tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7760986403290352152.post3664926538648341518..comments2024-01-23T03:58:02.422-08:00Comments on oriana-poetry: THE SACRED ROMANCE AND SIMONE WEIL'S AMBUSH FOR THE SOULUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7760986403290352152.post-43780398824661509962012-05-15T10:49:01.390-07:002012-05-15T10:49:01.390-07:00Reflections much later: possibly the best thing to...Reflections much later: possibly the best thing to have come from my stay in Vermont was reading this book, a pure accident (like so many important things in life). I had to translate it from religion into my own language; once that happened, I saw that it deals with the universal problem of how to thrive in spite of unavoidable disappointments and misfortunes. I continue to believe that the best answer is to be strongly focused on work -- that is under our control. Having supportive friends is great, and that tends to happen as one of the consequences of developing a strong focus. You break through to a certain depth and quality, and radiate that depth to people you meet; this takes care of having supportive friends almost automatically. Another quality that seems to develop is a generosity of spirit. When your life is in order because it has a deep focus, you are more willing to give of yourself, to share the riches of your mind -- and that too strengthens supportive friendships.orianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04209366167129773052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7760986403290352152.post-56121238315864059022010-11-15T12:39:23.735-08:002010-11-15T12:39:23.735-08:00PS. Aside from listening to great music, doing som...PS. Aside from listening to great music, doing something at the level of excellence is my most reliable way of entering a positive mood. And to do something at the level of excellence, I have to focus on it, reducing my activities to the fewest possible. My motto is "Do less." <br /><br />One positive outcome of my inability to believe has been discovering all kinds of secular paths to feeling good.orianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04209366167129773052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7760986403290352152.post-72720547568159501232010-10-23T15:22:26.956-07:002010-10-23T15:22:26.956-07:00Thanks for the recommendation. I've had a long...Thanks for the recommendation. I've had a long-term interest in women mystics. I like the way they are not concerned with depravity and damnation, but sound instead like women in love with Christ (or Krishna, or another divine figure, depending on the religion). <br /><br />In my (admittedly limited) experience, however, a person can experience a state of bliss without any supernatural belief. It's a natural right-hemisphere function, to make us feel blissful.orianahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04209366167129773052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7760986403290352152.post-46540634347298093832010-10-23T10:01:44.257-07:002010-10-23T10:01:44.257-07:00Why don't you read and post something by Hadew...Why don't you read and post something by Hadewijch (or Hadewych), a Beguine from the Low Countries, ca. 1300, translated into English by Mother Columba Hart, who was at first an actress and then a Benedictine (not Scholastic!) nun in a monastery somewhere. I wrote about Andriessen's opera on this topic, and sent my article to the monastery, alas, it reached it after Mother Columba's death. Love mysticism is all Hadewijch wrote about. A very interesting medieval poet.Maja Trochimczykhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07070404303173790701noreply@blogger.com