Do You Mean RELIGION OR SPIRITUAL TRADITION?
…on cultural soulectomy and patriarchy weaponizing god
In my lifetime of six-plus decades thus far, i’ve been forced to witness our flourishing spiritual traditions become virtual shells of their primal and fundamental selves. In the melting pot that was once this country - or so i was taught - this land pulsed with the living traditions that have nourished, protected, and enlivened each and every soul (almost) to present time.
Spiritual traditions were, by their matrilineal evolution and presence here on Earth, deeply devotional; in much the same way as a mother’s bonding and familial love.
Among feminist historians who studied the her-story of history and stood for the renaissance of the feminine soul are Vicki Noble who is alive and well;
and Marija Gimbutas who passed over in 1994.
Just to consider the scholarly scope of these two womens’ writings suggests there is much much more to cultural evolution than we’ve imagined or been told.
Ancient spiritual traditions all vibe with Shakti - primal wild generative and regenerative power.
Shakti is also aptly called “the Mother’s power”.
Shakti is the core of all spiritual traditions.
Shakti is eternally connected to Infinite Source.
Abraham Maslow considered self-actualization our true human potential; and in this sense, the crowning glory of our human DNA. Yoga devotees pursue self actualization as a yogic state of illumination (inner knowing), which has quasi-synonyms like moksha (freedom from the mental bondage of mundane worldly life) and samadhi (a highly focused meditative state).
What is self-actualization, but a divine expression of Creation, Shakti, the raw generative god/dess-force?
Born with clear impressions of my past lives of spiritual power, i took on these studies intuitively when i was very young, strongly certain that was god’s will. On my road to reclaiming the ancient wisdom encoded in my cells - and the unshackled voice of the feminine soul - yoga first presented within me as a physical discipline based on impressions, impulses, and guidance i received sensorially; and in a visionary language far transcending words. So yes, it all began with asana, the physical practices; and those led me to deeper more esoteric studies and truths. i’ve practiced yoga pretty much every day of my life ever since; although what yoga means and encompasses morphs grandly in the course of ones life. Spiritual passion and discipline - which we call it tapas in sanskrit - weaves the devotee seamlessly into the wider mystery school of Soul. From this inner relationship, the right and necessary practices come to us directly in response.
i am grateful for the many ways the Goddess ever sustains the flow of Soul in my life and on this Earth.
THRASHING TRADITION TO DEATH AND COMMODIFYING SOUL
At some unholy instant in each sacred tradition ever known to peoplekind, vicious angry warriors stormed and razed the womens’ forest temples to the ground; and with them, destroyed the peoples’ sacred medicine groves.
Trees were divine connecting rods between Heaven above and Earth below.
Trees were our symbols for life begetting life.
Ayurveda became a medical system when women gave it life by singing to the plants.
Love and devotion were once the way of the world…
Then
Trees became hostages to tyranny, neutered into sacrificial lambs, slain merely to seize absolute dominance and cause centuries of soul-wrenching trauma and pain.
This was when Shakti lost Her voice and Her tongue, forever muted by the trauma, loss, and shock.
Since the dawns of time, marauding men have sought to vanquish, shame, and slaughter the Goddess and Her life-giving ways. This game appears successful even today, for on and on it goes..
Through this evil warfare etching eons of loss in the human spirit, the women vanished; stone and cement covered their ashes; and our souls and songs became government owned property registered as non-profits run by stuffy white men; and religion freed these entities of paying taxes in exchange for following the rules.
(…which is why it was so easy to order lockdowns and close all the temples and churches and force everybody to go online to work and pray; and why none of us have recovered to this day…)
Rules made by dictators who crush peoples’ souls.
As we get to know each other better, dear reader, i hope to reveal biographical snippets regarding how religion has f*&^%@# with my brain - and thus with my nervous system - and so, my soul. i wish to paint this patriarchy for what it is, and call out what it’s done, in the name of money and power.
As i rekindle Truth in my every cell.
You may then choose to name Her-Story anecdotal evidence, or to see pieces of yourself melted onto the page, among shaggy old remnants of what we have all endured.
The time has come for Her-Story, for a change.
And together, may we travel the long road back the our Heart - The Heart - and the way of love.
THE SACRED CALLING OF THE FEMININE HEART
Each woman with a sacred calling to unveil history as Her-Story and restore the feminine soul force on Earth will meet memories of Shakti in her own fluids and bones.
And yes dear sister, the feminine has been thrashed by the distorted masculine.
Yet, as I have experienced the feminine has never ever being vanqished. It lives within me and manifests through "falling into Love" again and again and again with my brothers and sisters. Hay wannah.!