This evening I am re-reading Murshid’s lecture in the Centennial Edition Vol VI
pp 168-178. It mirrors what we find in Volume One on “Preparation for the Journey”. It is one of those lectures that one re-reads many times over the years and presents certain challenges. One part of the journey, as I understand it, is not there, and that is the admonition to “keep good company”. Joe Miller, the GodFather of the San Francisco Sufi Community reiterated again and again “No one can do it for Ya’ you have to do it for yourself” BUT he never said “You have to do it by yourself”, and so we have a system of Guides, Centers, and the blessing of a living Pir. Nonetheless, “keeping good company” can be a challenge when so few “speak our language”. And that is where the impulse to propose an on line support groups arose from. FYI it may or may not be important, but my profile so one knows who one is communicating with: I have been a part of The Inayatiyya since 1982 mostly here on the West Coast where I helped organize Pir vilayat’s summer gatherings and my wife and I had a Center in the Bay Area until we moved to Oregon. I was director of the Abode for two years and served several years on the board of The Inayatiyya. Not really of great importance to know this, but it fills a personal void for some. Blessings, Hadi (sufihug@gmail.com)