A Message from Arifa Goodman

July 6, 2022

The Abode is a sacred spot. “Inheriting" it from the Shakers and then infusing the land with our own Sufi brand of baraka makes it a most special place indeed. So now hearing that the Friends of South Family are trying to preserve that place of healing and blessing feels just great.

Shamcher [Beorse] used to say: 'One can have anything in the world as long as one is willing to become the kind of being who has that kind of thing.’ (approximately)

What kind of being would wish to have this place called The Abode?  Maybe that being would be the one who realizes that we don’t “have” (own) any of it. The Abode itself is the being and it has its own life. Clearly it has not felt compatible with the IO for awhile now. Perhaps a way to address the situation is to ask: How can all parties to this align with the being of the Abode to allow its life to continue to mature according to the intention that birthed it? It’s not about the desires or benefits of the parties, but about simply standing back and allowing the space to see how that original intention of Pir Vilayat and his band of merry mureeds will blossom in another iteration under the stewardship of people who are connected to the land, aligned with the vision and willing to become the beings the Abode needs to fulfill its purpose. (Kind of like how Murshid describes the building of the Universel as a work done upon the hearts of the builders, the internal work of making the spiritual ideal a reality through one’s being.)

Arifa Goodman