Community of the Spirit

I’ve always had this belief that we’re all living at the beat and pace of an invisible wave.

We don’t see it, we hardly feel it, and sometimes we even resist it. But there’s this rhythm that we flow with.

Imagine this. You’re out with a friend or a group of friends. You’re talking for a bit, just hanging out. And then there’s a lull in the conversation, maybe most of you are on your phones. To fill in this gap, you begin singing a verse of a random song. But at the exact same time, your friend sings the exact same verse.

It’s a simple experience that happens quite often, and I’m sure it’s happened to you at least once.

Most people would call it a coincidence, and maybe that’s all it is. But even if it doesn’t prove anything, it begs me to ask the question, how are we all connected?

If we’re mindful enough, we notice these moments of connection all the time.

Some are less coincidental. When you meet someone for the first time but it feels as though you’ve known each other your whole lives. When you find yourself unconsciously in sync with someone; you’re on the same wavelength, you would say. Or when a community comes together for a cause greater than their individual selves.

You’d feel that. It’s a wave, a frequency. But what is that flow or energy made of? And where does it come from?

To these questions I offer no concrete answer but this excerpt from Rumi:

There is a community of the spirit.
Join it, and feel the delight
of walking in the noisy street
and being the noise.

Drink all your passion and be a disgrace.
Close both eyes to see with the other eye.
Open your hands if you want to be held.