Full moon. Patterns. Rhythms. Harmony. Tonight is the Pink Moon or the Fish Moon. That is what the Farmer's Almanac says. Other places, other names.
I watched a documentary about Philip Glass last night on PBS's American Masters. I stumbled upon it but saw it from the beginning. An unsuspected gift. Though it seemed the filmmaker was a bit lost, shooting random footage that he tried to organize in twelve parts, Glass or the image of Glass. . . well, that phrase is funny enough on its own. In the end, I wondered why Glass had agreed to participate. But it provided me with two good hours.
Glass and the Moon. Minimalist, repetitive, iconic. Glass the Buddhist.
I slip and slide away from what I want to be. Life requires balance. I forget and am brought back to notice when things have gone out of whack. I have tried, but I have not paid enough attention.
Lent. Passover. Hierophanies. A universe of rhythms. Another full moon. The sacred life.
For a part of my life -- I was dedicated to teaching children the ways of Christianity. From Lent through Easter was always my favorite season -- it is so symbolic -- so many symbols from the ashes through to the dice, the 30 silver coins, the cross, the butterflies, the eggs, the nails, the blackness of Good Friday draped on the cross. I even did Passover seders with the kids -- had them be the different Plagues and made up a seder plate -- the bitters, the salt, water the lamb bone.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite nights was Maundy Thursday -- I would gather up 12 men to be the disciples and set up on the fellowship hall stage an Upper Room and light the 12 candles -- each would reach a monologue and as they left the upper room -- extinguish a candle.
Symbols, myths -- mostly pagan but don't let the Christians know. :) Oh -- I think they know, I did this at a church full of theologians -- some of the best known in the U.S. They had to *know* and yet .. they were so faithful.
How they broke me those very Christians I loved so well... but I like to hold onto the memories and thoughts that those kids -now in high school -- no matter where their faith journey takes them -- they will always have those stories we acted out -- those symbols we cut out in felt to make banners -- to draw on for whatever they do artistically in life.
It seems so *right* that the full moon fall during this -- Holy Week.
I like the title of your piece today and think I'll steal it.
According to my mayan astrological sign balance is my greatest challenge. But I think a lot of us slip and slide!Paying attention is a tricky. Thank you, as always, for your thoughts!
ReplyDeleteMircea Eliade wrote a book called "The Sacred and the Profane." That is where I took the idea. I like to read the book from an existentialist point of view, though that is not what Eliade had in mind, I think. It is easy to do, though, easy to read that way. He believes that ritual puts us in contact with eternal time and the sacred. Not bad, unless you are a Buddhist who is trying to break with the repetitive cycle of recurrence.
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