The Night Sky

Another metaphor for meditation is the night sky.  At my monastery, at 8,000 feet altitude, I walk outside at 3:45 AM and look at the sky.  At first, I see some stars, a lot more than I would see in the polluted Front Range of Colorado or the too lit city of San Francisco.  But there are many more stars up there that I don't see at first.  I have to stay in the darkness outside for awhile, freezing. Gradually, more stars appear.  They are always there, but I need to stay in the darkness longer to get my eyes to open to the darkness.  So it is with meditation.  I go back inside the monastery and go to Vigils Prayer in the Chapel.  At first, my mind is racing about with this and that.  The imagination is in full power mode.  But little by little I begin to quiet down and a stillness comes over the mind and imagination.  I rest quietly, still, silent, in the darkness.  And so much that is always here within and around me, comes to light.  You must come to my monastery and get holy!  You certainly don't come here to get a lot of sleep!  Oops, self-pity.  Not holy yet.