The Extremes of Eros

At the extremes of Eros, I can settle or demand, stop or go, wait or move. At the extremes of Eros, I can want it all or nothing at all.

Before I elaborate on this, consider the following:

Evolutionary enlightenment is the evolution of culture out of consciousness, evolving from a contemplation of religious mystery toward a spiritual realization of mastery, evolving through a balance that would cultivate soul and celebrate spirit, through sacred encounter with quality through acceptance of what is and through divine experience with vitality through assurance of what can be. By this definition, there are no mysterious depths we cannot plumb, no masterly heights we cannot climb. If and when we find and keep this balance between soul and spirit, individually and collectively, and if and when we find and keep a balance that would have us express and impress, cultivate and celebrate, then all will be well with us and the world.

Ekotic Elaborations

Ekos is my place in space - in my body, in my home, in my world. I can wander perpetually with only a fleeting sense of place and no sense of being in-place, or I can withdraw from the world and stay at home, in my body, separate from the world, with no sense of purpose, promise, or progress. My body is a vehicle that carries my sense of what is divine when I follow my bliss to express my vitality, but as a temple, my body is also a sacred vessel that serves to contain value and quality so as to make it possible for me to know what is valuable and desirable, and what is worthy and worthwhile.

The world is a container for all that I need and desire. The mind and the senses serve as a bridge to this world, and the world serves as a mirror of my every need and desire. In essence, when I give my will to X, and in return, I receive X, then I know that I can only be given what I am willing to receive. When I know what I want, when I know what I want to be, when I know what I want to do, and when I know what I want to give, having and becoming follow in their wake. In between the extremes of Ekos lies a delicate balance of power that forever seeks a stable equilibrium - a balance between soul and spirit.

The body is a vessel of sanctity for soul and a vehicle of divinity for spirit. The bodily urges of soul alert me to my needs and the bodily impulses of spirit announce my desires. The urges of soul would have me satisfy my needs, whereas the impulses of spirit would have me fulfill my desires. Urges would have me settle down, stay put, and keep my place in space. Impulses would have me move forward, onward, and upward to obtain, retain, and sustain a sense of purpose, promise, and progress. Potential conflicts between soul and spirit make it possible for me to know what it is I need and want.

In my next post, I will introduce the extremes of Eros in light of these elaborations.

Allowances in First Person

In addressing structure and purpose in relation to substance and orientation, I feel compelled to begin with these allowances for myself; perhaps these affirmations resonate with your own sense of what you need or desire as you make a life of satisfaction and fulfillment for yourself:

I allow myself ... to live, love, lead ... my life ... on my own terms ... in every way possible ... naturally, effortlessly, sublimely. I allow myself ... to occupy a position ... in a place where ... I can be, have, do, and become ... whatever I will or desire ... naturally, effortlessly, sublimely. I allow myself ... to bring the substance of soul and the orientation of spirit ... into harmony ... with the purpose of my life ... knowing that structure determines behavior and purpose unifies destiny. I allow myself ... to establish the structure of my life through the purpose of my life ... naturally, effortlessly, sublimely.

Ekos Sacred is the realm of encounter where we cultivate quality of soul. This is where we get our substance and sense of meaning. Eros Divine is the realm of experience where we celebrate vitality of spirit. This is where we get our orientation and sense of direction. When we mindfully balance soul and spirit with heart, keeping in mind that the body is a vessel for soul and a vehicle for spirit, the result is twofold: involvement and engagement.

Whatever we do mindfully, we do purposefully. When we cultivate quality of soul through involvement with the subjects and objects of our interest, we feed soul with sacred encounters, and when we celebrate vitality of spirit through engagement with the subjects and objects of our experience, we feed spirit with divine experiences. Encounters with soul give us encounters with mystery. Experiences of spirit give us experiences of mastery.

As we'll see in subsequent posts, the ultimate mystery and ultimate mastery lie at the heart of who and what we are.

Letting Go, Letting Be

Knowing that life is a [....], my purpose in life is to ...

When I did this exercise, I came up with three responses, all of which resonate deeply with three different aspects of me: Life is a beach; Life is a woman; and Life is a process. Knowing that life is a beach, my purpose in life is to ... live my life to the fullest. Knowing that life is a woman, my purpose in life is to ... love her with all my heart. Knowing that life is a process, my purpose in life is to ... go with the flow and be a part of this wondrous process.

In less than two minutes, the heart of my soul, being deeply feminine, knew exactly what she wanted from this exercise.

Just before I did this exercise, I received a heart-warming newsletter from a woman accomplished in the visual and healing arts. She had returned from the Peruvian Amazon, where she had spent a month in the wilds with a group of shamans. She remarked: "feeling the grace of the river, the exquisite green of the forest, the warmth of the air, combined with the simplicity and heartfelt presence of the shamans, I decided to pay more attention to my lifestyle, to relax and enjoy more, each and every moment, letting the flow of the river, the Divine breath, to guide and inspire me in each moment and situation."

She went on to say that healing (physical, emotional, spiritual) occurs with a relaxed attitude from a place of humility, faith, surrender, and playfulness. She added: letting go and letting Divine Grace emerge from within is our only task and destiny. In essence, I would agree with her with all my heart and soul. I would, however, qualify her statement somewhat, phrasing it as follows: "letting go is our most important task; letting be is our ultimate destiny."

All that we encounter, and contrive to encounter, contains relevance for soul; all that we experience, and contrive to experience, carries significance for spirit. Paradoxically, however, letting go requires hanging on; letting be requires clapping hands.