The Great Shining One, Mount Shasta, 1993 Journal Entry
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| The Red-tail © Bob Hare 2012 |
Without warning the power of Great Beauty can startle us into a new and broader awareness. Our normal world of mundane worries, struggles, and hopes suddenly shifts for a moment into a redeemed world of inexpressible beauty and perfection. I had such an experience in 1993 while flying waterfowl surveys for the California. The pilot of our Cessna, another biologist, and I were flying toward the Trinity Alps up a mountain valley west of Weed, California underneath a high cloud deck . As usual, I was coping with motion sickness in the cramped rear seat of the often jostling plane. As we flew up the valley we slowly gained altitude and entered the clouds and were soon in an absolute whiteout. We trusted our pilot’s knowledge of the topography as we roared ahead but it was nevertheless unsettling to be flying blind up a narrowing valley toward a rapidly rising range of high mountains.
Suddenly we broke through the cloud deck and I was stunned by the huge presence of looming Mount Shasta glistening blindingly white as if it had just been born from the ocean of clouds. The massiveness and grandeur of Shasta’s 14,000’ glacier-covered form immediately riveted my mind into one-pointedness. The world had literally dropped away because all human concerns lay far below the thick cloud deck. The entire world became Great Shining One being circled by this puny buzzing plane. From horizon to horizon there was absolutely nothing but Mount Shasta floating on an ocean of cloud. I was face to face with Great Mystery as the Immovable Mover, the World Mountain, the Center Post around which all life revolves. I don’t know whether my fellow fliers had similar revelations. We didn’t discuss it. I couldn’t talk.
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| Redwood Ridge © 2012 Bob Hare |
My Center Post © 2012 Bob Hare
You
are my Center Post
In
this turning world
I
hold fast to You
To
no other do I cling
You
stand unmoved
At
the center
You
stand
The
world flowing from your heart
Around
You
Your
dancing child
Circles
and spins
Never
leaving your sight
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| Medicine Circle on Shasta © 2012 Bob Hare |
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| Greeting Shasta in the Morning © 2012 Bob Hare |
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| Bob on Shasta in 1999 © 2012 Bob Hare |
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| Gary, Piet & Bob at Shasta Trailhead in 1999 © Bob Hare 2012 |
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| Bob headed to Shasta summit, 1986 © Bob Hare 2012 |
Peace be with you. May all Beings be well, happy, and free!
Note: Unless attributed to other sources all text, poems, photographs and artwork in this blog and other blogs entitled "Wilderness Adventures with Bob Hare" are copyrighted © 2012 by Bob Hare. The phrase "Wilderness Adventures with Bob Hare" is a trademark ™ of Bob Hare.
