26/12/2018 Sophian.

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Bread of Heaven: Prayer & Invocation

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Bread of Heaven: Prayer & Invocation
by Tau Malachi Posted: Thu Jul 26, 2018 11:02 am

Bread of Heaven: Daily Prayer & Invocation

“And the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day.”

This is what transpired with the children of Israel as they sojourned from Egypt and the Eternal
One provided manna for them, each day they would collect the portion they needed for each
person, until the eve of Shabbat when they would collect two portions. We may consider the
mystical meaning of this collection of manna, and its preparation to be eaten, and let’s us pray
that God grants us insight.

As you may recall, after his discourse with the Samaritan woman at the well when disciples
approached the Master they offered him food, but he responded, saying, “I have food you do not
know about.” We may assume that this ‘food’ is the issuance of heaven, and more so influxes of
the Sefirot, the Names of God. In this regard it is interesting, for if we recall, in the Lord’s prayer
following the blessing of God Most High and the invocation of the kingdom of heaven the first
supplication is, “Give us our daily bread.” In this the Master joined food and prayer, and if we
understand how the Master had secret ‘food’ or nourishment we will know that it was prayer and
invocation - he ‘fed’ off of constant prayer and invocation, remembrance of God Most High in
Oneness. You see, it is through prayer and invocation that souls bring forth the issuances of
heaven, or influxes of the Sefirot, and the prayer or invocation itself is the manifestation of those
issuances or influxes feeding, nourishing the soul, the life.

You may also recall that the Master taught the people, saying, “I am the bread of life.”
Understand, if you pray or invoke with full kavvanah-concentration and devekut-cleaving in sincere
faith and love the prayer or invocation itself is a blessing or empowerment - food for the soul, and
if in perfect devekut, oneness, then it is the Messiah, a direct manifestation of the Holy Light of
the Messiah, which is the light and life of all prophets and apostles of God. In their true essence
prayer and invocation are this! Contemplate this well, and understand!

If a person truly understands what prayer is, what a precious gift from God it is, they will run to it
and delight in it, and when they do they will find that prayer and invocation in itself is a great
blessing, great empowerment from God. At first, indeed, the faithful person prays to God in some
degree of nearness, and this is good; but know and understand that when one reaches into the
lofty stations of ‘passing away’ and beyond, in oneness it becomes God praying to God - the
invocation of Abundant Mercy, a ‘Great Holy Feast’ that blesses the entire world.

The religious will view prayer as an obligation, but for mystics, lovers of God, its a pure delight,
and for gnostics, the knowers of God, it is the revelation of God and no other than God - It Just Is,
and there is no beginning or end to it!

This is an inspiration I’m inclined to share today.

May you be well nourished today! Amen.

Shalom Aleichem!

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Re: Bread of Heaven: Prayer & Invocation

by Anna Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2018 5:40 am

Thank you for sharing this lovely teaching, dear Tau!

The gift of prayer is more precious and sustaining than physical food! When I experienced deep
grief I could barely eat or pray. As life shifted and grief subsided, I was blessed with a desire for
both food and prayer. Mother continues to reveal essential teachings of the tremendous gift of
prayer through this process of integrating grief which, praise God, has shifted also into a source of
new joy. It has amazed me how life giving prayer truly is, and that it is not something “I” do, but a
gift given by God! When prayer is gifted, It is not only a source of spiritual nourishment, but it is
also a source of joyous gratitude for this upwelling spring God grants for our refreshment and
growth!

I pray for the nourishment of all beings!

Gratefully,
Anna

Re: Bread of Heaven: Prayer & Invocation

by Marion Posted: Wed Aug 01, 2018 1:42 pm

Shalom!

I'm taken by this teaching of bread and prayer.

Lately I've been contemplating how there are different stations of prayer, and how prayer is a
process. We see this in the Psalms, where sometimes it says: Of David, a Psalm, and other times it
says: A Psalm of David. It has been taught that where David's name is first, he was not in a state of
oneness when beginning the psalm, but achieved a state of oneness through prayer. When "Psalm"
is first, David was already in a state of oneness, and the psalm came from that state.

In this way, I was contemplating how the Children of Israel go out to gather the manna each day. In
order to do this, they needed to go out from the camp. I am wondering is "camp" here can be a
reference to daily life? So they have to remove themselves from the world, and the things of the
world, to go and get this Manna. The double portion of manna on Shabbat is also interesting
because this means a double portion of the work as well. Is this saying that on Shabbat, we must
be extra mindful to do good works, and to go out from "the camp" our daily lives, and the world as
much as possible.

I was also contemplating your mention of the moment of Yeshua at the well with the Samaritan
woman. I am wondering if he is enacting another evolution of the gathering of manna? He says: "I
have food you do not know about." It feels like he is in oneness with God, he is in a hidden place
with God, versus a striving place for God, as we see in the Children of Israel gathering Manna.

I am wondering if through these teachings, we are being taught that no matter the circumstances
of our lives, we are to collect our daily portion of manna. Even if we don't feel like it, even if we're
not feeling it, and even if the manna is completely tasteless on our lips.

Praise God for your Enduring Faithfulness!

Blessings and Shalom,

Marion

Re: Bread of Heaven: Prayer & Invocation

by Tau Malachi Posted: Thu Aug 02, 2018 1:51 pm

Blessings to you in the Holy Light of the Messiah!

First, a point of clarification. ‘Of David, A Psalm,’ indicates that he was already uplifted and
unified with the Holy Shekinah, Holy Spirit, before uttering the prayer or song; hence, that it was a
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direct manifestation of divine inspiration that occurred before he prayed. Psalm 24 is a perfect
example of this. Other openings such as just ‘Of David’ or ‘A Psalm of David’ indicate an uplifting
and unification with the Holy Shekinah, Holy Spirit, through and during prayer, rather than before
or at the very outset. That said, yes indeed this indicates prayer from various stations and in
various states, and regardless of our state, even if bound up in a state of dullness and ignorance,
nevertheless we will turn to God and pray and meditate. Understand, though, that prayer is not
isolate to thoughts and words, but it extends to tears and laughter, sighing, moaning and groaning,
and crying out, as well as silent abiding, just being in the Divine Presence and the remembrance of
the Oneness of God.

So, yes, truly so, if ‘tasteless manna’ still we shall eat it! In truth, it is in the dark and bitter times
that we need to turn to the Lord the most, even if our heart is so heavy and mind so dull that we
can fetch no words and seem to have no zeal. However, such suffering can become a zeal when we
turn, just as we see in many of the psalms of David which often express the most bitter feelings of
grief, isolation and anguish.

If we have a time when we do not turn to God, when we do turn again to God in that very instant
so it is, and we are received as though not having turned away, such is the great mercy and
forgiveness of God Most High. Praise God!

Concerning the ease of turning in difficult and bitter times, completing the contemplation of the
moment. There is a teaching derived from a line in a psalm of David that reads, “And I am prayer.”
There are many teachings concerning this passage but the one relevant here is this: It is like a
person who is very poor, hasn’t eaten in days, is in rags, and who is taken before a king or queen.
Truly, such a person need say nothing, but only go into the presence of the sovereign and their
needs are seen and known, and fulfilled. So it is in such times for those who turn to God and simply
abide in the awareness of the Divine Presence, as they are they are the prayer, and they will
receive what they need without having to ask for anything. Thanks be to God!

Now, there are various stations and states within which we pray, and naturally, the higher the
station or state from which we are able to pray, the greater our kavvanah and devekut, the greater
the influxes of the Sefirot we are able to receive and make manifest in this world for others as
well. Thus, we do indeed strive to pray from higher stations and states, certainly so!

There is something we can say of Adonai Yeshua at the well and his comment about ‘secret food.’
When souls reach to the lofty station of having ‘passed away’ and is able to reach into those
stations beyond, entering into various realizations and manifestations of the Oneness of God, they
reach deep into the experience of God praying to God, and so the invocation of Abundant Mercy,
Supernal Grace; hence, they receive and embody the full influx of all of the Sefirot, all of the
Beautiful Names of God Most High. Concerning such prayers in Oneness as Oneness, or God praying
to God, we cannot help but consider what such prayers might be, for they would necessarily be
very different than what most of us might think about ‘prayer.’ Indeed, for most of us think of
prayer in twoness and nearness, not oneness, but in Oneness, God praying to God, as it were, there
are not two to converse! Understand, if the soul becomes the soul of God, the mind the mind of
God, the heart the heart of God, the body the body of God, and so God takes the human attributes
of the soul and sets into the soul the Divine Attributes, prayer becomes the direct manifestation of
something of the Essence and Being of God, and the will, thought and utterance of God; in a word,
it is ‘primordial contemplation,’ and it is supramental, an experience of non-dual gnostic
awareness that is a ‘Perfect Thunder Intelligence.’

This, of course, is just a hint, or pointing towards, a great station and state of Supernal Mochin
Gadlut, but perhaps, God willing, it might provoke a glimpsing insight, or through grace even a
tasting insight.

Intriguingly enough, from the very outset of the stirring of faith and prayer, prayer is itself a
manifestation of the Spirit of God, for only by way of the Spirit of God bestowing faith and the
inclination to pray does a soul turn to God in prayer/meditation. Truly so!

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Here again I will pause to wait upon the Holy Spirit.

May we realize the prayer of God with, in and through us, and as us! Amen.

Shalom Aleichem!

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