Liberty Advance

A trip down the socio-spiritual consciousness... On my last visit to San Francisco, I had two experiences that continue to help me define the spiritual movement in America. The first was an invitation to see Lama Anam Thubten speak at his center in Richmond Point, the second was an email I received from a former employee of Yoga Journal. I saw the lama speak on a Sunday morning, a perfect sun-lit morning on the east bay, cool and quiet. Upon entering the meditation center I was filled with the immediate calm of the Lama and his students. The community was gathering for the talk. Lama Thubten sat quietly at the front of the chapel in meditation as we gathered. Time passed and I realized that instead of waiting, I too should be meditating. I took a few breaths and opened my eyes to gaze upon him, to connect with his essence, to attune myself to his vibration. He was utterly still and serene and even in meditation I found myself thinking about him, as he sat, clearly content with his own body, his own posture. The chimes rang and we read the heart sutra and chanted. It was followed by a short break, and then the Lama gave a Dharma Talk on pure awareness. At the end we were invited to sit before him and greet him and while in line I watched my mind conjure up a hundred different things I might say or not say, and ultimately realized that I simply just had to open my heart and be still. As I watched others kneel before him, particularly an elderly woman who needed assistance placing herself before him, I felt a short wave of love surge over me. My heart opened, tears welled in my eyes, and then it passed. When my turn came, I knelt before him and had no words for him, only short answers to his few questions. He gave me a blessing, forehead to forehead, heart to heart. And I left with what he would probably call a feeling of being "blissed out."