I recently introduced two dear friends to the remarkable musical compositions of the writer, composer, Christian mystic and visionary, Hildegard von Bingen. Saint Hildegard, or Sybil of the Rhine as she is also known, was a Benedictine abbess who founded the monasteries of Rupertsberg and Eibingen in the 1100s. Among other things, Saint Hildegard left us one of the largest repertories of medieval musical compositions.
She was also an accomplished practitioner of herbal medicine who authored two texts on the natural sciences, Physica and Causae and Curae. Saint Hildegard (I suppose in her spare time) wrote three other books detailing her profound and beautiful visions, Scivias, Liber vitae meritorum and Liber divinorum operum. Here was a woman who was not afraid to give voice to her innermost thoughts and most sacred concerns, no matter what the cost.
I knew a man who tried to flatter women by saying that he thought they were the reincarnation of Hildegard von Bingen. It was a disingenuous move for calculated gain, one which gave women all the more reason to hide that which is most precious in them deep inside, rather than boldly unfurling love’s creation as the spirit moved them. In the world the way it has become it is understandable that people feel reticent to give voice to the precious essences which form in their heart of hearts. Understandable, but not acceptable. You are better than that.
Very few women or men for that matter have been willing to make space in their lives for the consideration and elaboration of the finest and most delicate essences in their hearts. In the face of so many wolves in sheep’s clothing and so many enticing distractions, you have to be deliberate about making this space. To do so requires discipline, patience and a stillness of heart and mind. To do so requires courage (to open yourself to those essences) and confidence (to let what forms be expressed), no matter how that which is created might be judged by the world round about. If you’ve maintained your integrity and done the very best you can, how the world receives your gift is beside the point.
On that note I am honored to share a sweet little poem written by a precious friend of mine, Amy Comstock. Amy’s love of and respect for the the animal kingdom – horses, dogs, birds, fish, frogs and just about everything else that hops, flies, swims or scampers about – is inspiring to me and a source of constant amusement. Amy is one of those rare people who is willing to share the fulness of her heart, to make herself vulnerable when others play their cards close and to freely share the exquisite sentiments that strum upon the strings of her mind and heart.
I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did!
WHY POETRY?
I have much inside
That I’d love to share,
But only in poetry
Do I dare.
For words on paper
Will always last,
While spoken words
Become part of your past.
You speak a thought
With a friend or two,
They often judge
And look down on you.
Share that same thought
With the flow of your pen,
The judgment will cease
Admiration comes then.
For the written word
Makes us think more than speak,
It evokes our true feelings
That we all dare to seek.
So in poems that I write
My truth will shine through,
I write them for me
You read them for you.
© Amy Comstock
What I hear in Amy’s poem is this: no matter how many times you’ve been duped, used, abused, misunderstood, ignored, judged, misinterpreted, misquoted, overlooked, arbitrarily dismissed or falsely accused, don’t let it stop you.
Dare to bring the value that is yours to bring. Dare to rise to the challenge of maintaining your integrity when others are hellbent, like to great red dragon, on gobbling up that which is born on the wings of love through you. Dare to remember your connection to all that is whole, inviolate and wholesome. And finally, dare to take the liberty to give voice or pen to the very highest and finest essences of which you are aware, no matter what your closest friends or bitterest enemies might have to say about it.
Dare, in short, to have the dignity to be you…not the you that you would like others to see you as or the you that others would have you be, but the real you.
Why else are you here?
If you have a few minutes I encourage you to turn your speakers up or put your earbuds in and listen to one of Saint Hildegard’s wonderful compositions, written nearly 1,000 years ago during a tumultuous and perilous time in Europe.
Gregory Hake 
Gregg, you’re a man after my own heart. I felt tears of inspiration because you know the priority of life and you say it well: dare to be the soul you are! Why else are we here indeed, but to love, and to do that with any authenticity we need to be that soul given us by God.
I will stick my neck out here! Who believes in reincarnation, raise their hands? Who knows how beautiful it is?! I found your blog Gregg because I google now and then the keywords reincarnation Hildegard Bingen to see what’s being said. Funny how you knew a guy who thought it would be a pickup line to say to women you are the reincarnation of Hildegard! See, if he said it to me he would be correct, but I think given my gender now that would call his bluff, eh? 🙂
I have a website to share, and perhaps in the words of Amy’s lovely poem, I wrote it for me, you read it for you. But we know too it’s all about the love of God that is the love of every soul that makes us who we are. We are each soul unique, distinct, eternal, blessing and blessed, and I long for the day when people will know and lead with who they really are inside, just as you blogged Gregg. I’m glad you enjoyed Hildegard’s music too. It’s a gift to have dreams as I do of singing our songs in her voice, a lot higher than my male voice is now! I’m grateful to all who sang them with me nearly 900 years ago in Germany (many have I found again or who have found me, praise God!), and to the ever growing circle who sing the old songs with me in spirit to this day. There’s music on the new site too, but of a different style.
Blessings to the One in All from one all in one,
Carl
http://www.ReturnOfHildegard.com
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Thank you all so much for your positive feedback. I am honored that Gregg posted my poem. I am also honored, and deeply moved, by what he wrote about me! I have known Gregg for a few years now, and he is more of an inspiration to me than he is aware of. I have written poetry for most of my adult life, but I only started sharing it with people after I saw how Gregg shares his writings and the effect it has on others. My poems are usually deep and come straight from my heart. It is hard to put your feelings out there in such a public way, but it is also such a blessing to be able to do so. I hope, with the help of Gregg, to start my own poetry blog soon and I would love to hear from all of you. Again, thank you for your kind words! Gregg, thank you for being the person that you are…you always amaze me!
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You’re welcome, Amy! Keep writing!
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Amy, your poem is like a breath of fresh air! Thank you for sharing it.
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This post has many complex implications, and I’m sure it’s one of those ones that you could read multiple times and find different details every time. I thought the poem was beautifully written as well.
If we are all looking to take our lives “onward and upward”, there should be a time when we need to access the depth of ourselves and speak the truth. When that time comes, we should have the ability to say what needs to be said without worrying about how is is received. However, I think the poem beautifully illustrated that there is a wisdom to choosing the right vehicle for those thoughts: the one that is most likely to get our message out unmauled.
Just because some truth is discovered does not mean it needs to be blabbed to the nearest listener. Some things are sacred, and they should be treated with the weight and respect that they deserve.
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The realization that there needs to be people who make space to receive the highest and finest in their lives is essential for our world. This is the prime saving grace for it.
I count it a privilege to so agree with you and others so inclined. Here is our life responsibility.
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Thank you for having the courage to create a place where I can read or hear something that leads me to reconnect with my inner self. Your posts, the people you introduce and your guests inspire me to think about cause and not be intimidated by what the effect might be.
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What a beautiful poem and thank you for your continual inspiration to your readers to dare to be themselves and to not be duped by discouragement from within themselves or to be misled by others.
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This post is a rich and subtle gift. Sacred things, delicate things, refined things, qualities of beauty and love…all of these have been ignored or defiled in tragic and abominable ways through history. How centrally vital it is that at least a few people should be willing to pay any price, endure any challenge, in order to safeguard the precious things of heaven!
Defilement is always a concern, and we must be watchful and wise, but that which comes forth from us has more power to defile than whatever the world may lash out with. Likewise, if the essences of love are allowed to unfurl through our expression, there is something that cannot be destroyed by the world, and this proves out.
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Thank you Gregg for such a deeply thought provoking post! My heart was moved by Amy’s poem. I’m so glad she found her voice!
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Beautiful poem and composition – thank you for sharing.
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I loved Amy’s poem, Saint Hildegard’s music, the photography during the music, the ethereal chanting and your encouraging words! It’s like a feast for my soul to participate in another’s creation. I get a similar feeling holding a new baby. It’s full possibility. There are so many ways that each of these creations will reach out and inspire further creation. It takes courage to do any of the above: compose, write, perform, photograph and have a child. Each exposes us to the judgement of others, we become vulnerable by its existence. It is an exhilarating experience to create and as much again to appreciate and protect another’s creation. Thank you Gregg and Amy !
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Thank you so very much for sharing this. It reminded me of so much, of the past, and where I used to be. I was raised Catholic, and when young wanted to be a nun. We are always to remember that we humans have been given choices of which parts of ourselves we chose to grow, and express during our lifetimes. It is so easy for us to rationialize poor behavior, to chose to reflect what is given to us by others. So we, like they, sink into the mud of diminished being in all ways. The spirit, the thoughts, the form – all falling into the deeper state of dark senselessness. When there are so many examples of the higher expression of human form in history, even if not blessed enough to have them around us now. It serves us well to be reminded of the beauty of some beings as they did walk through Life, they hold the lamp that can guide us. We can follow them, we can become like them. Lift thy self up, and walk the same path.
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