The Forms of Magic
An introduction to Western magic
Saint Buddha
How the Awakened One became a Christian saint
Penetrating Magic
Diving into the well of creativity
To Worship the Life Force
The essence of African religion
Magic and the Third Force
A professional magician ponders a universal law
Browse
Sacred Time, by Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee
The seasons and the Cosmos
An Interfaith Crucible
A conversation with Mirabai Starr
A Parabola Bestiary: Goat, by Joseph Cary
The trouble with goats
A Path of Love and Freedom, by Amir Freimann
A conversation with Sufi master Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee
The Esoteric Shakespeare, by Michael White
“All the world’s a stage.”
Lesson from Volume 36 No. 3, Fall 2011: Seeing
Anonymous, “Nomad Girl” retold by Barbara H. Berger
Grace is Here!, A Conversation with Ram Dass
A conversation with spiritual pioneer Ram Dass
Participators of Sacred Things, by Roger Lipsey
The structure of traditional art
My Journey to Qigong Master, by Robert Peng
Training the body, training the mind
Learn to Die!, by Alejandro Jodorowsky
Despite acclaim, even adulation, garnered from his theater and film work, including such classic films as The Holy Mountain and El Topo, the author found himself in a state of doubt—of spiritual questioning. …
Enthralled by the Marvel, by Alejandro Jodorowsky
The legendary director meets Carlos Castaneda
A Moment of Another Reality, by Lillian Firestone
Encountering Henrietta Lannes
Baa, Baa, Black Sheep Have You Any Wool?, by Jeff Zaleski
Three notable biographies from the Gurdjieff Work
Indigo Animal: The Complete Trilogy
Indigo Animal is original, delightful, and profound. The artist, Rue Harrison, has given us wonderful characters in illustrated books in which she has raised the bar on a certain kind of content. […]
Wild Imagination, by Geneen Marie Haugen
Imagination itself may be our best resource for experiential recovery of a vibrant, participatory, and wildly sacred Earth.
Journey of the Rainbow Serpent, by Nartana Premachandra
Anonymous / Aboriginal
Georgi Ivanovitch Gurdjieff: The Man, The Teaching, His Mission
Readers will find here an expertly assembled narrative—a chronological mosaic of the activities, inner and outer, of Gurdjieff and his followers, pieced together from the records kept by many. …
Meeting the Rabbi, by Kenneth Krushel
On Adin Steinsaltz and the power of hope
Becoming Part of It, by Joseph Epes Brown
Roland W. Reed, Alone With the Past, The Life and Photographic Art of Roland W. Reed, Afton, MN: Afton Press. In terms of interconnections, a dominant theme in all Native American cultures is that of relationship, or a series of relationships that are always reaching further and further out; relationships within…
The Iron Maiden
Detail from The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch, The Prado, Madrid I think we tend to create inward forms of our own — adopted, that is, from things we encounter outwardly — and then stalk each other with them. This process is writ large on the social and political landscape;…
Whence Cometh Our Help? by Roger Lipsey
Guidance for our time from three wise men
Every Word I Pick Here, by Lee van Laer
Every word I pick here | Is the wrong one, one | I’ve used too often, | Touched by thought | Until it’s worn and tired.
To Worship the Life Force
The essence of African religion
Stones in the Sacred Household: The 2021 Parliament of the World’s Religions, by Trebbe Johnson
A hopeful report from the 2021 Parliament of the World’s Religions
The Wisdom of the Animals, by Phil Borges
A conversation with wildlife educator Steve Karlin
Parabola Podcast Episode 41: Androgyny
“At the very outset of the journey inwards, there is a crossroads. Signs point in both directions, and I am pulled both ways. I find that I am double. I want something and at the same time I don’t want it; I love and hate the same person. I am light and dark; I aspire…
The Golden Ticket, by Tracy Cochran
When we least expect it, someone may walk up to us on the street and hand us a golden ticket.
The Turn of the Dial: Seeking God in the Fringes, by Susan Ishmael
A tale of snake handlers, faith healers, and speakers in tongues.
Remarkable Beings, by Eleanor O’Hanlon
Among elephants, it’s a family affair
Believing in Nothing, by Peter Coyote
Sage advice from a welcome voice
The Gates of Paradise, by Joseph Rael (Beautiful Painted Arrow) and David R. Kopacz, M.D.
Shamanic memories from an Indian visionary
Emptying the Cup, by Elizabeth Napp
To learn is to be vulnerable. It is to have the courage to say, “I don’t know” and the wisdom to know the difference between knowing and not knowing.
The Awakened Eye, by Frederick Franck
A recollection of the first moment of being at one.
Befriending the Body, by Patty de Llosa
A faithful companion
Inanna and the Land of No Return, by Rachel Nora Greene
A child retells the legend of the Sumerian goddess Inanna and her descent to the Nether World.
The Middle Ground, by William Segal
There is a middle ground, a basic Reality embracing self and Self. It may be called my true nature. To discover what
prevents me from the experience of it, I have only to look at myself, just as I am. […]
Emperor Wu Zhao and Her Pantheon of Devis, Divinities, and Dynastic Mothers
Like a phoenix among sparrows, Chinese civilization is resplendent in its longevity, myth and tradition. For much of its long history, Chinese emperors incorporated myth, folklore, and ideological concepts to legitimate their dynasties, to sanction their rule.
Meditation and Service: A Conversation with Nipun Mehta
A conversation with visionary philanthropist Nipun Mehta
The Ladder of Heavenly Unity, by Sister Joanna
Continuing Orthodox monasticism’s oldest unbroken tradition, Sinai monks still liturgize, shoeless, over the roots of the Burning Bush. On the holy ground where Moses was commanded to remove his sandals—together with all earthly logic—monks turn diversity’s polarizing forces to unity: some of the ways St. Catherine’s Monastery at Mount Sinai (Egypt) brings Byzantium’s patristic spirit…
Like Snow, by Wendell Berry
Suppose we did our work
like the snow, quietly, quietly.
leaving nothing out.
—Wendell Berry
The Deepest Silence, by John Roger Barrie
The mystical heart of silence
A Stopinder Anthology, Edited by David Kherdian
The first issue of Stopinder: A Gurdjieff Journal for Our Time appeared in the year 2000. […]
Spirit of the Earth: Indian Voices on Nature
As contemporary life becomes more and more fragmented and unsustainable, many individuals are left perplexed and searching for more complete and sustainable models to understand themselves and their place in the world around them. […]
A World of Sound, by Kyle Holton
Listening to the Yao
What Happens in Mindfulness, by Cynthia Bourgeault
A review of John Teasdale’s “What Happens in Mindfulness” by Cynthia Bourgeault
Making God Necessary, by Deepak Chopra
Why God is a verb, not a noun
With Outstretched Arms, Like Wings, by Sister Wendy Beckett and Robert Ellsberg
A visit with the famed nun and art historian
Bob Dylan and the Goddess, by Ed Prideaux
The Nobel winner with his muses
On Unknowing, by Pamela Travers
Travers in the role of Titania in a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, c. 1924 (Wikipedia) It is not ignorance. Rather, one could say, a particular process of cognition that has little or no use for words. It is part of our heritage at birth, the infant’s first primer. And the…
A Turning Point in the Cosmos, by Mary A. Osborne
Owen Barfield and the history of consciousness
“Find Noor Sher. Noor Sher Knows.”, by James Opie
A remarkable man of old Afghanistan
Arrernte Land, by Karen Lethlean
A child visits her ancestral land
Awakening Higher Consciousness: Guidance from Ancient Egypt and Sumer
When two ecologists and biologists, who have spent a year together exploring the wisdom hidden in ancient Egyptian temples, decide to share their discoveries about awakening higher consciousness […]
The LSD Experience, by Laurence Rosenthal
A celebrated composer hears celestial music
Parabola Podcast, Episode 7: “Ways of Healing”
Story editor Betsy Cornwell explores our current issue, “Ways of Healing,” in PARABOLA Magazine’s podcast. Learn more about this issue or become a subscriber at parabola.org. This episode also includes Kenneth Lawrence’s retelling of the Japanese tale “Kiyotsune.” Please consider supporting this podcast and Parabola Magazine by purchasing a back issue or becoming a subscriber. This…
Saturday in New York with Gitanjali, by Tracy Cochran
Gitanjali Babbar wanted to walk to the Freedom Tower. This cold day in New York City marked the end of her first trip to the United States. …
Finding Joy: The Science of Happiness, by Patty de Llosa
Sound, scientific advice on attaining happiness
“I Will Teach You” by Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim
To meet her destiny, she needed a miracle
Love and Money, by Richard Smoley
The secret prices of love
Not Knowing, Non-Being, and the Power of Nothingness, By Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, with Hilary Hart
Exploring the “hidden face of God”
The Art of Budo, by John Stevens
The calligraphy and paintings of the martial arts masters
A Parabola Bestiary: Sea Creatures, by Robert Bly
Finding life between sand and sea
Awakened Awareness, by Adyashanti
The ultimate practice?
Portfolio: Amanda Means
The Hidden Third
“The greatest responsibility of all: the transmission of the mystery.” —Basarab Nicolescu
Repairing the Fabric of the World, A Conversation with Jonathan F.P. Rose
A conversation with civic visionary Jonathan F.P. Rose
Waken, Valkyrie!, by Richard Wagner
Waken, Wala!
Wala! Awake!
From thy long sleep,
Slumberer, wake at my call! […]
The Fellowship, by Philip Zaleski and Carol Zaleski
Oxford skyline. Photo by David Iliff During the hectic middle decades of the twentieth century, from the end of the Great Depression through World War II and into the 1950s, a small circle of intellectuals gathered on a weekly basis in and around Oxford University to drink, smoke, quip, cavil, read…
The Golden Rule Tetraflexagon, by Steffan Soule
The Golden Rule Tetraflexagon is a magic device created by Steffan Soule in order to teach the Golden Rule.
Into the Heart of Persian Sufi Poetry, by Marian Brehmer
Impressions from the land of Rumi
Sister God, by Betsy Cornwell
Snow White. Heinrich Leutemann or Carl Offterdinger, late nineteenth century When I was three or four years old, I started to grow afraid that I was evil. That year I had the worst nightmare of my life thus far: intense, consuming, and hyper real in the way that only very young children’s nightmares…
Rising from the Fire: The Art of Transformation, by David Ulrich
The fiery path from light to light
The Pipe of Reconciliation, by Joseph Epes Brown
Dr. Joseph K. Dixon, A Native American sends smoke signals in Montana, June 1909, National Geographic Creative. The sacred pipe of the Native Americans is a potent symbol of relationship. Through it the human breath sends to all the six directions the purifying smoke that connects the person to the divine and…
Into The West, by Tracy Cochran
Photograph by Peter Cunningham The rain was coming down in sheets as I drove down a wooded road in rural Montague, Massachusetts, towards the opening ceremony of the Maezumi Institute, the new training center of the Zen Peacemakers Order. “The End” by the Doors was playing on the car stereo. “The…
The Word for Soul, by Surnaí Molloy
A lyrical song of love, nature, the sacred
Parabola Podcast Episode 29: Hunger
Story editor Betsy Cornwell shares Margaret Delaney’s “The Anonymous Ones” and “Gastronomy in Ancient China” by Donald Haper in the latest episode of our free monthly podcast.
Ave Maria, by Jenny Koralek
Vincent Van Gogh, Pietà (after Eugène Delacroix). 1889. Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam As the following passage begins, Jesus of Nazareth, here called Yeshua, is suffering on the cross, attended by several including his mother, Mary, here known as Maryam, and Elizabeth, cousin to Maryam and mother of John the Baptist. It is Elizabeth who narrates. —The…
The Golden Rule and the Transformation of Being, by Stephen Aronson
How the Golden Rule can be the Golden Path
On Hopelessness and Hope: A Conversation with Deep Psychologist Michael Penn
A conversation with deep psychologist Michael Penn
Lesson from Volume 35 No. 3, Fall 2010: Desire
Anonymous, “Krishna and Radha,” retold with commentary by Laura Simms
A Parabola Bestiary: Bear, by Ursula K. Le Guin
The gift of fear and awe from a beast cold as the earth
Without Pause, by Mark Nepo
They say the legendary hitter Ted Williams could see the seams of the ball as it came out of the pitcher’s hand. …
Parabola Podcast Episode 36: Renewal
Story editor Betsy Cornwell shares essays from Parabola’s extensive archives on the theme of “Renewal” in this episode of Parabola magazine’s free podcast.
The Monkey and the River, by Mark Nepo
The simplest and hardest thing to do each day is to be here–fully, completely, without turning away.
Exploring the Frontiers of Science: A Conversation with Leo Piilonen
A conversation with physicist Leo Piilonen
Magic and the Third Force
A professional magician ponders a universal law
Parabola: The Search for Meaning : Free Complete Digital Index, 1976-2019
The Gurdjieff Foundation of Illinois has generously assembled a free searchable index for Parabola magazine readers.
Inanna: Relevance and Return, by Christine Irving
A report from the new Goddess Spirituality
The Christmas Angels, by Risa Levenson Gold with Artwork by Jean Zaleski
Two strangers, vehicles of the miraculous
Endpoint from “The Divine Feminine,” Spring 2016
Despite a growing awareness of the Divine Feminine, women remain ineligible to head many major religious groups and institutions […]
Icon and Mirror, a Photo Project by Pola Rader
The photo project “Icon and Mirror” by Pola Rader analyzes the Orthodox woman and her social role in feminist context.
Finding the Path, by Tracy Cochran
Among the tasks or “yogi jobs” a participant can volunteer for during silent retreats at the Insight Meditation Society, a Buddhist meditation center in rural Massachusetts, the most resonant in every sense is that of bell ringer.
Gurdjieff’s Apartment: “Here there are no spectators”, by Roger Lipsey
A universe of meaning in a small Parisian abode
What It Takes, by Lisa Starr
All it takes is one blue rowboat tied to a buoy,
and its reflection, and this moment
for me to go remembering everything. …
Hearing the Cries of the World, by Mark Nepo
This story is so old we don’t know who told it or who it’s about, except that it speaks to all of us. We no longer know if it was a “he” or “she” at the center of the story. […]
A Week at the Hermitage, by Br. Paul Quenon, O.C.S.O.
A Trappist monk’s sojourn at Thomas Merton’s hermitage
The Buddha Calling the Buddha, by Kinrei Bassis
Odilon Redon, Buddha Walking Among the Flowers, 1905. “Most of us are like a fish caught in a hook. The Buddha is trying to reel us in; the hook holding us is our deep spiritual longing. We spend most of the time struggling, not wanting to be reeled in, not wanting…
The Unasked Question, Retold by Paul Jordan-Smith
A classic quest seen anew
The Reenchantment of Vision: Breaking the Spell of the Rational, by David Ulrich
The most powerful teachings and teachers are those that bring us back to ourselves, as we are now, helping us see our true nature: vulnerable and exposed, along with both our nascent strengths and formidable obstacles. […]
A Moment with Mister Rogers, by Jeff Zaleski
Chatting with America’s favorite saint