Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Hymn of the Great Plains Indians to the Sun


O Morning Star! when you look down upon us, give us peace and refreshing sleep.  Great Spirit! bless our children, friends and visitors through a happy life.  May our trails lie straight and level before us.  Let us live to be old.  We are all your children and ask these things with good hearts.

Anonymous


The moon shall be a darkness,
     The stars give no light,
If ever I prove false
     To my heart's delight;
In the middle of the ocean
     Green grow the myrtletree,
If ever I prove false
     To my Love that loves me.

"When You are Old"


When you are old and gray and full of sleep,
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And she soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true;
But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face...

     --William Butler Yeats

Chinese Prayer of Thanksgiving


The year is abundant, with much millet and rice;
And we have our high granaries,
With myriads, and hundreds of thousands, and millions of
     measure in them
For spirits and sweet spirits,
To present to our ancestors, male and female,
And to supply all our ceremonies.
The blessings sent down on us are of every kind.

Photo courtesy of John Mazlish Weddings

From Sonnet XXII


When our two souls stand up erect and strong,
Face to face, silent, drawing nigh and nigher,
Until the lengthening wings break into fire
At either curved point,--what bitter wrong
Can the earth do us, that we should not long
Be here contented! Think. In mounting higher,
The angels would press on us and aspire
To drop some golden orb of perfect song
Into our deep, dear silence.  Let us stay
Rather on earth, Beloved--where the unfit
Contrarious moods of men recoil away
And isolate pure spirits, and permit
A place to stand and love in for a day...

     --Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Photo courtesy of Brides of America

Buddhist Marriage Homily


     Nothing happenon of this man and woman has not come about accidentally but is the foreordained result of many past lives.  This tie can therefore not be broken or dissolved.

     In the future, happy occasions will come as surely as the morning.  Difficult times will come as surely as joyously, meditate according to the Buddhist tradition.  When things go badly, meditate.  Meditation in the manner of the Compassionate Buddha will guide your life.

     To say the words "love and compassion" is easy.  But to accept that love and compassion are buid perseverance is not easy.  Your marriage will be firm and lasting if you remember this.

Photo courtesy of Brides Across America

Matthew 19:4-6 (New English Bible)


Have you not read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one"?  So they are no longer two but one.  What therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder.

Photo courtesy of Style Me Pretty.

Final Blessing


We thank you, O God, for the Love You have implanted in our hearts. May it always inspire us to be kind in our words, considerate of feeling, and concerned for each other's needs and wishes. Help us to be understanding and forgiving of human weaknesses and failings. Increase our faith and trust in You and may Your Prudence guide our life and love. Bless our Marriage O God, with Peace and Happiness, and make our love fruitful for Your glory and our Joy both here and in eternity.

Photo courtesy of Style Me Pretty.

Prayer from the Old Testament


Grant perfect joy to these loving companions,
as you did to the first man and woman
in the Garden of Eden.
Praised are you, O Lord,
who grants the joy of the (Bride) and (Groom)

Blessed is the Lord our God,
Ruler of the universe,
for giving us life,
for sustaining us,
and for enabling us to reach this day of joy.

This is the day the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.

The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord look kindly upon you
and be gracious to you;
the Lord bestow favor upon you
and give you peace.
Amen.

photo courtesy of Brian Freidman Photography