mythosophy

[mythosophy]

Sufi

”Forgetfulness of self is remembrance of God.” —Bayazid Al-Bistami

[mythosophy]

Zen

Reality has no inside, outside, or middle part. —Bodhidharma

[mythosophy]

Contemplation Seed 18

Saying 18: “Manifest truer versions of yourself” It is the case that our being is a flow of consciousness. As in a stream we float through perceptions, feelings, thoughts, moods and dispositions. We experience and express states of consciousness. While we experience events, we also act upon our states of consciousness. You are, also, the cause of your life’s events. Life is a mirror. When we…

[mythosophy]

What’s the Role of Education?

The website Classical Wisdom (classicalwisdom.substack.com) recently posed the question “What’s the purpose of education?” This letter is my response. Please note that telos is the Greek word for usefulness, purpose, end or goal; summum bonum is Latin for highest or greatest good: ’Dear Ms. Anya Leonard, Regarding Classical Wisdom’s topic:  “What’s the Role of Education?“ This response deals…

[mythosophy]

Contemplation Seed 17

Saying 17: “The unexpected always happens.” It certainly seems so. This statement cannot be completely true; sometimes the expected does occur. Then, is Saying 17 devoid of truth? I would say on the big, life altering events it is far more true than not. The way life can deeply shake us, we may come to justifiably believe that indeed the unexpected always occurs. As we experience the events…

[mythosophy]

Myth Definitions #3

“Myth is about a ‘beyond’ which must be located in a distant past or a space which is different from the one in which the narrator and his public reside.”  (Brisson, Luc.  Plato, the Myth Maker, 2000, p. 7) Transcend means “to step beyond.” The “beyond” of mythologies are the ideals encoded within narrative structures that inspire us to ascend beyond our current state of consciousness into a…

[mythosophy]

The Contemplative Path

Today’s Quote:  “…we travel from ourselves, through ourselves, toward our future selves.” A fellow Professor and Contemplative once remarked “We are all mystics.”  From the conversation’s context he meant that we are all philosophers having to face life’s big questions and determining our own answers.  Whatever our solutions, we all deal with such questions as:  “What ought I to do?  How do we…

[mythosophy]

Contemplation Seed 16

Saying 16: “Practice flexibility in your thoughts, feelings, and actions.” Flexibility is the daily, living reality of being childlike. A child is the recently departed from the state of Total Consciousness which it inhabited before birth. Children can better recollect or remember the Total Awareness from which they derived and so recently dwelled before birth. Consequently, the childlike know…

[mythosophy]

We Do Not Covet

Spoken by Mother, “We do not Covet.” But, why? Why not? Covet means desire and desire is a subjective motivating force that makes the world go ‘round. Greek myth spoke of Eros as a universal creative force. Desire creates conclusions, successful or otherwise, after preceding beginnings. Desire is causative. The world and its happenings could not exist without desire. What’s wrong with that? We…

[mythosophy]

Epigrams

The Soul (you) exists because of God’s love. Soul lives in the present, the here and now. Soul is eternal, therefore it will be free. Those who follow the truly spiritual path dwell always in the higher worlds. The spiritual path is through your heart. We will earn God’s love. We will earn our freedom.

[mythosophy]

Contemplation Seed 15

Saying 15: “Be childlike.” Navigating the twists and turns of our lives is made easier with a childlike attitude. No doubt, children can be mean, haughty, nasty, selfish, brutish, unreasonable, and capricious. Among other things. However, when they are at their best, they remind us of how innately uplifting humans can be. Children can be creative, flexible, playful, sweet, humorous, and…

[mythosophy]

Humility

Recognizing the holy script contained in every religious tradition, this month, we turn to biblical scripture; Psalms. What does religious scripture have to do with a Myth blog? Myth means “story” and “true word.” The truest words of each religion are its scriptures; its words of spirituality. Myth means “spiritual word” among many other nuanced definitions. Psalms 25 ”Make me to know thy…

[mythosophy]

Sacred

Encyclopedia Britannica defines “sacred” as “the power, being, or realm understood by religious persons to be at the core of existence and to have a transformative effect on their lives and destinies.” (Dr. Frederick J. Streng) Sacr or “holy” is the root word for sacred. Other derivative words from sacr are sacral, sacrosanct, and sacrifice. Desecrate is to “de-sacralize” or undo the sacred into…

[mythosophy]

“The will of God will never send you where the grace of God cannot protect you.” —Un

[mythosophy]

Lies and Lying Liars

When we speak truth, we are truly speaking. We speak our Word. Our greatest bond is when we give our Word. Unfortunately, we often swim daily through a sea of lies.   Not your close friends, but many others will speak falsely including, of course politicians and the corporate news-propagandists. A culture built on lies is not to be believed, trusted, or revered. Liars think they are getting…

[mythosophy]

Wild Rapids

Today’s Quote: “Keep calm and carry on.” Events, news items, seem to be speeding up. The underlying issues are heating up. Mobs are on the march. North America is on a wild ride. So too for many stress points around the world. Many wonder if the brakes even operate anymore? “Keep calm and carry on” was the British motto from the vicissitudes of World War Two. For a full year, from June 1940 to…

[mythosophy]

Liberty and Freedom

Synonymous or not? I used to regard Liberty and Freedom as identical and consequently interchangeable in usage. Looking into both, however, reveals difference. Liberty from liber (Latin) means “free.” (Weekley, An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, 1967) Liber can connote free of sin or free from fate. Libertas was the Roman goddess and personification of Liberty. She is robed, carries…