The King and His Sun
This is my seventeenth entry into the 1001 challenge to write one thousand and one words everyday throughout the month of November. Cheee
It has been said, that devotion can only arise, from choosing a cause greater than yourself; choosing a mission, that eradicates your ego — the habitual and emotional boundaries — that keep you trapped in your current way of life. The best analogy I’ve seen of this concept so far, came from a book titled: “King, Magician, Warrior, Lover” by Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette.
It’s a book that describes the archetypes of the personas that constitute the male psyche. While describing the King persona, which is a metaphor for the part of a man that leads, guides, and creates (among other things), the authors said something that struck me. I can’t remember the exact words, or the exact context it was used, but it went something like: “The King, revolves around his Sun.” The sun in this context represented either the King’s Kingdom, or the cause a man lives to protect, and if need be, die for.
Just like the gravity of the sun holds the solar system in balance, every man or woman, needs a sun to that keeps him attached, a cause that gives him purpose. It is this cause, that allows the individual, direct his energies, and bring them under control.
I’m of the thought that human beings are carriers of ideology. That is, our egos, and personalities don’t belong to us — at least not in their heavily conditioned states — but are merely vessels designed to channel something greater. What this thing is, is beyond me, but evidence shows that if we don’t have an idea or ruling worldview to surrender to, we end up paralyzed by anxiety. Its why people need leaders, and figures of authority; these icons give the masses a sun, something to live for, whether an ideology, a religion, or a lifestyle.
Ideally, this shouldn’t be so, from what I hear, the average individual should be a sun to himself, but I wouldn’t know much about this. However, the next best thing, is choosing your sun, rather than blindly selecting the default options in your environment. Note the word “blindly.” If after thorough critique, there’s nothing wrong with the default suns in your environment, then by all means, follow the leader.
Still, I want to return to this idea of the individual being a sun to himself. In a certain light, it ties well with the idea of people being vessels for something greater. If we marry the two ideas what we’ll get is that there’s a greater self that lies beneath the veneer of our everyday consciousness, or something of the sort. I don’t know if this is true, but then, it wouldn’t hurt to explore the idea.
I like to imagine the human self in its totality, as a reflection of the entire universe. This idea can only be grasped, if we understand that this moment in time, is a creation of the combined forces of the universe. That is, gravity, time, light, energy, and all the remaining fundamental and derived forces, across the entire universe are working in sync to make this moment possible; just as it takes years of practice, exposure, failure, success and feedback all working in sync and complementing each other, for an artist to create his magnus opus. If we hold this assumption in mind, it will be easy to see how your consciousness of this moment, is life energy in its most diluted form; like the tip on a pyramid of immense depth, or like a flower is the result of a tree’s processes.
The human self, born from all these processes, and constantly recreated by all these processes holds elements of each in its psyche; all waiting to be expressed through the life of the individual. However, because we live most of our lives, skimming the surface of our individual consciousness, restricted by our attachments and conditioning, we never get to experience the depth of our psyches. We base who we are on the narratives we receive from our parents, or the general public; never seeking to deviate or explore the possibilities that may exist. Then again, this isn’t easy, as life in this century, gives very little reason to do so. Everything is convenient these days.
Still, what if it was possible to glimpse the true expanse of your psychic landscapes? What if, in beholding this vast ocean, you finally realize that your sun comes from exploring the wonders that lie in the deep? From basking in the fullness of your own universe, in the universe? How would ideologies or the opinions of other people fare in the wake of this realization?
Methinks, they will either fade away, or become tools you use to further your goal of embodying this self. Methinks, you will become a real person, in a world of imitates. But as this is a thought experiment, there’s no way to know the truth to these musings.
Musings apart, you can still choose your sun. It will call out to you throughout your life, sometimes in a loud voice, or as a deep longing in your soul. Most times, it will be a random thought, indistinguishable from your regular thoughts. Other times, it might reveal itself as a random interest or through other people. Whether or not you’ll find it soon, is a question with a flexible answer: it depends. There’s no rule to this shit show, only principles in action. Some people find it early, if the conditions are right, some people find it much later in life, some people never do. Really, it depends on the interaction of conditions, the content of these conditions, and the principles of life.
However, you can watch for it by keeping a heart that’s receptive to change, by being adaptive, by developing a strong will, and a disciplined mind. These traits will allow you stay in touch with who you are, and enable you make the moves you need to, when the time comes, if the time comes. Till then, stay chilled.
