• by Valerie King •When I was seventeen, I fell in love with God. The taste of Spirit had come to me in meditations, and I had to have more! I prayed for a guide who knew the way up the mountain of God. Miraculously, I was led to Sunburst and its founder Norman Paulsen, who was to become my brother, teacher, and friend.
Norm’s profound love of God kindled my desire one-hundredfold, to behold the Divine One within, to feel no separation from that presence, to know it in every particle of my being.
How does one describe a true teacher, and the gifts God brings through him? The depths of spirit-joy, sitting in meditation together, quenched lifetimes of soul thirst.
With amazing humility, Brother Norm shared his own spirit-journey with so many; its times of trial and times of blessings. His heart’s true desire was—and still is—to see all of God’s sons and daughters awaken and realize who they are, and become true caretakers of one another and this precious garden world.
The other day, my heart was missing the physical presence of my dear friend. I felt inspired to open a book of Rumi’s poetry, and my gaze fell upon these perfect words: “I am your deepest being. Quit talking about wanting me!”
I had to laugh, as I felt Norm smiling along with me. I am blessed to have such a teacher. You, too, can have Norm as a teacher, brother, and friend. Norm is very present and available, having been released into the place beyond time. He joyfully continues Spirit’s work of encouraging all souls to discover their divine home, the heart of God. You, too, are invited to join in this endeavor.
Walt Whitman wrote about this sacred work in his poem To Him That Was Crucified, “…we all labor together, transmitting the same charge and succession…till we saturate times and eras, that the men and women of races, ages to come, may prove brethren and lovers, as we are.”
Editor’s Note: And so, too, has Valerie moved on to those rarer dimensions from which she is still teaching. Photo is of a class she taught at Sunburst Sanctuary in 2017.
• by Norman Paulsen, Sunburst Founder • The Divine beloved can and does relate and communicate on an individual, personal level. The more you seek to know and love God and pray to feel that Presence, the more (s)he responds to you. God is the Presence, the pure Self within each one of us, existing separately from our self-conscious minds and thoughts. Each one of us can realize in this life that God is truly our divine companion. We must realize this and include the Creator of us all in everything we do each day. Include Mother-Father Divine in the things you do, the things you enjoy, your work, your play. They love to be with you.
This is what the whole creation is about. Our Creator wants to be conscious in us on this earth. We were not placed here just to satisfy our self-conscious desires. We were placed here to include the beloved consciously, in everything we do, for the benefit of all beings. We were born to be the caretakers of the Earth with the Creator, looking after all creatures and life-forms.
The Divine is ultimately your only true friend, and when you realize this wonderful truth, you will find him/her in others around you, waiting to do things with you. Yes, new friends are found and old ones seem changed. The Divine begins to communicate, work and play with you through all the creatures and images. Nature becomes alive with the Creator’s presence.
The greatest moment of all in our lives occurs when we truly realize God is indeed alive—yes, a living, loving being we can know and communicate with personally. We are not alone in this creation. The Divine is here with us, right now, teaching us how to walk through this life.
If love is the key to the gateway of heaven, then devotion to our Creator is the pathway beyond. Your true Beloved responds and is moved by your love and devotion. Therefore, God must be very personal in the love he/she has for you.
Poem by Persian poet Hafiz: This path to God made me such an old sweet beggar. I was starving until one night my love tricked God himself to fall into my bowl. Now Hafiz is infinitely rich.
•The founder of Sunburst, Norman Paulsen, was born on February 3. His wife and successor, Patty Paulsen, wrote:
Happy Birthday Norm! It’s hard to believe so many years have passed since you left your earthly body, but I know you are ever-present, for there is nowhere love is not. Love cannot separate itself from life, for it is life.
You exist in the here and now. At this very moment you are present, ready and willing to be of help to all who ask. Yes, as a bodhisattva you are here, existing in the energy field of life, love, light and pure consciousness, so alive and so available as one of the immortal Builders! Yes, you simply are Presence, non-judging, ever-loving, ever-new joy.
In utmost gratitude we thank you for your perseverance, wisdom and great humility in helping us establish a strong intent to reach the goal of liberation, Self-realization, amongst the fellowship of Sunburst. May we continue to keep our focus on the goal, enjoy the journey, be of service, and caringly hand this gift down through generations of youth, as you handed it to us when we eagerly asked you to teach us how to meditate and find God.
The mind pulls us into the past and grasps for desires of the future, but God’s dream unfolds in the present. Both past and future give us inspiration for our efforts today. Your legacy lives on in the hearts and minds of those who seek to feel, know and see their Eternal Beloved, Divine Mother and Father, face to face living and breathing in us here and now.
Norman Paulsen wrote: Love is the keelson of the vessel named “Virtue”. We must sail this ship on our journey homeward. The Christ Light is the polestar to navigate by. Right living is the wind in our sails. Desire is the compass. And our willpower is the wheel to stay the course.
•by Dawn King•Our world is changing so fast around us. Today, a child in Africa, India or Siberia with a smartphone has access to more information than the leaders of the world had not so long ago. It’s an exciting time to live in, one in which the future is hard to predict, and it seems our actions have greater consequences.
It’s becoming evident that preserving and nurturing our planet Earth is more important than ever. We don’t have another place immediately available on which to live out our lives. Meanwhile through the Internet, we’re all connected like a hive of buzzing bees. We can express ourselves, see others, and experience a oneness with rest of humanity. How can we best utilize this connection?
The things we can do with life—have relationships, be creative, create knowledge—are what give life meaning. Human ideas can change the world, and you can overcome any obstacle with the right idea. – Ray Kurzweil, inventor & futurist
We are each blessed with and can develop tremendous innate, creative powers beyond what we might normally consider. What powers are these, and how can we use them?
We each have the ability to imagine, to use willpower, and to be creative. Our thoughts and active willpower constantly recreate us and our environment. Through experience, we find that if we dwell on a thought of being sick, or in pain, we “own” that thought and magnify it. Likewise, if you consistently think “My life is wonderful!” life will reflect positive feedback to you.
Imagination and willpower go hand in hand with creativity. Your thoughts and willpower are creating your life. The more persistent and detailed your thoughts are about something, the greater its ability to manifest. This is how Cosmic Intelligence created everything we perceive.
How do we make our muscles stronger? We imagine that we can do it. Then we use our willpower to exercise and grow stronger. It’s the same with developing our spiritual nature. Let yourself imagine what it would be like to feel the ecstasy of Spirit living within you every moment, and enjoying your life to the fullest. The more you can imagine this, the more you will manifest it by your thinking and your actions.
Our very DNA evolves and is reprogramed through our life choices, our meditation, and our direct connection with the Divine. The Creator wants to dance, sing, and enjoy this creation through each of us. We are sparks of that Creator. Just like a drop of water in the ocean, each of us IS the ocean. It is only for us to realize our oneness with the ocean, our oneness with living Spirit.
The divine joy and ecstasy of life is contagious. I truly believe it’s spreading through humankind today. Amidst all its trials, humanity is evolving, growing into cosmic/Christ consciousness. In fact, trials increase our desire for and appreciation of divine Light and Life.
Like yeast raising dough, we each can help consciously raise the vibration of humanity to one of greater divine love and peace. This is our inherent nature, our birthright. We are offspring of the first Light, children of the one Source of All. Let us embrace the gift of Life, to dance, sing, and run with it!
“We say we waste time, but that is impossible. We waste ourselves.” – Alice Bloch
Light on Sunburst Sanctuary – Stand Unshaken•Master Yogananda has told us: “You must learn to stand unshaken amidst the crash of breaking worlds.” In that spirit we carry on at Sunburst Sanctuary. In fact, we are making the best of it, letting “breaking worlds” send us deeper into oneness with Spirit. [Opening image above: Al King hiking at Sunburst Sanctuary.
Meanwhile, we’ve certainly had our share of breaking equipment this winter. But our guys, sometimes with a bit of outside help, get it up and running again.
And who could be unhappy amidst the beauty of Sunburst Sanctuary? Here are some photos taken right before and right after morning group meditation.
Then there’s the bounty of the land. We’re still enjoying persimmons and a late crop of potatoes and strawberries from some personal gardens.
Plenty of great activities keep us busy: Around the Temple, Curtis was weeding; Craig was cleaning and fixing the rain gutters.
Heiko was working the organic fertilizer spreader. Haley was turning compost rows.
[Below] Al & Anna (visiting) gathered wild mushrooms. On a recent morning after meditation, we saw the horses waiting for fresh hay. So much to see and do at Sunburst Sanctuary. You can visit, explore, retreat.
•by Norman Paulsen, Sunburst Founder • As you walk through this life, you begin to realize how short it really is. When we’re young, we think life is forever, and no matter what we do we are somehow going to get out of it. As we grow older, and we’ve seen the consequences of our actions, we realize how our actions can imprison us, or can set us free.
Life is short here—not even a moment in eternity, hardly. The experience of the soul’s immortality must be gained, must be tasted. It is an ecstasy beyond description. Once tasting it, you can never fail. You will always return to that which is sweetest, which tastes the best. That’s why we have to make the effort.
Don’t count your failures. They don’t exist unless you count them. When you count them, you replant them. Every day you are reborn anew. Dismiss the past. Throw it into the field of power around you, and plant your consciousness with divine Light that will consume whatever is negative, whatever is no longer helpful in your life.
Today you are reborn in Spirit if you believe it, if you receive it. The failures of the past no longer exist if you cast them out. You are free!
By attempting to live in compassion and virtue every day, whether you succeed or fail, just by attempting it you plant positive seeds in the field of power around you. The law of cause and effect has no choice but to return those virtues to you. Therefore, the more you attempt, the more you reap. The more you reap, the stronger you get. The stronger you get, the more determined you become. The more determined you become, the greater the Light within you.
Once seeing the Light, once experiencing the bliss and peace of meditation, you know it’s real. You will not need to be convinced anymore. You have gained a foothold and a handhold to scale the mountain. You become a force to help our brothers and sisters toward their freedom.
It’s not only important for each one of us to attain the final evolution for our own salvation, it’s infinitely more important for us to do so that we may become a Light. And in becoming a Light, not to hide that light—to have guts enough to stand forth and use that Light. Yes, become divine warriors, because that is what is needed here.
