A Lotus Flower

Dear Friends,
    When I arrived in Orlando, Rafael presented me with a painting of a lotus flower. He said that he was inspired to paint it when he found out that I was coming to do satsangs at his home. The painting was a gift to Swami Purna - an offering from the depths of his heart. To Rafael, Swami Purna was coming to bless his home. "Let me clean up my home for my Beloved," he said. And Rafael was delighted to clean his home.
    You see, when Rafael showed me his painting, tears welled in my eyes. There is no greater gift than devotion to the Lord. "It was easy to paint," said Rafael. "I just thought of Swamiji and the painting came." He hung this painting above the picture of Swamiji in the satsang room.
    I am happy to sit under this painting and hold gatherings here. The pink lotus flower is a representation of the human heart open to divine love. When the heart is saturated by this love, the world becomes an ocean of nectar. As a lotus flower, we cannot be stained by the muddy waters around us. We remain untouched, beautiful, open to the shining sun of Grace.

A lotus takes birth
'Midst clay and stagnant ponds
Standing clear and sound
Of clinging mud and water
Sunwards bound
Awaiting its time...
Preparing the ground...
It opens at dawn,
Brilliance abound,
Flowering of purity
Eternal sound
Manifestation of truth
Of being, newly found.

by Svami Purna

Love,
Brian