Daily Devotional: September 14th

Daily Prayer XVIII

Hail, radiant Apollo, sovereign of all essences,

Director of unifying forces, in whom all converges,

Apollo, artisan of harmony, transforms discord's disarray,

With celestial artistry, he weaves unity from chaos' fray.

From your governance flows prudence, a beacon for our souls,

Justice, a virtue adorned with grace, unfolds,

Beauty and health entwine in our mortal frames,

Grant us an eternal thirst for the divine and sublime.

Paian, we hail you, O Lord of heavenly resonance,

In your harmonious embrace, our spirits dance.

Guide us through wisdom's path, illuminate our way,

In your sacred light, we find serenity each day.

Daily Meditation

"We are not an earthly but heavenly plant.”

—Iamblichus

Exhortation to Philosophy

We are immortal souls encased within physical bodies. We are not our bodies. We also are not our thoughts and memories. Our essence is life itself. This is what it means to be a heavenly plant. Our roots run deep into the immaterial and divine realm; our physical bodies are but dim reflections of our true light.

Monthly Ascesis

Developing a practice of watchfulness is a powerful and effective way to create stillness in our souls, allowing us to behold God's presence in our lives.

This month, add this meditation practice to your morning prayers. This is particularly effective following a chanting session.

“The most basic and fundamental meditation practice is watchfulness or Nepsis in Greek. Watchfulness is the act of observing the mind while not chasing any thoughts or emotions that arise. You only need to sit down, close your eyes, and relax to do this practice. Then, watch your thoughts as they arise and fall away. Thoughts will continue to pop into your mind, and that’s ok. The key is not to follow them. For example, if your mind starts thinking about a project at work, don’t follow that idea and start working on the project in your mind. Just acknowledge that thought and watch it. Don’t feed that idea with more ideas; just leave it alone. Eventually, it will pass by, or a new thought will take its place. If that happens, just watch that thought without following it or allowing it to disturb you.”

-Excerpt from our new book, Ascesis: the Handbook of Platonic Practice

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