HOMEPAGE : WORKSHOPS - Weddings - TESTIMONIALS - sPIRITUAL Support - Rituals - Meditation - Coaching - Art - About AJC
THE INTEGRAL CIRCLE
Awakens the gifts of delight: Life, Law, Love and Light
GIFTS OF DELIGHT: LIFE, LAW, LOVE AND LIGHT
[Coelho. 2004. Oil on canvas 20" x 24" at Moima Ashram in San Bruno, CA]
I dedicate this painting to my loving parents
Xavierito Coelho [1900-1987] & Valdemira Fernandes [1907-1994]
In the center of this meditation my Mom sees the face of the Lord in my newly anointed hands as a Priest on her 70th birthday, while my Dad is lost in reverie on Dec. 21, 1977, at Our Lady of Rosary Church in Navelim, Goa, India. Other symbols include the Blessed Virgin of the Miraculous Medal depicting Baptismal Innocence and Nuptial Vulnerability, St. John Bosco's dedication to the young, Mahatma Gandhi's truthful non-violence, and two nudes which stand for the angels of compassionate playfullness and enlightened creativity.
The Integral Circle : A Mandala
- A circle is considered to be integral, when it is the locus of power at any [micro or macro] level of consciousness.
- The Integral Circle or Mandala is a universal symbol and has many representations and meanings.
- In Sanskrit a mandala is a circle [manda] or a center [la].
- It represents the whole, the cosmos in miniature, a map of consciousness, a reflection of the soul, an instrument to unfold in a limited way the enfolded illimitable power or the lotus of enlightenment.
- P. R. Dubhashi, Vice Chancellor of Goa University in India, asserts that to a Hindu mythologist the whole world is a mandala, and
- Robert Thurman, a Buddhist scholar, adds that every human being is, more than a point of awareness, a mandala.
- From a Christian perspective, Christ is the circle whose center is in every soul and whose Spirit manifests the energy of resurrection through the processes of purification, illumination and divine union or communion with creation.
- From a universal perspective Life, Law, Love and Light are Integral Circles.
A MANDALA OF LIFE: A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
The sixth child born to Ariosto Xavier do Rosario Coelho (1900-1987) and Maria Esperança Tomezinha Valdemira dos Reis Fernandes (1907-1994) at Aquem, Margão, Goa in India Portuguêsa on September 30, 1950 was christened José Agnelo Jeronimo Ariosto Xavier do Rosario Coelho in accordance with family traditions.
Ariosto is a brother to Valentim, Angela (1934-1937), Sylvia, Terezinha, Angela,
Avita, Rosarito and
MariaJosefa . His father claimed to be a direct descendent
(17th great grand son) of
Tipu
Santu Naik Sardessai
who, upon his conversion from Hinduism to Catholicism in 1561, took the name
Sebastião Coelho.
[Please check
A Mythological Story.]
May 1963 - L to R top row: Ariosto, Valentim, Avita, Rosarito;
Angela, Maria Josefa, Silvia, Terezinha at Aquem, Goa India.
He is a
grand-nephew of
Fr. Ariosto Xavier Coelho
[1861-1923] and bears his name. As Pastor [1893-1915] of Sacred Heart Church in
Tanjore or Thanjavur his granduncle helped the Salesians of Don Bosco to
establish their first orphanage in India. He welcomed the first Salesians led by
Fr. George Tamatis, SDB, to Tanjore, India in 1906 and surrendered the Parish to
Msgr. Eugene Mederlet, SDB, in 1915 when he was appointed Vicar Forane of
Nagapattinam in Tamilnadu, South India. [Please check
Tanjore Their Final Destination.]
Ariosto was baptized (1950), confirmed (1958) and ordained a priest (1977) at Our Lady of Rosary Church in Navelim, Goa. He studied at Liceu Dom Bosco in Pangim, Goa (1960-62), completed High School at Don Bosco in Lonavla, Maharashtra (1962-66), obtained the Pre-University Degree from St. Anthony's College in Shillong, Assam [North-Eastern India] (1967), and professed as a religious Salesian at Yercaud, Tamilnadu [South India] in 1968. He worked as a Salesians of Don Bosco for twenty five years (1968-93) mostly in Western and Central India.
This map is not to scale. It is meant to indicate some of the places where Ariosto
has lived, studied and worked in India. For more details and pictures,
please check Recalling my days with Don Bosco.
Ariosto taught at Don Bosco High Schools in Lonavla, Maharashtra (1970-72) and Matunga, Bombay (1973-74). He was a resident youth counselor at Don Bosco Apostolic School in Lonavla, Maharashtra (1970-72) and at Dominic Savio Boys' Home in Andheri, Bombay (1976). He ministered to youth at Our Lady of Dolours Parish in Wadala, Bombay (1972-74 & 1975) and at Don Bosco Youth Center in Baroda, Gujarat (1977). After completing theological studies at Kristu Jyothi College in Bangalore, Karnataka (1974-78) Ariosto was ordained to the order of Priesthood by +Raul Nicolau Gonsalves, Archbishop of Goa and Patriarch of the East Indies.
December 21, 1977 - With Parents, who are the first to kiss his newly anointed hands
immediately after his sacerdotal ordination at Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Navelim, Goa.
As a newly ordained priest he was appointed to be the Vice-Rector (1978-81) of
Don Bosco Farm in Sulcorna, Quepem, Goa. In his capacity as the Rector (1981-87)
he was instrumental in harnessing the energies of his staff and community
members and in transforming the
Don Bosco Farm into
an Agro-Educational Complex for the poor and the marginalized, especially
children and teenagers.
October, 1986. With the children, students, apprentices, farm hands, interns,
counselors, teachers, supervisors, managers and leaders in Sulcorna, Goa, India,
where as the Rector from 1981 to 1987 Fr. Ariosto Coelho, SDB,
[11th in the first row of adults sitting] was instrumental in transforming
Don Bosco Farm into an Agro-Educational Complex for the marginalized young
and the poor: a high school K-10; residential facilities for teens; a rural health clinic;
a rural development center; agricultural and animal farms; a farmers' rehabilitation society.
He represented the Pia
Sociedade Salesiana de São João Bosco in Goa (1980-88) in Civil and Criminal
Courts starting at the Supreme Court of India in New Delhi. As a member of the
Archdiocesan Pastoral Council of Goa (1982-84) he espoused the cause and causes
of the religious men and women. As the founding Vice-President of the
Trust for the Education of the Socially and Economically Disadvantaged he
collaborated with a dedicated group of men and women at Jesuit House in Margao,
Goa to sponsor activities that would address the needs of the marginalized
children in Goa. A Trustee of the Bombay Salesian Society and a
Councilor to the Salesian
Provincial of Bombay (1982-88) Ariosto held a number of
responsibilities in the governance and development of the Salesian Institutions
in Western and Central India, particularly in the Goa and Gujarat regions.
In
recognition of his intellectual capabilities and
outstanding services among the
Salesians of Don Bosco
in India,
Ariosto was sent to the Vatican for higher studies in Salesian Spirituality. He
lived at Communità Don Rua at Piazza dell'Ateneo Salesiano and studied at
Università Pontificia Salesiana in Rome, Italy (1987-89) and wrote his Tesina
[dissertation] to obtain the Licenza in Teologia Spirituale on "The
Personal Vocation of Don Bosco as reflected in the Memorie dell’Oratorio di San
Francesco Di Sales dal 1815 al 1855:
A Contribution to Vocation Spirituality
(1989)".
During the Summer of 1988 he was awarded a scholarship to study French at
Université Lumiere in Lyons, France. He ministered to the parishioners of St.
Mary of the Lake RC Church while obtaining a Masters Degree in Pastoral Studies
at Loyola University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois (1988-90). While studying at
the Institute of Catholic Educational Leadership at the University of San
Francisco (1989-90) and while working on his
Doctorate in Philosophy and Religion
at the California Institute of Integral Studies (1990-93) he ministered to
the Roman Catholic flocks at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in North Beach
(1989-92) and at St. Paul's Parish in Noe Valley (1992-93), both in the
Archdiocese of San Francisco.
June 20, 1989 - Conversing, praying and exchanging
gifts with Saint Pope John Paul II at the Vatican
In
a letter to Pope John Paul II dated February 4, 1994 Ariosto offered his
resignation from celibate ministry within the Roman Catholic Church, the
Salesians of Don Bosco and the Archdiocese of San Francisco because he decided
to marry
Vivian Marrone.
He continues an ecumenical ministry as an independent Catholic Priest as well as
an Interfaith Spiritual Director, Family Psychotherapist and
Clinical Art
Therapist in the San Francisco Bay Area in California.
He enjoys doing home
gardening, cooking Indian food, reading non-fiction literature, writing poetry
and inspirational literature, drawing and painting the light, and traveling both
locally and globally. If interested in Ariosto's
creative work,
please contact
AriostoCoelho@Yahoo.com
and enjoy
the dance of light and delight
in consonance with the Rhythm of the Breath and the Rhythm of the Universe.
January 3, 1994 - Ariosto holds his wedding rings
as he prays with Mother Teresa in Calcutta, India.
March 22, 1994 - Lighting the Nuptial Candle
with Vivian E. Marrone in San Francisco, CA.
"Not my will, but Yours be done." [Gospel of Luke 22/42]
"Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven." [Gospel of Mathew 6/10]
"Guide me as You will, use me when You will." Bl. Teresa of Calcutta
SERVICES: Personalized
Weddings - Interfaith
Rituals - Sacraments
for Catholics - Spiritual
Counseling - Psychotherapy
& Coaching
EXPRESSIONS: Selected Writings - Short Stories - Interfaith Poems - Pastoral Homilies - Yoga - Mandalas - Integral Being
CONTACT Ariosto Coelho : The Integral Circle - The Learning Circle - The Empty Circle - The Playful Circle - Workshops & Retreats
DON BOSCO's
Youthful Salesians since 1862: in
India since 1906 - in
Lonavla, Maharashtra since 1962 - in
Sulcorna, Goa since 1962
HOMEPAGE - Feedback - News
: Glow - Spiritual
Practices - Spiritual
Support @ St. John's Church, 1950-2011, 2012-14,
2015-
© Spiritual Direction 1998-2015 [09-24]
where the soul glows and grows
where graceful, grateful, peaceful and playful laughter ♥ silence!
Email: ariostocoelho@yahoo.com - Phone: 650-952-9456