Milfoil
It's often said or implied in spiritual and religious stories and texts that the harder the lesson, or the more difficult the task then the greater the rewards. On the hero's journey or the heroines trials, they face setbacks, swamps, deviousness, lies, danger and difficulties but in order to win the hand of the lady (become one with the great mother), obtain the prize or free herself from the hag, the seeker has to learn harsh and often humiliating lessons.
In the tale of Baba Yaga (the old hag), she lives at the edge of the forest (between worlds and between the wild and the civilised), she is an antagonist, wise and challenging, she eats children (takes our childish notions away in preparation for adulthood) and lives in a house on chicken legs (the old raised store/grain house where what is necessary to survive and grow are kept), Vassillia the beautiful is given 3 impossible tasks by Baba Yaga which she solves using not her own knowledge and experience because she is young and doesn't have that yet, but by a magic doll given to her by her mother (clan spirit helper).
Why is it that this timeless story which has echos across the world from thousands of years back and which reflects the true nature of spiritual or soul growth is now being forgotten in new-age philosophies? Why do we no longer value the harsh lesson or the difficult task? Why is it all about feeling nice, never saying anything that isn't pleasant and always being sweet and smiling? This is NOT how the Universe works, nor has it ever been.
In the many, many tales of the hero's quest, where the youngest brother sets out to seek his bride or fortune, and has to solve impossible puzzles, he often finds himself seeking the knowledge and wisdom of the old hag who tests him. The old hag is the oldest of all spirits, the Great Mother herself and we all know that she is both fair and generous in July but harsh and testing in January! She is THE source of all knowledge but only those who can accept the humility of being challenged by the ugly, nasty truth of his old hag will find the answers they seek.
One of the best things that ever happened to me was a nervous breakdown/spiritual crisis. From that awful time of testing and pain has come clarity but the testing continues and goes deeper.
Why don't we value this in our contemporary, open spiritual beliefs? Are we all so blinkered by the 'feel good' factor that we have to ignore anything unpleasant or painful, even if it is right, necessary or appropriate?
Our tribal ancestors, and those still practising these traditions, knew that babies and young children must be nurtured, encouraged and protected but there comes a time when a young person, perhaps only 13 or 14, just approaching puberty, needed to face pain, want, hardship, fear and themselves! They devised initiation rites, vision quests etc to give the child their own sense of self and power while, at the same time understanding their humble place in the Universe. The dumbed down version of this is the Christian confirmation or Jewish bar mitzvah which only focuses on a pain-free, pleasant bit of learning about religion and responsibilities but there is no experience, no soul connection, they are like reading a book about the sea but never having gone there or experienced it.
If we only accept the nice comments from people, only look for our own safety and comfort, only do things for others to make ourselves feel better or look good in the eyes of others, never listen to the justified criticism, never step out of our own comfort zone and never accept true responsibility, then how can we learn? These old stories carry a wealth of wisdom which seems to be loosing sway in our modern, comfortable, on demand world and I wonder how far away we will get before the tide will turn?
How do you value or give worth to the uncomfortable things which teach you? When someone challenges your status quo or your ego? How far do you go to speak or face the truth or do you believe that being nice, seen as nice and everything pleasant has more value?
In the tale of Baba Yaga (the old hag), she lives at the edge of the forest (between worlds and between the wild and the civilised), she is an antagonist, wise and challenging, she eats children (takes our childish notions away in preparation for adulthood) and lives in a house on chicken legs (the old raised store/grain house where what is necessary to survive and grow are kept), Vassillia the beautiful is given 3 impossible tasks by Baba Yaga which she solves using not her own knowledge and experience because she is young and doesn't have that yet, but by a magic doll given to her by her mother (clan spirit helper).
Why is it that this timeless story which has echos across the world from thousands of years back and which reflects the true nature of spiritual or soul growth is now being forgotten in new-age philosophies? Why do we no longer value the harsh lesson or the difficult task? Why is it all about feeling nice, never saying anything that isn't pleasant and always being sweet and smiling? This is NOT how the Universe works, nor has it ever been.
In the many, many tales of the hero's quest, where the youngest brother sets out to seek his bride or fortune, and has to solve impossible puzzles, he often finds himself seeking the knowledge and wisdom of the old hag who tests him. The old hag is the oldest of all spirits, the Great Mother herself and we all know that she is both fair and generous in July but harsh and testing in January! She is THE source of all knowledge but only those who can accept the humility of being challenged by the ugly, nasty truth of his old hag will find the answers they seek.
One of the best things that ever happened to me was a nervous breakdown/spiritual crisis. From that awful time of testing and pain has come clarity but the testing continues and goes deeper.
Why don't we value this in our contemporary, open spiritual beliefs? Are we all so blinkered by the 'feel good' factor that we have to ignore anything unpleasant or painful, even if it is right, necessary or appropriate?
Our tribal ancestors, and those still practising these traditions, knew that babies and young children must be nurtured, encouraged and protected but there comes a time when a young person, perhaps only 13 or 14, just approaching puberty, needed to face pain, want, hardship, fear and themselves! They devised initiation rites, vision quests etc to give the child their own sense of self and power while, at the same time understanding their humble place in the Universe. The dumbed down version of this is the Christian confirmation or Jewish bar mitzvah which only focuses on a pain-free, pleasant bit of learning about religion and responsibilities but there is no experience, no soul connection, they are like reading a book about the sea but never having gone there or experienced it.
If we only accept the nice comments from people, only look for our own safety and comfort, only do things for others to make ourselves feel better or look good in the eyes of others, never listen to the justified criticism, never step out of our own comfort zone and never accept true responsibility, then how can we learn? These old stories carry a wealth of wisdom which seems to be loosing sway in our modern, comfortable, on demand world and I wonder how far away we will get before the tide will turn?
How do you value or give worth to the uncomfortable things which teach you? When someone challenges your status quo or your ego? How far do you go to speak or face the truth or do you believe that being nice, seen as nice and everything pleasant has more value?