...our true self..."

“Everyone of us is shadowed by an illusory person: a false self. We are not very good at recognizing illusions, least of all the ones we cherish about ourselves. Contemplation is not and cannot be a function of this external self. There is an irreducible opposition between the deep transcendent self that awakens only in contemplation, and the superficial, external self which we commonly identify with the first person singular. Our reality, our true self, is hidden in what appears to us to be nothingness....We can rise above this unreality and recover our hidden reality....God Himself begins to live in me not only as my Creator but as my other and true self.”

~Thomas Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation

photo source: pixabay

 

This post brought to you by the human being 

(designer, maker, sewist) 

behind ZafuChi, an etsy store that offers buckwheat hull filled zafus, 

unfilled zafu covers, and filled and unfilled bolster pillows.

Wishing you a wonder-filled day!

you are the formless, timeless, unborn...

~ Nisargadatta Maharaj~

"The whole world is an ever-changing state. No form is permanent.
All you have to do is see the dream as a dream … 

you are the formless, timeless, unborn. 

I ask you to stop imagining that you were born, 

have parents, are a body, will die and so on."

Nisargadatta was born on 4/17/1897 in Bombay. After his father died, he moved to Bombay to support his family back home, following his elder brother. Initially he worked as a junior clerk at an office but quickly he opened a small goods store, mainly selling beedis – leaf-rolled cigarettes, and soon owned a string of eight retail shops. In 1924 he married, and they had three daughters and a son. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nisargadatta_Maharaj

 ~)(~

Nisargadatta supported himself, his wife and children by selling small goods and beedis. I'm not Nisargadatta, but I do love his teachings. I also (try to) support myself, using the skills I currently have. Quite honestly, I need to pay some large-ish bills very soon. Homeowner's insurance bill is a down payment of several hundred dollars - due Mar. 1st. Vehicle insurance is a payment of $100. due this month - 2/25/17. I need to get my car into a shop and see why it is smelling of sulphur all the time, and running poorly. New car brakes are needed, too. I would like to start holding small meditation meetings in my home once or twice a week, and to do that I need to do some work on the master bathroom pipes - either jetting them or replacing them. This will cost from $100. at the least to $1K to 2K. at the most. And there are the ongoing monthly bills for utilities, etc. I need to make many, many sales in my etsy store, and I am open to accepting paypal donations payable to paypal.me/SarahNolt  

click here for the shop of etsyseller ZafuChi

you can't use up creativity, but you can stifle it, or turn down the dial...

"You can't use up creativity...the more you use the more you have." That's a relief to know, but also a bit scary. Because, maybe I'd end up like a hamster on a wheel - just madly making zafus. Which I wouldn't mind - if they sold like mad. Like I once went on a decade long, mad, crazy, passionate trip making all sizes, colors of Cathedral Windows quilts and wallhangings. I sold a lot of them, gave a lot away to charity auctions, and still have a few that simply would not sell. And one, that I won't sell because it was the crowning achievement of that whole love affair.

Hibiscus Pink (buckwheat hull filled) Zafu

Zafu in Rose Floral (on a warm brown background)

 Click on (rose floral zafu) caption to see all 28 selections in my Zafu-SkidRow-Closeout section!

Now is a great time to holiday shop, while there are still great choices available.

Flower of Life design and repurposing...

Flower of Life designs in wall art and floor pillows/ buckwheat hull zafus. The wood frame for the wall art was found on the curb a few months ago. It was a dresser mirror frame in its former existence. Yay for repurposing creatively!

living room in late afternoon sunlight...

Flower of Life wall art...

Flower of Life Zafu - Floor Pillow

Flower of Life Zafu - Floor Pillow