Sunday, March 27, 2011

Initiation Ceremonies (Ancient Symbolism)


Initiation Ceremonies have been an important part of the human
Spiritual Experience since the earliest beginnings of Time. They
are sacred, Esoteric Ceremonies bestowed upon only a rare few
individuals and are, without a doubt, the highest celebration of a
Rite of Passage.

Perhaps the oldest Initiation Ceremonies which we are aware of
are those alluded to have occurred in ancient Egypt.

These Ceremonies were memorized word-of-mouth rituals, recited
by Master Teachers, for the benefit of a worthy and well-qualified
Initiate. These rituals were forbidden to be written down and were
conducted in a secret, holy, and very private location; possibly
within the Great Pyramid itself.

History tells us of individuals who Traveled to Egypt for the sole
purpose of being Initiated into the Ancient Mystery Schools where
they received secret, sacred, and privileged knowledge. Among
the individuals we know to have been Initiated in Egypt are Plato
and Pythagoras.

Although the Mystery Schools may have originated in Egypt,
they eventually spread to other parts of the world where Initiation
Ceremonies where then performed in caves, sacred groves, and
"tombs".

All of these locations Symbolize the Great Feminine Womb into
which a worthy and well-qualified Initiate would enter as the Seed
of a previous existence in order to be "incubated", through a
process of deep meditation, and thereby be re-born into a new
and higher realm of existence.

These Initiation Ceremonies took place during the three days
of the new moon, the dark moon, the moon which W.B. Yeats
calls the "Silent Moon"; a time of darkness and meditation.

Mythology, legend, and folklore abound with tales of Initiation
Ceremonies. Whenever we read of someone becoming lost,
unavailable, or "dying" in a dark and contained place for three
days, we are almost assuredly reading about an Initiation
Ceremony.

Furthermore, mythology, religious texts, and folklore make
additional references to Initiation Ceremonies. Jonas spends
three days in the belly of a great fish. Jesus spends three
days in a sepulchre, or tomb. Odin (Wothan) hangs suspended
upon the World Tree, Yggdrasil, until he learns the secret of
the runes. And even Pinocchio gets himself swallowed by the
great whale, Monstro.

Here is an interesting allusion to a very powerful Initiation
Ceremony: We are all familiar with the story of Christ "dying"
and being placed within a sepulchre. After spending three days
in the sepulchre, the stone is "rolled" across the entrance to this
tomb and Christ "raises from the dead".

The Symbolism and metaphor contained within this parable
is very powerful.

In a nutshell: The sepulchre represents the Great Feminine
Womb. The dark entrance to the sepulchre Symbolizes the
three dark days of the new moon. The "rolling" of the stone
across the entrance Symbolizes the waxing of the moon as
it begins its new Cycle after three days of darkness. And,
Christ's "raising from the dead" Symbolizes the completion
of His Initiation Ceremony.

Please consider this: In many of the older texts Christ is
referred to as "The Christ". This infers a Title rather than a
name. If this is True, then it is not only possible, but highly
probable, that several individuals may have held the Title of
"The Christ". Especially when we consider that the Greek
word Christos (Christ) translates as "The Anointed One"
(The Master Teacher).

From this analogy it is but one small step to further conclude
that any person who was granted the Title of "The Christ" would
naturally have had to pass through some sort of a High Initiation
Ceremony prior to being "elevated" to that higher station which
that Title required of them.

When we carefully consider all of these thoughts, it is easy to
understand why the Initiation Ceremonies of the Ancient Mystery
Schools held such a high esteem, and why they were only made
available to a very select few men and women who were truly
worthy and well-qualified to receive this high honor.

Comments and Emails: I welcome comments and emails from
people with similar thoughts and feelings. My email address is
located in the upper-left area of this page. Comments can be
posted by using the "Comment" link located below each article.
Also: If you found value in this article please feel free to forward
it to other like-minded individuals, organizations and sites.

Disclaimer: None of my articles should be considered to be
either advice or expertise. They are simply personal opinions
and no more. Everyone is encouraged to seek competent
advice from a licensed, registered, or certified professional
should such advice or service be required.

© copyright Joseph Panek 2011
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Sunday, March 20, 2011

Rites Of Passage
(Archetype Symbolism)


Although we may be unaware of it, most of us have experienced
a Rite of Passage at least once during our Current Incarnation.

In our mundane and everyday world voluntary Rites of Passage
occur in various different ways. Here are two examples of simple
Rites of Passage:

A "probation period" upon beginning a new job during which time
our employer can judge whether or not we are the appropriate hire
for his or her firm.

A "jostling period" in our interactions with other individuals in order
to determine whether or not they are compatible with us. Should
we find that we are compatible with each other, we are then able
to accept each other as either a new friend, partner, lover, or mate.

These types of Rites of Passage are experienced by probably
every one of us during some part of our life. And, although these
Rites of Passage are valuable and important to us at the time, they
are the simple Rites of Passage which we may not even be aware
of experiencing when they are presenting themselves to us.

However, a Rite of Passage also occurs in a very individual and
personal form. This Rite of Passage honors the Sacred meaning
behind the Rite of Passage Ceremonies which have been practiced
and revered within every world-wide culture since the very
beginning of Time.

These Rite of Passage Ceremonies acknowledge, celebrate, and
remind us that we are a part of a perpetual process. A process by
which we leave childhood and enter adulthood. It is the honored
moment when a boy enters manhood and a girl enters womanhood.

This Rite of Passage is an experience we are fully aware of and
actually look forward to with great excitement, pomp, and
anticipation.

But, what is the underlying Esoteric, or hidden, Lesson contained
within this involuntary Rite of Passage which which we all must
experience?

During the early years of our life we are unable to take care of
ourselves. Therefore, in order to simply survive, we need someone
to take care of us. This task falls upon our mother for she is the
one person whose sole responsibility is to nurture and protect us.

Our mother, therefore, becomes the living Symbol for the Mother
Archetype who is feminine, nurturing, and intuitive. Our Mother
Archetype caters to our early physical and emotional needs. Not
only is She nurturing, but her feminine intuition makes Her Aware
of our needs even though we cannot, or do not wish to, express
them. She is our protectress, guide, and nurturer during our
childhood years.

However, there comes a Time, generally about the age of puberty,
when we are now able to fend for ourselves. It as at this Time that
we enter adulthood and are now responsible for creating and
experiencing our personal Destiny.

This is the Time when our Mother Archetype unconditionally
releases us. She steps aside and graciously sends us off into
the domain of our Father Archetype.

Our Father Archetype is the masculine, assertive, and rational
aspect of adulthood. The Father Archetype teaches us how to
"hunt", interact, compete, and survive with our other fellow
adults. The realm of the Father Archetype is where we spend
the remainder of our Current Incarnation. It is the realm in which
we either enjoy the rewards, or suffer the Consequences, for all
of our Thoughts and Actions.

However, although we spend our entire adulthood in the realm
of the Father Archetype, it is very important that we remember
the early Lessons we learned while living in the realm of our
Mother Archetype.

For it is by Learning, and retaining, the Wisdom contained within
both the Mother and Father Archetypes that we are then able to
understand the importance of Blending of Differences, and the
Union of Duality, which our personal Rite of Passage endowed
upon us when we crossed the borders of Toyland and left the
realm of childhood.

Comments and Emails: I welcome comments and emails from
people with similar thoughts and feelings. My email address is
located in the upper-left area of this page. Comments can be
posted by using the "Comment" link located below each article.
Also: If you found value in this article please feel free to forward
it to other like-minded individuals, organizations and sites.

Disclaimer: None of my articles should be considered to be
either advice or expertise. They are simply personal opinions
and no more. Everyone is encouraged to seek competent
advice from a licensed, registered, or certified professional
should such advice or service be required.

© copyright Joseph Panek 2011
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Sunday, March 13, 2011

Pacts vs Self-Reliance
(Angels vs Demons)


"Independence is happiness."
- Susan B. Anthony

We live in a realm of Duality. A Duality which expresses itself in
many different ways.

Duality is the parent of Choices. And one of the many Choices we
are presented with during our Current Incarnation is the Choice
between whether we will live our life by way of Pacts, or by way of
Self-Reliance.

As always, there are various degrees contained within all forms of
Duality. However, if we look at how Duality expresses itself in its
greatest extremes it gives us a better feel for how Duality presents
itself to us in its lesser extremes.

Throughout mythology, legend, and ancient texts, one of the
ways in which Duality expresses itself is by way of Angels versus
Demons; or, good spirits versus evil spirits. The Lesson presented
here is that, if our Choices are Angelic in nature, we will be rewarded.
On the other hand, if our choices are Demonic in nature, we will be
bound to suffer the Consequences...often dire Consequences.

With these thoughts in mind, let us consider the differences
between Pacts and Self-Reliance in their most extreme degrees.

Pacts: When we enter into a Pact we automatically place ourselves
at the mercy of external Events, sub-events, plots, and sub-plots
which are entirely out of our control. As a matter of fact, we can
never rest assured that the other individual or entity will honor
their side of the Pact.

However, because we have entered into a Pact, and have made a
Promise, we are Karmically obligated to honor this Pact even if
conditions Change, or the other party fails to uphold their end of
the deal.

And because these underlying possibilities are built into the
foundation of every Pact, we can summarize a Pact as being
conditional, restrictive, manipulative, constrictive, and limiting.
In other words, Pacts can Force us to do certain things, things
we may deeply regret as the Pact develops a "life of its own".

Pacts also contain fine print and implied expectations.They also
come with "strings attached". Pacts can "paint us into Corners",
trick us into undesirable Compromises, and shackle us with
Self-Imposed Limitations.

It is for these reasons that Pacts are the preferred tools of
Demonic Creatures and evil spirits who use Pacts as harmless
looking bait to lure us into their domain.

We all have probably either read stories, or watched movies,
of someone who makes a "Pact with the Devil". This Pact always
starts out as something exciting, powerful, and full of fun.

However, conditions quickly begin to change and the person
who entered into the Pact begins to understand that there are
underlying Consequences which he, or she, had not taken into
consideration when they entered into the Pact. It is then that
the person wants to get out of the Pact but finds, to their great
dismay, that they cannot. For it is not the underlying conditions
that govern the Pact, it is the Pact itself that governs the Pact.

In the end, this poor, pitiful, gullible individual always succumbs
to the Consequences of the Pact.

It is important to keep in mind that whenever we enter into a
Pact we are relinquishing our Free Will and potentially exposing
ourselves to Karmic Consequences which we will have to deal
with at some future Time...perhaps even in future Incarnations.

Self-Reliance, on the other hand, is dependence upon ourselves.

And this is why it is the preferred tool of Spiritual Guides, Angels,
and the Good Spirits.

Mythology, folklore, ancient texts all speak of Angels and Good
Spirits offering Spiritual Guidance to those who wish to accept it.
The Instructions and Lessons bestowed upon humanity by these
High Beings come in the form of options, suggestions, and
guidance which honors our Free Will and allows us to Choose
whether or not we will follow any particular Path.

Angels, Spiritual Guides, and Good Spirits offer us their guidance
without any "fine print" or "strings attached". Their assistance does
not come with any impositions. Nor do they require any sort of Pact
from us when they offer assistance or encouragement.

These High Beings simply present their Truth to us and then leave
it up to us to either accept it or discard it. They do not threaten us
with any form of excommunication, penalty, or force if we do not
follow their guidance.

It is the Eternal Nature of these Good Spirit to promote boundless
freedom, unrestricted Choices, spiritual liberty, personal
Sovereignty, and self-Governance; all of which are our guaranteed
birthright the moment we enter our Current Incarnation.

They are fully aware that the only torments and disasters we can
experience are those which we bring upon ourselves when we
Choose to either ignore or violate Divine Law.

As always the Choice is entirely ours. It is up to us to Choose
whether we will live our life by way of restrictive and complex
Pacts, or, enjoy the Independence and Happiness, which are the
natural by-products, of Traveling upon the Simple, open, and
unrestricted Path of Self-Reliance.

Comments and Emails: I welcome comments and emails from
people with similar thoughts and feelings. My email address is
located in the upper-left area of this page. Comments can be
posted by using the "Comment" link located below each article.
Also: If you found value in this article please feel free to forward
it to other like-minded individuals, organizations and sites.

Disclaimer: None of my articles should be considered to be
either advice or expertise. They are simply personal opinions
and no more. Everyone is encouraged to seek competent
advice from a licensed, registered, or certified professional
should such advice or service be required.

© copyright Joseph Panek 2011
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Sunday, March 6, 2011

Nature Spirits and Elemental Beings
(Symbolism, Mythology and Folklore)


"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious."
- Albert Einstein

Anyone who has read Fairy Tales, Folklore, or Mythology has
come across those magical and mystical creatures referred to
as Nature Spirits and Elemental Beings; two different terms which
represent the same concept and are therefore inter-changeable.

Elemental Beings are often referred to when characterizing the
Four Elements. They are: Gnomes (Earth), Sylphs (Air),
Undines (Water), and Salamanders (Fire).

Nature Spirits are expressed as fairies, elves, dwarfs, centaurs,
mermaids, minotaurs, nymphs, pixies, the Phoenix, the Unicorn,
and yes, even Santa Claus.

We even find a charming and jolly Nature Spirit appearing in
J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Fellowship of the Ring" whose name is
Tom Bombadil.

But what are these Nature Spirits and Elemental Beings? And why
are they so important that we find them expressed in all forms of
mythology, folklore, legend, and Ceremonies in all periods of Time?

Nature Spirits, and Elemental Beings, are the basic essences
which underlie, support, and are responsible for manifesting and
governing, all of the many different aspects of creation; not only
here on earth, but throughout the universe as well. In other words,
Nature Spirits and Elemental Beings are the Divine Principles which
are at the root of all creation.

The Ancient Egyptians Symbolized, memorialized, and honored
these Divine Principles in their Statues, Images, and Idols. They
called these Elemental Essences the Neters; a term we have come
to refer to as gods and goddesses.

Nature Spirits and Elemental Beings are the Divine Laws and
Principles of Eternity which simply ARE. They govern (are the
Masters of) specific aspects of creation and are immune to the rules
and Consequences of both mankind and the physical world.

These Divine Essences existed before any beginning and will
continue to remain after any end. They Truly represent the concept
of "being in this world but not of it".

To get a better idea of what these Divine Essences are, and of how
they interact with the physical realm, let us create a metaphor.

An author writes a story. Within this story are characters, locales,
conditions, plots, etc.

The author existed before the story began to unfold and will
continue to exist well after the story comes to an end.

The author governs the following aspects of his, or her, story:

...who the characters will be in the story;
...the personalities of each character;
...the behavior of the characters;
...the specific locale where the story will take place;
...all of the other elements and conditions which take place within
the story.

In other words, the story is the author's domain. The author brings
the story to life, gives it a life of its own, and sets the rules by which
all of the characters and elements contained within the story must
abide. The author is the sole Master of the characters and
conditions of the story's realm.

Furthermore, the author can change or eliminate any portion of the
story he, or she, may wish. The author can also add new elements,
plots, and characters to the story. Whatever occurs in the story is
at the sole discretion of the author; for this is the author's domain.

But, and here is a most important point, the author can only
make changes which are consistent with the theme and
essence of the story.

However, although the author can completely affect the characters
and elements contained within the story, the story can in no way
have any affect upon the author. The author is immune to the plots,
characters, and conditions contained within the story; for, again, the
author is the complete Master of this particular domain. This is
another very important concept to keep in mind in when considering
this metaphor.

Therefore, in this metaphor, the author is the Nature Spirit, or
Elemental Being which existed prior to the beginning of the story
and will continue to exist long after the story comes to its end.

The author also has complete control of (is Master of) his, or her,
specific realm...the story.

However, the author has no control or power over anything which
does not exist within the realm of the story. Therefore, the author
has no control over how his realm will be experienced by anyone
who enters it and is not a part of the story...the readers!

(We can further elaborate on this metaphor to include the specific
realms of artists, composers, inventors, philosophers, etc. For
these individuals too are, metaphorically, the Nature Spirits and
Elemental Beings of their very specific realms; and of the creations,
elements, and conditions contained within their realms.)

And here is where we come to the most important, and subtle,
aspect of Nature Spirits and Elemental Beings. Nature Spirits and
Elemental Beings are very specific, powerful, and limited Principles
which have complete control of only that aspect of nature, or
creation, for which they have been created to govern. They are
also fully aware of all that occurs within their domain.

They have minimal, if any, power outside the boundry of their
specific realm; save for that personal power which they possess as
a Spirit.

Nor do they have any power over the behavior and Choices of
anyone who ventures into their realm.

Anyone who ventures into a specific realm of a Nature Spirit is
subject to the conditions which exist within that realm. And in
this instance the Nature Spirit becomes simply an Unattached
Observer to the Events, experiences, and inter-actions of any
Traveler who wanders into Its domain.

This is why there are so many Nature Spirits, Elemental Beings,
Divine Principles, and Neters. For each one has a specific
responsibility, role and power; but only within Its specifically
designated realm.

Does this mean that Nature Spirits and Elemental beings are
not held accountable to a higher power? No, it does not.
For each Nature Spirit, Elemental Being, Divine Principle, and
Neter is a specific aspect, mood, or representation of the
One Divinity which, although expressing itself in many different
ways, is the One Power which governs all.

One final note. Although a Nature Spirit may not be currently
expressing itself in the physical realm, this does not mean that
it does not exist. Nature Spirits, and Elemental Beings, are the
underlying essences of all that exists, and can exist, in the
physical realm. These Divine Essences only make their
appearances when the Time becomes appropriate for them to
manifest themselves in a physical form.

Comments and Emails: I welcome comments and emails from
people with similar thoughts and feelings. My email address is
located in the upper-left area of this page. Comments can be
posted by using the "Comment" link located below each article.
Also: If you found value in this article please feel free to forward
it to other like-minded individuals, organizations and sites.

Disclaimer: None of my articles should be considered to be
either advice or expertise. They are simply personal opinions
and no more. Everyone is encouraged to seek competent
advice from a licensed, registered, or certified professional
should such advice or service be required.

© copyright Joseph Panek 2011
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