Contemplify NonRequired Reading List Email for May 31, 2018
The May NonRequired Reading List
Contemplatives,
I’ve been having a wild time this past month sinking my incisors into the myths that chart the evolution of human consciousness. I have found mythology to be the red marker tracing the maps of our ancestors’ search for meaning. Each myth is a cosmic lure in the tacklebox of the universe (I admit, that was a bit of a metaphorical stretch). Myths outline the framework for making sense of reality and create space for individual and collective rituals to refresh the ordinary. Myths are the origin stories that reveal the roots and evolution of our charming (at times) and bedraggled (more often so) ragamuffin species.
I am using the term ‘myth’ in the way I picked it up from Mircea Eliade, Romanian philosopher and historian of religion. Here is one of Eliade’s working definitions of myth,
"Every myth shows how a reality came into existence, whether it be the total reality, the cosmos, or only a fragment -- an island, a species of plant, a human institution. To tell how things came into existence is to explain them and at the same time indirectly to answer another question: Why did they come into existence? The why is always implied in the how -- for the simple reason that to tell how a thing was born is to reveal an irruption of the sacred into the world, and the sacred is the ultimate cause of all real existence." (p. 97, The Sacred and the Profane)
That line is top shelf for me, ‘to tell how a thing was born is to reveal an irruption of the sacred into the world, and the sacred is the ultimate cause of all real existence.’ It is no wonder that children love to hear about the day they were born, or why we insist on knowing how a couple met, and the box office numbers tell us that we love superhero origin stories too. The 'how' of our stories reveals the 'why' in our stories.
In the parlance of our times, ‘myths’ are oft dismissed as untruths. If we play the game of mere observational objective truth, we miss the deeper flow of ineffable meaning that contemplatives across the disciplines joyfully tap into. I am not dismissing the power and necessity of observable and objective truth, but reclaiming one of its overlooked dance partners - myths.
The questions that danced with my consciousness this month were in rhythm with the power of myths...What are the myths that guide my way of being in this world? In my religion? In my relationships? As a citizen?
Why did these questions arise? I think Eliade answers that --
‘The why is always implied in the how -- for the simple reason that to tell how a thing was born is to reveal an irruption of the sacred into the world.’
May this be a month of sacred irruptions.
Here is this month’s NonRequired Reading List...
The Sacred and the Profane: The Nature of Religion by Mircea Eliade (Get it at the Public Library or Indiebound)
I can’t say enough about the importance of this book and...I can’t find my copy. This does present a challenge. See, the direct quotes that I had intended to pass onto you were so sharply sapient that they sliced through the heavy dust built around the stodgy--yet popular--definition of myth. Nonetheless, we voyage ahead.
Eliade is a masterful teacher through the written word. He forgoes any banal attempt to regurgitate facts that dry out the buoyant history of religion or myths. Rather, Eliade maps out the landscapes, archetypes, rites, and practices that vibrate with universal meaning while still clearly expressing unique cultural articulations.
Eliade is a seer. One of his grand insights is that modern peoples’ attempts at removal of the sacred in the everyday, the seasons, and the structure of being gives way for nihilism to rule the roost. This is not an altar call moment by any means, but an invitation to see that our ancestors sought to make meaning by actively weaving together a larger story that they could participate in. I find tremendous hope and humility in this exploration. Myths provide a psycho-spiritual framework big enough for individuals and collectives to grow into and pass on a meaningful and generous life.
There is a fallacy lurking out there that contemplatives find enlightenment solely by the sweat of tending to their own fire. But the truth is, there is enough space around your fire or mine for us to sip on something warm while we try to make sense of the day-blind stars above...
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman (Get it at the Public Library or Indiebound)
After reading The Sacred and the Profane, I decided to dig back into the Nordic myths of my ancestors. Norse Mythology is a collection of the myths available (there are many more lost to history) formatted like short stories. How did these Norse stories speak to me today? I found them to be a more entertaining version of Aesop’s Fables, but with a cast of adventurous gods ranging from the dim-witted to the wise. Neil Gaiman has done a wonderful job of grounding the reader in the history and context while artfully developing a story arc. The sagas of Thor and the rest of the god gang in Norse Mythology are more complex and nuanced than the latest Hollywood iterations.
I would be remiss if I did not share the sheer delight (and howling laughter) I received from the myth, ‘The Mead of Poets’ smack dab in the middle of the book. The gist of this myth is that the poetic gift comes from mead made from the blood of the man with the wisest tongue. The myth is full trickery, shape-shifting, violence, hard work, seduction, regret and finally a sequence of unforeseen bathroom humor. Because bad poetry has to come from somewhere too.
Bede Griffiths: Essential Writings by Bede Griffiths, selected with an Introduction by Thomas Matus (Get it at the Public Library or Indiebound)
If you are of the ilk who are building a bridge between the shore of the Eastern and Western traditions stone by stone, you will let out a big ‘Kazah!’ while reading Bede Griffiths: Essential Writings.
‘All the Christian Churches, Eastern and Western, have to turn to the religions of the East, to Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, and the subtle blend of all these in [Eastern] culture, and to the deep intuitions of [Africana religions] and elsewhere, if they are ever to recover their balance and evolve an authentic form of religion which will answer to the needs of the modern world.’ (p.90 - 91)
Griffiths was an English Benedictine who made his home in India in the mid-1950s. By steeping himself in the wisdom of Hinduism, he was able to participate in Christianity with a freshness and clarifying depth (you can watch an interview with him here). Griffiths is what I like to call an embodied scholar, his wisdom was bodily worn through his life, stories, and participation in community. And this is where his writings land strongest for me, when he reflects on his own experiences and insights which further propel him into deeper mystical union.
This book is a lovely introduction to Bede Griffith’s guidance for those seeking to connect contemplative wisdom across traditions without conflating the differences.
Contemplify Update
The three most recent episodes of Contemplify…
Lauds (of Coffee) - this a departure from the normal interviews I do, more of a personal creative reflection on the Divine Office, or an open love letter to my wife, depending how you look at it.
055: Shaped by the Dance Between Landscape & Consciousness with Gail Straub (Author of The Ashokan Way)
054: Contemplate Your Death Five Times a Day with Hansa Bergwall (Co-Founder of WeCroak)
(Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, Podbean, Overcast, Google Play or Contemplify.com)
May the winds of June blow all mosquitoes away from your porch, loosen old logs stuck in your eye and cause revelatory irruptions of the sacred. As for me, I’ve been reintroduced to the summer sun who is making more public appearances here in Albuquerque, causing me to blush from the lavish attention or perhaps it might just be a sunburn. I hope the June air in your corner of the world tastes as sweet as it does to the kids roaming free in the park down the street.
As always, I am so grateful for you tuning in and being a part of Contemplify!
Tossing another log on the Contemplify fire,
Paul
P.S. Do you like rating podcasts? Nah, me neither, but perhaps your desire to help spread the contemplative word overrides that distaste of rating something. I would be so grateful if you were to take a few seconds to review Contemplify on Apple Podcasts or your preferred podcast player. And thanks to all who have already done so!
P.P.S. If you aren't tired of this ol chunk of coal yet, you can listen to an interview I did about contemplative shenanigans and ponderings with Nikki Rach on her podcast, Bible Meditation Podcast. Nikki generously gives of herself everyday (!) through her personal and heartful reflections on the Bible via her podcast.