Introduction
In our fast-paced, interconnected world, we often find ourselves grappling with feelings of anxiety, shame, and alienation. As our technological prowess grows, so does our need for spiritual guidance. Enter "Living Presence" by Kabir Edmund Helminski, a book that delves into the ancient wisdom of Sufism, offering a path to inner peace and connection with the divine.
Sufism, a mystical branch of Islam, provides a unique perspective on reality and our place within it. This book summary will explore the key ideas presented in "Living Presence," showing how Sufi teachings can help us live more fulfilling lives by embracing the present moment and connecting with the infinite spirit that permeates all existence.
The Essence of Sufism
Sufism is more than just a set of beliefs; it's a practice that aims to experience a reality of divine interconnection. Helminski uses a powerful metaphor to illustrate this journey:
Imagine a fog-shrouded city where people live in fear and alienation. As you travel beyond the city, you encounter different groups of people: those striving for kindness but haunted by insignificance, warriors who have conquered their fears, and finally, the saints who live in constant awareness of the divine.
This journey represents the Sufi path from alienation to surrender to the divine. It's not just a spiritual journey but a way to fully embrace physical reality.
In Sufism, all things share an essence or infinite spirit that creates, connects, and transforms them. This view aligns with modern scientific understanding, particularly in physics, where reality is seen as an electromagnetic field with subatomic particles vibrating with energy.
Consider a rose: the energy within it brings together sun, water, and minerals to make it bloom. Similarly, the energy within us powers our minds and allows us to be aware of this energy itself. In Sufi teaching, this energy is the infinite spirit revealing itself throughout existence.
However, Sufism isn't primarily concerned with arguing the truth of these concepts. Instead, it focuses on experience, with the most important experience being presence.
The Power of Presence
Maintaining awareness in the present moment is a cornerstone of Sufi practice. It opens us up to the infinite spirit that surrounds and permeates us. The author shares a personal anecdote about grooming a horse under his Sufi teacher's instruction. Despite doing a sloppy job, he worked with total absorption, becoming aware of his body, his senses, and the horse itself.
This state of presence allowed him to connect with the horse, himself, the moment, and the spirit binding these elements together. It's through such experiences that we can glimpse the infinite spirit that is reality.
Sufism isn't just for mystics or ascetics; it's a practical faith meant for everyday life. Sufis hold jobs, build homes, and engage in ordinary activities like cooking and cleaning. The difference lies in their effort to maintain awareness of the present moment throughout these daily tasks.
Meditation plays a crucial role in developing this presence. Rumi, the famous 13th-century Persian poet and Sufi mystic, described it as "polishing the mirror of awareness." This practice involves finding a quiet moment to pay attention to your breath, heartbeat, and senses, observing your emotions and thoughts without attachment.
By clearing your mind in this way, you reveal your mind's true nature: a living conduit to the infinite spirit.
Taming the Ego
While we embody the divine, we also contend with what Sufism calls the ego – our compulsive self that seeks only self-preservation. The ego stokes fear, resentment, judgment, and envy. It struggles to sustain mindful attention and perceives the world as either a threat or an opportunity for gain.
For many, the conscious mind is dominated by this ego, leading to a life guided by insecurity and compulsion. However, Sufism offers a way to break free from this tyranny.
In Sufi Islam, all things, including the ego, have a good essence as they were created by the infinite spirit. The ego developed as a coping mechanism for life's challenges, providing qualities like aspiration, self-respect, and diligence. We need our ego, but it should serve us, not rule us.
To humble the ego, we must develop presence – an awareness of the infinite spirit. This involves trusting the spirit, surrendering to it, and submitting to its love. It's not a one-time event but a continuous process, as daily life is full of challenges that can awaken our survivalist ego.
When faced with conflicts that trigger the ego, the key is to return to presence. Remember the connection between your individual self and the divine. Allow yourself to be humbled, reassured, and loved, and your ego will loosen its grip.
Transforming Suffering
Suffering is an inevitable part of life, but Sufism teaches that it can be an opportunity for personal transformation and positive change in the world. The author shares a parable about a poor student who repeatedly fails to receive the king's generosity because he can't stop whining. Only when he "dies" to his ego by lying still in a death shroud does he finally receive the king's gift.
This story illustrates that to address suffering, we must first overcome the imaginary suffering of our ego. By admitting our limits and facing the world as it is, we can see how we need to change to improve our circumstances.
Great change agents in history, like Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, and Malcolm X, exemplified this principle. Their deep humility – to history, to their cause, and to their own humanity – was their strength. It drew people to them and allowed them to become part of the transformation they sought in the world.
By developing presence, we too can defeat our imagined sufferings and effect real change. Moreover, this process opens us up to the love of the infinite spirit.
Love and Unity with the Infinite Spirit
Sufism teaches that love for the infinite spirit leads to a realization of unity with it. The author shares another parable about a poor man who spends his days calling out to God. When a stranger mocks him for receiving no answer, an angel appears to tell him that his very act of calling is God's answer.
This story reveals the love of the universe, rather than its indifference. To understand this concept, consider how human love works:
- It begins with attraction – seeing something special in another person.
- It demands getting to know each other and sharing yourselves.
- In the greatest moments, boundaries dissolve, and you feel as one.
Love for the infinite spirit follows a similar pattern. As you go through life, certain moments arrest you, and you sense something more beyond the veil of perception. You're drawn to this essence, and just as the spirit created you, it loves you back.
As with human love, simply observing the spirit isn't enough. You long to devote yourself to it and realize yourself in relation to it. In the greatest moments, the boundaries between you and the spirit dissolve into unity.
This unity with the infinite spirit has profound effects. Your love for the world and its people grows. You become able to love yourself with true kindness, generosity, and patience, rather than the vain and uneasy manner of the ego.
Channeling Creative Energy
When you reflect the spirit in each moment, you can channel its creative energy. The author uses the example of Balinese dance to illustrate this concept. Dancers manipulate a "ball of energy" held between them and the audience through their skill and commitment to the moment. The dance becomes an offering to the world, rather than a performance for either the dancers or the audience.
This creative energy is within everyone, a property of the electromagnetic field of existence. However, channeling this energy requires keeping a few things in mind:
- While the energy is within you, you don't possess it – it possesses you.
- Craft and skill matter – you need to put in the work to polish your mirror of awareness.
- You can't claim the qualities of the creative energy as your own – that would allow your ego to interrupt the flow.
- Art created without love is lifeless – you must love the task of creation to channel the creative force of the universe.
Service to Others
Awareness of the infinite spirit naturally inspires service to others. When you join with the spirit, you lower the barriers between yourself and the world, becoming more sensitive to the needs around you and more eager to respond. This includes serving other people, creatures, and the environment.
However, connecting to the infinite spirit to better serve others can be challenging. The ego may resist, fearing that letting in the world's problems will overwhelm you. But have faith – loving the spirit means loving the truth, and by humbling yourself to reality, you can find the strength to become heroic.
It's important to distinguish between acts of service inspired by the spirit and those driven by the ego. Here are some guidelines:
- Remember that everyone is interconnected – taking advantage of others never leads to sustainable well-being.
- True acts of service should increase your capacity for love.
- Service inspired by presence is a force of kind, patient, and generous love that mobilizes your intelligence, focus, and will.
If in doubt, always return to presence. When you do, you can't go far wrong.
Worship and Daily Practice
While Sufism has rich and diverse religious practices dating back 13 centuries, it isn't rigid in its rituals. Sufis believe that right action, including worship, flows naturally from presence. Developing presence in daily life and meditation, surrendering to love, and serving others are all considered acts of sincere devotion or worship.
Worship, in the Sufi sense, is about recognizing reality through selflessness. It's not about following a set of prescribed actions but about cultivating a state of being that allows you to connect with the infinite spirit in every moment.
Final Thoughts
"Living Presence" by Kabir Edmund Helminski offers a profound exploration of Sufi wisdom and its relevance to modern life. By embracing the concepts of presence, taming the ego, transforming suffering, and channeling creative energy, we can find a path to inner peace and connection with the divine.
The book's teachings remind us that spirituality isn't separate from our daily lives but can be integrated into every moment. By developing awareness of the infinite spirit that permeates all existence, we can live more fulfilling lives, cultivate deeper relationships, and contribute positively to the world around us.
In a world that often feels fragmented and chaotic, the Sufi path offers a way to find unity and purpose. It encourages us to look beyond the surface of things, to connect with the essence that binds all of creation, and to live with love, compassion, and presence.
As we navigate the complexities of modern life, the wisdom shared in "Living Presence" can serve as a guide, helping us to quiet our minds, open our hearts, and live in harmony with the infinite spirit. By doing so, we not only enrich our own lives but also contribute to the well-being of all those around us.
The journey of Sufism is not about reaching a destination but about embracing the present moment fully. It's about recognizing the divine in the ordinary, finding beauty in simplicity, and cultivating a deep sense of gratitude for the gift of existence.
As we close this exploration of "Living Presence," let us remember that the path to spiritual growth and self-discovery is always open to us. By incorporating the principles of presence, love, and service into our daily lives, we can gradually transform ourselves and, by extension, the world around us.
May this summary inspire you to delve deeper into the wisdom of Sufism, to cultivate presence in your own life, and to embrace the infinite spirit that connects us all. In doing so, you may find that the answers you seek have been within you all along, waiting to be discovered through the practice of living presence.