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Published On: Apr 26, 2006 10:02 PM
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Published On: Apr 26, 2006 10:02 PM
The Shamal as Reflective of Heathen Dry Spells
I've heard it a lot, with variations, from many
people.
"I feel like I'm out of touch with my heathenry."
"Lately I haven't felt like a heathen."
"I'm afraid my day-to-day life is causing me to drift away from the gods."
Maybe we all feel that way sometimes; I certainly do. I hear it from others as well. I'm not talking here a St. John of the Cross-style Dark Night of the Soul; but rather a feeling of spiritual malaise. The feeling that one is losing touch with the gods, and that any rituals or actions performed are more by rote than by having actual significance. One feels, in a sense, a distance from the gods which wasn't there previously.
In Iraq we have a weather phenomenon known as the Shamal (I don't know if the spelling is anywhere near correct, but it's phonetically accurate. Shuh-mall.) The Shamal is a slight wind that nonetheless manages to stir up huge amounts of dust and keeps it constantly hanging in the air, sometimes for days. This makes the atmosphere close and uncomfortable, and renders visibility of more than a few yards hazy at best.
Below I have a picture I took in Iraq, from the top of my palace, looking at the palace next door:
I took that picture from the roof, and used a slight zoom to pick out the details. The next day I was out on the balcony, and the Shamal was going on. I snapped this picture of the same palace, from approximately the same distance:
(I used a different zoom level to incorporate more of the surroundings, but the spots from which these photos were taken aren't far from one another.)
Maybe, just maybe, our mundane lives are like the Shamal. They stir up so much shit inside us that we can't see the gods and goddesses, our ancestors, our beliefs, honor and pride, are as close as always. Because of this lowered level of vision, we start to believe the evidence of our "eyes," that those things we cherish are gone, or further distant.
Now imagine that this psycho-spiritual Shamal doesn't depart in a few days. Our frustration peaks, and the perceived distance feels worse and worse, thereby stirring up more of the emotional turmoil, which in turn makes those fonts of hope seem even further removed.
We all have ways of breaking this vicious cycle; ways that we have perfected over months or years of going through this emotional weather pattern. The trick is remembering what they are, and finding the strength of will to do them when things are at their most hopeless.
Stay strong, guys. And if this just seems like so much spritual psycho-babble to you, then so much the better. If not, then I hope this rationalization of the process means something to you.
"I feel like I'm out of touch with my heathenry."
"Lately I haven't felt like a heathen."
"I'm afraid my day-to-day life is causing me to drift away from the gods."
Maybe we all feel that way sometimes; I certainly do. I hear it from others as well. I'm not talking here a St. John of the Cross-style Dark Night of the Soul; but rather a feeling of spiritual malaise. The feeling that one is losing touch with the gods, and that any rituals or actions performed are more by rote than by having actual significance. One feels, in a sense, a distance from the gods which wasn't there previously.
In Iraq we have a weather phenomenon known as the Shamal (I don't know if the spelling is anywhere near correct, but it's phonetically accurate. Shuh-mall.) The Shamal is a slight wind that nonetheless manages to stir up huge amounts of dust and keeps it constantly hanging in the air, sometimes for days. This makes the atmosphere close and uncomfortable, and renders visibility of more than a few yards hazy at best.
Below I have a picture I took in Iraq, from the top of my palace, looking at the palace next door:
I took that picture from the roof, and used a slight zoom to pick out the details. The next day I was out on the balcony, and the Shamal was going on. I snapped this picture of the same palace, from approximately the same distance:
(I used a different zoom level to incorporate more of the surroundings, but the spots from which these photos were taken aren't far from one another.)
Maybe, just maybe, our mundane lives are like the Shamal. They stir up so much shit inside us that we can't see the gods and goddesses, our ancestors, our beliefs, honor and pride, are as close as always. Because of this lowered level of vision, we start to believe the evidence of our "eyes," that those things we cherish are gone, or further distant.
Now imagine that this psycho-spiritual Shamal doesn't depart in a few days. Our frustration peaks, and the perceived distance feels worse and worse, thereby stirring up more of the emotional turmoil, which in turn makes those fonts of hope seem even further removed.
We all have ways of breaking this vicious cycle; ways that we have perfected over months or years of going through this emotional weather pattern. The trick is remembering what they are, and finding the strength of will to do them when things are at their most hopeless.
Stay strong, guys. And if this just seems like so much spritual psycho-babble to you, then so much the better. If not, then I hope this rationalization of the process means something to you.
Posted: Sun - July 3, 2005 at 07:42 AM