Sunday, April 11, 2010

History's Mysteries



I'm reading The Secret History of the World by Mark Booth. What a hoot. It is a history told from the point of view of European and American secret societies and magical traditions since the middle ages. It is so so funny, totally reflecting the opportunistic "us first" mindset of we Europe-centric people. That mindset, that the world was created exclusively for us, and to hell with other cultures as well as every other species, extended deeply into every corner of our thinking, including, of course, religious and mystical traditions.

For heaven's sake.

Is it any surprise that the U.S. was founded by members of one such secret society, the Freemasons? When you think of U.S. history in that light, so much of what went wrong here makes perfect sense. Manifest destiny and all other related Euro-centric ideas, like "the sun never sets on the British Empire," are fantasies that have passed their expiration dates. But I'm glad he wrote the book because it is SO entertaining.

I am so NOT a magical thinker anymore. Secrets held by mystical hierarchies are more about the egos of the adepts than about any "real" truth, according to the cosmology of Reya, that is. The world makes itself available to every one of us whether we are a high fallutin' windbag of a high priestess (as I once was) or just some ordinary Joe. Do you want to become one with the multiverse? Go sit outside in a beautiful place and quiet your mind. Or go to a yoga class, any yoga class. Open your mind, the truths will come into it. You do not have to be initiated or apprentice yourself to some mystical egomaniac. You're just as capable of penetrating the mysteries as any High Poobah. Believe me!

The practice of superimposing symbols on top of everything, occult ritual, the idea that there are secret methods out there, secret teachings through which we can become more powerful than we already are, methods that can only be learned from those higher up on the ladder of mystical hierarchy, is total crap. That kind of thinking leads to conflict, power struggles, and paranoia and paradoxically away from empowerment. It all seems funny to me these days.

I'm looking forward to reading Jack Weatherford's new book, The Mongol Queens which is all about the daughters of Ghenghis Khan and how they saved his empire, or so it says on the cover of the book. His revisionist history of the life of Ghenghis Khan is fabulous and available in paperback. Well worth reading!

13 comments:

Cheryl Cato said...

:-) Lizzy

Tom said...

ooh, the book sounds interesting, as do your open views on life the universe and everything...do let us know if by the last chapter you still recommend!

steven said...

reya i laughed throughout this post and then when i got to the photograph at the bottom - well really if flowers can laugh - and i'm absolutely certain they can and do - then those flowers are laughing!!! thanks for writing this!!! steven

ellen abbott said...

Oh Reya, I agree with you so completely.

Dan Gurney said...

Very young children often say things that might have just as well come out of the mouths of meditation masters. Insight and wisdom are already there (especially outdoors) for anyone who can still the mind, open the heart, and listen.

And, like steven said, those flowers are laughing.

Linda Sue said...

YES! two more books to put on the list, Thanks! Oh high priestess of windbaggedness...LOVE YOU!

Susan Carpenter Sims said...

Hear, hear!!! I'm totally with you. When I was naively soaking up all the occult material I could find in my early twenties, I completely fell for the "ladder of mystical hierarchy" crap, but it didn't take me too long to see that most of the so-called teachers really were just huge egos.

You're so right - all it takes is a quiet, open mind. The ego doesn't like that though; it would much rather feel special through elaborate initiations and "secret" knowledge.

Jinksy said...

Wisdom always lies within the self for those who look for it...

Unknown said...

Great words about everyone having access to the multiverse!

Janelle said...

what's the history lil ms mystery...where did you papa go? great post reya! love as always x j

Reya Mellicker said...

One thing I could have said in the post is the in order to gain wisdom, you have to study. Whether it's through nature or books or conversations with like minded people, or meditation or all of the above, it does take focus.

But the ceremonial magic I used to think was so cool now seems absolutely ridiculous to me.

Glad we all could share a good laugh.

Tom I'll hang on to the book, pass it on to you when you're here.

Ronda Laveen said...

The gurus I know all say the same thing about indivual access to all of life's mysteries, on this planet and beyond. And your observation that it takes study, focus and openess is right on, sistah. All we have to do is open to the limitless possibilites.

Reya Mellicker said...

And - also should have said - there are GREAT teachers out there, wonderful guides who can light the way. But our wisdom does not depend on these individuals. It is completely dependent on each of us and the way we relate to the divine.

End of sermon!! High fallutin' high priestess, signing off!