HACKED OFF - Temporarily offline

SORRY OUR SATSANG WEBSITE TEMPORARILY OFFLINE

Our local Area Website www.satsang-companionship.org.uk  is temporarily offline. Last week somebody 'hacked' into this Website and severely affected it. We are currently having to re-design and re-enter Web Pages .

Its surprising that somebody decided to hack into such a small and local website but that is life. We are , at the moment, hacked off but if you are reading this you have managed to find your way to our Blog Area.  

We are working on recovering our Website as soon as possible, in the meantime we hope you find the 50 plus posts on this Blog of some interest. Please feel free to let us have any constructive comments.

COSMIC REALITY

OUR WONDERFUL COSMOS

Part of the Cosmos :- Taken by Hubble

We live on a Tiny Blue Planet that floats in the vast ocean of the Cosmos. We are only entering the dawn of our understanding and exploration of this vast cosmos that we are part of, with its countless billions of stars.

For all Spiritual Seekers, the wonder of the Cosmos and its Mystery, reflect the wonder and Mystery of the Spiritual.

Recently, I received a link from Mike Otten , A Satsang Member in California. This shows a few slides that outline our current understanding about the creation and age of our Cosmos.

Click on the link below and prepare to be astounded, amazed and hopefully excited.

http://visav.phys.uvic.ca/~babul/AstroCourses/P303/BB-slide.htm

Satsang Meeting July 9th 2011

REFLECTING ON OUR JOURNEY

Our final meeting of the 2010/11 programme will take place on

SATURDAY 9th JULY 2011

1.30 - 4.45 p.m

Friends Meeting House, Wolverhampton

THEME

To be decided but either a DVD of Sister Ishpriya or a Video on Cosmology

We will also reflect on  and discuss how we can strengthen and continue our Satsang Companionship and broaden our appeal and attendance.

REFLECTIONS ON COMPASSION

COMPASSION THE GOLDEN RULE

Report on the  Satsang Meeting of Saturday 11th June 2011

A small Group of us met in Satsang Companionship to reflect upon and share about this vital area of compassion. Our Satsang Association, its spiritual companionship and the underpinning of the Satsang Triple Commitment ( see Satsang Principles Page of this Website) all rest upon the words, meaning and  living out of the following statement of the Satsang Logo

SATSANG - Seeking Together - Helping to Create

A Planetary Vision - A Universal Heart of Compassion

We opened our meeting with a short time of silence and then Liz read our opening reflection on the importance of being compassionate to all. These words appear below.

True faith must lead to more than piety and prayer.

It must also develop a sensitivity to injustice and distress

and a compassion which seeks to respond to the needs of others.

Relieve people in distress
as speedily as you must release a fish from a dry stream lest he die.

Deliver people from danger

as quickly as you must free a sparrow from a tight noose.

Be compassionate to orphans and relieve widows.

Respect the old and help the poor

Tract of the Quiet Way

 1st Video Clip     A podcast from Sister Ishpriya

Compassion    In her short podcast Ishpriya outlined some reflections ( see http://www.international-satsang.org/ ). She reminded us that compassion was an all-encompassing 'journeying with'  the other.
It was much more than mere sympathy. It involved emptying and forgetting oneself and entering into the inner experience of the 'other'


It was not just about the pain and suffering of the other, but also about being beside them in their joys, dreams and hopes. She reminded us that it was so much easier to do this with people we knew and loved, or with people from our own community, culture , religion or country. However, true compassion required us to 'be beside' others in both easy and difficult situations. It also required as a pre-requisite, the quality of   'Self- Compassion' . We needed to be in touch with , and to  journey with our own pain, suffering, joys, hopes and dreams.
,
None of the above was easy and so, she reminded us that , 'in the words of the Satsang Logo, Seeking Together, Helping ( 'trying') to create - a planetary vision and a universal heart of compassion' ; each of us are challenged in our day-to-day life to attempt to be compassionate.


This podcast was recorded in the garden at Die Quelle ( the ISA Sadhana Ashram). It was a windy day and you can see and hear the sounds of nature and the wind on the recording. Here Ishpriya gives an impromptu reply to the question ' What is Compassion? '


Although the weather conditions make some parts of the recording difficult to hear, her words are profound. Her podcast is included so that  you can listen to it several times. If you wish to see other podcasts then follow our link to either You Tube or the ISA Website ( see the Resources Page on this website  www.satsang-companionship.org.uk )

COMPASSION :-  Podcast by Sister Ishpriya

Sacred Circle Dance  Movement to aid Reflection

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Sacred Circle Dance

For some time Angela ( our Area co-ordinator) has participated and been interested  in Sacred Circle Dance. Dance is a universal and common  artistic expression in all cultures and throughout all eras. It introduces us to music, movement , expression and emotion in an holistic and joyful human experience. It assists and permits us to experience and express ourselves at the Physical, Intellectual, Emotional and Spiritual levels. It  is, in essence, an extremely mindful and holistic Sadhana ( Spiritual Practice)


So to prepare us for our further reflection on Compassion, and our 2nd and main video clip,  Angela led us in a simple dance movement. In this movement we formed a chain and moved in unison gently around the room as the music ' Air on a G String' played.


This mindful, gentle movement helped to unite
us in a common and combined experience and thus 'mirrored' the real meaning and importance of COMPASSION and its essential place in our journey through life and its ability to remind of 'the other' and our common humanity and ultimately our inter-connectedness.

2nd Video Clip : Karen Armstrong :- The Golden Rule

We then moved into the main focus of our meeting- a video clip where Karen Armstrong accepted her TED Prize.

She spoke about Compassion and its centrality as a moral force in our world. She traced its origins to the Golden Rule , as propounded by Confucius and agreed with by all the major World Religions. Basically, the Golden Rule is :

Do not do to others,that which you would not want done to you'

This rule, or moral code, was to be found in all three of the 'Sister Monotheistic Faiths'  i.e.  Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

She argued that many of the great Religions had been 'hijacked' and used to cause division. She reminded us, that all of the 3 Monotheistic Faiths stressed the centrality of compassion and really 'forbade' their followers to use and/or interpret the Scriptures to breed dissension , violence and anger.

Yet, many fundamentalists use religion and their narrow interpretation

Karen Armstrong then went on to launch her   Charter for Compassion. A pdf copy of this can be found in the Resources Page ( along with other material)                

.satsang-companionship resources.

Further details about the Charter can be found at http://charterforcompassion.org/site/

It was an inspiring, challenging and extremely interesting presentation , which led us into our time of personal reflection and group companionship and sharing.Before we entered this phase, Patty B read the following short Parable from Buddhism.

This little parable is Buddhism at its best - a passage which requires no introduction. Like the best of the Buddha's common-sense comments it gets to the heart of the Truth about human nature.

There are three kinds of persons existing in the world:

The first one is like a drought, one who rains locally, and one who pours down everywhere.   

How is a person like a drought?

He gives nothing to all alike, not giving food and drink, clothing and vehicle, flowers, scents and unguents, bed, lodging and light, neither to recluses and brahmins nor to wretched and needy beggars. In this way, a person is like a drought.

The second person is like a local rainfall?

How is a person like a local rainfall ?

He is a giver to some, but to others he gives not. . In this way, a person is like a local rainfall.

The third is like rain falling everywhere

How does a person rain down everywhere?

He gives to all, be they recluses and Brahmins or wretched, needy beggars; he is a giver of food and drink, clothing. . . lodging and lights. In this way a person rains down everywhere.

Itivuttaka 65

Entering the Pain and Joy of Another :- Our Sharing

Angela shared a reflection from Joyce Rupp on Compassion. This opened with the following quote from Henri Nouwen

Entering the Pain of Another

Compassion means to come close to the one who suffers ...

A compassionate person says

'I am your brother, I am your sister,

I am human, fragile and mortal like you ' ...

We can be with the other only when the other

ceases to be other and becomes like us.

Native Americans have a saying that we must walk a mile in someone else's moc­casins in order to know what that person is experiencing. When someone I know and care about is in pain I can readily walk in their moccasins and extend compassion to them but how much more challenging it is when the "suffering one" is part of a person or group whom I consider either an enemy or a separate entity. This was never so clear to me as when I entered a side chapel in the beautiful Imperial Cathedral in Aachen, Germany. A touching statue of Mary, the Mother of Sorrows, with seven swords piercing her heart, was the cen­terpiece of this chapel. I sat there for some time, aware of a presence that was unusual and filled with palpable, unspoken grief. I won­dered why I felt it so strongly there.

It was not until later that I discovered the chapel was dedicated to the mothers of those who had lost theft sons and daughters fighting as Nazis in WWII. I was stunned and felt great remorse. Why had I never considered these grieving women whose heartache was all as great as those who had lost sons and daugh­ters fighting for the Allies? It was, of course, because I had never allowed myself to think of them as part of my cosmic life. I had never allowed myself to enter into their pain. I had kept them at a great distance from myself.

A pastor once said that every CEO should have to work in a packing plant or at a com­mon job for awhile, like every physician should have to be a patient. These comments came after an article about a news anchor who was described as being a smug, cold-hearted person until his four-year-old daughter developed leukemia. Suddenly he saw how precious life was and what people had to cope with when they were going through tough situations. Now, when he does interviews and stories, he approaches hurting people with much greater understanding and kindness. He said he now realizes the immense value of loved ones and what it is like to suffer the loss of them.

When we enter into the suffering of oth­ers we enter into the cosmic dance of theft pain. It is a tender dance of tears inviting each of us to enter it with compassion for our brothers and sisters everywhere. When we draw near to those who suffer, we enter into this cosmic dance in a deep and powerful way. We embrace mystery and enter into a compas­sionate love that stretches far beyond our own heart, joining with the One Great Heart that beats endlessly in our vast universe.

Taken from :- Joyce Rupp ( 2002)  THE COSMIC DANCE – An Invitation to Experience Our Oneness ( page 103)

Aspects of Our Sharing




We then met and shared on aspects of our experiences of and difficulties with being Compassionate to all and in and with various situations. Ishpriya's message about entering into and sharing with the joys, dreams and hopes of others both surprised and challenged us.


Also we explored the difficulty of being compassionate with those who either hurt us or ,even more so, those whom we loved. We explored our feelings and experiences of forgiveness and forgetting. The latter was nigh on impossible. Traumatic and pleasurable experiences are burned into the fabric of our psyche. We may suppress and/or deny them but we could not forget them.


However, forgiveness was a possibility. We had a choice in this area. For many, choosing forgiveness led to healing. The 'Golden Rule' was a very good staring point. It could provide us with a moral compass, a talisman, a light to guide us through the tortuous times of life. To be our 'rock' in happy and sad times.


We also looked at some people's tendency, whenever they lacked self-esteem or whenever they were hurt, to 'lash out' at others, to bully people and to fail to see the unity and inter-connectedness of people. This could and so often does, challenge us when we attempt to be compassionate. However, its in these situations that the moral wisdom of the Golden Rule shines through.




Ending with a Song




We ended our meeting with the following song about the Golden Rule. See Podcast below

 

CHARTER FOR COMPASSION  The Golden Rule Song

NOTICE OF NEXT MEETING Sat 9th July

Friends Meeting House - Wolverhampton

( see website for Google Map)

Compassion:- The Golden Rule

A Universal Heart of Compassion

There is a well known  saying, adapted from the writings of the Latin American Leader Dom Heldar Camara, that is  used by our International Satsang Association ( ISA ) . It goes like this :-

Satsang :-  Seeking Together, Helping to Create, a Planetary Vision and a UNIVERSAL HEART OF COMPASSION

It is these final words ( underlined above )  that will inform the theme of our next Satsang Meeting in the UK Midlands Area. Details  of this meeting are as follows :

Compassion : The Golden Rule

Saturday 11th June 2011:-  1.30  to 4.45 p.m

Friends Meeting House, Wolverhampton

( for directions to the venue, please visit our local website www.satsang-companionship.org.uk   for a map and also further details of our Satsang Companionship, its activities and some downloadable resources)

There is an urgent need for each of us to get in touch with our Heart of Compassion. Our world, its environment, its peoples and its future are facing many critical challenges.  Our generation, and our children and children's children, face seemingly competing choices and these require each of us to show great wisdom and discernment. These choices cannot be answered merely by recourse to our logic. Gifted though we are with our wonderful and amazing brain and its intellectual power and immeasurable and, as yet, unknown possibilities; we are also people of emotions, intuition, imagination and so much more. It is our 'giftedness' which sits in our 'heart of compassion' that can help us find wise solutions to many of our challenges and problems.

Most of our Spiritual Traditions and the mystics and sages of all  cultures, traditions and ages, point to the value of COMPASSION and its connection with the 'Golden Rule' . Compassion is 'reckoned' to lie more with our heart and intuition than merely our intellect.

The great Golden Rule'  is briefly summarised  in  most traditions by these  simple but profound and challenging words:-

'Only do unto others what you would wish to be done to yourself'

Our next Satsang Meetiung on Saturday 11th June will focus on this theme , with video  input from both  Sister Ishpriya the Spiritual Director and Chairperson of the ISA,  and Karen Armstrong, a well known writer and commentator on spirituality and world issues.

ALL ARE WELCOME - so feel free to attend and to bring a friend along

ADVANCE NOTICE

Saturday 9th July :- Satsang Meeting ( same time, same place)

Dancing to the Mystery of Life

Sitting Still, doing nothing .

Spring Comes ,

the Grass Grows by Itself

A Report on our Satsang Day of Reflection

Saturday 14th May 2011

Sister Ishpriya :- ISA   Spiritual Guide

A Group of us met in Satsang on Saturday 14th May to reflect on the twin issues of Deep Listening  and Silence.  Our day was a balance of Movement & Dance , Input , Reflection   and Stillness . It  was'split' into two complementary sessions. In the morning we focused on Deep Listening  and in the afternoon we turned our attention to Sound & Silence.

These sessions were based on a DVD Retreat given by Sister Ishpriya ( the Spiritual Guide of the International Satsang Association ).It has the title The Grass Grows by Itself. 

DANCING TO THE MYSTERY OF LIFE;-   

The essence of our day, and of Ishpryia's message, was about the Mystery of life dancing within each of us. But first, the connection between this, our Zen saying, and our dancing on the day.

BLESSING
A Dancing Figure

 If you have ever seen a prairie or a vast expanse of grassland ,either at dawn or dusk, you may have experienced the grass dancing. Very often, as the sun either rises or sets, the change in temperature can lead to an increase in wind speed. When this happens, as it has so often happened to me, it is good to just stand or sit and observe the grass move in a rhythmic wave across the horizon. It can seem like a 'dance of nature'.

I was reminded of this during our Day of Reflection , both when we watched the two talks from Ishpriya and when I looked at the selection of symbols in the Centrepiece we used during our sessions. This Centerpiece was a symbolic representation of both the day itself and the input from Ishpriya and part of this was a figure of a dancer. This brings me to a more detailed look at our Centrepiece.

OUR SYMBOLIC CENTREPIECE

Designed and Laid Out by Angela Creagh

The Centrepiece was designed and laid out by Angela Creagh ( see the picture above )  . It consisted of  a crescent of stones , a Candle,a Flower and a miniature Zen Rock Garden. Facing the Garden is a figure of a dancer.This dancer represents  BLESSING. During the day, we moved around this centrepiece as we enjoyed some gentle Circle Dancing and some Meridian Energy Balancing exercises.

Session 1 : 



Learning by Listening to a Stone



Teaching A Stone to Talk



DEEP LISTENING

Using our Senses

Our first session opened up with a gentle dance or movement to music. This was led by Angela , as she introduced us to some dances she had experienced on one of the  Circle Dancing Retreats she had attended. As we gently circled around the room , and our centrepiece, I could feel a sense of focused awareness. The gentle, rhythmic movement began to centre me and was an excellent opening preparation for the day -

We were then led, by Angela,  in a 10 minute practice of Pranayama or  breath awareness and control. This focusing on the breath - which Buddhist suggest is the 'bridge' between our outer and inner world, was a gentle and powerful mindfulness exercise that settled us down to listen to the first of Ishpriya's Talks.

Theme One :- Teaching a Stone to Talk   In her talk, Ishpriya recounted a story from Annie Dillard. This was about a young man  who lived on an island amongst an artistic community. His main goal in life  was his attempt to teach a stone to talk.  Others in the Community had mixed feelings about his goal, from derision, through anxiety, sadness and hopeful sympathy.  Ishpriya reminded us, that this young man was an example of a common human urge, the urge to impose our  will on Reality. This young man  was trying to 'force'  the stone to conform to his control.  


She contrasted this, seemingly hopeless and foolish endeavour , with that of the Zen Monks who, instead of attempting to teach a stone to talk, spent their time 'listening' to a stone.  She reminded us of the famous Zen Gardens, where rocks were laid out in a symmetrical and symbolic manner on a bed of sand or small pebbles. Around this Zen Garden were places to sit and meditate One famous Zen Sadhana , or spiritual practice' , is to sit in Zen Meditation looking at a rock in a Zen Garden. In this way, Zen Monks sit in silent 'practice' and are willing to 'be taught' by the stone.


She contrasted   the young man in Dillard's story with that of the Zen Monks and suggested that some important differences were :

YOUNG MAN                                                         ZEN MONKS

He was trying to teach                                          They are willing to learn

He was trying to talk                                             They are willing to listen

He was trying to impose his will                        They are surrendering  to the present moment

Ishpriya suggested that we needed to be guided more by the Zen Monks than the young Westerner. We needed to develop our capacity for 'deep listening'. This was a willingness to listen with our Body-Mind and Spirit. We needed to develop our capacity to listen with all of our senses; with our eyes, our ears, our touch, taste and smell and, above all, with our heart of awareness. I was reminded of the following quotation from  Nitsch on listening:-

 

I listen and hear the silence,

I listen and see the silence

I listen and taste the silence

I listen and smell the silence

I listen and embrace the silence.

We all have the capacity and ability for this form of deep listening.'deep listening' we begin to both understand and communicate with ourselves and others at this deep , inter-connected and mutually compassionate and personal level.


Our Day of Reflection continued with a time for silent and personal reflection on this theme of deep listening. After this we returned to share on our reflections and journey before we broke for lunch. We shared on the importance of deep listening at all levels of Body-Mind and Spirit. The need to listen to the Exterior as well as our Interior. We discussed how failure to do so can add to our stress and how stress can be a great barrier to deep listening.

Session 2

God ( Brahman) is both Sound and Silence

Maitri Upanishad

 

 ( Upanishad comes from Sanskrit and simply means

‘ To sit at the feet of the Master’ )

God is Sound and Silence

It is the Silence that is the end of the journey,

A Silence of Joy,

where pain and suffering are no more.

It is through Sound  that we go to Silence

The Silence of God ( Brahman)

For God is both Sound and Silence

The quote from the Maitri Upanishad sets the scene for the theme of our afternoon session .

But before we began to listen to Ishpriya's 2nd talk, Angela led us in a Meridian Balancing Exercise . This was something she wanted to share with us from her experiences on several Retreats/Workshops she had attended. She reminded us that we are Energy and that this energy can either get 'blocked' or unbalanced. So we began our afternoon with some energising, balancing and enjoyable exercises to ensure that we were all 'Wide Awake !    and prepared to enter once more into the centre of our being to where the mystery of the energy of life is flowing. 

GOD ( Brahman) is both SOUND and SILENCE

 

A Simple Meditation Gong or Singing Bowl


Theme Two :- Ishpriya began to address the theme of Sound and Silence. She reminded us that , the sound of a Meditation Gong at the BEGINNING and END of our Meditation Practice , was not merely to signal its beginning and end, it had a much deeper and more important message. Whenever we ' invited the Gong to speak'  ( for me it was a beautiful way of expressing the sounding of the gong) , we were inviting ourselves to move from the SOUND into the SILENCE and then, at the end, from the SILENCE back into the SOUND

She advised us to begin to recognise that God ( Brahman, Ultimate Reality , by whatever name we call IT) was in everything - both sound and silence. It was then that she used the quotation  from the Maitri Upanishad ( see above ). She also emphasised the importance for each of us to begin to distinguish between SOUND and Noise. This was an important difference, particularly in our modern world of 24/7 business, communication and activity. What was NOISE for me could be a beautiful SOUND for another, and vice versa. We also needed to begin to recognise both External and Internal NOISE and SOUND.

She suggested that a simple definition of both could be as follows :- NOISE could be any sound that did not convey a meaningful message for each of us. Therefore SOUND could be a meaningful noise and method of communication for us all. In listening to the real SOUNDS , at both the INTERNAL and EXTERNAL levels, within and around u s; we could enter into more meaningful communication with ourselves, others  , our environment and with Absolute Reality ( God)

True communication could only begin to happen when we could damp down the noise and thus be more aware of the various SOUNDS in our life. In addition , if we could move from SOUND into SILENCE we could begin to engage more meaningfully in our inner contemplative life. This was a life of true relationship with the Mystery, the  flow of Life within and around us.

We then had a period of personal and silent reflection before we came together to share about our experiences of the day. Our sharing was wide ranging and covered the importance of sharing with like - minded people on our Spiritual Journey. The importance of both LISTENING and COMMUNICATING at the Heart - to - Heart level . How every time we shared we revealed something of ourselves that was normally hidden behind the many ' Masks' we put in place. These 'masks' can be important to protect us but they can also be a barrier to true communication. In addition, whenever we managed to deeply listen to another, they too were sharing something of their own uniqueness, their own vulnerability and their own giftedness.

Our sharing was then finished with the following quotation. This is one Ishpriya has used in other talks on the importance of deep listening and particularly on the importance of being a disciple and having the humility to sit and learn at the foot of the Master.

LISTEN LIKE A DISCIPLE

The Lord has given me a disciple's tongue

That I might speak words of comfort to the weary

Each day He wakes me, he wakes me early

To listen, to listen like a disciple.  

( Isaiah 50 )



We then ended our Day of Reflection led by Angela in a gentle Circle Dance. This was based on the  following version of the Ancient Celtic Blessing, As we listened to and sang along with this 'blessing' we moved gently around our Centrepiece  on which stood the beautiful Figure of BLESSING 

MAY THE ROAD RISE UP

May the Road Rise with you

May the wind be always at your back

May the sun shine warm upon your face

And the Rain fall gently on  your fields

Until we meet again

May God hold you in the Hollow of His/Her Hand

Our day then ended and we departed until we meet again at our next Satsang on : ;

Saturday 11th June :-  1.30 - 4.30 p.m.

Friends Meeting House

Wolverhampton

Further details on this, its theme and content, will be published shortly on this Blog. For other details please go to our Website , where you will find directions to the Friends Meeting House.

If you wish to contact us, then either use the Website Contact link or contact our Area Co-Ordinator Angela Creagh at the following email address -

angela@angelatierney.wanadoo.co.uk

Website :- Our local Website contains further details . Its address is      www.satsang-companionship.org.uk

 

DAY OF REFLECTION - Sat 14th May 2011

The Grass Grows By Itself

Sitting Still, doing nothing.

Spring Comes

The Grass Grows by itself    ( Zen Poem)

Signposts for the Journey 

This is the 3rd   of our 3 annual Days of Reflection that are designed to provide participants with the opportunity to 'sit by the wayside' and reflect on their contemplative journey.   Our main input will be 2  talks ( on DVD) by Sr Ishpriya from her Contemplative  Prayer Retreat . This is a series of 8 Talks that are designed to guide retreatants on a week long retreat

This day is designed to provide us with the opportunity to practice Silence and Breath Awareness and to listen to Ishpriya and to drink from the deep pools of her wisdom

Talk 1:  Teaching a rock to talk  -

In this talk, Ishpriya's focus is on the value of deep inner listening .

Talk 2 :- The Need for Silence and its many layers -

In this Talk Ishpriya looks at the part Silence plays in  assisting us to Access the Mystery

Venue :     Friends Meeting House : Wolverhampton 

( see Website front page for a map )

Time :       10.30 to 4.30 on Saturday 14th May

This is an OPEN MEETING

ALL ARE WELCOME

Bring a packed lunch  

SATSANG WITH SISTER ISHPRIYA - 2012

EARLY NOTICE OF SATSANG WITH ISHPRIYA :- March 2012

This is an early notice of our forthcoming Satsang with Sister Ishpriya. Further details on costs etc will follow in the May/June 2011.

If you are interested then make a note in your diary and  be ready to respondwhen the Official Flyer is released.  NB   Places WILL BE LIMITED

DAYS OF  REFLECTION

‘A time to sit by the wayside’ with  

 Sister Ishpriya

Thursday 22^nd  to  Sunday 25^th March  2012

NODDFA Spirituality Centre

Penmaenmawr – North Wales

These days will be guided by Sister Ishpriya. They will provide an opportunity for reflection, to sit a while and  ‘rest by the wayside’ in the company of Satsang Companions and other Seekers. The venue is a beautiful and restful Victorian House set on the edge of Snowdonia and near to the sea. It has extensive gardens, with two labyrinths, a water feature, quiet spots and lovely views.