bliss.

To have tasted of the rapture, but never keep is Jennifer's madness.

And in death, with only a whisper on lips of the awareness of that bliss.

Jennifer Adams Teasley©2013

The Cosmic Poet

Becoming

Becoming

Love is an ocean without bounds.

What river does not empty into this sea?

Despite obstacles barring the heart,

surrender comes ’round eventually.

The soul, like a river, flows

into the limitless ocean of bliss,

becomes one with the ocean

then Love becomes This.

Jennifer Adams Teasley

©2013

Alphabet Mantra

Alphabet Mantra

Like the all in the oneness,

Like the branch and the vine

Like the call and the answer

Like the drink and the wine

Like the earth and the heavens

Like the forest and trees

Like the gate and the pathway

Like the hawk and the breeze

Like the iris and petals

Like the jewel and the mine

Like the known and the knowing

Like the laugh and the line

Like moonlight and darkness

Like nowhere and near

Like the oak and the acorn

Like pain and the tear

Like the quest and the seeker

Like rain and the flower

Like the sea and the islands

Like time and the hour

Like union and yearning

Like the vision and view

Like waves and the water

So I am to you.

So I am to you, Love

And you are to me

We dwell in each other

Like salt in the sea.

O alleluia, o alleluia

O alleluia, o alleluia.

©2001 Jan Phillips

An old friend made this video a while back and I listen to it now and again...It is a beautiful song and the imagery just adds to the beauty. We are all interconnected. Isn't that amazing to ponder?....Enjoy!

Jai Ma!

Nirvani

Am I Love?

Do I feel deeply a sincere love for all beings around me,
or am I making some kind of drama of love to confuse others? 
Do I live the life of actual love or do I make a show of love
and use the word love like a professional, an expert, to win the                      friendship and favor of others?
Do I have love or am I love?
Am I alive or am I life?
Am I conscious or am I consciousness?
Am I blissful or am I bliss?
Am I searching for ultimate reality or am I ultimate reality?

Shri Brahmananda Sarasvati


I was listening to a podcast this morning from Manorama, who teaches Sanskrit and Yoga Studies and she spoke these words from her Guruji and it struck me with great force. I wrote them down and read them over and over again. I actually felt overwhelmed by tears. Frankly, these are questions I had not directly thought of and applied to my life. I have decided to make these words my motto for the 2013 year and will place them where I can see them  and will ask myself these questions every day of this year. These are questions that we should all ponder and reflect upon as we meditate each day. It is not enough to speak of love, we must be love....I know very few human beings in my life who actually live as if they are love itself, including myself. This is my New Year's resolution, to strive everyday to become Love, what I am.

Jai Maa,
Nirvani

The Human Spirit!

Thanks to Fellow Officers, Newtown Police Don't Have to Work on Christmas

The holidays have been rough for the Newtown Police Department, which is why officers from across Connecticut joining forces, so that not a single Newtown officer has to work on Christmas Day. The plan has been kept on the down low for the past few days, since the various police departments are making the effort not for the press but as a gesture of solidarity with their fellow officers. After whispers of the touching gesture from local law enforcement emerged on Twitter over the weekend, however, the Newtown Police Department confirmed the news in an interview with The Atlantic Wire on Monday. "They've been actually non-stop with their aid. It's pretty amazing," said Newtown police spokesperson Sergeant Steve Santucci said of his fellow Connecticut officers. "And tomorrow, they'll be at our assistance so that Newtown [officers] can be home with their families.".....

 read further at  The Atlantic Wire

This is truly heartwarming and worth sharing! Everyday we see so much of the human spirit and how glorious it is!!! It is acts like this that bring us closer to our true 'Self'' Thank you for such a wonderful example! 

Blessings to all!

Nirvani

Kahlil Gibran...On Children

William-Adolphe Bouguereau, 1871

On Children
Kahlil Gibran


Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.


You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.


You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.

Kahlil Gibran is one of my favorite writers and mystic poets of all time. This piece speaks volumes of pure wisdom. We can learn so much from our children, strive to be more childlike ourselves, but as Gibran so eloquently states we should seek not to make them just like us, for there souls do not belong to us. 

Om Shanti,

Nirvani

Celebration of Love...

Then said Almitra, Speak to us of Love.

And he raised his head and looked upon

   the people, and there fell a stillness upon

   them. And with a great voice he said:

When love beckons to you, follow him,

   though his ways are hard and steep.

And when his wings enfold you yield to

   him, though the sword hidden among his

   pinions may wound you.

And when he speaks to you believe in

   him, though his voice may shatter your 

   dreams as the north wind lays waste

   the garden.

For even as love crowns you so shall he

   crucify you. 

Even as he is for your growth so is he for

   your pruning.

Even as he ascends to your height and

   caresses your tenderest branches that 

   quiver in the sun, so shall he descend to

   your roots and shake them in their

   clinging to the earth.

Like sheaves of corn he gathers you unto

   himself.

He threshes you to make you naked.

He sifts you to free you from your husks.

He grinds you to whiteness.

He kneads you until you are pliant;

   and then he assigns you to his sacred 

   fire, that you  may become sacred 

   bread for God's sacred feast.

All these things shall love do unto you

   that you may know the secrets of your

   heart, and in that knowledge become

   a fragment of Life's heart.

But if in your fear you would seek only

   love's peace and love's pleasure,

   then it is better for you that you cover

   your nakedness and pass out of love's

   threshing-floor, into the seasonless

   world where you shall laugh, but not

   all of your laughter, and weep, but

   not all of your tears.

Love gives naught but itself and takes

   naught but from itself.

Love possesses not nor would it be

   possessed; for love is sufficient unto 

   love.

When you love you should not say,

   "God is in my heart," but rather,

   "I am in the heart of God."

And think not you can direct the 

   course of love, for love, if it finds

   you worthy, directs your course.

Love has no other desire but to 

   fulfill itself.

But if you love and must needs have

   desires, let these be your desires:

To melt and be like a running brook

   that sings its melody to the night.

To know the pain of too much 

   tenderness.

To be wounded by your own 

   understanding of love; and to bleed

   willingly and joyfully.

To wake at dawn with a winged

   heart and give thanks for another

   day of loving; to rest at the noon 

   hour and meditate love's ecstasy;

   to return home at eventide with

   gratitude; and then to sleep with a 

   prayer for the beloved in your heart

   and a song of praise upon your lips.

Then Almitra spoke again and said,

   and what of Marriage, master?

And he answered saying: 

   You were born together, and together

   you shall be forevermore.

You shall be together when the white

   wings of death scatter your days.

Ay, you shall be together even in the 

   silent memory of God.

But let there be spaces in your 

   togetherness, and let the winds of the

   heavens dance between you.

Love one another, but make not a bond

   of love:

Let it rather be a moving sea between

   the shores of your souls.

Fill each other's cup but drink not from

   one cup.

Give one another of your bread but eat

   not from the same loaf.

Sing and dance together and be joyous,

   but let each one of you be alone,

   even as the strings of a lute are alone

   though they quiver with the same music.

Give your hearts, but not into each

   other's keeping.

For only the hand of Life can contain

   your hearts.

And stand together yet not too near

   together:

For the pillars of the temple stand apart,

   and the oak tree and the cypress grow

   not in each other's shadow.

Kahlil Gibran

Today I celebrate the 23rd Anniversary with the Love of my Life. 23 years of pure bliss and sometimes pure agony. These words written by Kahlil Gibran, sum up quite beautifully, but yet with a poetic frankness what the great secret is to lasting love. Love CANNOT and MUST NOT possess to thrive. Love allows and does not hinder. Love nourishes and does not stifle. Love frees and does not bind. Love sees clearly and isn't blind. Love gives freely and receives graciously. Love shared affirms the very Nature of Being. 

I am thankful to have walked Love's Path these many years with an honorable and amazing man, who has taught me so much about the forgiving nature of love. He is the Shiva to my Shakti:)

Om Shanti,

Nirvani

What is Love?

   I got to thinking about what I could write about in my blog this week and it came to me almost in an instant, like one of those light bulb moments. I call them intuitive moments;) It just so happens that I and my husband will be celebrating our 23rd anniversary this coming week, so what perfect time to talk about LOVE......Love....Love....Love....it just rolls off the tongue like sweet chocolate...So let's get to the gist of it now....because it ain't always sweet and can be downright dirty...well at least the kind of love the majority of us have experienced and actually convinced ourselves of what Love actually means...

First, let's look at what the Dictionary has to say about love:

love (luhv)..noun, verb
1. a profound tender, passionate affection for another person
2. sexual passion or desire
3. a person to whom love is felt, beloved person or sweetheart
4. to need or require; benefit greatly from
5. to have a strong liking for; take great pleasure in
6. to embrace or kiss a lover

    So here we have it; all summed up in a few words like a nice pretty package with a bow on top...hold on...not so fast!  I don't think I saw the word forever, infinite, or everlasting anywhere in there....hmmmm...isn't love suppose to be unconditional and eternal? According to divorcerate.org  41% of first time marriages, 60% of second  marriages and 73% of third marriages end in divorce. We see quite frequently in public, on television, and even in our own homes parents despising children and children despising their parents. We see backbiting among extended family and supposed friends. All around us we are bombarded with this false 'sense of love' in every venue of our life and most of us are actually unwitting culprits actively engaged in the spreading of this 'kind of love'. Most human beings have come to associate Love with pain as equally as happiness. Pedro Calderon de la Barca said it well, "When love is not madness it is not love."
     So let's look at Love from another perspective. Trying to define love through our 5 senses: taste, hear, see, touch, smell will always find Love lacking. In reality, We are Love Aham Prema, I Am Divine Love. In this I am not referring to the body or the ego, but to the Soul/Jiva, which is what we really are. We are not our body or our ego. Until we truly understand what Love means it will always have conditions and will change, thus meaning that our version of Love is not really Love at all. It is our own Ego's expression of Sense Pleasure. Love cannot be Love as long as there is a Personal Agenda.
     The Upanishads say, " It is not for the sake of the husband that the husband is dear, but for the sake of the Self. It is not for the sake of the wife that the wife is dear, but for the sake of the Self."  Remember that when we love another human being we are essentially responding, although unconsciously, to the Divinity within them. When we truly begin to understand that, our love then, can become unselfish and without personal motive. We Love for the sake of Love alone....and This is our true nature. Love.

     When we rid ourselves of selfish desires and replace them with 'right' desires, it is then and only then that we can remove the Maya that clouds our eyes, deceiving us of what 'True Love' really is. In the world today we too commonly believe that Love is only between certain persons close to us, and candlelight dinners, wine and romance. These are just a shadow of Love. We have such an immense capacity for Love that we cannot even imagine. We can be in love with everyone...I know that this will sound unrealistic to many, even to myself, but we have many examples of great men and woman who have proven this through their life examples of selfless service to others. We are Divine Beings, who have forgotten our True Natures.
        If we just start today, to serve those closest to us we can begin to recognize this Love within ourselves. It will manifest more and more in our lives. One of the surest ways to rediscover our True Nature is through regular spiritual practice. Not just reading about spiritual things will do it. We must apply the things we read about to our lives. Whether it be meditation, prayer, humanitarian service, create rituals that will break through the forgetfulness. This brings to mind the words of Rumi, "Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have build up against it." When we break down those barriers inside us through regular spiritual practice, we discover only Love...and that it was inside of us all along. Vedanta says that we should not squander the power of love, but that we should use this power to realize our True Divine Natures. When we realize our own Divinity, we can recognize it in those closest to us. We then can recognize it in everyone we come into contact with, even those who act unlovable. Love requires nothing, it is not something that must be achieved or earned, it is our very nature and cannot be taken from us by the actions of others. So therefore, someone else's unloving attitude cannot diminish our own capacity to give and receive Love.
      In the 23 years that I have been married, I have most certainly learned what 'real love' is NOT...and am still discovering what 'real love' is. My husband has been a shining example of selfless love. I have often thought that the Beloved saw fit to place him in my life to be more than a lover and friend, but to be a teacher to me and I am sure that I was placed in his life to try his patience and love:) I am a blessed woman indeed  to have had such wonderful loving examples in those closest to me. May we all strive to break down the barriers and reclaim our true Divine Natures...LOVE.


Tat Tvam Asi,
Nirvani

Is God Pro-Choice??

   Photo: Alain Baumgarten

   I've noticed recently on many spiritual blogs, twitter, facebook..etc.. many who are suggesting that if you are a deeply spiritual being that you have some kind of obligation to vote for a certain candidate or party platform or you are somehow not in line with God/Goddess....I cannot disagree more. First off as a deeply spiritual being, I would never presume to tell any other human being who they should vote for. I personally do not believe that God/Goddess cares one way or another who I vote for as long as I am using my inner intuition in the process.
       Who is anyone to tell me that the Divine is pro-choice or pro-life. What makes my views righteous and someone else's evil? That smacks of dogma if you ask me. Also, I find it distasteful for someone to give personal attacks against  a political candidate and in the next breath say that we should love all human beings. It is one thing to disagree with someone's political views and  another to vilely attack their character. I happen to believe that the two men running for president are good and decent human beings, wonderful husbands and fathers, and genuinely want to do what is best for their country. My responsibility is to listen to my 'higher Self'' when deciding who I would choose to be the leader of our Nation.

   “Making others happy, through kindness of speech and sincerity of right advice, is a sign of true greatness. To hurt another soul by sarcastic words, looks, or suggestions, is despicable.”

Paramahansa Yogananda

    It might be wise for us to heed the words of Yoganandaji and take a look at our own character before judging the character of another. We can disagree with others without holding them in contempt and spreading negative hearsay  in regards to their character. We should listen to the Spiritual Masters and Gurus  of the past, whose very lives were shining examples for us in how we should treat our fellow human beings, and yes that does include politicians:)

Jai Mata Di!

Nirvani

   

Letting Go of Pain....Holding onto Love

(Photo: Lars Van de Goor)

Reason, Season, or Lifetime

People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.
When you figure out which one it is,
you will know what to do for each person.

When someone is in your life for a REASON,
it is usually to meet a need you have expressed.
They have come to assist you through a difficulty;
to provide you with guidance and support;
to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually.
They may seem like a godsend, and they are.
They are there for the reason you need them to be.

Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time,
this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end.
Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away.
Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.
What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled; their work is done.
The prayer you sent up has been answered and now it is time to move on.

Some people come into your life for a SEASON,
because your turn has come to share, grow or learn.
They bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh.
They may teach you something you have never done.
They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy.
Believe it. It is real. But only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons;
things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation.
Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person,
and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life.
It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

— Unknown

There are certain souls that come into your life and leave such lasting impressions that you know you will never be the same again. The hardest thing in life is letting go of those you love...but when you finally do you realize that love was never meant to confine, but to set free the heart...you see...the heart can go on loving them even when they are gone...the secret of letting go is not ending the love, but letting go of the pain of loss...so the love can go on forever.

Om Shanti Shanti Shanti,

Nirvani

Is friendship the weaving of the red strings of two hearts?
Is it the blending of two minds into a spacious one-mind?
Is it the spouting of love founts together--
To strengthen the rush of love on droughty souls?
Is it the one rose grown 'twixt twin mind-branchlets
Of one compassionate stem?
Is it the one thinking in two bodies?
Or, is it like two strong stallions,
Disparate in color and mien,
Pulling the chariot of life together
To the single goal with one mind sight?
Is friendship founded on equalities or inequalities?
Is it built on diverse stones of differences?
Is friendship the unthinkingly agreeing,
The hand in hand, blind walking of two souls,
Foolishly rejoicing in their united folly,
Falling at last into a pit of disillusionment?

Friendship is noble, fruitful, holy--
When two separate souls march in difference
Yet in harmony, agreeing and disagreeing,
Glowingly improving diversely,
With one common longing to find solace in true pleasure.
When ne'er the lover seeks
Self-comfort at cost of the one beloved,
Then, in that garden of selflessness
Fragrant friendship is a hybrid, born of two souls,
The blended fragrance of two unlike flowers
Blown together in love's caressing breeze.
Friendship is born from the very core
Of secret, inexplicable likings.

Friendship is the fountain of true feelings.
Friendship grows in both likeness and difference.
Friendship sleeps or dies in familiarity,
And decays in lusts of narrow-eyed selves.
Friendship grows tall and sturdy
In soil of oneness in body, mind, and soul.
Demands, deceptions, sordid sense of possession,
Courtesy's lack, narrow self-love, suspicion,
These are cankers which eat at the heart of friendship.
Ah, friendship! Flowering, heaven-born plant!
Nurtured art thou in the soil of measureless love,
In the seeking of soul-progress together
By two who would smooth the way each for the other.
And thou art watered by attentions of affection
And the tender dews of inner and outer sweetness
Of the inmost, selfless heart's devotion.
Ah, friendship! Where thy soul-born flowers fall--
There, on that sacred shrine of fragrance,
The Friend of all friends craves to come and remain!

Paramhansa Yoganda

Om Shanti,

Nirvani