“How did those priests ever get so serious and preach all that gloom? I don’t think God tickled them yet. Beloved—hurry.”

St. Teresa of Avila, a 16th century saint and mystic

“You can see forever in a single drop of dew.

You can see that same forever if you look down deep inside of you.”

Dan Fogelberg Magic Every Moment

“We were born before the wind

Also, younger than the sun

'Ere the bonnie boat was won

As we sailed into the mystic

Hark now, hear the sailors cry

Smell the sea and feel the sky

Let your soul and spirit fly

Into the mystic

Van Morrison, Into the Mystic

“Every object, every creature, every man, woman and child has a soul and it is the destiny of all,

To see as God sees, to know as God knows, to feel as God feels, to Be as God Is.”

Meister Eckhart, 13th-14th century Catholic monk and mystic

“No one knows his name—a man who lives on the streets and walks around in rags.

Once I saw this man in a dream. He and God were constructing an extraordinary temple.”

St. Francis of Assisi, a 13th century Catholic saint and mystic

“The words Guru, Swami, Super Swami, Master, Teacher, Murshid, Yogi, Priest, most of those sporting such a title are just peacocks.

The litmus test is: hold them upside down over a cliff for a few hours. If they don’t wet their pants…maybe you found a real one.”

Kabir, a 15th-16th century Indian mystic and poet.

"I am," I said

To no one there

And no one heard at all

Not even the chair

“I am,” I cried

“I am,” said I

And I am lost and I can’t

Even say why

I Am…I Said by Neil Diamond

“Going to Walden is not so easy a thing as a green visit. It is the slow and difficult trick of living, and finding it where you are.”

Going to Walden by Mary Oliver

“The result of prayer is life. Prayer irrigates the earth and life.”

St. Francis of Assisi, 13th century Catholic saint and mystic

“Our hearts become the instruments we learn to play so well.”

Dan Fogelberg Nexus

“When He touches me I clutch the sky’s sheet, the way other lovers do, the earth’s weave of clay. Any real ecstasy is a sign you are moving in the right direction. Don’t let any prude tell you otherwise.”

St. Teresa of Avila, 16th century Christian mystic

“If He let go of my hand, I would weep so loudly, I would petition with all my might, I would cause so much trouble that I bet God would come to His (sic) senses and never do that again.”

Meister Eckhart, 13th-14th century Catholic mystic

“What a cruel act to be untruthful. Earthquakes happen in the heart that hears sounds that are amiss.

There are fields in the soul—lush organic meadows, though sounds and words that fall there can be, at times, a poison.

A plague is spread by one who cannot tell the truth.”

“A good gauge of spiritual health is to write down the three things you most want. If they in any way differ, you are in trouble.”

Jalaludin Rumi, 13th century Sufi poet

“I felt in need of a great pilgrimage so I sat still for three days and God came to me.”

Kabir, an Indian poet, artist and musician in the 15th and 16th centuries

“I once spoke to my friend, an old squirrel, about the Sacraments—he got so excited and ran into a hollow in his tree and came back holding some acorns, an owl feather, and a ribbon he had found.”

“Since no one really knows about God, those who think they do are just troublemakers.”

Rabia of Basra, an 8th century Islamic Sufi saint and poet

“Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs.
I am haunted by waters.”

“On the Sabbath try and make no noise that goes beyond the house.

Cries of passion between lovers are exempt.”

“There’s a place in the world for a gambler. There’s a burden only he can bear. And he sees….oh, yes, he sees.”