The juxtaposition of spirit and matter brings peculiar situation. Such as pain. Matter pain does not affect spirit, perhaps its outer perimeter, but not its inner core. "Curse God and die!" said the folk surrounding Job. "Let your spirit be overwhelmed." "No way," said Job.
De-termination means marshaling all one's forces against termination. "This is not over." "This is not ended!"
The eternal Oh Yeah!?
The body suffers and the spirit hovers. Hovers over the face of the deep, refuses to be sucked in, brings life out of the pain itself.
An old meaning of suffer is allow, such as in "Suffer the little children to come unto me." Suffering is a delicate balance between allowing the pain while hovering above and beyond the pain and when possible sending one's blessings to the matter at the core of the pain.
This applies to both physical and mental pain.
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Thanks! This is exactly what I needed to hear this morning. Emotional pain caused by others can put you down as surely as physical pain can. At least you can find a reason for the physical pain. What others can do to you can be beyond all reason.
ReplyDeleteI am de-termined!!
You are a strong warrior woman, Ginny. Blessings to you and the healing of this suffering!
ReplyDelete"Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me." - Mark 8:34
ReplyDeleteThe crucifixion image--the archetypal example--expresses this 'juxtaposition' as we (are called upon to) allow our-selves to die away while suspended above and beyond the Earth's powers.
Is this not the price exacted for our juxtaposition?
The at-one-ment beckons...
--MCB
This sounds like the experience of those who deliberately undertake spiritual trials, such as the Lakota Sun Dance. Leonard Peltier says that having undertaken that "Every pin prick reminds you...I am undefeatable."
ReplyDelete--Journey Tour Guide
Aha! Two more warriors respond. Yes! The cross is the perfect archetypal symbol of the reality we all face. And the story of Jesus and the cross is the story of each of us, our suffering, death, and rebirth. Pain may nail us, may bring us down, yet we are not contained by it and never shall be. Resurrection is the order of the cosmic day. All night is lit, luminous.
ReplyDeletePeltier is a strong symbol of refusal to submit to shrivelization. Spiritual trials, deliberate or no, increase one's faith -- "that watchful divine light that 'stands over every soul for what it earns'" says Ibn 'Arabi quoting the Qur'an.
As Yogi said, "It ain't over until it's over," and it ain't never over! Littlegeezer
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