The Curriculum
May I be a vessel and a guesthouse
The beginning of your practice,
the cup you must drink from,
the narrow path you are called to,
is already here.
The answer to your constant seeking,
the greatest treasure of them all,
the meal that will keep on satisfying,
is already here.
It is the same path:
both life and gruesome death,
joy and heavy sorrow,
abundance and consuming poverty.
It is already here,
calling out to you.
May you be the Lord’s guesthouse,
welcoming each experience inside,
be it with tears or laughter,
not forsaking even one.
Knowing that each has been sent from beyond,
knowing that no matter how violent any guest,
the Lord will keep the house in order.
So throw the doors and windows wide open,
embracing all without preference.
Even in this moment, a new arrival
tired and burdened - just as you
already here - to be entertained by you,
lost and disheartened - just as you
already here - to be understood by you.
As each new moment unfolds,
carrying you into the next one,
a guest is already there,
long waiting for you.
The greatest adventure consists of learning to truly arrive at the present. To arrive and welcome to full range of experience found in the present moment. To welcome fear, to welcome anxiety, to welcome each and every burden. A burden welcomed grounds one deeper into the present moment. A burden rejected throws one into the past or future and becomes increasingly heavy. For these reasons, perhaps the spiritual journey we are each called to consists of learning to welcome even the most difficult experiences with compassion, no matter how wearied or confused or in pain we are. A great achievement is to become a guest house which can accommodate all guests, and to each provide the most considerate service. Ultimately, to become a guesthouse unto oneself - and thus to fully inhabit the present moment, the self as it is; to finally arrive.