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TRADITION AND LEGACIES

Images of Interfaith Meditation and Spiritual Direction
Suzanne Tindall

“To see a world in a grain of sand about making a home with God” (11).
And a heaven in a wild flower If you are Hindu or Buddhist, you might see the mysti-
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand cal experience as the Catholic monk and interspiritual
And Eternity in an hour.” — William Blake seeker Wayne Teasdale describes it in his book, The Mystic
Heart: Discovering a Universal Spirituality in the World’s
Religions, when he says, “the deepest center of ourselves
lake’s words “to see a world in a grain is at one with the deepest center of the universe” (53).
of sand and heaven in a wild flower” However you see mysticism, it cannot be argued that it is
remind me of the intense experience of an easy road. Instead it is a road that involves discipline
non-duality that meditation can bring. and, perhaps most clearly, courageous honesty.
Don’t get me wrong, every morning when At some point during your travels on this road, you
BI sit to meditate, I do not experience may be faced with an experience in meditation that is
holding infinity in the palm of my hand; sometimes I am only so overwhelming that it can cause the meditator to run
holding a tiny space filled with to-do lists or leftover regrets the other direction. At this point, it is important to
from the day before. Most days, though, I can manage have someone like a spiritual director, who is familiar
to hold a space big enough for the presence of God to with this road, to provide a map of sorts, and a compan-
squeeze in, and then if I am lucky, I remember who am I ion along the way doesn’t hurt either. Just this sort of
and why I do this. overwhelming experience happened to me when I was
a brand-new interim executive spiritual director of the
Blake’s words speak beautifully to the moment when Hesed Community in Oakland, California, USA. I was
we can still ourselves and occasionally, albeit rarely, catch supposed to be a leader, and yet I found myself wanting
a glimpse of eternity in an hour, or perhaps even twenty to run for the hills.
minutes. Sometimes meditation allows us to glimpse The experience happened right after Pentecost on a
heaven in a wild flower and in the process experience that night when we were doing lectio divina. At Hesed, we
heaven and the wild flower are also within us. What Blake often used lectio divina as a starting place for meditation.
describes is a mystical experience, an experience of awak- Lectio divina (Latin for divine reading) is a traditional
ening or illumination. These mystical moments are few Benedictine practice of scriptural reading and meditation
and far between for most of us. They require grace. We intended to promote connection with God by fully enter-
cannot make them happen ourselves, but we may be able ing into the scripture and experiencing the truths there
to ready ourselves for the experience, or at least for our within one’s own being. On this evening, I sat listening to
acceptance of the experience when it happens. spiritual these words from John: 20:20–22: “After he said this, he
direction can serve as an important map for finding your showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples
way in this terrain. rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them
In his book Growing into God: A Beginner’s Guide to again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I
Christian Mysticism, John Mabry, the spiritual direc- send you.’ When he had said this, he breathed on them
tor of the Interfaith Spiritual Direction Program at the and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’”
Chaplaincy Institute, says the following about mysti- I began to see, in my mind’s eye, flames of pink,
cism: “It is not about attainment. Instead, true mysticism orange, and yellow entering the top of my head hovering
is about relationship, and genuine relationship always for a while around my forehead, then dropping down “Beloved” — Suzanne Tindall
takes time. It is always messy. It also involves mistakes, into my heart. At this point, I was filled with so much
missteps, pain, causing pain to others, forgiveness, recon- energy that it became impossible for me to sit still with-
ciliation, compassion, and rest. This is not a contest. It is out causing myself physical pain. As I sat through the

12 Presence: An International Journal of Spiritual Direction