The Face in A Raindrop

The cultural anthropologist and non-fiction author Richard Nelson is also the host of an Alaskan radio program called Encounters. In each area of his work, he explores human relationships with eh natural world.   Here is an excerpt from his 1991 book, The Island Within. Thanks to Bill Douglass for bringing this twenty-year-old gem to my attention.

"Today I stand face to face with the maker of it all, the sources of its beauty and abundance, and I love the rain as desert people love the sun. I remember that the human body is ninety-eight percent water, and so, more than anything else, rain is the source of my own existence. I imagine myself transformed back to the rain from which I came. My hair is a wispy, wind-torn cloud. My eyes are rainwater pools, glistening with tears. My mind is sometimes a clear pool, sometimes an impenetrable bank of fog. My heart is a thunderstorm, shot through with lightning and noise, pumping the flood of rainwater that surges inside my veins. My breath is the misty wind, whispering and soft one moment, laughing and raucous another. I am a man made of rain.

At this moment, there must be more raindrops falling on the surface of the island than there are humans on earth,  perhaps more that all the humans who ever lived. I've thought of raindrops as tiny and insignificant things, but against the scale of the earth itself, they're scarcely smaller than I am. On what basis, then, can I consider myself more important? Koyukon (Alaska Native) elders say that each kind of weather, including rain, has its own spirit and consciousness. If this is true, there must be a spirit within every raindrop, as in all else that inhabits the earth. In this sense, we are two equal forms of being, who stand in mutual regard. I bend down to look at a crystal droplet hanging from a hemlock needle and know my own image is trapped inside. It's humbling to think of myself this way. In the broader perspective of earth, I am nothing more than a face in a raindrop."

Hua Hu Ching - The Unknown Teachings of Lao Tzu

Thirty

Words can never convey the beauty of a tree;
     to understand it, you must see it with your own eyes.
Language cannot capture the melody of a song;
     to understand it, you must hear it with your own ears.
So it is with Tao: the only way to understand it is to directly experience it.

The subtle truth of the universe is unsayable and unthinkable.
Therefore the highest teachings are wordless.
My own words are not the medicine, but a
     prescription; not the destination, but a map to help you reach it.
When you get there, quiet your mind and close your mouth.
Don't analyze the Tao.
Strive instead to live it: silently, undividedly,
     with your whole harmonious being.

Meditative Sitting

"There are two kinds of sitting. One is for the purpose of rest. For this, you may sit in any position that you find comfortable. More important than posture here is a serene mind, free from anxious thoughts. Direct the mind and the breathing to the tan-t'ien or abdomen in order to feel restful.

The second kind of sitting is Meditative Sitting. It affects many neural meridians, from the feet to such areas of the upper body as the kidneys, liver and spleen. The heat created by this exercise increases blood circulation and helps the stomach digest food. Rheumatism and arthritis can be cured and prevented by this method.

In Meditative Sitting, correct posture is very important. After you have finished eating, sit erect in a chair of sensible height, enabling the feet to rest comfortably on the floor. Direct the mind and the breathing to the tan-t'ien and place the tongue against the palate to gather saliva. When swallowed, the saliva reproduces the vitality or sexual essence.  Cover your knees with the palms of your hands, with your fingers against the indentations at the bases of the kneecaps. Exert a light pressure with the middle three fingers of each hand. Press the ring finger of each hand against the outer hollow, the middle finger against the inner joint.

Meditative Sitting is convenient and easy to do. It can be performed anywhere, even when you are sitting in an office or in your bedroom before retiring for the night. You may continue to apply pressure to the meridians of the knees as long as you like, to improve the circulation and help the inner organs of the abdomen function well."

--from T'ai Chi Ch'uan & Meditation by Da Liu