Why Pray The Holy Rosary?

The Holy Rosary is a process of reconnection and reminder. The prayer beads themselves are a memory system and prompt for the associated prayers, mysteries, concepts, and your own personal associations to all of these. The Rosary is also a daily reconnection to events in the life of Jesus Christ and his mother Mary. It is a daily reconnection to a sense of the divine.

Many who are not Catholic Christians probably consider the habit of praying the Holy Rosary old-fashioned and perhaps even superstitious. In today's world sitting for twenty or thirty minutes doing nothing but silently repeating centuries old prayers while counting them off with a set of prayer beads may seem like a waste of time. Some might even consider it delusional or a process of brainwashing.

For those who are not Catholic, like myself, the tradition may not be familiar at all. Holy Rosary refers to both the set of beads and the set of prayers that make up the practice. It is primarily focused on devotion to Mary the mother of Jesus. There are a number of benefits to the practice, as you'll see below.

The set of beads consist of a crucifix or cross attached in sequence to one larger bead, three small beads, another larger bead, and one connector bead that joins a large loop of additional beads together. This large loop has fifty small beads and four larger beads arranged so that the small beads are separated into five groups of ten beads. Each group of ten beads is called a "decade", from the Greek word for ten, resulting in five decades in the main loop of Rosary beads.

Each bead has a particular prayer associated with it and the beads help one keep place with the sequence of prayers being said. You can find very inexpensive books, or even free pamphlets at a church, that explain the sequence of prayers as well as the text of the prayers themselves. The main prayers consist of the "Our Father", "Hail Mary", "Glory Be", and the "Fatima Prayer", as well as others. One can follow the full and strict Catholic sequence or, as in my case, use a simplified or personalized set of prayers.

Each decade sequence of the Rosary also has a particular "Mystery" associated with it. A mystery in the Christian tradition refers to important events or turning points in the life of Jesus Christ as related in the Bible. Traditionally there are fifteen such mysteries in terms of the Holy Rosary and some practitioners would go through the entire set of fifteen every day in their prayers. Now the practice is to go through only five mysteries on each day of the week, that being one sequence of all of the beads of the Rosary. Each weekday has a particular set of five Mysteries associated with it.

In 2002 Pope John Paul II suggested adding five new mysteries to the prayer sequence. Virtually everyone has adopted this new set of mysteries as they make perfect sense to the concept of the Holy Rosary. As such, today there are twenty mysteries associated with the Holy Rosary. One good book on the Rosary, which has full color classical art and also includes the full text of the apostolic letter from Pope John Paul II, is "Rosary: Chain of Hope".

The twenty Mysteries are grouped together in four sets consisting of five in each. They are the "Joyful Mysteries", the "Luminous Mysteries" (those added by Pope John Paul II), the "Sorrowful Mysteries", and finally the "Glorious Mysteries". The mysteries follow the sequence of Jesus' life from his childhood, to his adult life, to his crucifixion, and finally the events after his resurrection.

As one goes through the prayers for a specific decade of the Rosary one is also meant to reflect upon and contemplate the Mystery associated with that decade. I find that as you go through life additional associations to these mysteries come up as a result of the current circumstances of your life. For example, you may feel all alone when having to make an important decision and Jesus' Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, one of the five "Sorrowful" Mysteries, may take on a new meaning for you on that particular day. Associations of this type are one of the benefits of praying the Rosary on a regular basis.

Another of the key benefits of the practice is that of learning patience. Finding the time in the day and going through the sequence of the prayers requires one to settle the mind and one's environment in order to say the prayers. This is true of any religious tradition that uses meditation or prayer beads such as a mala in Buddhist practice. Going through the practice makes a habit of finding peace in your life and taking things one step at a time.

In addition, even if one does not fully believe in the words of a prayer, the concepts of the prayer are nonetheless important. Simply by repeating the words one begins to think about and reflect upon the mode of conduct implied and the associated ideas. Forgiveness of trespasses is an important concept whether one believes in the divinity of Christ or not, whether one is Christian or not.

Saying prayers also has its own value, depending on the level and kind of your personal faith. An entreaty to God, Jesus, Mary, or the Holy Spirit carries its own weight depending on the faith behind it. Of course saying a prayer is a personal decision and one based in faith.

So there are still benefits from this centuries old practice if you are Christian or believe in Christian ideas. Not the least of which is cultivating a more personal relationship with the ideas, principles, and beliefs of the Christian faith.

Visit our store for books and Rosary Beads.

Working in a "Spiritual" Organization

An interesting article from the UK came to my attention today. "Spirituality in the Ambulance Service" reports on the research of a former paramedic in Northern Ireland that shows the importance of "Spirituality" in the work place. In this context the researcher is not talking about religion but a general spirituality.

Here's a quote from Anita Kelso, the researcher: "This is about a oneness and wholeness between an individual and an organisation where all are interconnected in achieving common goals. It is about creating organisations where there is careful planning to attract, develop and retain an effective workforce with a 'volunteer' mindset and a desire to serve 'Self' and others without brandishing the emblems of the ego."

The report goes on to outline how current work environments often undermine workers sense of worth simply through the reliance on goals, targets, and objectives. The actual jobs they perform end up being given less value than business targets. Could this be the root cause of the oft reported job dissatisfaction that we hear so much of in the United States?

A focus on the "Whole" of an organization and the importance of the interconnectedness of all staff seem to be the way to promote a new kind of organization. A spiritual organization, not an ego driven one. Free and open communication at all levels seems to be one of the most important aspects of creating a spriritual organization.

See our list of Personal Development titles for more on workplace spirituality.

Prayer Is Poetry And Poe Dost Pray

Recently the similarity between poetry and prayer became more apparent for me.

A prayer is an entreaty or solemn request of some divine source such as God, Allah, or the Buddha. Often it has repeated phrases and a pattern of wording that uses the same number of words or rhyming words in each line of the prayer. Prayers are often spoken out loud or in groups where everyone speaks in unison. Prayers are often set to music and become carols. Sometimes prayers are said in turbulent emotional states such as despair or pain.

Poetry also makes use of rhyming, repeated phrases, and is both a type of speech and a type of song. Musical aspects of the words are suggested in the phrasing and wording of a poem. Poetry can often be easily set to music. Indeed most popular songs are at their source poetry. Invoking emotions or feelings being the intended goal.

I will often rewrite a common prayer in my own words. I do this partly because a prayer for me must be something I believe in. I can not just blindly repeat something that has no meaning for me or is not true to my understanding. Since most prayers are meant to be repeated one needs something not only applicable to the need of the prayer but also easy to remember. Poetic writing always seems the best way to write or rewrite a prayer.

In a sense a poem is also an entreaty to the subject of the work in that the essence of that is meant to be conveyed. A poem is speaking to the object or subject of the writing. Seeking to communicate that to others or to understand it. A prayer is asking for something and very often so is a poem. The only difference is the assumed divinity of the subject of the poem or prayer. Reverence can often be seen in both forms of writing and speaking.

The next time you read a poem think of it as a prayer and see if it doesn't give you some further insight. When you next say a prayer think of it as a poem and you may easily see how the words can be extended to include more. Prayer and poetry, very much the same thing.

Harry Potter's Mum Speaks at Harvard!

I'm a big fan of the Harry Potter series of books by J.K. Rowling. I happened across the text of her commencement speech at Harvard on another blog and wanted to include something about it here. She has a great deal to say about life in general in this speech. Following is a quote...

"You might never fail on the scale I did, but some failure in life is inevitable. It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all - in which case, you fail by default.

Failure gave me an inner security that I had never attained by passing examinations. Failure taught me things about myself that I could have learned no other way. I discovered that I had a strong will, and more discipline than I had suspected; I also found out that I had friends whose value was truly above rubies."

-- J.K. Rowling, Harvard Commencement Address, June 2008

The full text of the speech and a video of it can be found here:
http://harvardmagazine.com/go/jkrowling.html

If you're looking for her books try here.

Quincunx: Five Part Symbolism

In my recent readings I came across the concept of the "quincunx" which is an arrangement of five objects in a pattern with four in corners of a square and one object at the center. This pattern can be seen on the side of dice representing the value five. The pattern can also be seen in the World or Universe card which is the 21st card of the modern Tarot deck. My dictionary says it is also a pattern for planting trees, which I had not considered before.

Robert M. Place discusses symbol patterns in a number of his written works but I came across the quincunx in his companion book to the Tarot of the Saints, A Gnostic Book Of Saints. This book is another great source for some of the historical background of the Tarot itself. Mr. Place goes into the historical progress of this pattern in philosophical and spiritual symbolism. The culmination in the Tarot deck has the symbols of the four evangelists appearing in the corners of the World card with a figure, of various types, in the center of the card.

Looking at the first numbered Major Arcana card of some early Tarot decks, which is the Magician or iL Bagatella, you can see a die or dice on the table in front of the street performer. As a result the Quincunx pattern appears on both the first and last card of the Major Arcana sequence, the last being the aforementioned World card. The implication seems to be that the trump cards, or Major Arcana, are what hold the tarot deck together and are the fifth suit or quintessence of the deck.

The word "quintessence" is from the original latin meaning fifth essence. The concept being that there are four elements of earth, water, air, and fire all joined together by the fifth -- often called aether, ether, or aither. Aither was conceived as an invisible substance through which the planets traveled in celestial realms. It was also said to permeate all things and is essentially a concept of "spirit". It might even be said that the Force used in the Star Wars films is basically this fifth element.

The Quincunx is an interesting pattern for me because it seems so often that users of Tarot assume there are only four "elements" represented by the suits of the deck and tend to neglect the implied fifth element, or the quintessence, that is a unique part of Tarot symbolism.

As is well known today there are many more than five elements in existence. I have long since stopped calling the Alchemical five substances "elements" since they are in fact "states" of matter. For example, you can take almost any substance from the modern periodic table and pass it through states of solid, liquid, gas, and plasma using heat or other methods. These states are the original substances and as such "element" is the wrong term and "state" is more accurate to their implied meaning.

When considering these states one can see how more appropriate they are to the symbolism used in modern Tarot decks. That is to say that the Coins/Pentacles suit deals with things of matter or solidity, Cups with things that are liquid or emotional, Swords with things of airy, refined, or intellectual nature, and Wands with things of a fiery or inpirational nature. So the suits really represent states of being, not substances or elements. Thus the fifth suit represents things of spirit or one's higher nature.

A Gnostic Book Of Saints goes into much of this symbolism and history in more detail. I highly recommend the book and card set if you are interested in learning more about Christian Saints and some of the philosophical underpinnings of early Tarot symbolism.

Betwixt Earth and Sky (BEAS) - Introduction

Occasionally one finds oneself drawn to the local Mall. That comfortable heated or air-conditioned environment where one can walk, window browse, stop and have something to eat, and just plain relax. For me many of the online blogging sites are like the local Mall. I've designed and developed my own web sites for many years now. But now it felt like time to join the crowd and the local, social hub of the Internet. So here I am on Blogger.

So what's this blog about? Many subjects interest me but I wanted to start in on something close to my heart. In fact my heart and soul itself. In other words, spirituality, philosophy, religion, and any and all related subjects.

"Trigrams" are the building blocks of I Ching hexagrams. They consist of three bars on top of one another and the bars can be broken or solid. The top bar is felt to represent Heaven and the bottom one Earth. Humankind sits between the two as the middle bar. Thus I conceived the title for this blog "Betwixt Earth and Sky (BEAS)".

BEAS will cover many areas from Christianity to Divination to Tarot. I will see over time what subjects come up to write about. I hope you, gentle reader, will keep tuned in...