Why There are Diamonds in the Header of this Blog

In the Holy Bible there are numerous accounts of encounters with the Divine. Saul is brought to his knees on the road to Damascus by a "Bright Supernal Light" out of which issues a voice.  Before that Moses encounters a "Burning Bush" likewise out of which issues a voice saying "Tell the People 'I Am' sent you". The writers of the Old Testament share knowledge of encounters with what they deem The Creator and following the ancient tradition of the Rabbinical Jews, eschew ownership of "Him" by not even, generally, pronouncing his name, and, indeed, spelling it in such a way that actually is unspeakable. It has no vowels. This is to make preeminent the station of YHWH as The one great mystery behind, yet immanent, in nature. We are blessed beyond the ability of words to express, the sharing of these experiences by men of old.

Desani came to us much later and has given us similar, and I think, if not superior, then at least equal experiences, obviously meant, to convey the same wonder and beauty and truth of our being in the world.

I would share these here. Desani lays bare the most intimate secrets of his soul for all to see, his most personal, and private encounters with the object of his intense reverence, devotion, worship, and love, of the great primal spirit. Practiced his entire life this Bhakti yields up to a personal encounter not unlike that of Moses and Saul (Paul) with the Heavenly supernal light in which form G_d eschews some select few a direct encounter with his glory. To my knowledge, in all the world's great literature there is no more profound sense of the divine than in these passages. In a just and sensible world for these two excerpts alone he should have received the Nobel prize in Literature. They are from his novel Hali:

     The Bell

High up, in the sky, I saw a bell tolling, and with the waves of the solemn sound, the clouds trembled, and the silences between the tolling of the bell filled me with awe and waiting, and those two, the tolling of the bell and the silences between, filled me with echoes such as I had never known, and made me remember sights such as I had never seen, and it seemed to me that it was the will of God that it should be so, and his will that I be content and question no more, and wait by, for his grace to come upon me, as the gentle twilight came upon me at the end of this autumn's day, as sleep would to soothe an aching heart.

     I waited by the river, and saw the light fall on her, and it was by grace. I looked at the sky, and saw a cloud, and that was by grace. I saw a creature look at me, and I looked upon it with love, and that, too, was a deed by grace. The Majesty is near, and not far, and most near. That faith is a deed by grace. In all things whatever that have beauty, a creature human, too, and in the heart of the diamond and the rose, is grace, and thus have I comfort that I never knew, and knew it now, by grace and grace alone.

     His way is the way to mystery. They that walk on it have no pain. And past all the lights, and all the sights, and all things whatever, the way is to be trodden still, till the soul aches and is lonely from want, in need, and it is then, by grace, she forgets her aches and pains, and is in God, of God, in his grace, and so touched by the Majesty, the crest and the crown of all the worlds, the sword and the sheath of all things, the love in all things whatever, and thus by grace is she healed.

     There is to be no haste and no tears. Ahead is the rain of the petals of the rose, and joy, and rejoicing, that a creature soul never knew, and this remembrance will last till the end of time, for such as have seen and heard, and been in the grace of the Lord, and no remembrance other than this will be, and that would be by grace and grace alone.

A Rose and Lilac Light

A rose and lilac light has passed me by, as might a cloud, and it sailed past from the left to the right of me, and as I turn my head, I still see the trail of fire, a cool rose and lilac fire, as if all the diamonds of the purest rose and lilac were awake, and from their heart came this rose and lilac fire, of such beauty, and the wonder of it has made me lose all yearning, all need whatever, and it has bequeathed upon me a joy as true, as sure, as this rose and lilac light, that passed me by, and this joy is as a treasure entrusted. This day the Lord's Majesty is in joy, and his joy is reflected in the mirror of the risen Sun, and the Moon to come by, with the early gentle dew, and it is reflected in the calmness of the sea, too, in the still water, in the stars above the sea, in the young snow, and the ice laid upon the farther mountain, and in the heart, too, stilled by a peace, past all yearning whatsoever, all need whatsoever, all wanting whatever, all thirst whatsoever, all hunger whatsoever, and if there are clouds, they sail silently by, and they do not come between me and the Majesty's joy, and the clouds frame it, never obscuring it, and this joy came upon me as a shower, as a shower of mercy, as love upon the lily on the stalk, and upon the rose, upon the scarlet velvet of the rose, and upon the streams, the brooks, on such that know of this treasure entrusted.

     Once yesterday, whenever such mercy had come upon the earth, it had passed me by, for my heart was of fear, lost, and whenever I saw the Sun setting, with it set the universe, and I was lost, in darkness, and there were but faint lights, lights awed, farther, far, overpowered, so I thought, and it was darkness fathoms deep, that fell upon the earth, and I lost all peace whatever, all love of things whatever, and I was lost in a sea, a sea of darkness, but today, after the trail of light had passed me by, darkness did come hither, but I knew blessedness, heard blessedness, heard the gentlest of sounds, drops of rain falling upon the recent fallen snow, and I heard those sounds sailing through the leaves of the pine, and the poplar, and it was as the song of praises, the praises of Lord God, and thus the darkness passed me by, in peace, in joy, in worship of the worthiest of worship, nowise the erstwhile creature's night, of pain, fear, the creature that I was, and as the sounds and the song blended, it was a stream, then a river of sound, then a sea of sound, untouched of shore, unheard of by the erstwhile creature, but known and heard this instant, this splendid instant, this august sea of sound, such as is by God bequeathed, from mercy bequeathed, from love bequeathed, by the Will uncaused, and, presently it will bring in its wake the dawn, and it its wake the night, and so will these pass me by, and I shall again see the rose and lilac light, that I saw, not long ago, and it would be another awakening, of the spirit of all the diamonds flashing the purest rose, and the lilac luster, bequeathed, as a treasure entrusted

     It would again be the awakening of the spirit of the diamonds, such as were asleep, and such as would awake, and the wonder of it will have again given me the peace bequeathed, that I knew not this long past, and the tolling of the bell, and seeing the moon bathing the sea with her lighted silver, the earth too, and the clouds too, precious silver, all with joy abounding, then I, too, will pass by, as did the rose and lilac light, and the trail of it, that did pass me by, knowing blessedness, such as caresses the soul, and the pearls of the sea, and in the midst of this blessedness will God bequeath mercy upon the creatures, and beauty absolute, and peace absolute, even upon such as do not know of such a treasure to me entrusted: and such certain passing makes me want to cry of joy, for today the rose, the lily, the diamond and the dew, and the sea, all things whatever, are content, at peace, as am I, and the mercy of God is come upon us, and all other mercies are become as shadows, as shadows, so happy the rose, so happy the lily, so content the sea, that naught I know, but to sing the praises of God, and to rouse the earth, and the creatures, in one cry, of joy, and with it reach out to the sky, and the star, the cry of triumph absolute, of triumph absolute, and I would brook no delay, and I must sing, and cry of joy unbearing, for this utter grace is come upon me, bequeathed upon me, as a treasure entrusted.