“The Culture of Service”

Recently Bob was reading a book, Rainforest Medicine, by Jonathon Miller Weisberger. He shared with me the closing paragraphs of the book.

First, there was this:

“Don’t forget that as powerful and beautiful as the medicine can be, every great shaman and achieved sage in any culture will agree that a particular substance is not essential in order for one to progress on the spiritual path. Ayahuasca and other sacred plants can reveal many things to us, yet ultimately they are not necessary. The culture of service is the centerpiece and foundation of this path of spiritual development and subtle scientific understanding that we call traditional Amazonian medicine. In the end it’s all about getting beyond oneself and being able to help others.” (Italics mine)

I was deeply moved by the phrase “the culture of service.” Somehow it immediately synthesized for me what, really, SourcePoint Therapy is all about: people coming together to share their experiences and understandings in relation to healing, consciousness and energy, learning together simple protocols that can help us strengthen our connection to the fundamental energies of Order, Balance, Harmony and Flow, and then returning to our everyday life to help those around us also strengthen that connection, awakening the memory in the human consciousness of that Order, Balance, Harmony and Flow.

People have many beautiful and profound experiences in workshops, and in their practice of SourcePoint Therapy. And yet, our own expanded awareness finds its greatest value if we share it with others.

In the quote above, the value of plant medicine and the experiences it brings is not dismissed. Many people have been healed, supported and opened on this path. Some indeed have had their lives saved. And yet ultimately it comes down to how one then passes it on.  I love the last sentence: “In the end it’s all about getting over ourselves and being able to help others.”

That’s a simple sentence that could save the world.

We come to different paths looking for healing and find that our healing lies ultimately in the healing of others.

In SourcePoint we end self-practice and awareness sessions with the words “May all beings be happy, peaceful and free of suffering.” This simple prayer comes from the Buddhist tradition, and a practice called the Metta Meditation – developing one’s capacity to approach all, yes all, sentient beings with respect and loving kindness. It’s not an easy practice. Daily repetition of it is a potent reminder of what our motivation is in any healing/spiritual practice. It’s not for me alone.

When I first began my Zen practice, at my very first group sitting, when I was 22, I had experiences of energy, of opening, that literally took away my breath and knocked me over. Later one of the resident monks said to me, “Remember, we are not in Zen for the experience of it.”

That became a koan for me, a spiritual inquiry- well, then why am I here, trying to practice Zen? Answers came and went, but underneath my confusion a dedication to practice, a growing awareness of the need for practice and to share practice with others, was growing.

As I chanted the Bodhisattva vow, to liberate all sentient beings, and worked to try to understand what that even meant, I was beginning to understand there was a bigger picture in this universe than my tiny individual being with all its complex dramas.

That any “enlightenment” was not only for me but for the benefit of others.

And in Bob’s and my work with Awareness sessions, the information of SourcePoint Therapy began to emerge and wonder of wonders, people found it helpful.

Now I can see the primary purpose of my practice, entered into in order to heal myself,  was ultimately to help the healing of others.

SourcePoint Therapy is grounded in the principle of “The Culture of Service.” It emerged in partnership, was shared in workshops, and now there is a growing sense of community among practitioners and teachers.

We want to nourish that sense of community. These days, community is good. And communities dedicated to healing and awareness for the benefit of others, not only for oneself, are needed.

Let’s continue to explore together how to nurture healing, practice and community, giving birth to and sustaining a culture of service.

In conclusion:

. “Each person who practices SourcePoint for the benefit of another, who uses the methods for self-help, who explores the principles as a means of spiritual practice, is working to actualize their full human potential. If we hold the vision in our heart of all people experiencing their full human potential, of a world where people can live in harmony with each other, with the environment, and with the greater Order, we assist the evolution of human consciousness. We call this far vision. This isn’t going to happen in our lifetimes. And yet, the potential is there. We are not suggesting SourcePoint is going to save the world. It is one small way to help bring that information of Order, Balance, Harmony and Flow into this plane of existence, to actualize it in the human life. This is how we can contribute to the evolution of the human consciousness.” SourcePoint Therapy: Exploring the Blueprint of Health, by Donna Thomson and Bob Schrei, p.92-93

“One of the contemporary demands on our energies and an excellent arena for service is to awaken oneself and others to the need to shift to sustainability- to consider not only the needs of people but the needs of nature alike. Now is the time to nudge our dormant yet inherent abilities to trigger the unifying powers of the culture of service to enact positive change, standing ready to serve all of life’s creation, in order to enact a life in reciprocity, balance, and harmony among all living beings. This is our planetary mission, and this must become our direction.” Rainforest Medicine, by Jonathon Miller Weisberger, p.305-306.

May all beings be happy, peaceful and free of suffering.

Join us for our monthly community online meetings, free of charge. The only prerequisite is to have read our book “SourcePoint Therapy: Exploring the Blueprint of Health” so that you have a sense of our perspective and language. See our workshop schedule page for dates this year. Contact us through the contact page for registration information.