Journal of Sacred Work

It’s an idea that appears …in the mythic image of the Net of Indra, which is a net of gems, where at every

crossing of one thread over another there is a gem reflecting all the other… gems.
Everything arises in mutual relation to everything else…It is even as though there were a single intention behind
it all.   -Joseph Campbell, interview in The Power of Myth.

   Even in the 21st Century, I know many who are reluctant to embrace learning from other faith traditions. Joseph Campbell’s work enables all of us to enlarge our thinking by giving us easier access to the wisdom of others. His reference to the "net of gems" touches a fascinating notion that links directly with the mission of Radical Loving Care…

   One of the biggest obstacles to loving care is our perception of unfamiliar people as strangers. When the thread of our lives crosses the thread of another’s, we have a choice. We can engage another with love,
or with some shade of fear. When we choose love, we awaken the brilliant light of the gem. When we choose fear or indifference, the gem remains hidden.
   I’m as aware as anyone of the risks in opening our hearts to "strangers." As a former federal prosecutor, night court judge and long time hospital leader, I’ve been confronted with plenty of dangerous-seeming people. Sometimes, I’ve been taken advantage of. Most of the time, the more kindness I express, the more the jewel that lives in the intersection shines forth. And when this gem flashes forth, it reflects, as Campbell says, the image of all the other gems.
   The experience of a loving encounter can be so meaningful that it may feel unique – as if nothing like it has ever occurred. Some part of this is true. And it is equally true that there is some unifying intention behind it all that makes every loving encounter universal.
   In loving encounters, we escape, during that time, our own loneliness. Imagine if we could look at the world as a net with gems available at each intersection of one pathway over another?
   With all the trouble that plagues so many of the world’s pathways, this may seem like a naive imagining. But this meditation is not about gullibility. It is about our world view.
   The finest caregivers understand the ancient net of gems. That’s why they keep finding gems every day and night as they reach out to meet the needs of others.

-Erie Chapman