Love is the answer

Love is the answer
Sounds cliché doesn't it?

But when you stop to think about it, here are some of the things we say/think on a semi-regular basis

In perfect love and perfect trust
Unconditional love
Peace is the way

Lets take a look at each one

In perfect love and perfect trust -- what does it mean? How can anything be "perfect"? What baseline do
we use to determine "perfect". Is it simply an ideology? I feel that the word perfect here would better be replaced with unconditional.. Then it takes on somewhat tangible meaning, clarity if you will.

Unconditional love -- now this one is given lots of spin but, in reality, it's just been that. We talk about people who have "unconditional love" for one another, though we usually find that they have taken a vow to "forsake all others" and are expected to live by some moral rules that someone else has made for them, usually the church, but sometimes one's culture. So how is this Unconditional love? It's not.. It's basically saying I love you as long as you do/don't do whatever prescribed thing is being discussed. Not that boundaries are "bad" but this shouldn't be considered unconditional..

Peace is the way -- This one gets a lot of play as well. But the world really doesn't want peace, not really, there's no money in it…

If we really wanted peace then would we be taught hate? Think about it… We are taught to hate other cultures,
hate other people, hate our bodies, hate hate hate!!! There's no peace in that… only bloody war..

If we really want peace then we've got to wipe away the hate and promote love, in all it's forms. We've got to get the state and the church out of our collective pants. Is this to say that sex is the way to peace.. Not in and of itself.

What I am saying is that we should be free to love one another, be it sexually or otherwise, this is how communities are formed. This is how things have been in the past and how, I feel, things will need to be in the future if we plan to survive after the system crashes.

I think industrialization, globalization, the interstate highway system, etc are what put an end to a lot of community.. If you follow the sustainable, local, CSA movements you can get a picture of "how it use to be" and what , I feel, we need to get back to.

To be fair, most of us aren't aware of all this. We've been prone to our inculturation.. Which basically says, we are individuals, it's everyone for themselves, consumerism, follow archaic moral codes.. etc

So imagine the surprise when we discover something different!! Very eye-opening, very refreshing..

I'll end this entry with a few quotes I find inspiring. These were taken from the book "Polyamory in the 21st century - love and intimacy with multiple partners"


ZEGG Community

"At ZEGG, free love is considered an essential step toward a new culture of peace, partnership, and sustainability." Their belief is that the only way to a free society is to create a world where love is freed.


Samuel Widmer

"We are lovers. Our guru, whom we serve, is the power of love. We are no longer in competitive relationship with each other, we have envy and jealously behind us. We have learned to rejoice in the happiness and success of others. That is why love and intimacy between us is possible, a common flowering, in which we share all the happiness and love together. Those of us who have become a vessel of love are kings and queens. Because they are the love, they are our gurus, our teachers."

Dane Rudhyar

"What is needed now … is a new type of group relationship in which the individual ego-patterns, and the conjugal tensions can be absorbed, smoothed out and harmonized by a sense of common dedication to a vital social-cutural and spiritual purpose -- a transforming purpose. What is needed is a group of a few adults, perhaps from four to ten, which can provide a varied and loving, but not possessive and complex-ridden environment in which children may grow up in multiple interplay … The seed group should not be conceived in terms of 'hedonistic' purpose -- ie, for the sake of pleasure and comfort -- but rather in terms of what I would call a heroic determination to help create a new type of social consciousness based on an open, unpossessive and polyvalent love."

John Lennon - Mind games

We're playing those mind games together,
Pushing barriers, planting seeds,
Playing the mind guerilla,
Chanting the Mantra peace on earth,
We all been playing mind games forever,
Some kinda druid dudes lifting the veil.
Doing the mind guerilla,
Some call it the search for the grail,
Love is the answer and you know that for sure,
Love is flower you got to let it, you got to let it grow,
So keep on playing those mind games together,
Faith in the future outta the now,
You just can't beat on those mind guerillas,
Absolute elsewhere in the stones of your mind,
Yeah we're playing those mind games forever,
Projecting our images in space and in time,
Yes is the answer and you know that for sure,
Yes is the surrender you got to let it, you got to let it go,
So keep on playing those mind games together,
Doing the ritual dance inn the sun,
Millions of mind guerrillas,
Putting their soul power to the karmic wheel,
Keep on playing those mind games forever,
Raising the spirit of peace and love, not war,
(I want you to make love, not war, I know you've heard it before)

Music is dance for the soul

Music is dance for the soul

ok so most of us are moved by some form of music. But what about the music moves us?
Is it the words? the rhythm? or is it something else entirely?

when you hear a song for the first time, what do you hear? How about on subsequent listens?

How do you feel? Does this also change? Say once you know the words and the beat? or depending on the mood you're in? or the setting?

Is music just background noise to you? or do you connect/believe in a deeper meaning? Do you find yourself trancing when your listening?

Personally I find I am most moved by music I can relate to on some level. Typically music that is both aesthetically and lyrically pleasing and conveys some matter of my beliefs on whatever subject/level.

Typically that means Pink Floyd. :) David Gilmour is both an excellent lyricist and guitar god. His word put together with his "singing and flying" solos can take me on a round trip from depressed to joy…
I often find myself trancing out to them. Inner journeys. This is the music I listen to when I want to relax at the end of the day.

One thing I find about music is there is something new I experience each time I listen. I typically hear a song rhythm the first time, then listen again for the words, then decide if I like it enough to listen again and try to put meaning to it. sometimes I get to stage two and just enjoy it for a while. Maybe get the meaning over time.. savor it.

Mood and setting absolutely has to do with how I feel about a song or music in general. If I'm pissed I might want the music loud and unruly (Pantera), or muted and calming (some Floyd). On the other hand if I'm meditating or doing magic or spiritual work I might want Anugama. I typically don't like songs I know well that have word when I'm doing this kind of work.. because I end up singing instead of trancing..

Music can be background.. as in the setting above… but it is a major part of my life. I can't play or read mind you.. but I love to listen..

So to me music is dance for the soul.. anything than can so radically change my mood or thoughts is powerful.. and welcome

But then again.. I'm crazy!!

we are stardust we are golden and we got to get ourselves back to the garden

The words we Speak become the house we Live in.. Ahh!!

But what does this mean? How does it apply to our lives, our world, our spirituality?

The words we Speak become the house we Live in..

Thoughts and actions..

When we reflect on this phrase we see that speech is, quite literally, our "inner-face" between our thoughts
and actions. "The house we live in" then represents our perceived reality. This reality is also how others perceive us, as in the phrase "walking your talk".

With all the issues we, as a world community face today, it is difficult to keep a Positive attitude. It's to easy to feel hopeless and start that downward spiral into negative self-talk.. to the point of depression, hopelessness, and beyond. I speak from experience!! While I still struggle with this (old habits die hard), I am working to recover.

Witchcamp this year was a true eye opener to me. I had lost most of my trust in people and hope for the situations we face as a planet. I took "The Bardic path" at camp. I've go to be honest, I was scared shitless to take this path. I'm not a person who is comfortable around people nor do I like to share my work/views with others, mostly because I've kept myself so closed off from the world, I was tired of being hurt. I knew Alphonsus was one of the path leaders and so I took a chance. I'm so glad I did!! The work we did was so profound. It was nothing I'd consider esoteric, but it was not you're typically daily thought patterns either. I come away with the feeling that words are indeed important, as is silence, and play as important as work..to get at what really matters.

So was it coincidence then,that I was part of the Hagalaz rune group? I knew change was imminent and though "oh shit!! Just what I need, more chaos in my life". Again, it turns out it was change for good..

I had an epiphany: Love IS the answer and Music is the dance of the Soul.

Yet again, Something so simple but so isolated in thought and action today.

I've lots more to write but I'll end with a quote from by FM Esfandiary

"The single individual who is relatively free of imprinting can function with versatility, freedom, and autonomy, and can begin to express a new kind of commitment - commitment not to a specific individual, not to an attachment figure, but to a much greater environment. If it is possible for us to identify with and be committed to a specific person or group, it ought to become possible for us to reprogram so that we can begin to identify with and be committed to ALL HUMANITY!! If we can transcend imprinting, it is possible to empathize with everybody… Individuals who are committed to their creative work, to causes, jobs and movements, are already moving in this direction of greater commitment. Ultimately, commitment to planet and all humanity will replace commitment to clan, family, or nation."

Happy Mabon!!

Oops, forgot my brain today ;) Happy Mabon

And a little about Mabon shamelessly lifted from About.com

It is the time of the autumn equinox, and the harvest is winding down.

The fields are nearly empty, because the crops have been plucked and

stored for the coming winter. Mabon is the mid-harvest festival, and it

is when we take a few moments to honor the changing seasons, and

celebrate the second harvest. On or around September 21, for many Pagan

and Wiccan traditions it is a time of giving thanks for the things we

have, whether it is abundant crops or other blessings.

Haagen-Dazs

ok this maybe sacrilege.. hell I'm pagan so go figure, right?

Haagen-Dazs is the yummiest thing
it is churned in the freezer of heaven
and tossed about in the freezer case
then it melts in your mouth.

Hail and welcome Haagen-Dazs

Ooops its gone.. Yum!!

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If this stone could talk

Another poem

If this stone could talk it would tell
of it's formation, the heat of magma,
the cooling with time and water,
what it's made from, what it breaks down into,
it's elements. It's journey as a whole
and in part. It's wisdom from those journeys, trials
and tribulations, joys and pains.
What it's seen, or not seen, where it's been,
where it hopes to go.
It is mystery but, all will be reveled, in time.
A human lifetime is but a blip on a stones radar.
Who counts time in eons instead of hours and minutes.

If this stone could talk, perhaps it could teach us forgotten
skills, or provide insite on how to save ourselves, from ourselves.

Perhaps we would listen, if this stone could talk.

Silence

As promised.. here is one of the poems I wrote during camp this year
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Silence

What's that you say?

Why the hurtful words?

Do you think before you speak, or simply spew the hatred?

Reacting with empty thought, instead of loving intent.

Are you able to hear the words over the anger?

Are you able to see the pain you cause?

Do you feel emotion or only cold comfort?

You are not alone!!

How can we heal the wounds that cause the pain?

The pain that makes one react so

How do we convey our true emotions,

instead of a rough outer shell?

What if humanity suddenly lost the ability to speak?

What if we had to communicate by sight and feel only?

How would this changer emotions,

Our thoughts and actions?

Would we be so materialistic,

or would we see our time as more valuable?

Would we still exploit each other and this universe,

or do all we could to heal her?

Would we see and feel the pain?

Be silent for a day, or even for an hour.

Observe, listen, see, feel