Poetry for Meditation #2: Excerpt from Wordsworth’s ‘Tintern Abbey’

For today’s meditation, I have selected two passages from William Wordsworth’s ‘Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey‘ (1798) which to me describe perfectly the experience of meditation. It seems that Wordsworth had a mind naturally given to meditation. I recommend reading the whole poem, but these two passages will serve as today’s guide:

Until, the breath of this corporeal frame
And even the motion of our human blood
Almost suspended, we are laid asleep
In body, and become a living soul:
While with an eye made quiet by the power
Of harmony, and the deep power of joy,
We see into the life of things…

…And I have felt
A presence that disturbs me with the joy
Of elevated thoughts; a sense sublime
Of something far more deeply interfused,
Whose dwelling is the light of setting suns,
And the round ocean and the living air,
And the blue sky, and in the mind of man:
A motion and a spirit, that impels
All thinking things, all objects of all thought,
And rolls through all things. 

Once again, I have put together a slide show with what I hope are soothing and beautiful images conveying the stillness and harmony evoked by the poem. Some people pointed out that the audio on my previous recording was a little quiet, so this time I picked a moment when I could record the voice-over without interruption. I hope this worked out better, but as ever, if you have any suggestions for improvements, let me know your thoughts.

Taking the weekend off

Appropriately for a post about inner stillness and meditation, I will be disconnecting from WordPress this weekend. Today marks my 100th consecutive day of posting, which means over 100 consecutive posts, as I sometimes make more than one per day. I love the WordPress community and the sense of connection it offers, but my mind and body are telling me I need a little downtime. Never ignore the warning signs if you feel as though you might be heading for burnout: take the time off you know you need. Be kind to yourself, for surely you deserve it!

I will aim to reply to all comments when I return on Monday. In the meantime, I would like to wish you a blissful and beautiful weekend!

Namaste,
Ingrid