wisdom of the ancient

[mikey]

hi tony.
i had this dream the other night,one of those ones that stay with you throughout the following days,i think because of the ancient feel of it.
the dream.
i come to a place in a forest,a hut type structure built from oak leaves and hazel boughs,in the doorway sits an ancient looking old lady,i say ancient as she has clothes made from what looks like knitted moss,i feel she is as ancient as the earth itself,she radiates knowledge,of things of the earth,and the other world.
she asks me to sit,which i do,
she then tells me about a stone,a special stone of power,which i must place inside a hazel wood staff,by carving out a recess and gluing it in.
i ask her where i can find this stone,she tells me that i do not need to look for it, as it will find i me,i then woke up.

what stood out for me was her words,"it will find you",
i am aware these processes cannot be rushed,and things tend to happen when the time is right,
i was reminded of ,they also serve who stand and wait,think it was Blake ??

as always i respect your knowledge and experience and look forward to any thoughts you may have .
rgds Mikey

[Tony Crisp]

Mikey - I see the stone as the philosopher’s stone which has the power to bring whatever it is combined with back into a preformed state, so that its form may change or transform. This is also the goal of the psyche itself, which seeks to dissolve fixed aspects of the personality back into their undifferentiated state, so that they can transform into the higher state Jung called individuation.”

Our unconscious mind connects our ego with the primal existence – dreams are a half way house between the Huge Knowing which exists in our core self - the unconscious – and our fragile personality. Because we all already have the stone we cannot go in search of it because we will be searching outside of us - as Jung says, "Do nothing and let things happen."

"The key is this: we must be able to let things happen in the psyche. For us, this becomes a real art of which few people know anything. Consciousness is forever interfering, helping, correcting, and negating, and never leaving the simple growth of the psychic processes in peace. It would be a simple enough thing to do if only simplicity were not the most difficult of all things. It consists solely in watching objectively the development of any fragment of fantasy. Nothing could be simpler than this, and yet right here the difficulties begin. Apparently no fantasy fragment is at hand - yes there is one, but it is too stupid! Thousands of good excuses are brought against it: one cannot concentrate on it; it is too boring; what could come of it? It is ‘nothing but’, etc. The conscious raises prolific objections. In fact, it often seems bent on blotting out the spontaneous fantasy activity despite the intention, nay, the firm determination of the individual, to allow the psychic processes to go forward without intervention. In many cases there exists a veritable spasm of the conscious."

“What then did these people do in order to achieve the progress which freed them? As far as I could see they did nothing but let things happen... The art of letting things happen, action in non action, letting go of oneself, as taught by Master Eckhart, became a key for me." Jung

The old woman is a wonderful image of the Earth. We tend to think of our planet Earth as a massive object floating in space - but out inner visions sees her as alive with awareness which can respond to us. She is in a sense the Great Mother of all of us. The Sun pours out its energy dying in the process, and Earth takes it into herself, nurture it and gives it a body - for all our bodies are made out of the Suns energy and Earths substance.

The staff I guess is representing something - a very ordinary and natural something - we use to help us when we cannot walk alone and it supports us. Something perhaps like belief in Life within us to uphold us. And carving into the staff is using your own strength and skill to create a place within you that can receive and hold the wonder.

Tony

[mikey]

thank you tony for your wisdom ,you are truly a master poet.



dreams being a halfway house,i felt this in the dream,the wise old lady sat in a door,sort of a halfway zone,she was the medium by which a contact with the divine otherworld (through her hut)could be conducted in this case via dreams.

the second,action in non action,this is the crux i think for me,
i really feel that all my past dreams of making that leap are to do with this letting go,letting it all unfold in its own time,who cares if you die in the process.
i will take on board what you have said,although i need to slowly digest the content .
kind rgds Mikey