The purpose of ritual is to integrate the hemispheres of our brain, so we are working holistically, in balance, using as much of our mental capacity as possible. Ritual does this by fulfilling different needs of the different parts of ourselves:
Talking Self - Talking Self is our ego, our logic center, the part of ourselves that needs order, statistics, data, information, and structure; the part that can reason, make definitions, categorize, and organize. It is the part related to the left hemisphere of our brains. Talking Self is the part of us that likes structure and repetition in ritual. The way that the format continues from ceremony to ceremony, the repetition of liturgy like the "Charge of the Goddess", the use of tangible symbols like salt water and incense - all these things soothe Talking Self, charge and empower the part of us that needs definitions and things we can grasp. Our culture holds Talking Self up as the example of 'maturity' and 'responsibility', and generally treats it as the important part of a person, the way they 'should be'. In truth, we need all our parts to live a full life.
Younger Self - Younger Self is our 'inner child'. This is the part of ourselves fascinated with rhythm, dance, music, art, and drama; the part that can empathize, intuit; the part with a healthy sense of wonder, a need for play, and a thirst for imagination. It is the part related to the right hemisphere of our brains, the creative, perceptive, holistic part of ourselves. Because this is the part that our culture most often suppresses, freeing Younger Self is often the first step in unleashing some powerful magick, as Younger Self has the most direct connection with the Gods. Our culture often teaches us that the sorts of things Younger Self wants are frivolous, childish, unnecessary - but they are just as necessary as the logic and data that Talking Self craves. That's why Thalia uses 'nonsense' and silliness in ritual. If we were in a culture that encouraged people to be giddy and playful, we'd need stodgy, formal religion to balance it out. Since we don't, we need that aspect of play.
And sometimes that play threatens people. We've had people tell us that Thalia is a joke, that it's not 'real' Wicca or 'real' religion. Because society tells us that we're not allowed to play, to be silly, to treat laughter as something holy. Because if you let yourself be both playful and serious, structured and chaotic, if you open up to that sort of balance and creativity, you gain power, because you're 'running on all cylinders' and using all parts of your brain. It gives you a responsibility to live your life fully, not just coast on what society thinks you 'ought to' do. And that frightens some people. So they make themselves feel safer by making fun of us. Understand that, understand that it's part of that person's Shadow that they haven't integrated, and continue living your own life the way you choose. Don't speak harshly of the other person because they have that fear; you have your own fears, we all do. But don't let your own self-image be hurt by their fears, either. Just say "That's nice", as they intone "hail to thee, watchtowers of the East" and we wave a bubble wand to invoke the Air. Remember, infinite diversity in infinite combinations...
Deep Self - Also known as our Higher Self, this is the part of us that is Divine, linked with the Gods, the spark of Deity within us, the Player/Author behind our Character if you go with the storytelling cosmology, the part that 'groks'. This is the part of us that continues from lifetime to lifetime. And we can't get to Deep Self unless we've made both Talking and Younger Selves happy, because if Talking Self isn't happy then we can't hear a word over him, and if Younger Self isn't happy then we stagnate and can't move to get to our Deep Self. The goal of magick, in a lot of traditions, is to link with our Higher Selves. So ritual is designed to integrate Younger and Talking Selves, so that we can indeed reach our Deep Selves, and be the wholly holy and multifaceted beings we truly are.
- Cecylyna, based on Starhawk
And remember Thalia's favorite line...
Life is too important to be taken seriously!
© 1996 cecylyna@oocities.com
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