by Thomas Moore, in Kosmos Journal

Faced with a dark night, many people treat it like an illness, like depression. They may take medication or go into counseling looking for a cause. It can be useful to search for the roots of a dark night, but in my experience the best way to deal with it is to find the concrete action or decision that it is asking for.

by J. E. Williams, Kosmos Journal, Spring | Summer 2015

Traditional cultures “are what shaped us and caused us to be what we are now,” writes Jared Diamond in The World Until Yesterday.1 All the necessities of modern living—electricity, store-bought food, pharmaceuticals, cars and planes—are relatively new. But much of yesterday is still with us, and we might take a lesson from those traditional cultures that remain indigenous to relearn how to live harmoniously with each other and the natural environment of which we are a part.

by Dianne Grob, Kosmos Journal, Spring | Summer 2015

A few days ago as I sat to write, I glanced out the window towards the marina on Lake Washington. Five dogs were running—no, it was more that they were streaking; blurs of black and white, brown and golden fur—down the 60’ dock towards a waiting boat. Their aliveness was infectious. The dogs were free, unrestrained, completely and utterly themselves. Nothing impeded the flow of their life. Nothing. Even now I can’t think of them without tears. This quality of aliveness is something we all long to experience.

Take the two photos on this page, for example. When you look at the Rocky Mountains of Colorado or at the Pugin Chapel built in 1850, what do you see, what do you feel, what do you know? What do you touch upon in yourself? Don’t you feel something shining, almost luminous in each?

by Venita Ramirez, Kosmos Journal, Spring | Summer 2015

“Over time, emotional and energetic blockages of our life force influence the shape and posture of our body, the sound of our voice, and our subtle energy field, thus affecting our relationships and the ways in which the world responds to us. We stop knowing what brings us joy. We hardly notice that we are in pain, whether physically or emotionally. Over time, repeatedly holding back, holding in, or holding ourselves together—even in small ways—build into what Wilhelm Reich termed character armor, bands of contracted muscles that stifle our life force and our breath, affect our personality, and shape our expression in the world. This chronic holding and tension can contribute to physical disease, relationship dysfunction, and mental and emotional disorders such as depression and anxiety, two of the most common emotional disorders worldwide.”

by Kavita Byrd, Kosmos Journal, Spring | Summer 2015

“The vision that is emerging today is one, above all, of a living spirituality. Spirituality can no longer afford to divorce itself from life and stand idly by while our systems are collapsing. Spirituality must be applied directly to revolutionize our life systems—infusing its power and wisdom, as only the deepest connection with the Source of Creation can—into a living Universe, a living Earth, living economics, living science and technology, and living forms of governance.”

by Steve Nation, Kosmos Journal, Spring | Summer 2015

“At its core, the challenge to embody wholeness is producing a new kind of spirituality, a ‘living spirituality.’ I tend to think of this as a resurrection of the Spirit in the mind and heart of the human. It is as if Life itself—abundant, universal Life—is flooding into and through all the pores of our humanness. For those of us who sense that this is happening, the challenge is to align ourselves with the Light and the Energy of Life itself. There is an inner pressure to do this purposefully, with focus, intelligence, and full-heartedness.”