Daily Devotional: September 28th

Daily Prayer IV

Blessed are those who shun the grip of selfish greed,

With a wisdom that forbids harmful deeds.

In emulation of the gods, they seek the good,

Endeavoring to mirror divine brotherhood.

They hold in reverence the common good of the race,

Aware that gods' concern resides in this shared space.

They do not abandon the communal thread,

For in unity, the divine essence is spread.

Blessed are those who, with gratitude, give thanks,

To the gods for every boon, with hearts that flank

Jove, the source whence fair and good first spring,

In all things, a hymn of gratitude we sing.

Daily Meditation

"Osiris has been given the name Sarapis by some, Dionysus by others, Pluto by others, Ammon by others, Zeus by some, and many have considered Pan to be the same god; and some say that Sarapis is the god whom the Greeks call Pluto.”

—Diodorus

Book of History 1.25

Syncretism, the amalgamation of Gods from disparate cultures, is an ancient Western practice. Nobody thought their Gods existed in a vacuum nor did they believe the Gods they worshipped were anything less than the Gods of the Universe. It logically follows that the Gods of other cultures are often the same as our own but with different names. We may call the Gods by many names but they themselves remain unchanged.

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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