Guest Post and Photos by Karen Leffler

As the perpetual pilgrim will tell you, there are times in our lives when the Heart simply must have its way; and it does!  Sitting alone in a little Nevada City, California coffee house, never would I dream a life altering occasion was about to begin; a decade’s journey into Love Unknown, raw pain unrecognized and freedom to co-create with our Divine Self. A chance encounter with another Realtor who had just come back from The Casa De Dom Inacio de Loyola (The House of St. Ignatius of Loyola) and told me a wild story about a full trance medium, John of God. This man allowed spirits (dead folks who once lived on this earth) to occupy his body and mind while his consciousness ‘slept’ as he vacated his body. To this effect, millions of people around the globe had in meditation at the Casa and healings unimagined by many, especially those from our Western culture. Skeptical, my mind was racing, trying to find the nearest exit when my eyes welled up with tears. How this impacted my heart, I do not know, but the next thing I knew I had committed to meeting her doctor fiancé in two weeks in Abadiania, Brasil.

Wearing white, as is the custom at the Casa, we walked past the mediator in the medium’s current and turned to walk up to a man on a raised platform sitting next to an altar. Emotions were flying within me, and yes, some fear as to what I was about to encounter. Brought up to the father orpai, as they are called, who was occupying John of God’s body, it seemed the occupying spirit, Dr .Augusto, knew me, and, I, on one knee, looked into a fathomless universe in his eyes. The only other time I had ever experienced such Unconditional Love was with Satya Sai Baba 30 years before. I had fallen into the heart of God. He said in Portuguese, “I am helping, do not worry, I am helping”. I was told by the translator that anything could be asked for. It was just as I had been told with Sai Baba so long ago.

Many people, dying of cancer, MS and so many ‘incurable’ diseases had come here as a last-ditch effort to find a healing. Many had. My longing was to know God within me; to live and breathe God’s Love. The interpreter asked if I was truly prepared for what that might mean. Of course, I was not or I may never have asked. In time, I came to understand I had been unwilling to do the deep inner work required for such transformation. I do not remember much of what was said that morning, other than Dr. Augusto’s gentle command, “Sit in my current room and go to work”. My memory is only of the deep Presence of Love and overwhelming tears of recognition.

There were no rules for meditation, contemplation or prayer. Yet, I could feel the spirits (there are hundreds of thousands working on the spiritual realms there) working with me, using my inner framework to guide me through those ‘aha’ moments of fledgling self-awareness. In ‘current’ (meditation) we are a ‘corrente’ or chain of bio-electric energy used for healing. Each of us uniquely experiencing aspects of ourselves long forgotten or denied. Visions, clairaudience are common place amongst the meditators at different times. I experienced sorrow, joy, and profound gratitude on this new path. My service had begun, but, who would believe I would-be told I was a professional photographer (I had an instamatic around my neck at the Casa) then have the privilege to write about the spirits and photograph John of God and the healing ‘energy’ at the Casa for the next ten years.

photo by Karen Leffler

Karen Leffler

Freelance photographer-videographer

http://www.johnofgodphotos.com

http://www.karenlefflerphotos.com

karen@johnofgodphotos.com