Flux is your Friend

September 14, 2017 at 3:33 pm (Uncategorized)

The spiritual journey is not a straightforward linear path from ignorance to enlightenment. Enlightenment is a loaded term; for many of us it feels unattainable, mainly because most of us are not sure what it really means. We can feel unworthy of it, our human vulnerabilities and struggles leaving us feeling that reaching for such a lofty and ultimately undefinable state of being is a hopeless task. The very word implies a sudden state of perfect grace and knowing, that once achieved is unchanging; we reach the destination and the journey is done.

It is a term I find unhelpful. It seems to me that our spiritual journey is not about reaching some vague place of heightened awareness as an end goal; it is instead rather a meandering path, one of constant flux and change where we can move back and forth between states of enlightenment and ignorance. The spectrum between these two states is complex and rich and it is what gives our journey depth and movement.

We can get a bit polarised in our language. The assumption that enlightenment is good and ignorance is bad, is a little simplistic. There are states of ‘ignorance’ that bring their own important lessons. It makes me think of The Fool card in the Major Arcana of Tarot. The energy of the Fool archetype can indeed be reckless, naive and unthinking but it is also the energy of new beginnings, of that joyful launching out into the unknown. The image of the Fool is traditionally a young character, travelling light, just a small bundle on his shoulder. He is about to step off a cliff but his gaze is joyful and skyward. He can be viewed as both the trusting child, full of innocent wonder or the fool who cannot see the consequence of his actions. Either way, life would never move forward without the energy of this archetype; it is the child in us eager to experience the world; naïve yes, but without which, there would only be stasis and death.

In Tarot, The Fool journeys through each card of the Major Arcana, experiencing the Archetypal energy of that card and learning its lessons. It is a journey of discovery, transformation and integration but interestingly, when the journey ends in the fulfilment and completion of The World card, the cycle starts over and we find ourselves back with the Fool, foot poised over the void.

The implication is that we are in a constant cycle from ignorance to enlightenment, and each time we find ourselves back at the beginning, the experience deepens and widens but never truly finds an end point. I find this deeply comforting because it suggests that we never stop learning and that enlightenment is an ongoing, unending process, not a destination.

I have come to see the spiritual journey as building a healthy relationship between balance and flux. When we have a spiritual practice, we are in many ways seeking balance amongst constant change. However, balance is not a static state; it is a constant readjustment that moves off centre, back to centre; it responds and adjusts accordingly (anyone who does Yoga balances will know exactly what I mean!) and this ongoing adjustment and adaptation is a useful spiritual tool to consciously develop.

To give an example of how this relationship between flux and balance works, think about how in Wicca and Druidry, we build a strong relationship with the elements of earth, air, fire and water. We honour them when we draw circle and perform ritual; we work with them in Nature and also see them as being present within our own beings as our bodies (earth), our thoughts (air), our energy (fire) and our emotions (water). We work to bring balance between these elements within us, aiming for a healthy expression and interaction between them. What we find is that we are never in perfect balance – well not for long! We move in and out of ever-changing states in our emotions and thoughts, and in our relationships with our bodies and our levels of energy, and this impacts on the way that they work together. It is the same with Chakra energy; our Chakras – and the relationship between them – are in a constant state of flux. The trick is to embrace this and work with it; to acknowledge that our most useful lessons come from this fascinating balancing act.

I guess the ultimate lesson in all this is about enjoying the process; we are both fool and wise sage and everything in between.