Category: Unconditional love

Love Within Beyond – a review

Barbara Bullock, M.F.A. Spiritual writer

LOVE WITHIN

BEYOND

Regula Curti, Tina Turner, Dechen Shak-Dagsay, and Sawani Shende-Sathaye

Dear friends, 

                  Ever since the first Beyond CD release I have been one of the greatest admirers of the Beyond projects. Since the beginning I felt that these projects are really extraordinary and God sent into our world at this time. Divine timing is not always understood by us humble and sometimes impatient human beings, yet our mysterious universe knows exactly when the time is right. I feel that humanity has recently entered a new level of consciousness. More and more people around the world are opening up to the idea of the subconscious level. Many people these days are realizing that we do not always depend on outside factors to have peace and tolerance in our world. Instead, each of us can contribute to it. Millions of people around the world are literally searching for tools to help themselves to become more aware of the world they live in and how to improve their lives. I feel that the Beyond projects remind us of likely some of the first and foremost virtues of life – love and faith. The Beyond projects help me to realize how simple a solution to our problems of daily life can be. The message is clear to me. The tool for their teachings is the universal language of music.

          Love Within contains prayers in different forms from Christian, Buddhist and Hindu traditions. Prayers have had powerful forces in the most positive way for eternity. Deep inside of us, we all pray. Some of us pray to higher powers, following a very specific approach of a particular world religion, others rather by themselves in their own ways. As different as those paths and ways may seem, at the end of the day we are all the same – human beings. All traditions and forms teach love. And yet, our world news is filled with wars and violence which roots are often based in religious conflicts. While we cannot change our world into a more positive one in one day, I believe we can all contribute something for more peace and tolerance in our world.

          This is exactly the message of Love Within and all Beyond projects for me. Through the harmonious combination and collaboration of the four female singers, Regula Curti, Tina Turner, Dechen Shak-Dagsay, and Sawani Shende-Sathaye, we, the listeners, are taught to go within. As we do so, we rediscover our often forgotten core values such as patience, tolerance, forgiveness, understanding, and unconditional love towards all living beings. We also discover the mother within ourselves. In philosophical and spiritual terms, a mother is often considered as positive, loving and caring form of energy inside of every person. I believe that, when we tap into this energy, we are able to express the love and care for others and ourselves. We are able to give and receive unconditional love as a true mother does. Many cultures also suggest religious figures one can worship as a mother. This can be a goddess, an angel, a deity, saint or a more general form of higher power or higher intelligence to find that unconditional love. Regardless of its name, I believe that it is a form of energy, which protects and loves us unconditionally. I believe that a true mother is someone who loves, teaches, inspires, and cares for others. We all have these qualities inside of us whether we choose to practice them in our world or not. However, I believe that when we do, we share that unconditional motherly love and help create a better world and better lives for everyone.

How do you do that?

          There are various ways to show us how to tap into this motherly energy. I believe we all come from unconditional love, that we are made of unconditional love and so we are unconditional love. I also believe that great people are born to share and teach this unconditional love for a better world. In my heart I believe that Regula Curti, Tina Turner, Dechen Shak-Dagsay, and Sawani Shende-Sathaye are such earth angels. They were sent to us to share and teach their unconditional love to the rest of us. Their alliance reminds me of the possibility of harmonization of different faiths, different cultures, and different generations.

          For those familiar with the Beyond projects, Love Within introduces new, exotic music with Sawani Shende-Sathaye coming from a rich culture and history, while providing familiar angelic sounds by Regula Curti and Tibetan chants by Dechen Shak-Dagsay. Nothing could be more proper in our global world than bringing different cultures together. To me their angelic voices touch my heart and soul in a way that helps me connect to this form of unconditional love. Each singer speaks to my heart in her own way; yet is a reminder that we are all the same. By the time Tina Turner joins the choir, I have tears in my eyes. Tina (Anna Mae as I like to call her as I like to think of the human being behind the stage persona), confirms this with her soft yet strong and voice. She reminds us that it is the music in our hearts, which keeps us going. Deep emotions of love emerge from the depths of my heart when I listen to these wise words. I feel the love of an Earth Mother, who shares her unconditional love which has supported her through her own struggles and pain. Not diminished by her trials and tribulations but filled with love and female power, she once again shows us the way to the Beyond. By returning to her roots of Gospel, I believe that she invites us into her heart to share what kept her strong and able to look beyond her life experiences and sufferings. I hear your message loud and clear. When I hear your voice and teachings, I go deep inside of me where I find the unconditional love for myself and others you talk about. When we sing Amazing Grace together and pray together, I feel the love that I have often thought I lacked in my life. Now I know that, no matter what happens in my life, I am love and I am loved. Love is essential to survive and live happy lives, to grow and to prosper. Love is the answer to a better, more peaceful world. Unconditional love is the way.

          My spirits are elevated, my faith is renewed. My fears and doubts dissolve as if by singing to me Regula, Dechen, Sawani and Tina (Anna Mae) reach out their hands and welcome me into their realms of unconditional motherly love. Once I have reached these heightened levels of awareness for myself, I am ready to go out into the world and reach out my hand to someone in need.

With Love Within, the Beyond projects just got another pair of wings to fly and share the message of Beyond. May Love Within sing into many hearts, lift many spirits and share unconditional love around the world. May we all be mothers within.

Love and peace,

Barbara

Copyright © 2014 by Barbara Bullock

Work cited:

Love Within – Beyond

http: http://www.beyond-foundation.org/love_within.php

Published 2014 by Beyond Foundation, under exclusive license to Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin, A UNIVERSAL MUSIC COMPANY.

I learned to love from Dr. Maya Angelou

Barbara Bullock, M.F.A. Spiritual writer

Dear friends,

As the news was breaking about Dr. Maya Angelou’s passing, I was trembling and shaken by immense sadness. God had taken one of the most beautiful earth angels and earth mother back home. Whenever one of our greats leaves us, I feel an enormous void in my heart. All my tears cannot wash away the immeasurable pain I feel in this moment. My heart squeezes so tightly and here I am sobbing uncontrollably. Each time this happens, I ask myself – why? Each time this happens, I realize why – because I really loved.

I think that Dr. Maya Angelou taught the world so many lessons. She spoke about courage; she spoke about tolerance; she spoke about dignity; she spoke about gratitude. Most importantly, she spoke about love. Love holds everything she taught us. I believe when you have courage, you love yourself; when you are grateful, you love what you have; when you are tolerant, you love one another. At the end of the day, I believe that what she really taught us is unconditional love. I believe that she taught us unconditional love for each and everyone on our planet regardless of gender, age, race, or status. She taught that every woman is beautiful. She taught us unconditional love for ourselves no matter who we are and how we look like. She taught us to believe in ourselves. She taught us to strive for the best. At the same time, she taught us to stay humble and say thank you. She taught us to say thank you because she taught us unconditional love for God.

It is that some of this love returned back home with her. That is why I feel this void. God sent us a beautiful angel to spread his love amongst us. She came. She conquered. She fulfilled her mission. I believe that it is now our turn to say thank you. Thank you, Maya, for teaching us. Thank you, Maya, for loving us. Thank you, Maya, for coming to us. I believe that it is now our responsibility to continue to carry on the message of love amongst us no matter who we are.

Dr. Maya Angelou taught me what real love is. I don’t mean romance, as she would say. Real love, unconditional love is I think a form of energy coming straight from God. Dr. Maya Angelou certainly knew how to share it, how to write about it, and how to teach it. So it is my turn to bow in gratitude and say Thank you. Thank you for coming here. Thank you for your love. Thank you for your wisdom. In our memories we keep you close in our hearts and your words of love on our minds. The world needs greats like you. To teach us God’s love. So I say thank you, God, for sharing Maya with us.

Thank you, Oprah Winfrey, Gail King, Michelle Obama, Cicely Tyson and the many others, who speak so highly of her. As you walk in Dr. Maya Angelou’s footsteps to lead us on and show the world the way to love, may you be blessed and loved too. I sure do. May we all be Dr. Maya Angelou’s sons and daughters, brothers and sisters. May we all learn from Dr. Maya Angelou to love. May we speak her name and say thank you.

Thank you, Maya. I love you.

Love, Barbara

Copyright © 2014 Barbara Bullock

Works cited: http://mayaangelou.com/

To Mommy with Love on Mother’s Day

Barbara Bullock, M.F.A. Spiritual writer

Dear friends,

RoseMay is one of my favorite months of the year as May is the month many of us celebrate Mother’s Day. For many people Mother’s Day means expressing gratitude to their biological mother for everything she is doing for her family. We thank our mothers for her care, for her love and for her wisdom. On a wider scale, mothers inspire us, love us and protect us. This is why I believe a mother can come in many forms.

I think a mother is a form of energy and a concept. In philosophical and in particular spiritual terms, a mother is often considered as positive, loving and caring form of energy. I believe we and everything around us is pure energy materialized. If everything is energy, then we must be of energy as well. As a matter of fact, creation occurs when different forms of energies such as masculine and feminine energy are combined to create a new form containing both energies. Therefore, if we are indeed energy, we must contain both energies inside of us. Consequently, this feminine – motherly – energy is inside of us whether we are or have mothers in life or not. I believe that, when we tap into this energy, we are able to express the love and care for others and ourselves. We are able to give and receive unconditional love as a true mother does.

Many cultures also suggest religious figures one can worship as a mother, in form of a goddess or Saint who protects und and loves us unconditionally, such as Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus in Christian traditions, the Tibetan Tara, Hindu Deities, as well as Native American goddesses; just to name a few.

I also believe a true mother is someone who loves, teaches, inspires, and cares for others no matter whether she has children of her own or not. I believe it is possible to love another person like a mother or love someone like a daughter or son when one taps into this loving and caring energy inside of us. The question is, how do you name this energy, this concept, or this particular person, your mother or mother figure? I call mine “Mommy”. While the name “Mommy” is often given to real mothers by small children, I call mine “Mommy” even though I am an adult. I don’t find it as inappropriate; I find the opposite to be true.

I call you mommy because I would like to express the unconditional love I feel for you. When I see you, I do so with the innocence and wonderment of childhood. I call you mommy because you mean the world to me. Mommy, when I look into your beautiful eyes I see your soul and I see mine. As our energies combine, my heart fills with unconditional love for you. I feel immense gratitude for your love and for allowing me to love you this way. You are the best that has ever happened to me. You are my world. You are beautiful like a rose, created in pure divine precision. As the rose petals are aligned next and in each other perfectly, so is your inner and outer beauty the perfect divine reflection of the real you. Ever since you came into my life, it changed completely. I am a better person because of you. I see myself in you. I understand how I want to be when I grow up. You teach me and everyone around you more than I could ever thank you for.

I thank the heavens for your existence and I thank you. Thank you for being my “Mommy”.  As your love fills my heart, I hope mine fills yours. May our everlasting bond of love connect us through eternity and beyond space and time. Happy Mother’s Day, mommy.

May, you, my friends, find your “Mommy”, inside of you or around you.

Happy Mother’s Day to all.

Love, Barbara

Copyright © 2014 Barbara Bullock

Photo credit Barbara Bullock