Friendship: A Two-Part Series
w/ Gayan Macher
October 23rd & November 13th, 2021
Part I: October 23 – Human Friendship
The Significance and Beauty of Human Connection
There is no relationship that can be compared with friendship…
…it could take one’s whole life only to realize its meaning… – Hazrat Inayat Khan
Friendship. A word we use so casually, and yet in friendship can be experienced the mystery and fulfillment of creation.
The whole culture among Sufis is one of friendship. The fruit of inner development expressed in the joy and sovereignty of true companionship. Friendship is a great and rare art. And like all artistry it must be intentionally practiced in order to realize its potential.
In this day of contemplation, we will experientially explore:
•What does it mean to be a friend?
•What is the mystic’s experience when meeting an “other”?
•What allows friendship to deepen and become more authentic?
•How do we prepare our hearts to realize true friendship?
Part II: November 13 – The Friend of God
It is the one who understands you most who is your greatest friend in the world.
And you can be the greatest friend of God if you can understand God. – Hazrat Inayat Khan
“God” changes as we do. At times God may feel abstract and distant. Other times God is the Beloved, the object of our devotion. To be the friend of God is a most special station. Here we begin to see as God sees; to want what God wants. We feel God’s presence, all-pervading as the air. Here is a companionship as only friends can have.
In this day we will experientially explore:
•How has our understanding of God changed, and what is it now?
•What does it mean to be the friend of God?
•What is the journey of the heart to arrive at such a relationship?
Each day on Zoom consists of meditation, practice, and contemplation alone and/or in small groups. Our schedule will be from 9-12 and 1:30-4 PT (San Francisco) and 12-3 and 4:30-7:00 ET (New York).
To learn more, and to register for this free foundational program, please visit New Rain.
Speaker
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Gayan MacherGayan Macher is a companion and guide to those who are called to the courageous path of love. He has practiced and taught the universal Sufism of Hazrat Inayat Khan his entire adult life. In addition, he has studied Buddhist practice, the Diamond Approach, and psychology, where he explored emerging understandings of the formation of the ego. Gayan leads group retreats and has guided scores of individual students. He collaborated with Pir Zia Inayat Khan in designing Suluk Academy, and taught at Suluk for eight years. Along with Taj Inayat he created Sufi Retreats, and then New Rain, which became laboratories for the process of awakening and spiritual maturation. Gayan also has a 40-year career as a consultant to executives of organizations, having worked with numerous Fortune 500 companies as well as non-profits of all sizes. Among Gayan’s great loves is music. He plays guitar, and as a singer-song writer has recorded two CDs of original songs.