Oriah Mountain Dreamer

“And after we have shown each other how we have set and kept the clear, healthy boundaries that help us live side by side with each other, let us risk remembering that we never stop silently loving those we once loved out loud.”

“Tell me how you crumble when you hit the wall,the place you cannot go beyond by the strength of your own will. What carries you to the other side of that wall, to the fragile beauty of your own humanness?”

“You cannot trade the courage needed to live every moment for immunity from life's sorrows. We may say we know this but ours is the culture of the deal-making mind. From infancy, we have breathed in the belief that there is always a deal to be made, a bargain to be struck. Eventually, we believe, if we do the right thing, if we are good enough, clever enough, sincere enough, work hard enough, we will be rewarded. There are different verses to this song - if you are sorry for your sins and try hard not to sin again, you will go to heaven; if you do your daily practise, clean up your diet, heal your inner child, ferret out all your emotional issue's, focus your intent, come into alignment with the world around you, hone your affirmations, find and listen to the voice of your higher self, you will be rewarded with vibrant health, abundant prosperity, loving relations and inner peace - in other words, heaven!We know that what we do and how we think affects the quality of our lives. Many things are clearly up to us. And many others are not. I can see no evidence that the universe works on a simple meritocratic system of cause and effect. Bad things happen to good people - all the time. Monetary success does come to some who do not do what they love, as well as to some who are unwilling or unable to see the harm they do to the planet or others. Illness and misfortune come to some who follow their soul's desire. Many great artist's have been poor. Great teachers have lived in obscurity.My invitation, my challenge to you here, is to journey into a deeper intimacy with the world and your life without any promise of safety or guarantee of reward beyond the intrinsic value of full participation.”

“Ne zanima me od čega živiš. Želim znati za čim žudiš i imaš li hrabrosti snivati o ispunjenju želja srca svoga.Ne zanima me koliko ti je godina. Želim znati jesi li spreman riskirati ispasti budala zbog ljubavi, zbog svojih snova, zbog ove pustolovine koju nazivamo životom.Ne zanima me koji planeti djeluju na tvoj mjesec. Želim znati jesi li stigao do središta vlastite boli, jesu li te životna razočarenja otvorila ili si se skrutio i zatvorio od straha da ponovo ne osjetiš bol. Želim znati jesi li u stanju trpjeti bol, moju ili svoju, a da je pritom ne moraš skrivati ili ublažavati ili izbrisati.Želim znati znaš li se radovati, zbog mene ili sebe, i možeš li divlje zaplesati i pustiti da te ekstaza preplavi sve do vrškova prstiju, a da nas pritom ne upozoravaš neka budemo pažljivi, realni, svjesni ljudskih ograničenja.Ne zanima me je li priča koju mi pričaš istinita. Želim znati jesi li spreman razočarati drugoga kako bi bio iskren prema sebi; jesi li spreman podnijeti optužbe za izdaju, a pritom ne iznevjeriti sebe: možeš li biti izdajica i samim time vrijedan povjerenja.Želim znati jesi li u stanju vidjeti ljepotu, pa i ako nije lijepa, svakoga dana, i možeš li svoj život nadahnjivati Njezinom prisutnošću.Želim znati jesi li dovoljno snažan živjeti s neuspjehom, svojim i mojim, i da svejedno stojiš na rubu jezera i ushićeno vičeš prema srebrnom punom mjesecu: "To!"Ne zanima me gdje živiš i koliko novaca imaš. Želim znati jesi li sposoban ustati, nakon noći ispunjene tugom i očajem, umoran i do kostiju izubijan, i učiniti sve što je potrebno kako bi nahranio svoju djecu.Ne zanima me koga poznaješ i kako si dospio ovamo. Želim znati hoćeš li i dalje sa mnom stajati u žaru vatre i ne posustajati.Ne zanima me gdje si ili što ili s kim si studirao. Želim znati što te u tebi samom gura naprijed u trenucima kad se sve ostalo ruši.Želim znati možeš li biti sam sa sobom i voliš li uistinu osobu koja jesi u trenucima praznine.”

“And I found that I can do it if I choose to - I can stay awake and let the sorrows of the world tear me apart and then allow the joys to put me back together different from before but whole once again.”

“When we surrender when we do not fight with life when it calls upon us we are lifted and the strength to do what needs to be done finds us.”

“I want to know if you can see beauty even when it’s not pretty, every day,and if you can source your own life from its presence.”

“Do not touch me and keep your soul out of your fingertips... Die into me or don't come to me at all.”

“It doesn’t interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you, from the inside, when all else falls away.”

“I want to know if you've touched the center of your own sorrow, if you've been opened by life's betrayals, or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain.”

“Every act I live while I am fully awake can not help but be both prayer and lovemaking.”

“It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dream, for the adventure of being alive. It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain!I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it or fade it, or fix it. I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own, if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, to be realistic, to remember the limitations of being human. It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul; if you can be faithlessand therefore trustworthy. I want to know if you can see beauty even when it's not pretty, every day,and if you can source your own life from its presence. I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine, and still stand on the edge of the lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, “Yes!”It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up, after the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done to feed the children. It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back. It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you, from the inside, when all else falls away. I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.”