473. John Butler

Childhood accustomed me to nature, solitude - a sense of God which needed no explaining. Stillness, beauty, depths of love called my heart back home where it belonged. But life grew out into the world, became possessed and lost the way. After a few unwilling years in business, I went to South America 'To make the world a better place'. It wasn't so easy. Alone on a mountainside one day, an inner voice said, 'To make whole, be whole'. I realised that, before being able to help others, I first had to work on myself. Once back in England, I looked for and found a source of meditation, which opened up a whole new way of seeing. How can I best help the world I love? This question led me through organic farming, much travel and many adventures to ever deeper understanding of the Work of Prayer. I wouldn’t call myself a mystic though some say I am. I’m not sure what it means besides “Not this – not that”. Neither (in a conventional sense) am I very religious. “Mystic” conveys to me a wise unknowing of morning mist with only the promise of a day to come. It’s not an intellectual approach defined by man but trusting, waiting, quietly still before each blade of grass, each little bird (Mat.6,26-28) reminding us of higher, nobler government than ours. This required attending to the moment “Now”, reminding me how much we live not present, here, but absent, lost in past or future - thought, desires and fear. But isn’t that reality? We need to look and see. Books: Wonders of Spiritual Unfoldment Mystic Approaches Website: spiritualunfoldment.co.uk YouTube Channel Transcript of this interview. Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group. Interview recorded October 13, 2018. YouTube Video Chapters: 00:00:00 - Introduction to Buddha at the Gas Pump 00:03:08 - A Wise Unknowing of Morning Mist 00:05:56 - Connecting with Nature 00:10:21 - Finding Connection in Nature 00:15:16 - The Prodigal Son and Straying Away from Nature 00:19:11 - The Power of Silence and Presence 00:22:20 - The Gateway to the Infinite 00:26:08 - Stillness and the Impediments of the Mind 00:29:56 - Transcending the Ego and Accessing the Open Sky 00:34:28 - The Dandi Swamis and Effortless Meditation 00:38:02 - Experiencing Stillness and Spaciousness 00:42:13 - The Limitations of Words and Concepts 00:46:29 - The Fullness of Spirit 00:50:28 - The Illusion of Separation 00:54:11 - The Simplicity of Stillness 00:58:06 - Accessing Stillness in the Midst of Tumult 01:01:00 - The Peace and Stillness Within 01:04:58 - The Expansion of Spiritual Life 01:09:11 - The Absorption of Human Agony and Redemption 01:13:09 - Illuminating the Darkness 01:16:46 - The Journey from Darkness to Light 01:20:25 - The Lamb of God and the Miracle of Grass 01:24:23 - The Suffering and Sacrifice of Nature 01:28:12 - Reconciling the Slaughter of a Pet Pig 01:32:36 - The Nature of Light and Dark in the Real World 01:36:07 - Love and Surrender 01:39:38 - The 23rd Psalm and Christian Teachings 01:42:55 - The Soothing Voice and ASMR 01:46:15 - The Presence of God and the Real Experience 01:49:24 - Understanding Oneness and Unity 01:52:33 - A Chat with John