COSMOLOGICAL
ITERATIONS
By Tammarigan Tyrsdaughter
Notes: this small article is an attempt to present a case for one possible scenario of reconciliation between a multitude of religious beliefs. It is neither an attempt at dogma, nor an effort to supercede any of the rich and diverse body of mythology available to us. It is part of human nature, however, to attempt to make sense out of the many mysteries presented to us by the Universe. Such attemps are always limited - but they are an interesting exercise. One of the more interesting paradoxes of religion is that it does not survive without Mystery, and, yet, it must make sense if it is to catch the heart of humans...
It is in the paradoxes that the heart of mystery and magic lives...
Does the ultimate Truth exist?
Many people think that it might not, and most people, including myself, would say that if there is any such critter, it cannot be understood/perceived/expressed by any of us in its entirety.
The existance of ultimate Truth, or its non-existance is an assumption. A case can be made that such an assumption, while personally interesting, is entirely irrelevant for religious practice.
The key here is the metaphysical concept of an image. An image is what we construct in our mind in order to understand something. As such, it is partially transparent to that which we are trying to understand, but "partially transparent" also implies "partially opaque". So, in this way, an image is a boundary between us and that which we are imaging.
To put it somewhat mystically, an image/icon/idol/concept partake of nature of that which is imaged and that which is doing the imaging. Thusly the Pagans treat their Idols, and thusly the Orthodox Christians treat their Icons, and thusly most Christians treat their Bible.
So if we all try to understand the same thing, we will end up with images that are all slightly different, but also are in some ways the same.
The question is: do we care whether there is any "objective" reality behind the commonality of our images, or not. Probably not. Because the commonality is a worthwhile goal in and of itself. And we can easily redefine Truth as that which is common between our individual truths. And beyond that it is up to the individual.
But we still need a model to worship together, because any Ritual must be based on a consistent cosmological image. And if we want to have some commonality in ritual, we should have a common cosmology.
All cosmologies are symbolic in the sense that while they partake of the ultimate Truth (assuming there is such a thing in principle), they are not identical with it. Nor is it possible for us as humans, with limitations imposed on us by our nature, to perceive any sort of ultimate Truth in its entirety.
Thus any cosmology that we use as part of our belief system, is a model. Albeit a working one.
Iteration 1.
Assume that the Universe (all that exists, has ever existed, or will ever exist) is alive and aware.
It is neither male nor female, but
both and neither.
It has a body, a spirit/soul, and a mind.
It has a purpose: to Love, to Create, to Learn.
It exists according to certain rules, some of which may be clear, and some obscure. Of these we may only know symbolically.
We are a part of it, but it is infinitely greater than ourselves.
This is the One, the Godde of strict monotheists, both immanent and transcendent, omnipotent and omnipresent.
Iteration 2.
Within Godde there exist two principles: Female and Male. These are the First Mother and the First Father. Just about every religion (with the exceptions of strict monotheism) has this concept. It seems to be as old as the most ancient roots of humanity, and as modern as our own life. Within it there is a rich source of symbolism, both ancient and modern, that we would be remiss to ignore, not the least of which is the principle of exchange and love.
This is the duotheism of the sort that most Wiccans practice.
In this context, consider also the symbol of Yin and Yang. The two principles are equal, yet different and complimentary. Separate in identity, yet one in totality.
Consider also the boundary line between the two. It is neither, and both, it partakes of the two and symbolized each to the other, like a pane of glass which both reflects and allows us to see through it. This is the principle of a symbol/metaphor/image/icon. This is also the principle of magic according to the concept of liminality.
This boundary is also the symbol of life, which exists as dynamic tension between the two extremes.
Thus all life is inherently magical, and is possible because of the separation between two principles.
I.e.: the First Mother and the Fist Father come together in the union of love, and of that union all things are born.
Iteration 3:
All things are born of the First Mother and the First Father, and, as well, by definition, all things are manifestations of Godde.
Thus, all things are of the Divine. Moreover, all things are images of the Divine in that, at least, they partake of the both principles, are in and of themselves whole, and exist for the same basic purpose.
In principle, then, one may earnestly seek the Divine in anything, from oneself, to a pebble, to a star, to the abstraction of one Godde. And indeed, various religions do any and all of these.
From our human perspective, some things are greater, older, more powerful, some things are smaller and less powerful. Historically, the greater things have been worshipped as Goddesses and Gods, either separately, or as part of a whole, that which I have taken the liberty to call Godde.
This is classical polytheism/Paganism.
* * *
Within the framework of general cosmology, we might keep the structure of Three Worlds, Three Realms and Three Kindreds. There are a couple of reasons for this.
It is inspired by the three-fold world view of historical Druids, and it is from there that we draw much of our inspiration.
It exists, in one form or another in most religions. In fact, the Tree of Life as the axis of the Universe is pretty, ahem... universal.
It addresses rather neatly the three elements that are present in most religions, namely the ancestor worship, the relationship with Nature, and the worship of the Higher Power.
It is associated with a pool of wonderful symbology that already exists.
It allows us a natural way to address all the manifestations of Godde, most especially the Earth Mother and all of Her children.
It allows the classical usage of the symbology of the Tree of Life.
The Web of Life
One of the loveliest ideas of NeoPaganism is the concept of the Web of Life:
If all things are manifestations of the Divine (Godde), then it is not unreasonable to assume that all things are connected within the Divine.
The Web is the sum-total of these connections, both internal and external. It is addressed somewhat differently in different cultures, but the underlying principle is the same.
The ancient Norse, for instance, viewed it in just that term - the Web. It had its guardians, the three Norns.
The modern Russian shamans call it the (Soul/Spirit) wind (the actual Russian term does not translate very well because it encompasses both female and male polarity of the concept) and identify it with the Holy Spirit of the Christian Trinity.
And in modern folklore it is known as the Force of the Star Wars fame. (Hey, don't laugh, modern movies are tomorrow's legends...)
Whatever the name, the principle is the same - the organic, permeating connectedness of all things - it is a very useful concept, and, perhaps, in some ways, it reflects the Truth - or the truth.