Q. I stumbled on this quote by Rilke just after I had written the mail to you, and somehow I thought it said what I couldn't... “I live my life in growing orbits which move out over this wondrous world, I am circling around God, around ancient towers and i have been circling for a thousand years. And I still don’t know if I am an eagle or a storm or a great song.” A. The Rilke quote is beautiful. ”Circling round God...”. I think more and more that there is something important

Q Here summer is coming and the beach is getting crowded at weekends. Humming birds are humming, and the gardens are exploding with colours. After our last session with Symbolic Encounters, I have been feeling very good. it really works! The images from the session stayed with me, but I avoided going into interpretation. They just popped up in my awareness now and then. What I have been noticing is that I feel so much better! I took a test which I have taken 3 times before du

A good Koan, as in the collection of gnomic phrases popularized by Zen, is an inexhaustible fountain of symbolic resonances. The mind can ponder, play, ruminate and allow unexpected meanings to emerge. Not all koans are passed down by tradition; sometimes the world can throw a live one at you, like lobbing a friendly grenade.... There we were meditating in the hut in the garden. Just nearing the end of session and deep in silence, came a strange noise and splash from outside

Intensive meditation retreats offer a chance to collect together energy, the energy needed to let the mind settle and therefore take understanding deeper. There is also an opportunity to examine direction, which links with your motivation. I have suggested that letting the following questions roll around in the background can be useful: Direction towards what? Understanding what? A. You have emerged! It takes a while to assimilate after an Intensive, and no doubt the process