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There was a time, before all the shiny distractions of this modern age, before borders and nation-states, when the natural world’s dynamic pulse held our collective attention. We considered ourselves a part of the organic buzz and hum of life. There was a time we recognized our elemental connection with our planet’s daily turning.
Our natural rapport with those primary planetary rhythms has diminished since the Industrial Revolution. Sure, we got toasters and electric fans, but at what cost?
Now that we are well into the digital age, our connection with the living world and each other is even more tenuous. The collective focus of our society seems stuck on the deluge of information and commentary about the shallowest nonsense. We are losing our memory of life’s innate and sacred harmony. And that is sad beyond measure.
During the course of this modern age, many of us have given up our authority for navigating the more spiritual elements of existence. We freely handed our power over to our priests, pastors, and politicians, entrusting our souls into their care as we busied ourselves with making a living. It turned out that those we trusted with this most profound responsibility could only act from their own human weaknesses. They were not up for caretaking the depth of us.
Our priests abused our children while our pastors and politicians wound up pursuing power for power’s sake. And we were left in the darkness of microwaved dinners and the latest instant news. The only smells coming from our hearths these days is the flatulence of processed foods and regurgitated ideas.
While chasing after material well-being, trying to beat out the competition in the capitalism game, we completely neglected what’s most important: our relations with each other and with the greater, spiritual world at large, believing those others we counted on would handle it. And now is a time of great uncertainty with many of us feeling out of balance with life. We are angry and afraid, hoping someone will come along to make us great again.
Here’s some exciting news: This anger and fear is actually the current disguise of an ancient, heroic calling. We are being asked by life to reclaim our own authority and power to bridge the sacred and secular, to remember and express our connection with life’s unfolding.
We have forgotten that we are designed for a majestic responsibility within expanding motion of life. We think we are only here to consume. But that’s not even close. Our place in the world is to be enlightened and engaged stewards. And it seems like now might be a good time to remember this exalted role. We are way bigger than our bank accounts and the roles that the world of Caesar has demanded we take on.
Wisdom is inherent within the human mind. And by wisdom, I mean that wondrous, alchemical synergy of intellectual prowess and intuitive grace. We can hook into our potential for wisdom through the archetypical gateway of the Magician—not the performing illusionist on stage, but the shaman, creating and holding sacred space, being a conduit for life’s dynamic pulse, the heart of the world. We are designed to be channels for life’s deepest, spiritual expression.
An archetype is a grouping of patterned human energy manifested in thoughts, feelings, images, and behaviors. There are a number of different archetypes that came about as we embraced the creation of a mythological worldview over the millennia. But few hold such importance and dominance as the Magician. In fiction think of Yoda and Gandalf. In the sciences think of Nicolas Tesla, Albert Einstein, and Carl Jung.
There was a time when we knew ourselves to be a part of the Earth, when we were encouraged to fan that little spark of Yoda we all have within. There was a time we learned how to ensure the foundation of our homes and communities, the very center of our lives, was built on the solid rock of sacred space. We used to be the creators and holders of sacred space.
We once were Magicians, like we were hunters, growers, and builders, linked into the mysteries and cycles of our living world. We once were pillars, holding up our communities with a strength that transcended our puny ego anxieties and selfish desires. We once were vessels for the divine, pouring out the life force of the cosmos for the people. It’s a great tragedy that we gave up our power to be these cherished pillars over to men who just couldn’t step up. We’ve lost much. But we can get it back if we have the will.
Things are never what they seem, and perception is malleable. Magicians are able to ride the currents of constant change and align themselves with the highest movements. Like the ancient alchemist, a Magician can transform their pain and the pain of their community into currents moving towards healing and an expanding alignment with life.
The call of the Magician is still echoing throughout our civilization, perhaps louder than it has ever been. But it is competing with an even louder submission into self-centered mediocrity, nihilism, and mindless consumption. It’s our choice what call we answer.
We are being invited to create and hold the intention of stepping into our designed role. We do this by settling our mind into stillness and turning our attention towards that still small voice within, as we turn away from the world of Caesar and those tiny screens for a bit. Through settling into inner stillness, we begin to unlearn what the modern age has taught us, that we are here only to ingest in order to keep the economy going. Our inner stillness is the space we remember our original wisdom and how to act from its guidance. It’s time to awaken our inner Yoda and reclaim our natural role as Magicians!
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Photo credit: Pixabay