"For the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and quick to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart."

After the phase of the process that I'd described in the thread on the kundalini has been finished, I started to pray with the Liturgy of Hours. My spiritual director gave it to me following her intuition, and I immediately felt joy and certainty that this now should be a substantial part of my prayer (which now turned out to be passive, silent, servant-waiting-for-the-master being before the Lord).

I know that you, W.C., practice the Liturgy of Hours, but maybe also other people, and I'd like to hear about your experiences with that.

Another thing is that the importance of this gift of the Liturgy entering my prayer life is strongly connected to the new relationship between the opened 6th chakra and the word of God.

I have experienced many times the power of God's word in the past, the word spoken during the mass or in private lectio. Sometimes it's like a message which is precisely addressing the problem I'm struggling with or an encouragement, consolation or wake up call of a sort, or even sometimes a verse opens up into the prayer of union or ecstasy.

But I noticed that unconsciously I didn't fully believe that the word of God as such can be such a powerful form of His presence, and His transformative energy, and a communication channel.
Now, that my relationship with Him has been changed - death, the loss of interiority, shifting of God's indwelling as if from my heart to the heart of all creation, a sort of aridity - accepted and thus filled with quiet joy.
And I'm beginning to learn so many things about Him I didn't know or I didn't notice. One of them is His presence in His word.

I guess that's why my experience of the Liturgy of the Hours has been so powerful right from the beginning few days ago and I'm in love with this practice.

I sense a connection with the transformed functioning of the brain, the energized 6th chakra and the receiving of the word. It is as if the words of the Divine Office (or any other word that God speaks) entered and penetrated the brain directly through the 6th chakra, while before it might have been more through 5th chakra or even the lower ones. I'm not sure how it works, and I'm eager to hear any of your opinions and experiences with that.

It seems to me, however, as if God's word were directly communicated through the opened ajna to sort of "shape" or "form" the brain or the intellect or the heart, or all of them. I really can't say anything about it that would make sense, because it's totally ungraspable for me. It just seems like something is changing in me through hearing those words and it is more powerful, because the gate of the 6th chakra is now open. Maybe it is the cooperation of the 5th and the 6th, because it is still by 5th chakra that the words are "spoken" and "heard" internally while saying the hours.

I feel like I'm down on my knees before an immense mystery here, and I'm writing this hoping that your thoughts and your sharing about your own encounters with the power of the word will help me get a better conceptual understanding of it.

quote:

Originally posted by Mt:
I sense a connection with the transformed functioning of the brain, the energized 6th chakra and the receiving of the word. It is as if the words of the Divine Office (or any other word that God speaks) entered and penetrated the brain directly through the 6th chakra, while before it might have been more through 5th chakra or even the lower ones. I'm not sure how it works, and I'm eager to hear any of your opinions and experiences with that.

It seems to me, however, as if God's word were directly communicated through the opened ajna to sort of "shape" or "form" the brain or the intellect or the heart, or all of them. I really can't say anything about it that would make sense, because it's totally ungraspable for me. It just seems like something is changing in me through hearing those words and it is more powerful, because the gate of the 6th chakra is now open. Maybe it is the cooperation of the 5th and the 6th, because it is still by 5th chakra that the words are "spoken" and "heard" internally while saying the hours.

Yes, that's my experience as well. I do read the Liturgy of the Hours in the morning and evening, and it's just that: a mindful, attentive, non-reflective reading. I generally find that my attention becomes more grounded, balanced, and ordered unto the ways of Christ. As this is really a form of liturgical prayer, I also find it helpful to know that people around the world are praying this prayer and I'm in union with them in doing so.

There are times when I just can't do the reading, however -- when the deep silence of contemplative prayer draws me and the faculties pretty much shut down. I just set the breviary aside when that happens; it would be pointless to press on.

Re. the issue of Christ communicating through the sacred Word: yes indeed! It is a mode of his presence to us; probably the best means of cultivating a personal relationship with him.

A website worth mentioning, here is http://www.universalis.com/ which provides the liturgy of the hours online. They also have email subscription options. No need to buy the books, or to learn what comes first, second, where to flip over to, etc.

What really very cool is the universalis app for iPhone and iPod Touch. I own the latter and purchased the app for $30. Now I have the breviary and the lectionary on my iPod Touch; they update the readings yearly for no extra charge.
- see http://www.universalis.com/20090410/n-download.htm for the subscription and iPhone/iPod Touch options.

Thanks! There's also a Polish website with the Liturgy (texts are available also in Latin) - a very good one. At the moment I can't imagine myself praying it from my cell or iPod... Although it might be the same for us what books were for the monks 17 centuries ago.