Huna Article

Huna International

A Place For Love To Dwell
by Kapua Gregory

"Our lives will never be the same again," he said, "Not even here." The news had just reached us, and even here on far Kauai, we could feel the waves of fear, anger, grief, and confusion sweeping the planet. Yes, there is no doubt that such an event as this terrorist hijacking-crashing-disaster has far reaching impact and touches each of our lives. Many people were interpreting this impact as one that would permanently take away some aspect of the goodness in our lives, creating a changed atmosphere, where we would now live with greater fear, more sadness, and fewer freedoms. Later as I sought some understanding and guidance in all of this, I remembered the words again, but with a different twist. "Our lives will never be the same again," could also mean "We can choose to let our lives be so touched that we begin to live differently, that our hearts, our minds, our patterns of behavior, our choices, our perceptions, our interactions, all become infused with a new desire for harmony, a new willingness to live lovingly." Already we have seen spurts of this new way bursting out spontaneously as heart reached out to heart in the days and weeks that followed. We have an even greater option here. We can choose to pursue this path of living lovingly as our new way of being.

What an opportunity...the chance to interpret this event as some sort of cosmic alarm clock. This event has impacted us with a tremendous energy. Our old habitual ways of reacting tend to focus on all of the negative consequences. But I wondered instead how we might find a way to direct that energy in some positive way. How can we use that momentum to create instead a wave of love surging through the world? What an opportunity...to let our thoughts turn to the essential questions that bubble up from our depths at times like this..."what is going on here?... why am I here, in this place, at this time?...what is it really all about? In the light of all that has happened, how do choose to live? What is the path I will take ?" As I've sought to understand life, I've had many pieces of the answer come at many different times. Today, when I asked, the answer was this:

"We are here to create A Place for Love to Dwell. We are here to create Paradise."

After all, hasn't this idea been a part of our collective dream throughout the history of mankind, that somehow, someday we would be able to live in a place where everyone lived in happiness and harmony and beauty and love? Yet, though the vision may be age old, it is now time to alter our relationship to the vision. It is time to think of Paradise, not merely as something humanity had at some ancient time, nor as something waiting for us at the end of our life on earth. It is time to bring the vision of Paradise into here and now. It is time to recognize that Paradise is something we can choose to create. And the more of us that make that choice, the sooner it will come about. To create Paradise we need to recognize its essence, which is Love. If it is our desire to live in Paradise, we must create a place for Love to Dwell.

There are many levels to this Dwelling for Love. The first is in our own hearts. We can choose to decide to make a place for love within us. Then, the next time some interaction or situation begins to trigger a habitual reaction of irritation or anger or resentment, we can stop ourselves and say, no, I don't want those emotions here. I've chosen to let this heart be a place for love to dwell.

Another level is our homes - they, too, can be dedicated as a place for love, and we can help each other change old patterns into loving ones. We can create places for love also in our workplaces and communities and organizations. We can build our focus and take this vision into our governments, redefining and realigning them until our nations, too, know how to act in ways that encourage the dwelling of Love within them.

We can create a place for love in our human interaction with the world of Nature, switching from the long held patterns of antagonism and becoming instead a cooperative, creative partnership.

We can set our intentions to find ways to deal lovingly with each other, with patience, kindness, assistance, cooperation, generosity, friendship, and integrity, in all of our relationships. And with the creation of all these places for love, all of this flowing of love on all these levels, what could we possibly have but a paradise indeed?

So how do we go about creating this place for love to dwell?

One thing I know is this:

• ...that each of us has part of the answer
• ...that each of us must start by creating that place within their own hearts
• ...that each of us must help each other create that place
• ...that creating a place for love to dwell calls for our focus, our concentration, our energy
• ...that creating a place for love to dwell calls for our trusting, our knowing, that it is possible.

How can this tragedy which has rocked our lives be brought to some positive outcome? Perhaps it is by bringing to our realization that the time has come, it is time for us to act, that if we and the earth are to survive, we have a task set before us.

Let us do this.

Let us create, one by one, and working together, in clusters of people around the planet....

Let us create a place for love to dwell.

Copyright Huna International 2001