Love, Harmony, and Beauty

Toward the One,
the perfection of Love, Harmony and Beauty,
the Only Being,
united with all the illuminated souls who form the embodiment of the Master,
the Spirit of Guidance.

This seemingly simple invocation from Inayat Khan contains the very essence of that which is being sought by every human being… and one way to reach the goal is through Harmony.

Love and Beauty are only found when one is in Harmony with all of Life. It is through harmony that the true depths Love and Beauty are unveiled.

Harmony is a key to opening many doors and removing many veils. In order to peacefully coexist, there must be harmony. All understanding and appreciation arises through harmony. 

Harmony is brought about by attuning oneself to all beings, to all things, to all conditions, to all situations; and he who cannot tune himself tries to tune others…

Everyday Life, the Gathas of Inayat Khan

Our free will allows us to live in discord, or to live in harmony. That is our choice. 

We are each free to live in discord and strife, or to live in harmony with Love and Beauty. That is free will. Yet only when we surrender our discord do we begin to discover the depths and benefits of harmony. As Inayat Khan said:

“Our success or failure depends upon the harmony or disharmony of our individual will with the divine Will.”

All too often we do not take the initiative, we expect something or someone else to do the harmonizing. Occasionally that works, but more often it does not. We must each take the initiative to live in harmony with every situation.

Harmony is not about telling somebody else how to live. Harmony is not about demanding that someone else harmonize. True harmony arises from within our own being and harmonizes every situation.

The heart must be tuned to the stage and the pitch where one feels at-one-ment with persons, objects, and conditions. For instance, when one cannot bear the climate, it only means that one is not in harmony with the climate; when one cannot get on with persons, that one is not in harmony with them; when one cannot get on with certain affairs, that one is not in harmony with those affairs. If conditions seem hard, it shows that one is not in harmony with the conditions.

The key to harmony in every situation is already in our hands, but we overlook it. Every answer, no matter what the situation, has already been given to us, and yet we do not see it… all too often because we do not want to accept “what is”.

As the great poet of Persia, Sa’di, has said, 

“Every leaf of the tree becomes a page of the Book when once the heart is opened and it has learnt to read.”

In the Gospel of Thomas, the disciples of Jesus asked him “When will the kingdom come?”  And Jesus replied:

“The kingdom will not come by watching for it. It will not be said, ‘Look, here!’ or ‘Look, there!’ Rather, the Father’s kingdom is spread out upon the earth, and people don’t see it.” 

We have been given the power and the ability to rise above the differences and distinctions that blind us, and from that higher perspective one can establish harmony.

There are many simple tools which can be applied to everyday life in order to establish harmony. Even the most difficult situations in everyday life can benefit from such seemingly simple actions as conscious breathing, mindful movement, loving gestures, kind intentions, harmony of voice, and awareness of the rhythm of Life. 

Harmony is the source of manifestation, the cause of its existence, and the medium between God and man.

Strive for harmony in every situation. Sing your own note, live your own rhythm, and take every step in harmony with “what is”. Love and Beauty will be your reward.