spiritual pleasures of the body

don’t know if you’ve noticed

but millennia of church fathers

and other spiritual leaders

have been saying bad things about the body

like it’s a block to spirituality, a distraction from God,

sinful

well they’re wrong

we have a spiritual body

that overlaps with our physical body

if we don’t love our bodies with reverence,

allow them to feel good, treat them with love

we won’t be spiritual

this is literal;

spirit can flow down through our limbs,

tickle our toes.

after a good sleep: feel the warmth, the comfort.

now instead of jumping out of bed, move your fingers

rotate your ankles, squeeze and stretch and wriggle your feet

slide your shoulders, twist your spine

and feel the spirit starting to caress you from the inside

keep moving and enjoying this body

and you will feel the peace of God finally inside of you.

Jesus said eat his spiritual food; not stop eating food.

he wanted us to feel the spirit through our bodies

this way we can know God’s peace

but if we keep what we have of Spirit only in our minds,

and deny the body,

we will never know for sure

God will remain a possibility, a nice dream,

but we will never feel the peace in our hearts,

the faith in our guts

to make us sure.

God must go everywhere

if we say She is everywhere but the body,

if we do not let her into our bodies,

then She cannot empower us to act

and we cannot be God’s people

The spiritual pleasure of the body

behaves differently than the physical pleasure of the body:

The physical pleasures come as compulsions;

the spiritual pleasures as peace.

The physical pleasures are enjoyed and leave us empty;

spiritual pleasures resonate; they can last forever.

This is why Jesus said you will not hunger,

you will not thirst.

The body is compulsive

only when it is starving for God;

if you gently let God into your body

with enjoyed, regular acts,

the compulsion of your acts will go away.

Your body will become infused with Spirit.

In your every act you can let God in,

but if you do not find God in your physical movements and sensations and processes,

then your body becomes sinful.

Keep your body moving. Don’t forget about it,

don’t let it stagnate, even while reading, Don’t distract

yourself from your body by reading or thinking too much

while you exercise. While you move your body,

be conscious of, experience it. Enjoy it.

Enjoy God in your waking, your walking,

your hugging, your cleaning,
your breathing, your eating.

let your enjoyment of your body
be your praise

celebrate your body
as a creation given by God
as much as nature
or any bible.

if you have no idea what I am talking about,

I suggest you try yoga for a while.

the body rock

looking down
as I'm lathering up

my round, fully engorged calf muscle

more healthy than i remember it

clear, flowing lines defining my thigh
rather perfect

fondling between my toes
isn't it intersting - i think -
that this is the part that will waste away,

deteriorate, dissolve.

my body,
that i had forgotten about.

Forgotten to look at
while I have used it.
It became a vehicle,
not an object.

It actually,
becomes
nothing

when we focus on a goal
our attention on the working.
I can feel it, daily.
Eyes closed,
from the inside.

But I cannot see it.

When I slow down
when I notice it failing, struggling

when I think about it
Then it comes back to me:
an object for my focus.

A problem, to be solved.
Just like all those years worrying
about its shape and form,
Is it a body that will be attractive when older?

Is it a body that someone will want to have sex with?

A project, to perfect.

A perfection reached only when I forgot about it.

Tariq tells a story. He is incarcerated. He held thirty cops at bay by gun in a mall parking lot.

The end of three days on the run.

The end of ten years in hiding.

In his story, while running, his description adopts a telling tone:

"I was running. I was flying. I was flight.

I hadn't eaten in days. My leg was hurt. But then, there was no pain or hunger.

There was no body driving that van. There was no van.

Just me and the road."

His body dissolved from the picture
when he was entirely focused on escape.

Our bodies will dissolve when we die.
But can we make them do so before then?


We cannot perfect our bodies by focusing on them.
We cannot improve them by taking pride in them or worrying about them.
We can only make them best when we forget about them.
Focus instead on your goal.
Let the body dissolve from your story.

Ashes to ashes,
Dust to dust.
Do not store up your treasures here on earth.
Because when we focus on the form of the body, on the earthly things, they only become heavy.
They become worse.

Instead, store up your treasures in heaven.
Feel your body from the inside. Feel your flight.

Your body is the temple of heaven.
So enter into it.

We cannot change our bodies by focusing on them.
Nor can we change the world by focusing on it.
Focus on your goal
an un-earthly goal.
Do your work for the growth of heaven.
Focused on heaven.
Your body will be perfect.
Earth will become perfect.

Creating the kingdom of heaven here, by you.

Don't look at your body: feel it.
Don't look at the world: feel it.
Be in it. Experience. Connect. Without your critical mind.
For the kingdom of heaven is among us
hidden beneath the forms

Close your eyes
Bring heaven to the forefront.
Create it
by feeling it.

I love you.