Finding The Balance

I come home in the morning light

My mother says when you gonna live your life right

Oh mother dear we're not the fortunate ones...

-Cyndi Lauper

Recently I've been noticing something, not really that much of a surprise. I already know there's a kind of underlying order to everything, whether or not it's readily apparent. So what does that imply for us humans? Are we really unique among the creatures of this world? Well, yes and no. (Odd how often that answer comes up...) Like all living things, we exist on three levels. These three levels are kind of arbitrary, as there are a few different schools of thought on this, as to exactly what the nature of existence is. Here's the way I see it- on the one level, we have physical existence- our bodies, the mortal coil, whatever you want to call it. This level contains actions in the physical world, and their consequences- the things we set in motion cause reactions in the world, leading to either good or bad consequences. The three levels are interdependent, and one can affect the other. Consequences of the physical actions we take can shape mental and emotional factors and reactions, which in turn lead also to further actions, or lack of actions.

The second level contains thoughts and feelings- the mental level. Thoughts, as you can probably guess, are the progenitors of action, so you could say this level of existence affects the physical world. Here also are the motivating factors for our actions- thoughts, emotions, and also imagination. Say I want to build a house. How do I do that? Just start building? Not before I imagine the design, imagine what I want it to look like, what I want to build it out of, where I want to build it, and so on. This house doesn't yet exist except in this second level- it's not yet physically present. But it can be- based on my actions in building it. Emotions also play a role here- there's the stick-to-it factor, which can go one of two ways- either continue to work until it's completed, or abandon the project. It's really a combination of the two, emotion and logical factors. If, say, this house is going to result in disaster, somehow, it would be wise to rethink the plan, perhaps put it somewhere else or move the project in a different direction. Emotion comes into play when I consider the toll on the world, and on myself.

The third level is spiritual- our higher calling, those things that we may not understand but point us in the right direction- moving towards a higher purpose, moving towards the realization of our potential. I have to admit, this is the least clear level to me, and perhaps the hardest to grasp. But every person, whether they realize it or not, or can embrace that fact, have a higher purpose- to move from their beginnings to something greater- to build their own ;empire of dirt', as the song goes. I can't say this purpose is the same for everyone, only that intuition tells me that it's tied to this subtle and overmastering order to the universe. It's a fun little quandary, as far as free will is concerned. If everything is according to this pattern- how can we act against it? I think we have a choice at every moment, to do or not do, and with this action or inaction, consequences occur. No one is really immune from karma, which I believe also to be a manifestation of this underlying order. Often we're not aware of this action, and what appears to be free will is just that- free will. But within confines. We're all so deeply enmeshed in this order, that whatever decision we choose does not fall outside that order. Rather, it stays within, but we get the option of choosing which out of multiple alternatives within that order we want. So we do actually have the power to destroy ourselves, but a prudent mind will try to examine the alternatives, seeing which will lead where. This level of existence also implies a deeper level of communication and understanding- again, this is a little unclear to me, I sure as anything don't have all the answers. But at any rate, these three levels, from most readily manifest to most subtle, are the stuff our time on this plane of existence is made of. What lies beyond this, or if anything does lie beyond this, I really can't say, simply due to my own lack of understanding and insight on it. It could be we simply go on, in a changed form- after all, we know matter, physical matter that is, is neither created nor destroyed, nor is energy. It merely changes form. It could be that the less visible forms of existence operate on the same principles- or not. It's like the old Zen master answered when asked what happens after this life. "I don't know!" he said. "But aren't you a Zen master?" the questioner pressed. "Sure- but I'm not a dead Zen master!". Guess there's only one way to find out, and, well, reporting back on that state seems to be a bit of a challenge. Besides, I'm kind of busy in this world at the moment.

Well, either that makes sense or not, it made sense when it came into my head. Speaking of correlations, I'm noticing and trying to formulate exactly how the Tarot and Runes (should that be capitalized? I think so) fit together. It seems both operate on symbols- that is, a glyph, symbol or sign used to represent a more abstract concept. The Runes are complex, perhaps because there's less of them in number than the Tarot. The Major Arcana have archetypal imagery, more or less. Interesting that the Runes incorporate archetypes also- it seems to me that these Runes have more of a human focus- what I mean is the Runes relate to areas of human experience. The Major Arcana also do this, but seem almost to shift the focus off of the individual experience and move it more towards the inter-personal aspect. There are social and establishment-based archetypes in the Majors- the King, the Saboteur, the Wise Man or Sage, the Creator and Destroyer are a few. Carl Jung used the concept of archetypes extensively in his own psychological work, so I'd recommend checking that out for a fuller description of archetypes. Basically, an archetype is a universally recognized symbol or figure. These symbols are universally recognized based on the commonality of human experience. Some of the Rune archetypes that stick in my head are Ice, Chance, Increase and Destruction- these seem to be more based on how a person fits into their surrounding world- things that happen to them, thus perhaps making the Runes a more specific tool than the general forces indicated in the Majors. Of course, this is all speculation at this point. But the Majors tend to deal with somewhat more abstract concepts- here we have forces, not events. Destruction is an event directly happening to a person- so also are Chance and Increase. The two systems seem to have a lot of common ground, but whether or not they fit entirely together isn't clear. I think it's rather a different system to point to the same underlying order- the goal of both is to understand the subtle forces at work that may not be readily apparent, but nonetheless are indeed there. When we come to understand this, it can make us less reactive and more proactive.

It's a complex problem, but it's got my attention, mainly because it's a complex one. I might as well see what I can do with it, I figure. Apart from that, I'm looking forwards to getting home to Connecticut, and away from work for a little while. One week to go, at least as far as work is concerned!