Post by robincragin on Oct 27, 2015 17:04:35 GMT -5
Meditative Question: What is power?
Symbolic Color: Red
Symbolic Direction: South
Contemplation:
Power is an important issue in Wiccan spiritual exploration. Power, who has it and who does not, is an issue that permeates and charges the stratification of most Western cultures. Eco-feminist and author Starhawk explains that power in our culture assumes three distinct forms. Our power forms include “power over,” “power with,” and “power from within.”
Power over is a model with which Westerners have the most familiarity and it is a structure that is highly removed from the patterns of nature. Power over operates from the premise of domination, force, containment, control, authority, and compliance. In this model, someone (or perhaps a group) in charge determines the rules, the order, and the common good for everyone else. Suppression of one’s own experience, voice, and wisdom, as well as obedience to a central authority, are the hallmarks of power over. Many Western religious paths that feature a one-and-only-god, spiritual regulations, and hierarchy for the religious community operate from this authoritarian and patriarchal postulation.
By dismantling stratified power structures, power with is a model that turns “top-down” authority on its side. Power with encourages shared, interdependent power and functions similarly to the symbiotic and interdependent systems found in nature. In power with, the strengths of many individuals are braided together, community welfare becomes a focus, and authority becomes a grassroots, localized affair. The heart of Wicca and other mystical spiritual traditions rests securely in this more matriarchal form of power sharing. Power with generally starts from an individual’s understanding that he or she is part of a vast, cosmic whole; thesis the premise of power from within. In considering the three models of power, which ones do you identify as operating in your life, your family, community, friendships, relationships, and work?
Today’s mystic contemplation allows you to discover your own links to and understanding of power. Where does power come from? Where does it go? Is power real? After focused contemplation of these matters, you may arrive at your own conclusions.
To begin working with this contemplative question, find a comfortable, meditative sitting position in a quiet space while facing the south. Light a red candle, set it before you, and cast your gaze upon the flickering flame. Meanwhile, hold the meditative question firmly, as though you were gripping it with your abdominal muscles. Relax your shoulders and arms and breathe normally. Sit holding the question for 20 minutes or more.
Instead of trying to logically answer the question at the conclusion of one meditative sitting, work to absorb the question into your spiritual center. Allow your body, mind, and spirit to become this question and take it with you into the world. Eat, sleep, work, ad play as the question. Over time, a shift in your perception will take place and you will realize your own answer.
Symbolic Color: Red
Symbolic Direction: South
Contemplation:
Power is an important issue in Wiccan spiritual exploration. Power, who has it and who does not, is an issue that permeates and charges the stratification of most Western cultures. Eco-feminist and author Starhawk explains that power in our culture assumes three distinct forms. Our power forms include “power over,” “power with,” and “power from within.”
Power over is a model with which Westerners have the most familiarity and it is a structure that is highly removed from the patterns of nature. Power over operates from the premise of domination, force, containment, control, authority, and compliance. In this model, someone (or perhaps a group) in charge determines the rules, the order, and the common good for everyone else. Suppression of one’s own experience, voice, and wisdom, as well as obedience to a central authority, are the hallmarks of power over. Many Western religious paths that feature a one-and-only-god, spiritual regulations, and hierarchy for the religious community operate from this authoritarian and patriarchal postulation.
By dismantling stratified power structures, power with is a model that turns “top-down” authority on its side. Power with encourages shared, interdependent power and functions similarly to the symbiotic and interdependent systems found in nature. In power with, the strengths of many individuals are braided together, community welfare becomes a focus, and authority becomes a grassroots, localized affair. The heart of Wicca and other mystical spiritual traditions rests securely in this more matriarchal form of power sharing. Power with generally starts from an individual’s understanding that he or she is part of a vast, cosmic whole; thesis the premise of power from within. In considering the three models of power, which ones do you identify as operating in your life, your family, community, friendships, relationships, and work?
Today’s mystic contemplation allows you to discover your own links to and understanding of power. Where does power come from? Where does it go? Is power real? After focused contemplation of these matters, you may arrive at your own conclusions.
To begin working with this contemplative question, find a comfortable, meditative sitting position in a quiet space while facing the south. Light a red candle, set it before you, and cast your gaze upon the flickering flame. Meanwhile, hold the meditative question firmly, as though you were gripping it with your abdominal muscles. Relax your shoulders and arms and breathe normally. Sit holding the question for 20 minutes or more.
Instead of trying to logically answer the question at the conclusion of one meditative sitting, work to absorb the question into your spiritual center. Allow your body, mind, and spirit to become this question and take it with you into the world. Eat, sleep, work, ad play as the question. Over time, a shift in your perception will take place and you will realize your own answer.