Contemplation is a dance with the physical, psychological, and the spiritual and has a tendency to heal people and then transform them. Many equate it to prayer or meditation. You might be surprised, however, to discover that you can practice contemplation while mindfully washing dishes, singing, being with a friend, or walking in a park. To be still, contemplate and know reality intimately is one of the rarest pleasures of life. This is The Power of Contemplative Practice and we hope you discover it for yourself. Reality is always kind, it sets us free, makes us fall in love and grasp, as much as our nerve and sinew will allow, the divine mystery of God and the Universe we find ourselves a part of.

Ah, Feeling Reality Through The Power of Contemplative Practice! Not a thing to be grasped, but a river to step into, again and again. It is not about knowing everything, for that would be a cage of its own. Rather, it is about being with everything, the dust mote and the star, the ache in your knee and the whisper of wind.

Opening the Heart: The Essence of Contemplation

We mistake it for thinking, this endless churning of the mind. But contemplation is the still point within the churn, the quiet clearing where the heart can breathe. It is not about filling the cup of the mind, but emptying it, so the dew of presence can gather.

“It is gratitude for life, for awareness and for being. It is a vivid realization of the fact that life and being in us proceed from an invisible, transcendent and infinitely abundant source”. Thomas Merton

Yes, you can find it in the quiet of formal meditation, the breath a gentle anchor. But it is just as likely to bloom while scrubbing a pot, the suds a sacrament of the mundane. Or in the shared silence with a friend, where words are unnecessary, and the soul speaks in the language of shared presence.

The Power of Contemplative Practice is a dance, you see, a delicate turning between the seen and unseen. The physical, the psychological, the spiritual—not separate rooms, but threads woven into the tapestry of being. We are not meant to dissect, but to embrace the whole.

This witnessing, this gentle holding of our own ego, is not a judgment, but a homecoming. To see the small self, the grasping self, without condemnation, is to open the door to the larger self, the one that knows connection, compassion, and the quiet joy of simply being alive.

And yes, there is a God-knowing in it, but not the kind that fills a book or a doctrine. It is a knowing that seeps into the bones, a quiet assurance that we are held, that we are part of something larger than ourselves. It is not about being all-knowing, but about knowing the heart of things, the deep current that runs beneath the surface of our lives.

For in the end, The Power of Contemplative Practice is not about reaching some distant peak, but about finding the sacred in the ordinary, the holy in the here and now. It is about waking up to the wonder of being, to the simple, profound truth that we are alive, and that this moment, this very moment, is a gift.

Reclaiming Our Sight: The Power of Contemplative Practice

Contemplation is simply being fully present in heart, mind, and body, to what is in a way that allows you to creatively respond and work toward what could be. Contemplation is both personal and communal, internal and external. It helps us let go of our usual, self-focused way of thinking and doing things so that our compassionate, connected, and creative self can emerge.

Through contemplation, we develop the capacity to witness our egoic motivations, bringing this awareness into our day-to-day actions and living with increased freedom and authenticity through deeper awareness of self, others, and God. As #thomasmerton reminds us …”every plant that stands in the light of the sun is a saint and an outlaw. Every tree that brings forth blossoms without the command of man is powerful in the sight of God. Every star that man has not counted is a world of sanity and perfection. Every blade of grass is an angel singing in a shower of glory. These are worlds of themselves”. Contemplation is about choosing Love. Contemplation is the path to authenticity.

Contemplation therefore emphasizes:

• Thinking about thinking: Contemplation is presented as a high form of intelligence, a process of examining one’s own thought processes.
• Holistic engagement: It involves the integration of the physical, psychological, and spiritual aspects of being.
• Presence and responsiveness: It’s about being fully present in the moment and responding creatively to what is.
• Ego awareness and transformation: Contemplation facilitates the ability to witness egoic motivations and promotes personal transformation.
• Connection and authenticity: It fosters a sense of connection to oneself, others, and a higher power, leading to a more authentic way of living.

Sublime, Decadent Pleasure…

This passage truly captures the essence of contemplation. We can, indeed, live our entire lives with our eyes closed. History, unfortunately, often demonstrates that we learn little from it, and we often wander in darkness rather than seeking light, reality, and the love that remains unseen to the physical eye, yet palpable the moment we open our hearts. This secret, devoid of fear, is deeply personal, a truth we seem to carry within us from an early age.

The Power of Contemplative Practice arrives when we realize the necessity of reopening our bodies, hearts, and minds to the reality and truth that surrounds us. Though we may never fully comprehend God, despite our claims, there is no more profound purpose in this life’s journey than to discover who He is, and consequently, who we are. This temporal existence, this fleeting passage through time and space, serves as a crucible, a birthing ground where we shed the false and embrace the true. It is a place where, by conscious choice, we ultimately leave fear behind, allowing love to become our eternal guide.

Ever since I found out that earth worms have taste buds all over the delicate pink strings of their bodies, I pause dropping apple peels into the compost bin,

imagine the dark, writhing ecstasy, the sweetness of apples permeating their pores.

I offer beets and parsley, avocado, and melon, the feathery tops of carrots.

I’d always thought theirs a menial life, eyeless and hidden, almost vulgar—though now, it seems, they bear a pleasure so sublime, so decadent, I want to contribute however I can, forgetting, a moment, my place on the menu.

~Danusha Laméris~

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