Resonating with the being(s)

BARBARA SONVILLA shares her experience of using one of the Peacefulness intentions while swimming in the sea in the Persian Gulf. The outcome is astounding and shows just how effective these simple intentions are in changing the atmosphere both within and outside us.

I would like to share an experience with you that happened recently, and which has been full of amazement, joy, insights, and learnings regarding what it means to “live from the heart.”

But before doing so, I would like to introduce to you the particular practice that has led to the experience.

Ever since I have come across those small yet powerful practices called “subtle suggestions” and “peaceful intentions,” I have felt particularly drawn to them. My favorite one is:

Everything around you is absorbing peace,
including the sky, the oceans, the trees,
 the people, the wildlife, the buildings—and
everything is radiating peace.

(Peaceful Intention 2 from www.peacefulness.org) 

I love to “dive into” this intention when I’m in my garden, when I’m sitting with people but don’t feel like talking, or when I’m on the subway in the big city nearby.

I also use another technique for life’s stressful moments when I feel like I need a drastic cleanse of my entire system—fairly regularly, I admit. It is often related to bouts of anger, hot or cold (feeling resentful) in its quality; and this feeling particularly upsets me. There is a useful Heartfulness technique to deal with that kind of state, which goes like this:

Sit comfortably and close your eyes.

Imagine that you are in a gentle ocean of peace. 
The waves are soothing and blissful.

Have the firm thought that you are immersed in this ocean of peace, and
the gentle waves are removing all your coverings.

Do this for as long as you can, but no more than 30 minutes.

(Ocean of Peace Cleaning from https://heartfulness.org/en/simple-heartfulness-practices/)

Now, here comes the incident:

I am so fortunate to nowadays have the regular opportunity to enjoy swimming in the Persian Gulf. What a wonderful color display the water features—it is as if I am immersed in liquid crystals of turquoise aquamarine or emerald with shades of lilac and pink. As I didn’t grow up close to the ocean, I always feel happy like a child when this opportunity arises.

A couple of months ago, as I bathed in the warm waters of the Persian Gulf, just feeling joyful and playful, I gradually realized that the feeling of joy and childlike playfulness naturally led my heart to a state of prayerfulness. First, I just observed and witnessed the inner shift for a while. Then, fascinated, I started the above-mentioned peacefulness practice naturally, without planning.

I silently suggested and visualized, rather “felt it into being,” that the entire ocean with all its creatures is absorbed in peacefulness, and just like in the rhythm of breathing, it is absorbing and radiating peace. Absorbing and radiating. This happened many times, and I was also immersed in this kind of breathing.

When one fine afternoon it finally was time to end the bathing season (I was about to leave the country) and I was about to step out of the water, I saw a crowd of people running toward me, with a look of surprise on their faces.

I turned and saw a family of dolphins visiting the beach, happily displaying their playful jumps and showing their smiling faces. It was a family of ten or so, with their young ones. And they came to the very spot where I would swim and breathe peace so often. They remained there for quite a while, delighting every beachgoer. And there were hundreds of beachgoers on this crowded city beach.

These wonderful creatures conjured up joy and happiness on people’s faces, which I have rarely seen. Locals would tell me later that they had never experienced before the dolphins coming so close.

Finishing this little story, let me share my key insights from this experience:

All living beings on this beautiful planet are connected with each other.

All living beings respond to impulses because of the principle of resonance.

It is the impulses of the heart that are uplifting, nourishing, and contribute to the elevation of consciousness.

My subtle or prayerful suggestions matter and make a difference.

The most powerful insight was that when I am in a state of joy and gratefulness, it changes my condition so powerfully into a heart-consciousness-state of being. In that state it happens naturally that I “remember” the interconnectedness and oneness of all, and naturally and cheerfully add a “little something” to this oneness.

Om Shanti Shanti Shanti