God said to remember the Sabbath to keep it holy. But why? What does it mean to keep something holy? Is it merely a command to do what God did and reserve one in seven days for rest, or is it a day set aside to honor and remember God, or is it something else?
If the Sabbath is for the glory of God, what of the other six days—is He forgotten on all but a single day? Though He admits to being jealous, I don’t think that he is also narcissistic, though I understand how some may think so. What was God’s purpose in creation? Did he create us merely to have creatures that would recognize and acknowledge his superiority by bowing before him in worship? Does He fear non-existence if we cease to worship and believe in his existence? I don’t think so because though He may communicate with many, few notice and were he a narcissist I think he would communicate in more insistent manners to ensure notice.
The word Sabbath originates from the Hebrew word shabbāth which literally means rest. The Sabbath is about rest—solitude—which includes prayer, contemplation and meditation, and is also about communion with family. In our hustle-bustle world we think growth and progress are byproducts of action and we thus avoid stopping, taking breaks and listening until we are forced into resistant submission by a heart attack, sudden death, accident…and even then many of us, MLCers and others, plow through the trauma possibly altering course, but refusing to stop and consider.
Holy shares origins with the word whole and refers to something which is exalted or worthy of complete devotion; something that is holy is pure and without imperfections. Not all marriages are perfect, rather it is the purpose and idea that makes matrimony holy; it becomes imperfect when integrated with human imperfection. To make something holy is to dedicate it as important, honored, cherished and to preserve it intact, protecting it from violation.
Hibernation
Rest is vital, restoring
Hibernation
Deep Rest
I step now
onto the path within heart.
Fertile and Green
I have no destination,
only my journey, embraced.
Verdi, the seeds of Earth.
Protected,
I allow myself to withdraw,
hibernating—Deep Rest
within my carapace.
it is in me, through me.
With each beat, blood pulsing,
I grow and Love expands me.
The experience of grief is all consuming and thus you must go through the process before you are capable of returning to your Self and its work. The length of that process varies; for some it is 3 months, 6 for others and for some a year. This time of grief is not the time or place to focus on your personal needs to fill your loneliness. When no longer consumed by grief you will be better able to alter your focus and approach. Accept and allow this phase of grief and when it is through, change your approach. Grief is a time of Hibernation where rather than considering yourself depressed it is truly a time of Deep Rest; embrace your loneliness, for though you feel as though you are famine, you are fertile in your growth and healing. As with all things this is a choice, but choosing to cling or skip your grief and solitude will not fair well, for you will not emerge with either beneficial growth or healing, but may instead be wearing a mask to hide your wounds from the world and even from your Self. You will be burying material within your Shadow.
Instead give both forward and back. Return favors and learn to help others in your shared pain. It is by doing these things that you are Paving the Way that leads home to you. It is not known or certain whether your MLCer will someday walk that path, but someone will. To have a full life, friendships and an eros-mate you must first release these things for it is only in letting-go that we may truly possess these treasures. It is through your Self-work which embraces your Hibernation and helps others to do the same that you will someday fill your lonely heart.
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