In the Footsteps of Teresa of Avila by Mirabai Starr
Discover the blessings of spiritual illumination, divine embodiment and inspired service as you walk with the most famous female mystic of the West through the doors of many spiritual traditions and into the heart of a direct relationship with your beloved.
Saint Teresa of Avila was not only one of the most revered mystics and saints in all of Christian history, she was also an amazingly human woman who loved to please, charmed her listeners with flirtatious exultation and approached life in a very practical way, without stupidity.
She was born into a Jewish family and as a teenager got into a real scandal (which sent her to a monastery). She told jokes. She baked cakes. She walked along the path of Holy service with great joy of life and ecstasy of life.
Saint Teresa shows us that we can immerse ourselves deeply in ecstatic communication with our beloved, and then manage our affairs in the next breath. She shows us that we can plunge into deep silence, tapping out oceans of silence, and then laugh and dance playfully with our friends, how to enter the most advanced stages of spiritual awareness … and exit still recognizably “normal” and even superbly ordinary!
And that is why the path she walked gives us, modern spiritual seekers, so much invaluable insight and strength.
By carefully tracing her path through each stage of discovery so beautifully inscribed in her mystical masterpiece, the inner castle, and following the stations of her journey home into the arms of her beloved, we can enlighten, inspire and ultimately realize our own spiritual destiny: to live as divine people …
As Teresa sat down to write a book outlining her inherited teachings, she was given a vision of the soul as a Crystal Palace with seven luminous edges. This became the basis for one of the most powerful and enduring spiritual teachings of any religion in any era, as relevant today as it was when it received the transmission five centuries ago.
She saw the soul as “the most beautiful place in all creation” – so beautiful that the beloved chooses the center of our being as his dwelling, inviting each of us into the most intimate room of our own souls to have union with him. All that is required of us is to turn inward and then offer the world the fruits of our love meeting.
Thus, Theresa’s vision is more than an inspiring story. It is a roadmap for our revival and our sacred ministry. Through her, we begin to see, know and realize our own full potential.
Fortunately for us, Saint Teresa is not shrouded in much the same mystery as the more ancient spiritual teachers. Through the detailed descriptions she left in her autobiography, the book of my life, and many other works, we can actually apply the spiritual practices she used, read about her deepest secrets, and learn about the difficulties and blessings of every stage of her spiritual path, giving us a more accurate map for our own journey home.
Finally, her humor and playfulness give us an easily accessible and joyful example of where the spiritual path can lead, not to some distant mystical country, but to the wonderful Divine everyday life of human life.
Therefore, if you want to live a divinely human life, there is perhaps no better spiritual being with whom you could study than Saint Teresa and her passionate student Mirabai Starr.
With the help of Teresa’s example and Mirabay’s clear guidance, you can deepen your own ecstatic relationship with your beloved and begin to see, taste and feel the sacred in everything you do.
You can expand your ability to passionately meet the deepest needs of our time.
You can learn to walk on a purely feminine path of realization that will ultimately connect you even deeper with the world.
You can learn to merge body, heart, mind and soul into one sacred vessel to infuse more love into your life.
If you want to take a rich journey through your inner landscape – your own “inner castle” – then the 7-month program “In the footsteps of St. Teresa of Avila” was designed for you.
You will, in the literal sense of the word, walk the path of awakening, healing and service, as St. Teresa herself did. You will go through devastation and loss, ecstasy and disclosure, shedding old skins and cracking your heart as you enter into fellowship with your beloved under the wise, loving and intimate guidance of Mirabai Starr.
Mirabai is not only one of the most respected scholars and translators of the words and life of St. Teresa, she is also a deep mystic herself – she is a cultured Jewess, practices Buddhism and even has a Hindu guru, being an expert on Christian mystics. Like Teresa, Mirabai went through the depths of initiatory fires, went through the “dark night” and entered the Quiet ecstasy of communion with the Divine.
During the course “In the Footsteps of Teresa of Avila” Mirabay will travel with you, sharing stories, raising deep questions, offering practices and illuminating the path to your own enlightenment through the seven stages of spiritual awareness that St. Teresa went through.
On this journey, you will learn a lot more about yourself and your relationship with your loved one. You will see yourself with new eyes, both higher and more humble – recognizing more of the Divine presence that lives and breathing through you, and seeing how small you are in the vast ocean of love.
You will learn how to establish a contemplative practice that is exclusively yours.
You will see how to use sorrow and grief as a gateway to divine truth.
You will find ways to engage your inner Divine Source room in service.
You will learn how to dissolve in your true self.
In short, you will make real and lasting progress on your spiritual journey in a community of deep dialogue, exploration, and support.
And you will find that becoming a divinely ordinary person can be joyful, hilarious, and filled with delight when you learn not to hold back your humanity at the door, but rather embrace the full spectrum of your being.
This training is a rare opportunity to work with a famous mystic and scientist on a much deeper level, as it lovingly guides you through the practices to unlock the deep secrets of your soul, and also lives every day as a real person in the world.
As you go through each initiation gateway, you will:
Gain a new understanding of what it means to be a female mystic.
Develop tools for spiritual discernment along the way.
Understand how to navigate the mystery of the dark night of the soul.
Learn about the dynamic stages of the spiritual journey.
Learn to approach suffering as a form of alchemical transformation.
Make a plan from your innermost room to be useful.
Learn to enter into communication through the gate of silence.
What will you learn in these 7 months
In this 7-month transformational course, Mirabai guides you into the heart of an ecstatic relationship with your beloved, using Saint Teresa’s enlightening card for awakening and sacred service so you can learn to experience ecstatic heights of spiritual awareness while remaining completely rooted in the solidity of your humanity.
Each contemplation and training will harmoniously build upon the next, so that you will develop a complete, holistic understanding of the practices, tools, and principles necessary to awaken and sustain your spiritual illumination, divine embodiment, and inspired service.
Station 1 – Turn Inward
Discipline and self-knowledge
(Recorded December 4, 11, 18 January 8)
The gateway to the inner realms is a contemplative practice. Thanks to our willingness to transfer our awareness inward and rest in peace and quiet, we begin to free ourselves from the temptation of thoughts and accept the truth of what is. Once we open up to the sacred suchness of the moment, a clearer sense of self naturally arises, and we gain the strength to look at our true identity with humility and appreciation.
In this module, you will:
Establish a regular contemplative practice that suits your unique lifestyle.
Learn the methods of self-inquiry that will help you be present in what is.
Come to an understanding of what it means to be a contemplator and apply these values to your daily life (not limited to formal meditation practice).
Experience the infusion of the Sacred into the ordinary as you enter the contemplative path.
Develop courage to face the obstacles that arise when you commit yourself to the spiritual path.
Station 2 – love letters from
Saint:
Synchronicity and distinction
(Written down Jan 15, 22, 29 Feb. 5)As we get closer to our inner landscape, the noise of the outer world diminishes and the song of the soul becomes clearer. We are more able to distinguish between superficial dogma and living wisdom. We begin to recognize the voice of our beloved in the books we read, in the spiritual conversations we listen to, in deep dialogue with loved ones and in spontaneous conversations with strangers. Wherever we go, we feel as though we are receiving confirmation of the exact teaching we need, and these relationships fill us with wonder.
In this module, you will:
Cultivate increased discernment to determine the truth of various teachings.
Be open to receiving the abundant messages from your beloved that you need to guide you along the way.
Increase your sensitivity to synchronicities in your life and their gifts.
Deepen your commitment to spiritual practice, even if it does not bring the spiritual “heights” that initially motivated you on your path.
Recommended Practice: Immerse yourself in deep meditation on the selected scripture, poem, piece of music, film, or audio or video tutorial that excites you. Write down your answer.
Station 3-Dark Night of the Soul: Knowledge Out of Ignorance (written February 12, 26, 5, 12 March)
Sometimes we take our spiritual life too seriously. We learn some things, get some insights, sacrifice our comfort for harsh practice, and begin to think we know the truth. We put the saint in a box and strangled him. Everything that once brought inspiration now seems dry and empty. This is our opportunity to abandon our belief systems and rest in secret.
In this module, you will:
Relax around your cherished belief systems to allow yourself new perspectives.
Gain a new understanding of what mysticism really is.
Study the spiritual teaching on the Dark Night of the Soul from John of the Cross for guidance in navigating spiritual emptiness.
Become truly comfortable with the many blessings of groundlessness.
Recommended Practice: Make a list of spiritual practices and religious concepts that you feel most attached to, either through inherited conditioning or through personal experience. Create an appropriate list of questions and tasks for each one. Record the results of this study.
Station 4 – Prayer of Silence:
Falling from head to heart
(Recorded on March 19, 26, April 2, 9)
As soon as we move from trying to understand God with our mind to focusing on the feeling of God in our hearts, space opens up inside us and we enter a place of sweet silence. This stage represents the balance point of the spiritual journey. We have three stations behind us, in which we achieve spiritual development mainly through our own efforts, and three stations in front, in which grace prevails.
In this module, you will:
Practice heart-centered meditation techniques to help you more fully experience the expansion of your beloved in your heart rather than in your mind.
Learn about the active and passive stages of the spiritual journey and how you can determine which stage you are going through.
Explore the teachings of Saint Teresa of Avila “3 waters” and how it is applied in your life.
Taste the freedom that comes when we give up our need to fix ourselves and allow ourselves to be in the Sacred Field.
Recommended Practice: Guided Meditation Metta.
Station 5 – Prayer of Unity:
Destruction and transformation
(Recorded April 16, 23, 30, 7 May)
This is the phase in which the soul silkworm twirls its cocoon and climbs inside to dissolve. The true “I” can appear only when the old “I” is destroyed. In a suspended state, the soul rests in the Divine, and the Divine rests in it. The soul experiences this dying as a great joy.
In this module, you will:
Explore the inter-spiritual teachings on self-destruction and how they may apply to you personally.
Identify the aspects of your false self that must be released in order for your metamorphosis to occur.
Explore the metaphor of Saint Teresa of Avila “butterfly” and how it is reflected in your life.
View your personal relationship as a reflection of your growing intimacy with your loved one.
Recommended Practice: Create a butterfly artwork – drawing, painting, poem, play, dance, song, video, sculpture, or any other creative project that reflects the transformational power of the butterfly.
Station 6 – It’s a Beautiful Wound:
Longing for a loved one
(Recorded May 14, June 21, 28, 18)
In this phase, the lover (soul) experiences a longing desire for union with the beloved (God) as a burning pain. Often a person who has walked the spiritual path deep into the landscape of mystery begins to suffer from various external ailments corresponding to the inner fire. People at this stage can face multiple illnesses and multiple losses, all of which heighten their sense of alienation from this world. And yet, “ineffable sweetness” lies right under the surface of confusion, and the soul knows that it is getting closer to the Holy One.
In this module, you will:
Explore the connection between personal loss and spiritual aspiration.
Understand spiritual longing and the connection between personal loss and longing for God / divine union.
Learn to approach suffering as an alchemical transformation.
Use your sense of separation as a portal to your union.
Gain a more spiritual and practical understanding of how to deal with grief and loss, using them as a catalyst for your spiritual unfoldment.
Recommended Practice: Collect poems about loss and transformation and create a collection that you can add on an ongoing basis.
Station 7 – Innermost Camera:
Self-realization and service
(Recorded on June 25, July 2, 9, 16)
When, finally, the lover (soul) merges with the beloved, only love remains. The challenge for the spiritual journey is to get out of our own path and allow the Holy One to love through us. When the differences between self and God begin to dissolve, we experience our essential relationship with all that exists. After we have experienced this fusion, our only remaining desire is to help ease the suffering in the world. Delights, visions and other altered states of consciousness disappear, and we find ourselves right in the center of the human condition, ready to step forward and be useful.
In this module, you will:
Explore the inter-spiritual perspectives of compassionate action, the Bodhisattva vow, and the relationship between contemplative practice and service.
Expand your understanding of what it means to be useful.
Distinguish between compassion for those we perceive as having (or being) fewer and compassion based on the awareness of our essential oneness with those who are suffering.
Find a healthy balance between personal spiritual practice and loving service.
Recommended Practice: Use guided meditation to develop an action plan to engage in creative service. It can be a local effort or a global one. This may not sound like your preconceived notion of social or environmental activism. Find your true prophetic answer.
Take In the Footsteps of Teresa of Avila by Mirabai Starr at Whatstudy.com
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Course Features
- Lectures 0
- Quizzes 0
- Duration Lifetime access
- Skill level All levels
- Language English
- Students 137
- Assessments Yes
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