• by Dawn King – photos by April Juels & Dawn King • After many months of Covid restrictions, Sunburst hosted a well-attended Kriya I Retreat (May 12 through 15).
Sunburst’s Kriya II retreat is planned for October. Call the Sunburst office if you’re interested, or want to reserve your place in the next Kriya I retreat, January 2023.
Spring has blessed the Sanctuary with normal rains. Flowers gardens are blooming and Sunburst members are revitalizing the produce garden.
Deer can be seen caring for their fawns. Bluebirds are in abundance, and the hay field is growing daily. Each Sunday, 10:30 a.m. group meditation is followed by refreshments and fellowship, offering wonderful opportunities for enjoying the beauty of Sunburst Sanctuary and those who attend.
• Dawn King, Sunburst • Often, I ask my closest companion, God, to let me see through his/her eyes so I can understand better what in the world is going on here. But when I’m outside in Nature, I invite God to enjoy this beautiful creation with me through the sensations I experience. What a joy this brings to me and I know God feels it as well. I’ll tell you how I know; here’s an example.
I went birding for the first time with Cary and some friends in Santa Barbara. I’d been so wanting to go birding with others and, was thrilled to take this opportunity. The group was going to Lake Los Carneros, “home turf” for them.
Very soon in our walk, someone said to me, “Well…I don’t hear or see any birds right off.”
I responded, “In the distance, I hear a cacophony of birds, but can’t make out any particular song.”
Only a few minutes later, in a flash we had already seen extraordinary mating displays, I’d taken some great bird photos, and the group was very excited. Hal leaned my way saying, “You realize, it’s not this way every time we come out here. This is an extraordinary day!”
“I’m sure it is!” I replied, remembering the many times my husband Al and I have been in nature where joyous people excitedly commented: “We’ve never seen it like this before! This is extraordinary!”
Yes, life is extraordinary when we invite God to enjoy it with us. If anyone in your group is doing that, you might all get the benefit. It seems to be a contagious enjoyment. Below is a photo from my recent Nevada desert trip.
God loves to be with us. This is what the whole creation is about. – Norman Paulsen, Sunburst Founder
by Norman Paulsen, Sunburst Founder • Beloved Mother, we dedicate each day to honoring your beautiful Earth, your garden floating in infinity. What a jewel it is! We dedicate our energy and our lives to helping preserve your earthly garden for your children, now and in the future.
It’s a blessing to be a caretaker of your Earth, so full of your Spirit. We love you Divine Father, Divine Mother! Enjoy your creation through us! Let us all become warriors of light and truth, that we may go forth in your will and your guidance to help your world and your children.
When we can perceive the center of our own consciousness, that smallest of all places within us, we can perceive God. What a wondrous thing it is that we have the ability within us to communicate with our Creator. So few really practice it! Nothing on Earth is more important. Jesus said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God; …the kingdom of God is within you.”
How can we find it within us? We find it through true prayer and meditation, by opening the door at the crown of our heads and asking the Light of Christ consciousness to enter. How long has the Divine watched and waited for us to open our hearts and souls and receive this blessing!
Divine Spirit is reaching out to us every moment to give us healing. When we offer to God all those things inside us that we don’t like, that don’t reflect our true nature, we are healing ourselves. We are cleansing our light bodies—that which we really are—of debris we collect with thoughts and actions that weigh us down and make us miserable. Offer all of it up to God this moment that you may be free; that you may be that immaculate spirit, clear as crystal, shining like the sun.
In our self-conscious state of mind, we often think God is so far away, someplace other than the very life within us. We think maybe God is out there in space, or on a mountaintop. But God’s consciousness inhabits the space between each atom, between each subatomic particle in our bodies. Meditation is so important to each of us. In the silence of our beings we can find this space where God is. Just sit and be still. Pray that God will reveal himself/herself to you.
Each time that we meditate and pray, the imprint of our heart’s love leaves an eternal picture in the mind of our Creator. We are all children of our Mother-Father God. We are part of immortal life, and here in this world for such a short time. Pray to your Divine Parents that you might find out who you really are before you leave. Pray that they heal you, and enliven your heart and mind. We were each created perfect in the beginning. Let us strive to regain our perfection.
• 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.
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 Dawn King • Each morning we face a new day with excitement or dread, or some feeling in between. Whatever our thinking and feeling, let’s check in and realize it is creating the day we will encounter. Our attitudes and thoughts effect our experiences more than we realize. They can “make or break” our happiness and enjoyment in life.
The title of this article is lyrics from a beautiful Sunburst song. Waking up with an inspired song on your mind is a great way to start the day. I know because it often happens to me. But I find life exciting and fun each day. I make a point of embracing this experience because life is NOW, and it is in my power to make the best of it, whatever it brings.
My mother told me that when she was growing up, at one point she thought life was kind of boring. We’ve all probably been there at some point, thinking it was pretty routine and less than exciting, especially when we were growing up. I certainly did.
So Mom, as a child wished for some excitement. The next thing she knew, her youngest brother fell out the upstairs window and broke his leg. To her this was a tragedy. Life became exciting, but not in a good way. She learned to be careful what she wished for, and to appreciate things being “normal.”
Normal is good in so many ways. When we keep a gratitude journal, or somehow reflect on the goodness we experience in a normal day, we realize what a blessing it is. The sun comes up. We are able to function. There are things to do; we have purpose in our day.
Ever since a bad fall and concussion experienced in June while backpacking, I am thankful that I can walk, talk, think straight, type this story, etc. Things could have been so much worse.
How often do we each come through a day physically unharmed and think nothing of it. We take it for granted that we’ll be able to function just as well tomorrow. When we age (as I am), we start to realize tomorrow may not find us functioning as perfectly as the day before. It’s best to be thankful for what you’ve got; use it and hope to improve it; and embrace the moment, the NOW. This is your life.
Yesterday I was reflecting on how we are each victims, but should not have victim mentality. Yes, we are victims of our own thoughts and attitudes. Yet, we can change them and make them serve us better. Our bodies respond to our thoughts, especially habitual ones. We should always be looking for the positive side of every situation, what benefits might be found in it.
Tonight the United States will see the longest eclipse in almost 1000 years cross its land from east to west. For over six hours the full moon will be darkened, appearing red at its fullest eclipse around 1 p.m. PST. Some people are saying it portends coming earthquakes or other natural Earth changes, maybe weather phenomena. Others say eclipses are symbolic of human transformation. Let’s celebrate spiritual transformation and the ways we can lift our own spirits. Likewise, we can celebrate whatever changes our planet Earth will bring to uplift the consciousness of humanity. Pause in the NOW, and be grateful.
“People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don’t even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child—our own two eyes. All is a miracle.” – Thich Nhat Hanh
