Mercury and Mindfulness

So Mercury’s gone retrograde again, the bogeyman of the astrologically-inclined.    I myself have a fairly mixed track record when it comes to communications and technical glitches during such phases; I usually find I have more problems in the “slow” periods just before and after a retrograde, rather than during the retrograde itself.  But in any case, I generally see astrological aspects and movements like this to be reflective of underlying currents of energy in the universe, rather than the direct causes of those currents, so I try not to hold it against ol’ Mercury himself.

But even more than that, I’m a big fan of making the most of those currents, so while Mercury retrograde is notorious for harboring miscommunications, it can also be an opportunity to become more mindful of our language.

At its best, this involves mindfulness on both sides of any communication.  When we are speaking, we want to try to make sure we are expressing ourselves clearly, and that what we are saying is what we really mean.  And when we are listening, we want to be mindful of where we might be misunderstanding what is being said.  In emotionally charged conversations, it’s even more important to be mindful of the effects our words have on others, and of how much we may be reading into the other person’s words.  Words don’t exist in a vacuum, and their effect on us is not entirely detached from our own inner state.

It helps to be aware of differences in the context and connotations of words – something may seem contradictory or nonsensical in the absense of certain other information, and assuming that everyone has the same information we do is often a direct path to misunderstanding.

Similarly, words often have more than one meaning, not to mention multiple connotations and possible regional differences in the way they are used; I’ve seen more than one flame war start over different readings of the same word.  In each case, it wasn’t that anyone was wrong about the meaning of the word, they just had very different ways of using it, and then attributed their own understanding of the word to the other person’s use of it.  Even when it doesn’t spark angry responses, this sort of misunderstanding often leads people to talk past each other without realizing that they aren’t actually discussing the same thing.

So if we can take the misunderstandings and miscommunications that seem to crop up while Mercury is retrograde, and use them to become more aware of our words and our reactions to words, I say it’s a win.  And it takes some of the heat off poor Mercury – he’s hot enough as it is, after all, being so close to the Sun. 

(Have you seen the new pictures from Messenger? Awesome!)

Memory and Flame

What is to give light must endure burning.
- Victor Frankl

Sometimes just the threat of burning is enough to give light, though what it illuminates may be ugly.

I began writing this post in anger, upset at the way in which the anniversary of 9/11/01 has become a stage for bigotry, for fanning the flames of holy war, and further dividing an already divided nation.  But I’ve deleted nearly all that I was going to say, because when I began to look more closely, I could see that all of my anger was only a mask, nothing but a flimsy shield to cover my broken-heartedness.  I grieve for my country, especially when I see how we have become so frightened and petty that we surrender both our liberty and our charity, accepting almost without question a state of endless war and ever-expanding executive power while protesting when a group of Americans attempt to build something to help their community.  Given all of the destruction we have wrought upon ourselves over the past nine years, is it any wonder that the actions of a tiny fringe church begin to take on the mantle of our whole nation to those looking in from outside?

When just about everything under the sun has become politicized, it’s easy to shake your head and disengage, not wanting to get involved in “politics.”  But this is deception, burying the fact that real problems, real progress, and real people’s lives are profoundly affected by these “political” games.  And so it is that people have suffered, and continue to suffer, while craven con-artists exploit the memory of suffering, incite the gullible to produce more suffering, and even make money off of people’s suffering — all while wrapping themselves in the flag to score political points.

But though they pretend to stand for America, they don’t stand alone, and we are bigger than the fear-mongers among us.  So when people say, “Never forget,” maybe we can take it as an opportunity to never forget our courage, our charity, and our shared humanity.  We like to call our nation the land of the free, and the home of the brave.  Let’s act like it.

Hunting Patience

One thing I’ve learned from observing birds of prey is how much of their lives is spent watching and waiting.  They’ll sit in the shadows, keen eyes trained outwards or down, until they find a potential meal or decide to move on to better hunting grounds.  Even when something catches their attention, they sharpen, but often don’t move right away.  After all, moving too soon is likely to warn their target, as well as alert any other likely prey in the area.

When they do fall upon something, though, the action is quick and committed.  A missed catch is clumsy and awkward-looking precisely because the attack was so committed in the first place – but it had to be, in order to have any hope of success.  A casual fly-by doesn’t bring home dinner, and it’s better to risk looking foolish than lose a chance to eat.  (Mind you, I don’t think any of this is going through a hawk’s mind, although I swear some of them do look kind of embarrassed after missing their prey.  But I like to try to learn personal lessons from things I see in the natural world, and that usually seems to entail a little bit of anthropomorphizing.)

So what am I learning from this hawk today?  Maybe that patience goes a long way toward finding an opportunity, as long as you stay alert and attentive — but patience aside, sooner or later, you’ve gotta move or go hungry.  And perhaps most importantly, once you move, you can’t be halfhearted about it; then even if you fail, you’ll know you really went for it.

And always – always – look at the camera when your picture’s being taken.  *grin*

Lesson of the Downpour

I recently came across a quotation from a book called The Hagakure, one of the most well-known commentaries on bushido, the martial code of the Japanese samurai.  The contents of the book date from the early 1700s, and while not all of the instructions are in line with my own philosophies, there is a lot of good stuff to think about in there.  The particular quotation from this book that I’ve been thinking about comes from an instruction called “Fear Not the Rain.”

One must know the so-called “lesson of a downpour.”  A man, caught in a sudden rain en route, dashes along the road not to get wet or drenched.  Once one takes it for granted that in rain he naturally gets wet, he can be in a tranquil frame of mind even when soaked to the skin.  This lesson applies to everything.

I have found this lesson coming to mind in many different situations (rain included!) and it helps me to accept things that I find uncomfortable, but unavoidable.  The notion that of course I’m going to get wet in the rain keeps me from treating the downpour as some kind of personal affront, as if somehow I should be exempted from its consequences.  And, for that matter, it helps me become aware that I was feeling that way about it in the first place.  (It sounds pretty silly to put it into words for this post, but I doubt I’m the only one ever to feel this way.  )

A few weeks ago, we had a massive downpour as a thunderstorm rolled in.  I was safely inside, but on a branch outside my window, a tiny hummingbird was trying desperately to flick the water off her wings.  She fluttered and fidgeted, looking around with such agitation that I wanted to tell her, “It’s ok.  It’s only natural to get wet when it rains.”  Of course, I wasn’t about to go outside and join her, so it’s probably just as well I didn’t try to offer any platitudes.  While it can be wonderfully freeing to approach our own troubles in this way, it is usually not helpful to dismiss the difficulties of others as “only natural,” unless they themselves are trying to see them that way.

After all, the other side of the coin is the ability to change the situation when we can.  Accepting that I will get wet in the rain doesn’t mean I can’t open an umbrella or look for shelter.  Acceptance isn’t the same as apathy – in fact, recognition and acceptance of the situation as it is, is a necessary part of taking steps to change it.  So we can recognize the “naturalness” of a situation and still lend a hand, whether or not anyone else involved sees it that way.  There wasn’t much I could do for that little hummingbird other than hope she could find a more sheltered perch, but I could at least acknowledge her discomfort (even as I found it adorable.)  Because hey, sometimes discomfort in the rain is natural, too.

Addendum: It’s entirely possible (probable, really, the more I think about it) that I was completely wrong about the hummingbird, and she was actually enjoying herself while taking a shower.    But really, that just brings up another possible point to take from it: that is, not to assume that our own preferences are shared by everyone.  To me, she appeared extremely uncomfortable, repeatedly wiping her face on the branch and moving as if she wanted to throw off every drop that landed – but perhaps I was simply projecting my own dislike of getting water in my eyes.  In that case, perhaps she was providing an even stronger example of how to deal with the rain: don’t just accept it, play in it!

Joy

To me, hummingbirds radiate joy.  Even when they’re squabbling, or chasing one another away from a favorite flower patch, they do so with an exuberance that is infectious to watch.  Their high, twittering voices even sound like laughter as they swoop and dart through the air.

So, in this very brief blog post, I wish you joy.  Pass it on.

Growing

I got home yesterday after a week of travel and traffic and family chaos, so when I sat down today I was hoping to find a topic that would kind of bring me back from that, rather than looking for something within that experience to talk about.  And sometimes when I’m searching for something to blog about, I like to either look through the pictures I have taken recently, or just go outside and see what’s beckoning to my camera.  Often something in the natural world will suggest itself as a metaphor for something I’ve been thinking about or working on lately.

After a week away – and that during a brutally dry heat-wave – one of my main concerns was to see how my garden was doing, so that’s where I brought my camera yesterday.  It had actually survived very well, and I was gratified to find that our cucumber plants are starting to produce little baby cucumbers!  This is the first year we’ve planted these, so I didn’t know what to expect, but when I pulled back one of the flat, spiny leaves I discovered a clutch of prickly little proto-cukes that made me very happy (and reminded me that I really need to prop my plants up now.)

But I was really struck by just how thorny those little guys are!  I certainly didn’t want to grab hold of the smaller ones in that picture, with their spines concentrated so closely, and even the larger one pricked my fingers.  (Sure, they’re not huge thorns or anything, but they definitely say “handle with care!”)

So it got me thinking about the nature of self-protection, but my thoughts kept going in multiple directions.  On the one hand, I could say that sometimes we need a stronger defense when we’re tender and naive, and that as we grow wiser we begin to learn how to handle ourselves without the need for such a dense layer of thorns.  On the other hand, I could look at how we might have a tendency to keep ourselves small in order to stay sharp and prickly, but as we learn to expand and open ourselves, we let those thorns shrink – or, rather, we ourselves grow beyond them.

Of course, both metaphors do break down a bit when I simply go pick the cucumber and brush away its spines…but maybe that’s got a lesson for us, too.

Bright and dark blessings,
Oraia Sphinx

A Witch Away

For me, summer usually includes a few trips to see family in other states, and while it’s nice to have some time off, family visits usually don’t involve as much relaxation as I’d really like.  On the one hand, it really is nice to see people, but on the other hand, I never really feel like I can be myself around my family.  I end up feeling anxious and tense, like I had to leave part of myself at home.  It’s not just about religion, either; I often feel like I’m walking a tightrope when it comes to expressing my opinions without getting into a big screaming fight about politics, history, or lifestyle choices as well.

In situations like this, I find it really helps to make time for at least some of my daily spiritual practices, no matter where I am.  Performing an LBRP or other cleansing/banishing/shielding ritual around the room where I’ll be sleeping often helps me feel more at home and helps me sleep better, for example.  I also like to bring a few things with me that can act as touchstones to remind me of who I am.  Those things change depending on the situation and how I’ve been feeling, but I’ll usually bring one of my magical oils to wear as perfume while I’m away, and often a small crystal or figurine to set beside my bed.  I’ll bring jewelry that speaks symbolically to me while remaining inconspicuous to others, and maybe a book or tarot deck that I can spend time with before falling asleep.

One last thing I do is try to spend some time outside, or in a quiet part of the house I’m in, tuning in to the local energy and saying hello to the spirits of the land.  I mean, they may not get a lot of attention most of the time, if they’re surrounded by people who don’t realize they’re there! Generally speaking, they seem to appreciate a little outreach now and then, once they get over their surprise. 

I guess what all of these strategies have in common is the idea that acting as a Witch is the best way to remind myself that I am a Witch, when I find myself in situations where I don’t feel comfortable saying that I’m a Witch.  Makes sense to me.

How about you?  How do you keep your spiritual center when you find yourself away from your home base and in a situation where you want to be a little more low-key than usual?  Or do you just put it all out there anyway?  I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Blessings,
Oraia

Celebrating Curiosity

The important thing is not to stop questioning;
curiosity has its own reason for existing.

(All quotes by Albert Einstein)

Curiosity often gets a bad rap, and historically has been viewed as a mixed blessing at best.  The story of  Pandora’s box provides one example of this dim view of curiosity, and of course the Biblical temptation that led to the Fall was in essence an appeal to curiosity.  Bringers of knowledge, while often equated with bringers of light, tend to incur the wrath of both Gods and men, for (as the motto of Futurama’s Mars University wryly declares) “Knowledge Brings Fear.”

And yet, within the modern pagan and magical communities, “To Know” is usually listed at the head of the powers or principles that make up the Witches’ Pyramid, also known as the Four Powers of the Sphinx or the Powers of the Magus.  For many, if not most, of us, this knowledge is taken not only as an injunction to Know Ourselves, but also translates into a desire to Know Our World.

One cannot help but be in awe when contemplating the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality.
It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of the mystery every day.

Many observers of the modern pagan movement have remarked on the prodigious rate at which we devour books, and there seems to be an ever-increasing demand for more knowledge.  It seems that once we catch a glimpse of the hidden side of nature – its symbols, energies, occult properties and deep connections – we simply cannot get enough.  For many of us, this also leads to a renewed connection with the more tangible aspects of nature as well.  We follow the spiral from the physical to the metaphysical back to the physical, inward and back out again, to gain a greater understanding of the whole.

This sort of continuous exploration has been a driving motivation behind my monthly podcast, Media Astra Ac Terra, and its blend of the physical sciences and occult disciplines.  I believe it is important to approach the heavens in terms of astronomy as well as astrology, and to study not only the metaphysical properties of minerals and crystals, but their physical properties as well.  (These are the two areas I focus on in the podcast, but the same goes for any other area of study.)

After all, if we limit our inquiries only to those books that present the occult or metaphysical side of things and ignore the marvels revealed by science, we become as blind as those who believe there is nothing beyond the physical, and that science gives us all there is to know.  Both approaches hobble our ability to truly understand the universe.

The important thing is not to stop questioning;
never lose a holy curiosity.

Curiosity also requires enough honesty and humility to recognize that we do not have all the answers, and the ability to relinquish our assumptions if they turn out to be in error.  The most incurious people are those who believe they already know all they need to know.  This may be rooted in religious tradition, scientific arrogance, or the simple assumption that one’s own experience is universally shared.  There may even be a tendency to view curiosity as a form of doubt, and questioning as weakness of faith.  But the ability to question our own beliefs and consider other possibilities is a necessary part of deepening our spiritual paths.

The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious.
It is the fundamental emotion that stands
at the cradle of true art and true science.
Whoever does not know it and can no longer wonder,
no longer marvel, is as good as dead,
and his eyes are dimmed.

Curiosity is what leads us out of ourselves, to answer the call of the mysterious.

(This post is a contribution to the 2010 International Pagan Values Blogging and Podcasting Month event.  Click the link for many more contributing posts, and thanks to Pax for organizing it!)

The important thing is not to stop questioning; curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when contemplating the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of the mystery every day. The important thing is not to stop questioning; never lose a holy curiosity.

Light and Shadow

The language and imagery of Light is abundant in the spiritual discourse of many traditions – we speak of enlightenment, illumination, LVX.  And it seems a natural fit; generally speaking, we humans are highly visual creatures, and we often extend the metaphor of sight to the realm of understanding.  “Oh, I see!”

Spiritual understanding is no different.  And since our eyes require light to see, it is no surprise that our metaphors often include the presence of light to indicate the revelation of a new understanding.  And yet, there are times when brighter light only makes it harder to see, as if we’re trying to stare into the sun.

Sometimes it may be worth asking, is it the light or the shadow that is showing me something new?  Which one is making things difficult?  Can we ever really separate the two?

How many wings does this dragonfly have?

Bright and dark blessings,
Oraia

Names Revisited

I was thinking a little more about yesterday’s post about names, and wanted to revisit the subject a bit.  First of all, I want to re-emphasize that this is simply my current approach to names, and your mileage may vary.  Not everyone feels the need to take on any name other than the one they were given, and the use of a magical name is not required in order to practice either ceremonial magic or witchcraft, though it is very common in both.

The use of three names is similarly optional.  You may find that the name you adopt for your public persona really does form a connection with your deep magical self, regardless of how many people know it.  Or you may find yourself skipping the public name entirely and discovering a magical name to use in your practice and the privacy of your own heart.  But I do think there is power in drawing a distinction between names for public use or online personas, and names of power that are only used in a magical context, even if you only use one or the other.

I think that applies even for those of us who don’t see magic as something separate from our “everyday” lives, too.  Because no matter how much we integrate it into our lives, most of us live surrounded by a larger culture that does not accept the existence of magic.  In the face of that, being able to touch a deep connection to our magical selves can be vital to keeping that magic integrated into our lives.  One way to do that is with a name.

However, just as not everyone chooses a public craft name right away (or at all), it will likely take some time for the magical Name to make itself known.  Generally speaking, the fledgling ceremonial magician does not know the name of his or her Holy Guardian Angel, and the beginning witch does not instantly have access to his or her magical Name.  Especially in a culture that denies the existence of such things, lines of communication need to be opened before they become clear.

I think it’s worth making the distinction, though, between not having a Name and not knowing it yet.  Thinking of it as something you don’t know yet will likely make it easier to stay open to hearing it, versus repeatedly telling yourself that it’s something you don’t have.

That last point may reflect my tendency to see the magical Name as similar to the name of the Holy Guardian Angel, something that one discovers rather than something one chooses.  Again, your mileage may vary.  In any case, there’s no need to rush things, and even if you do take a similar approach to mine, I think it’s ok to choose a name to start with, in order to begin building that connection.

So this has been me thinking “out loud” here on the blog, mulling over my approach to names and why I see them split into three different types.  Trying to generalize about anything is usually tricky, especially when we get into areas of self-identification and self-knowledge, which is where I see the question of Names residing.  I’d be interested in hearing your approach to names, dear Reader, and how you see them fitting into your spiritual and/or magical practice.  Do tell!

Bright and Dark Blessings,
Oraia Sphinx