Yesterday’s presentation went very well with an appreciative audience of a dozen in attendance to listen to my words of wisdom - such as these are - on ‘A Spirituality for Today’. Also the idea of my left hand produced artwork raised some interest and I even gave Hanna a demonstration during our social time.

In the evening I called Shirley, who was feeling much better and we talked for almost two hours. She is planning to explore her writing talents further and I hope she does, because I know from personal experience that such a manner of expressing done regularly, enhances ‘inner work’ outcomes. ‘Inner Work’ is the title of a book by James Hillman a Jungian psychologist from Texas, US. My description of such work is ‘the process of integrating personal life experience’. Such integration is necessary for the continuing enrichment and enhancement of one’s life, preventing stagnation and withering.

I did not do any of my usual art work or colouring last night, but gave some thought to topic of my next talk, which will relate to reincarnation as initial concept, but now is expanding to become ‘continuity of existence’. This is a much more comprehensive concept and could accommodate many other phenomenon under its conceptual cover or umbrella if you like. More later.

Saturday was spent on preparing for my Sunday talk and I made a short call to Derrick who was washing up in his kitchen after a potluck. He had made the old and familiar family Shepherd's pie using lamb; a resounding success he told me.

Saturday afternoon I noticed Michelle working away at our slippery side walk up front and I joined her in clearing off some of the ice and snow. The parking cars keep splashing melt water from the puddles as they park, onto the walks. This makes the walks slippery again as the ground is still frozen, but our work did improve the situation, even though we could not prevent the cars from parking.

In last Friday’s Writings I left unfinished my ideas on migrations of the holy, but with which I now want to continue. ‘Migrations of the Holy’ is the title of a little book (2011) by W.T. Cavanaugh , in which the author makes a case for the ‘holy’ having migrated to ‘nationalism’ as he so observes in his country of the USA.

A more comprehensive scenario was used by C.G. Jung in his book ‘Symbols of Transformation’ published in 1916. There Jung examines how life energy finds personal expression in dreams and in symbology within human society in general. Throughout his later writings he refers back to this movement of energy and transforming symbology. For example, Jung expressed concern, when the Fascist in Italy and Germany in 1930-ties start using the raised arm salute of the old Roman legions.

To this these Fascists add changes in flags and colours, which combines with their appeal to and manipulation of the masses. This made clear that new ‘spirituality energies’ were afoot, but appeared to be ‘circling out of control’ of the falconer as Yeats worries in his poetic symbologies.

Combining these notions and examples of ‘wandering spiritual energy’ I attempt to formulate a reference frame that gives place and functionality to this kind of phenomenon. I consider that important, because without any reference the character and intent of the forces at hand are difficult to define or even describe as to their ethical outcomes.

Enthusiasm - as in being god inspired - is a ‘pre-ethic’ force and therefore its nature, character and intent needs to probed with respect to the ethics of its outcomes. Those outcomes were an ethical disaster in the case of the European Fascists of the 1930-ties. This was not clear at the very start, when there was still little concern even by heads of state such as McKenzie King of Canada and Churchill in around 1935/6 still! Yeats died in 1939.

The point I want to make is that spirituality as such, needs to subjected to being probed, with the good preserved, but the not so good curtailed. This differs from the notion that the spiritual equals the good and benevolent. This latter notion predefines the nature of this energy and that is not be possible in the long run. It is necessary to include all possibilities that the energy of spirituality brings, because if we try to pre-select the desirable we will either be fooled or deprive ourselves of its power in our risk avoiding behaviour.

9:15am, time for a work break, which consisted of doing last night’s dishes. And now, at 9:40am I want to add a few words while the coffee brews.

While working away at the dishes I realised that the idea of pre-selected spirituality leads to the withering of its energy. I encountered this at times in the various religious movements where all is comfortable and nothing disturbing is let in. This reminds me of Peterson’s notion of the ruler who has become the rigid king in his book ‘Maps of Meaning’.

That kind of atrophied, dried up spirituality can reign with an iron fist, letting nothing that could possibly affect the inner peace and tranquility of its king cum queendom. Inner peace is desirable at times, but if it prevents experience it becomes deadly to life, in which experience is experienced.

Coffee is ready, but I add this yet. Peace without life experience becomes a mausoleum where all things have to remain as they were before, strangling life in the process. Peace should be an episode in our life as we live, but not a permanent state.
<9:58am and with editing etc. now 10:53am~