Now is the time for honest reflection. The disavowed shadow of America has come home to roost. The shadow is transparent now, and has knowingly been chosen to rule. Such is the inevitable karma for a high-minded nation’s persona that denies its self-serving underbelly. To truly arrive at the place of equanimous love we must first square with the needs and demands of our shadow.
The I Ching portended to me, just prior to the election, that the time of stagnation was ending and that the right ruler would be chosen. Indeed, the sweeping, one-sided victories of the election will end the stagnation that has plagued governance for decades. However, true success requires leadership that addresses the true needs of the whole.
We are in the time of the waning moon. DuQuette states, “The moonlight of Atu XVIII (Tarot Moon major arcana card) is that which illuminates the phantasmagoric nightmares of all of us who cannot acknowledge the dark horrors of our own fears. The Moon card shows a path through and beyond this nightmare, but it is not an easy path, and the myths of all ages and cultures prove that this journey through “the poisoned darkness” is an obligatory chapter in every hero’s quest.” (Understanding Aleister Crowley’s Thoth Tarot, p. 147)
DuQuette quotes Aleister Crowley’s suggested correct attitude in such a time as ours: “Whatever horrors may afflict the soul, whatever abominations may excite the loathing of the heart, whatever terrors may assail the mind, the answer is the same at every stage: “How splendid is the Adventure!” (ibid p.147) That is true equanimity.
The journey, so seemingly outer, actually reflects the inner fixation upon survival that currently plagues the human species. Survival threats, real or imagined, cause the subconscious to select the instinctual operating system that outwardly blames and attacks rather than inwardly assuming responsibility.
The hero’s journey requires a consciousness that seeks only the truth, regardless of how tainted it renders the soul. Christianity may have stalked altruistic love, but the human race has hardly budged beyond the reach of narcissism. The hero cannot skip over the needs of self, but is easily defeated if motivated by the needs of self alone. The keys to the kingdom are generally awarded to random acts of kindness.
The hero expands their vision by owning their nightmares. The culprit may be reflected outwardly but resides within. The hero calms the central nervous system with gratitude for all the truth that has been revealed. The hero programs the subconscious to override old unnecessary survival programs. The hero finds joy in the equanimity of the adventure, at every stage of its never-ending story.
The truth of now is that we are individually, and collectively, upon the journey of the dark night of the soul. That journey traverses the span between the solar plexus and the heart, from the narcissism of the ego to the refined love of the altruistic self.
The waning moon takes us through the shadow of our hidden truths. Beyond that necessary stage is the waxing toward wholeness, that which is to come.
How splendid is the Adventure!
Chuck
