Polytheists, Paths, Peaks, and Pilgrims

We are the inheritors, most recently, of the monotheistic tradition. But in the deeper roots of our past, and in the vast majority of our habits, we reveal ourselves to be polytheists. We do not commit ourselves to a narrow lifestyle or worldview. On the contrary, we seek diversity and variety in our interests and activities. We are not ascetics, intent upon a single, shining goal. We are distracted by a thousand points of light, scattered through open space. We've seen beyond our own sun.

We want to explore and imagine other worlds. We want to see through the eyes of every head. In our dreams, we do not fix our hearts on a single object or experience, but on countless shapes and shades. We want to know everything. We want to see what can be seen, and affirm whatever can be affirmed. We want to be taught and tested by every god. We love the mountains for the mountains, and the sea for the sea, without thinking to ourselves that it is All One God we love.

Can we fix our hearts on a single object, person, or ideal? Perhaps. But can we fix them on the Whole? How do we fix them? Where do we drive the nails? Who wants to hang on the cross?

We are more eager to meet our guides, than to bless our God. We want to linger in the valleys and villages, and speak deep with the people we meet. We want to follow the same path, hand-in-hand, with a stranger or a friend. But every while there's a split. And on the sharpest peaks, two can never walk abreast.

Have you heard of the man who climbed until he reached the summit? He balanced there for but an instant, before the plummet. I'm told it's the only way down. I guess nobody has the patience to descend.

Poor pilgrim... All day long, the sun is your companion, but every night, she takes her leave. The shadows grow colder, and shadows are your only cover. Some men have answers, like children have teddybears, to cling to in the dark. Cuddly mock-ups of the real thing. But you've just got an empty cup. You cling to it like the last grain of rice, drying like a drop.

Poor Pilgrim

without a bed,
or something for your head

how do you sleep at night?

"with the light on,
with the light on"

and when you go out,
even the shadows are bright

how do you find your way home?

"with the light on,
with the light on"

and if you've got no place
to call your own

how do you know you're there?

"with the light on,
with the light on"


(Copyright VALUS 2010)

Originally Posted by Valus

Have you heard of the man who climbed until he reached the summit? He balanced there for but an instant, before the plummet. I'm told it's the only way down. I guess nobody has the patience to descend.

I like the whole piece but this one sentence sends me into a spiral of thoughts. We don't value descend. Why should it be valued? Our path is supposed to go up and up and up. Never to come down. Not intentionally anyway. But aren't we denying an integral part of ourselves by denying the value of a descend? "As long as we get back up", right?

Got me thinking, Valus. No answers here. Just more questions.

Good eye. That is the crux.

Plotinus, the last of the great Neo-Platonists,
encapsulated the highest spiritual principle thusly:

"Leave the many, find the One.
Having found the One,
embrace the many as the One."

We all want to "leave the many, find the One",
but the real difficulty, it seems to me,
is in embracing the many as the One.

The bodhisattvas are those beings
who, having reached the threshold,
vow not to attain enlightenment
until every last sentient being is
also at the threshold.

They rise, only to descend.

It's like breathing:
We make the journey to illumination,
and then we make the journey back,
to illuminate the world.

We do this over and over again.

A spiral of images this time.
A water bearer.
Forth and back.
Forth and back.
Forth and back.
...

I have Uranus Conjunct my Sun, Venus, and Midheaven

I also have Moon in Aquarius

You said it.

Originally Posted by Erato

I like the whole piece but this one sentence sends me into a spiral of thoughts. We don't value descend. Why should it be valued? Our path is supposed to go up and up and up. Never to come down. Not intentionally anyway. But aren't we denying an integral part of ourselves by denying the value of a descend? "As long as we get back up", right?

Got me thinking, Valus. No answers here. Just more questions.

We value ascent but not descent because we are still stuck on the idea that one is inherently better than the other. All dualistic ideas are human concepts, grounded in the linear, separated Realm of the Relative. They have no reality beyond what we grant them.

That having been said, the granting of reality to duality is what being human is all about. We are here to decide "I am This, not That". We are here to self-define, and through self-definition, create experiences. So our mistake is not in creating and defining dualities, but in believing that any on particular definition is "correct"

In a nutshell, there is no "supposed to" other than the ones we decide we want.

CS

Originally Posted by Curious Snowflake

In a nutshell, there is no "supposed to" other than the ones we decide we want.

That's a liberating thought and a dangerous concept.

I agree about duality and that we do ascribe value to one as oppose to the other. We do however have to be careful not to get carried away in our choosing. There are right ways and there are wrong ways. We need those definitions in order to function on same basic level within society. We need common grounds in expression and behavior enough to make us feel connected just so we can at least talk to each other. Diversity can be celebrated, too much diversity can lead to disassociation. Agreeing upon common values first is what keeps us together and it's not such a bad thing. Humans need other humans.

So I both agree and disagree with you.
There is a "correct" answer that leads to "correct" action. That answer comes not only from you but from the collective experience as well.

We may elect to choose one way over another simply because of that alienation which occurs when we choose a path which, though honoring our individual perspective and values, prevents our communion with others. It's kind of tragic. If diversity were more tolerated, it would be possible to be wildly diverse, and still a part of the community. But this is not yet so.

"If you aren't contradicting yourself,
your position isn't complex enough."
~ Terence McKenna

First of all I would like to comment on the world record in posts. Thats not bad Valus ;p

Erato: I think that is sad. If we need this common ground, in our choice to live and express ourself. Maybe you meant that only in relation to function within societies. But there are also those that break of and become hermits, pilgrims and so on. Which is great, in my view. Though there are many who look down upon monks, hermits, pilgrims etc. saying that they are of no use to the world. Which is just weird for me to comprehend.. Use to the world ? the world dont need us, we need it. And I do not think that its the people that go off and live in nature thats a threat to the state of our world. Rather the ones that cluster together in big piles.

People need people ? I would dare to challenge even that statement and say, that there are those people who need absence of people. And I see no reason not to respect that.

Apex Vega,
Some people don't need other people. Misanthropes live at the end of that spectrum.
Some people cannot live alone. They are usually called codependent, clingy etc.

Both are interesting and valuable.

I have great respect for hermits and loners alike, especially if they teach and give back to their fellow humans in some way.

I just don't like pushing limits for the sake of ego stroking. Be extreme for the greater good. It may start with pushing yourself but it needs to escalate and include the challenging of others' perspectives. There is no hope for humanity otherwise.

What I meant by common ground is f.e. -a common language, a common culture, a common species. That's the prerequisite for us to even begin to explore our diversity. We need one to be able to understand the other just like we need darkness to understand light.