Introduction to
The following are the Preface and Introduction to the autobiography Memory Walk in the Light: My Christian Yoga Life as "A Course in Miracles" written by Donald James Giacobbe:
PREFACE
In 1939
the movie Gone with the Wind
grabbed
all the headlines, with Rhett Butler saying in the end, “Frankly, my
dear, I
don’t give a damn,” and Scarlett O’Hara vowing to get back her lost
love. Yet
flying under the radar there was another movie that was also about
losing and
getting back what is most dear to us. Today who hasn’t seen the classic The
Wizard of Oz?
You know the story line. Dorothy was
separated from her beloved home and spent the rest of her adventure
seeking to
get back. The Tin Man wanted to get back his missing heart. The Lion
wanted to
get back his courage. The Scarecrow wanted to get back his lost mind.
Everyone
got what they wanted. In the end Dorothy woke up from her unconscious
delirium
and discovered that she had never really left her home except in her
imagination.
What does The
Wizard of Oz
have to do with this autobiography?
My life has been very much like the adventure of Dorothy and her
friends. I
callously lost my heart and got it back. I embarrassingly lost my
courage and
got it back. Yes, I even lost my mind and got that back, too. And like
Dorothy,
I lost my Home and in an unexpected instant woke up and discovered that
I had
never left. Dorothy’s story is really your story as well as my own
because you,
too, are seeking what is dearest to you.
Toward the
end of her journey Dorothy was told by the good Witch of the North that
she had
the power to go home hidden within herself all along. To reach her goal
Dorothy
was instructed to remind herself of her heart’s desire by repeating
three times
the famous line, “There’s no place like home.” Knowing and focusing on
what you
hold most dear, as Dorothy did, will help you to find it. So what do
you hold
most dear? Is it not love? Naturally you want to give and receive love
from
those who are closest to you. But, of course, you want more—you want
the Divine
Embrace, whether you consciously realize it or not. You may think that
you have
lost that Love, but can you really lose what is eternally yours?
When
Dorothy was asked what she had learned, she said, “…if I ever go
looking for my
heart’s desire again, I won’t look any further than my own backyard.
Because if
it isn’t there, I never really lost it to begin with!” Everything you
really
need in order to find your heart’s desire is already within you and
with the
help of your friends—and everyone is your friend—you will find what is
most
dear to you within yourself. I hope that reading about my journey of
loss and
renewal will remind you that Divine Love is within you now—waiting for
you to
find It and share It with your brothers and sisters. There really is no
place
like your true Home within.
INTRODUCTION:
WHY I WROTE “MEMORY
WALK IN THE LIGHT”
When I was
deciding on the title of this autobiography, I gave strong
consideration to Autobiography
of a Christian Yogi because of the book, Autobiography
of a Yogi.
When I read this life story of the Hindu guru, Yogananda, I appreciated
learning about seekers living lives devoted to awakening to God and was
inspired by examples of the divine manifested in this world. I was
drawn to Eastern
philosophy, which encourages inner spiritual seeking, yet I was also
firmly
rooted in my Western culture with its focus on maintaining outer loving
relationships. I was centered in Christ, Who I did not feel was limited
to the
West. Rather, I felt that Jesus, having fully manifested His Christ
nature, had
embodied the best of the East through His own enlightenment in His
resurrection
and the best of the West in His emphasis on forgiveness and loving
relationships. However, at that time there was a lack of available
literature
bridging the gap between the East and West. In this autobiography I
have
included the information that I would like to have had forty years ago
when I
was first consciously embarking on my spiritual path with one foot
extending to
the East and the other foot solidly planted in the West.
Because I
have an interest and background in art, visual imagery has played a
prominent
role in my life. Thus the graphics in this autobiography will help you
to
visually see my life through my eyes. Interspersed throughout the 678
text
pages are 120 graphics pages for an overall total of 798 pages. There
are 131
black and white graphics in the form of photographs, paintings,
drawings, and
diagrams. The color image on the front cover symbolizes my spiritual
destiny in
the Light, just as it is the spiritual destination of all of God’s
children.
The color images on the back cover collectively represent the “marriage
of the
East and West,” which has been an ongoing theme of my life as a
Christian seeker
open to Eastern methods of spiritual growth.
In writing
this book the key question for me has been, “What would be most helpful
for
you, the reader, in terms of inspiring you to pursue spiritual growth?”
I could
have taken the direction of some inspirational life stories to create a
one-sided picture of a spiritually guided life and to minimize personal
shortcomings and dark shadows. But I have taken the opposite direction
by
presenting an unvarnished version of my spiritual search, which
includes unusual
and uplifting spiritual experiences right alongside the numerous
embarrassing
warts of my life.
There are
many paths that can be taken. However, I can only present for your
consideration the means that I myself have used for spiritual growth. I
am grateful
for my experience of the Roman Catholic faith that first nourished me
in my
childhood and then later sustained me in my early adult life. From that
starting foundation, I will share with you my spiritual evolution,
which has
resulted in my current blending of the East and West with Christ
remaining in
the center of my life. But there was a ten-year period starting at age
fourteen
when I left behind my focus on Christ. That time period began with
sowing the
wild oats of youth and ended with a serious exploration of Zen
Buddhism, which
ironically brought me back to Christ. In my former practice of Zen
meditation
my goal was the elusive spiritual “gold medal” of enlightenment. I
thought that
one transcendent peak experience would answer every question of life.
But what
do Olympic athletes discover after their one-time experience of
finally
winning the gold medal? They usually discover that the real challenge
in
everyone’s life is to find peace of mind and thus fulfillment in each
moment of
everyday life, where no medals are awarded or needed.
How can
this peace of mind be obtained? Peace of mind is acquired through a
refinement
of one’s own mind through a combination of human effort and divine
grace. First
must come the realization that one’s current thought system is
egocentric and
inadequate to bring peace to the mind. This awareness leads to the
decision to
implement spiritual practices and to find a new and better thought
system that
represents a reversal of the ego-driven thinking of this world. In my
own
search I have been attracted to a combination of Christian and yoga
spiritual
practices, including daily meditation, body postures, and breathing
practices,
which could be called Christian yoga. Such tangible
spiritual practices
are necessary to calm and purify the mind as a preparation for the
direct
experience of the divine beyond the conceptual thinking of the mind. On
the
other hand, within the realm of concepts I still felt the necessity to
find a
thought system that could be the philosophical foundation for my
practice of
Christian yoga and could guide my mind in the activities of daily
living.
Along the
way in my growth there wasn’t a clear, ready-made East/West thought
system that
I could simply adopt and use as a basis for my practice of Christian
yoga.
Consequently I had to formulate my own “buffet style” philosophy by
picking up
ideas here and there from Eastern and Western sources. The development
of my
philosophical thought system involved studying a variety of different
Christian
and Eastern philosophies and also reading books by writers attempting
to
synthesize different philosophies. For example, I familiarized myself
with the
writings of Aldous Huxley and Huston Smith on the “perennial
philosophy,”
which seeks to identify the universal principles of truth underlying
all
religions. In addition, I relied on information from Edgar Cayce, who
was both
a psychic and a Christian open to Eastern influences. Then after this
study I
pieced together my own Christian/Eastern philosophy to form a basis for
seeking
the divine and living in the world of form.
Although
I was very happy with my patchwork East/West philosophy, I
encountered
several friends who had adopted the thought system of
A Course in
Miracles. For many
years I was exposed to
this new thought system and resisted any involvement with it. However,
as
events turned out I have not only accepted A Course in
Miracles, but now
feel guided to share this spiritual teaching with others. The subtitle
of this
autobiography is “My Christian Yoga Life as A Course in
Miracles,” and
this has a dual meaning. One meaning is that my life itself has been a
course
in miracles, revealing God’s immanent presence in the world and His
transcendence beyond the world. The other meaning is that this
autobiography is
presented here as a way for you to learn about the spiritual principles
of A
Course in Miracles in the context of my attempts to manifest
these
principles in the course of my everyday living.
What is A
Course in Miracles?
It is a
course in mind training set forth in three books for personal study and
application, now usually combined into one volume. The Text
presents
the philosophical thought system that is the basis for this course of
study. The
Workbook for Students is a
one-year course of daily practices to provide practical application of
the
thought system. The Manual for
Teachers
is for those who have
learned the Course principles and would like to share their learning
with
others. The Course is not a religion and not associated with a church,
but many
Course students do come together for local study groups.
The Course
integrates the ideas of Eastern philosophy into a Western context that
can be
applied by Christians of any denomination or even by followers of
Christ who
are not affiliated with any church. However, in addition to being
inclusive of
Eastern philosophy, the Course also offers a profound understanding of
psychology from a spiritual perspective. This unique synthesis of
Eastern and
Western philosophy with psychology has attracted many spiritual seekers
and
from its inception in the seventies has had an amazing growth with no
initial
advertising.
Whatever
personal growth benefit you gain from this autobiography will be due to
your
degree of openness. It takes a certain degree of
openness for a
Westerner and/or follower of Christ to consider the true inner value of
yoga
beyond the obvious physical health benefits. An even greater degree of
openness
is necessary to be willing to examine carefully the principles of A
Course
in Miracles. These principles can be very challenging for
anyone accustomed
to traditional Christian thinking. For many seekers the Course is
presented in
such an intellectual manner that it is hard to understand and seems
difficult
to apply to daily life. I hope that describing the Course as it relates
to my
life experiences will demonstrate the practical application of the
Course
principles.
Just as
the Course was gradually introduced into my life, its principles are
slowly
brought into this autobiography with greater emphasis toward the end.
If you
have no previous experience studying the Course, this life story can be
a good
introduction. If you have some familiarity with the Course, yet have
been
confused by it, this autobiography may provide some clarity. If you
already
consider yourself to be a Course student, this life story can reinforce
your
current understanding and can provide insights into how to apply Course
principles. If you are a Course student who considers the Course all by
itself
to be your entire spiritual path, you will find examples of forgiveness
and
relationships that may inspire you in your own spiritual practice of
forgiveness. I respect those purely Course students who have dedicated
their
lives to mostly or exclusively focusing on forgiveness. However, I have
spent
my life giving equal weight to making inner contact with spirit and
allowing
that inner connection to be expressed outwardly, for example through
loving
relationships, because I want to embody and teach a balance of the East
and
West. The cornerstone of the Course is forgiveness, and the central
message of
yoga is opening to the divine presence. As an instructor of Christian
yoga
based on Course principles, I feel it is my mission to teach and be an
example
of both practicing forgiveness and opening to the
experience of spirit.
The final
goal of all spiritual seeking is to transcend the world of form and
wake up in
the heavenly Arms of God. Nevertheless, living a useful and meaningful
life
along the way is equally important—not only as a preparation for
ultimate
transcendence, but also as a manifestation of the divine presence in
the here
and now. The goal of Christian yoga is to simply live in Christ on a
daily
basis. What Christian yoga has to offer is an emphasis on finding our
divine life
in Christ within, with the aid of specific yoga disciplines, and then
expressing our divine life outwardly. Christian yoga can lead to
becoming what
might be called a “spirit vessel”—a seeker who has an intimate
experiential
contact with the divine within and allows that divine spirit to flow
outwardly
into the lives of others.
The term Christian
yoga can be applied to the practice of any seekers who
combine following
Christ with yoga disciplines. However, in recent years I have used the
term Miracle
Yoga to describe the particular path of Christian yoga I have
chosen, which
combines Christ, yoga, and the Course. Hopefully this autobiography
will foster
a deeper appreciation and understanding of how to live in Christ
through yoga
and how to apply the spiritual principles of the Course in order to
bring
blessings into the lives of others.
The title
of this autobiography, “Memory Walk in the Light,” emphasizes my life
as a
concrete journey of forgiveness leading toward an abstract destination.
My
journey is different than yours, but in the end you and I will discover
the
same transcendental Light. This Light is the abstract destination to
which I
have devoted my life.
Many years
ago a total stranger walked up to me and invited me to go on what he
called a “memory
walk” with him. I accepted his invitation, and since then my life has
never
been the same. Now I am inviting you to take a “memory walk” with me.
This
autobiography is a journey into the darkness of the past with the goal
of
arriving at the light of the present moment. My story bears witness to
the
truth that with the Love of God all things are possible. Quite
naturally God’s
Love leads to forgiveness, which has shown me that, “The holiest of all
the
spots on earth is where an ancient hatred has become a present
love.”1
Just as I
am convinced that God’s Love goes with me on my journey, I am equally
certain
His Love abides with you on your journey. Who knows? Perhaps His Love
will
attract you to this book and will inspire you to read it. If so, I hope
you
will be as blessed in taking this memory walk as I have been blessed in
having
the opportunity, through God’s grace, to make it available to you. As
we walk
together through the memories of my life, I trust that you will absorb
from my
experiences whatever would be most helpful to assist you in your own
unique,
yet universal journey to the Light.
1. T-26.IX.6:1,
p. 562
Author:
Donald James
Giacobbe
“The central message of the Course
is forgiveness, and the key to yoga is opening to the divine presence.
As a
teacher of Miracle Yoga based on Course principles, my goal is to live
my life
as an expression of forgiveness and openness to the experience of
Spirit.”
Listen to "Authors's Radio Interview"
Back
to "Home"