Daily Devotional: September 18th

Daily Prayer XIV

Supreme, paternal deity, omnipotent and just,

Source of all goodness, in thy divine mind we trust.

Inheritors of virtue, bestowed by heavenly kin,

Mortal and prone to fault, yet capable of mend again.

Through the crucible of mortality, our errors find correction,

Guided by thy offspring, architects of redemption.

Grant liberation from the sorrows of our missteps,

Through thy progeny, be our journey gently swept.

Approaching the blameless, possessing virtuous intent,

May we, in thy likeness, with noble minds be sent.

Thou, gentle and benevolent, lead us on the path refined,

Father divine, in thy kindness, our souls aligned.

Daily Meditation

"Ephemeral beings! What is each of us? Man is a dream of a shadow.”

—Pindar

Pythian Odes, VIII 95

Pindar says in ancient Greek that we are ‘a dream of a shade’. A shade was the word for a spirit that had passed into the underworld. Here, Pindar shows that life is a dream in the mind of the soul. We are truly asleep in this life and wake when we come to know our true selves as an immortal soul. Only then do we awaken to the true life.

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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