I’m probably not the only person to get more than a little
tired of old clichés in the spiritual community, but let’s take a look at one,
just for fun: “Are you walking your
talk?”
I’m not going to say that I think it’s a bad saying, because
it’s not. It has given many people
something to think about, reflect on, and do some honest self-examination
with. It’s succinct and easy to
remember, and the mental imagery works to get the point across. But it’s not enough, really.
Mainstream religion holds no appeal for me because I find
most of it to be boring, rigid, or far too dictatorial for my tastes. Original thought and questioning authority
are discouraged in far too many churches for me to ever be comfortable with a spiritual
path of that nature. There are too many
variations of “thou shalt not” in our world for me. I’m not interested in slaughtering innocents
or buggering bunny rabbits or anything, I’m talking about really stupid things
like community associations that ban you from planting anything off of an
approved list in your front yard or painting your house a different color. Societal norms that are unwritten are just as
bad, like clothing expectations limited to gender which keep men from wearing
perfectly good kilts to the office.
Most of the pagans I know are far from boring, and are more
likely to skip, hop, or jitterbug their way down their spiritual path instead
of just sedately walking. Many pagans
are proudly flouting rules as often as possible, when doing so doesn’t endanger
anyone’s well-being. We are a more
colorful, creative, boisterous lot of people than mainstream culture is
generally comfortable with.
In keeping with the theme of balance that every Equinox
brings, I do think we could use a little self-examination and bring our
Intellect back into balance with our Ecstasy.
We have bodies for a reason, and while I don’t profess to
know exactly what that reason is
(because there could be many, different for each of us) I do think that we
pagans (I doubt I’m alone in this) think more than we move. There is a path to Ecstasy through dance and
movement, time-tested and highly valued in other cultures.
Gabrielle Roth, in her book “Maps to Ecstasy”, has mapped
out five basic, sacred rhythms “that are the essence of the body in motion, the
body alive: Flowing, Staccato, Chaos, Lyric, Stillness”. I highly recommend the book, and several of
the videos on YouTube could be helpful in unleashing your inner dance to
further move you forward on your ecstatic spiritual path, and open up part of
yourself towards healing that you may find more exhilarating than yet another
game of Candy Crush on Facebook J
Check this video out, and notice that there is no
choreography. Each person is finding
their own body’s need to move to the music.
This isn’t about sweating for weight loss, it’s about moving for Spirit –
your Spirit. Go ahead, dance a little
way down your path and see if it feels right for you.
Peace out, witches.
Harmony and Blessings,
Alan
