tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1404350809002887333.post2247573022195507309..comments2014-02-09T20:28:55.939-08:00Comments on the adventures of myra eddy: Adventures in Alchemy #2: Snow Leopard's Notes on Alchemysharqihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10946168340402981902noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1404350809002887333.post-28189053407049314302013-12-28T10:15:02.796-08:002013-12-28T10:15:02.796-08:00I'm fascinated. I was always interested in mag...I'm fascinated. I was always interested in magic as a child and that fascination and dreaming has started coming back to me in the last couple months. And the thing about all the small creativities--learning to see the sacred, the magic, the creative energy in every day life is something I've had before (not in a long time) and find myself seeking now. It's amazing and exciting, but it needs to be cultivated. Also I know your speaking of cooking is metaphorical, but literally, I have always compared myself to "artists" ie painters, performers, singers, and felt inadequate. It never occurred to me until this moment that I have been an artist for a long time, and my art is cooking, literally and symbolically (and perhaps many others that I just have not cultivated).Roxanne Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08267678364320884194noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1404350809002887333.post-36827740464498186232013-12-15T10:54:16.002-08:002013-12-15T10:54:16.002-08:00Brigid sounds like my kind of goddess. I am inter...Brigid sounds like my kind of goddess. I am interested in knowing more!sharqihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10946168340402981902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1404350809002887333.post-81880826450401283152013-12-14T21:47:47.785-08:002013-12-14T21:47:47.785-08:00"Tapas is sustained practice, performed with ..."Tapas is sustained practice, performed with passion, dedication, and devotion in order to gain physical prowess." BKS Iyengar, Light on Life p. 257Ashleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01741166832975924830noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1404350809002887333.post-69338837263852539262013-12-14T21:42:14.317-08:002013-12-14T21:42:14.317-08:00Tapas is the burning effort that purifies the yogi...Tapas is the burning effort that purifies the yogi's consciousness, and is one of the individual ethical precepts (niyama). Tapas is the energy that fuels the path of yoga. <br /><br />I'm a devotee of Brigid and have written a good deal about her. She's considered a fire goddess, but unlike many of the other Indo-European fire gods she's not the flame itself, but the keeper of the flame. Brigid is a poet, a healer, and a smith. For the poets she brings imbas forosnai, or divine inspiration which transforms the poet into something akin to a prophet. As the healer she burns out illness. And as the keeper of the forge she tempers rough material into the craft that brought her people such great success (the Celts were known for their truly exceptional metalwork).<br /><br />This connection to fire shows up when Brigid was transmuted into St. Brigit; she is untouched by flame in a burning building, shoots fire from her head, announces her birth with flame. Ashleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01741166832975924830noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1404350809002887333.post-90477788626952866402013-12-14T19:40:22.054-08:002013-12-14T19:40:22.054-08:00I wonder if having these types of ideas being inhe...I wonder if having these types of ideas being inherent in the human condition is actually what has driven us toward evolving in our complexity. I'm thinking a bit here about Terence McKenna's theory that as humans evolved and moved from the trees to the savanna, they encountered plant allies--in this case, psychedelic mushrooms--which McKenna theorizes contributed to our significant brain expansion and use of language.<br /><br />I first learned about alchemy as I was going through a tremendous experience that, when viewed through a lens of western culture, indicated I was crazy. In the massive research that followed (when in doubt, do more research), I realized that mysticism, trance, alchemy, magick, etc., are quite normal in the realm of human experience. It's our current culture which views this as abnormal, and in doing so, strips us of our means of even being able to perceive, or to acknowledge what we are perceiving, when these things happen (visions, voices, etc.). I also do wonder when I encounter people who have "cracked up", how different their experience may be if they were given guidance by shamans, or even just a framework for this kind of experience, instead of being given drugs to dull them, and therapy that is often ineffective.<br /><br />Language intrigues me, and I find magick in the meanings and etymologies. I think that in some sense, all language is metaphor (etymology of metaphor: to carry across). We can talk about alchemical experiences in many ways, but they all seem to be slightly inadequate metaphors attempting to describe an experience that can truly only be experienced. (Thus, the 1000 books on alchemy that were not understandable by anyone.)<br /><br />I feel like our imaginations may be capable of much more than what we know is possible. On a good day, one where I'm not beaten down by listening to Christmas hold music for five hours straight, or a toddler who is hellbent on making the biggest messes possible, I like to view my life's path as being one inviting of magick and guidance by the universe. I like to experience synchronicities out the wazoo, to feel like my life is nearly effortless because of the exquisite flow I am a part of. Ha, not that that happens a lot anymore!sharqihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10946168340402981902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1404350809002887333.post-59389804867659416062013-12-12T05:38:02.968-08:002013-12-12T05:38:02.968-08:00Can you say more about the yogic ideas of tapes an...Can you say more about the yogic ideas of tapes and the Irish goddess Brigid?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03443985147405924822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1404350809002887333.post-21453787199245585302013-12-10T18:57:17.131-08:002013-12-10T18:57:17.131-08:00I really enjoyed this. As I was telling Carey toda...I really enjoyed this. As I was telling Carey today, I really value "tradition" when it comes to these type of ideas, where it applies. Relating to this, I've been working on the assumption that trance and mysticism are inherent in the human condition, and that every culture has some sort of mystic tradition. What you write about alchemy calls to my mind the yogic idea of tapas, the Irish goddess Brigid, especially Brigid of the Forge, and the Old Irish mystical poem the Cauldron of Poesy: http://www.seanet.com/~inisglas/cop1.html <br /><br />Ashleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01741166832975924830noreply@blogger.com