2021-12-30 10:46:02
On the importance of suffering and pain. (Part 1)
“He who learns must suffer. And even in our sleep pain that cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart, and in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom to us by the awful grace of God.”- Aeschylus
I often speak of the importance behind suffering and pain, and this short will remain true to those ideals. However, I need to be clear that I am not encouraging people to purposefully put themselves in dangerous or debilitating circumstances.
Before we visit my few words on this, I must pay dues to the stories that have inspired generations of those who seek wisdom and enlightenment in all manners of life.
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O
din/Wotan, the All-Father of the Norse and Germanics, impaled himself upon the World Tree for no less than 9 days and nights, staring deep into the waters below. It was on that day after he was shown the infinite wisdom of the Runes.
Looking at this myth at face value yields very little, and it’s important to read the Hamaval and Edda for the rest of the context which *is* invaluable to understanding this story.
Odin quite literally says to himself “Given to Odin, myself to myself”, which can be deduced to “I have sacrificed myself to myself”.
To me, this speaks of the importance of death; not the literal kind, but rather great change. As a wise friend once recanted to me, “the opposite of life is not death, but rather fear”. In this context, Odin hung from the tree in suspension and suffering, and attained great wisdom through this reflection. Thus, suffering and pain makes their ways in this story as literal interpretations, and is no doubt correct in this pursuit of wisdom.
Just like the Hanged Man tarot represents enlightenment through suspension, so does this myth. Difficult circumstances, against our will or wishes, often brings about the necessary conditions to grow change within ourselves, and in doing so, brings about the death of the self and rebirths the new. Experiences change us. As Heraclitus states, “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he is not the same man”. We are the embodiment of our experiences, good and bad.
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Let us
also visi
t the sto
ry of Sid
dhartha,
who wishe
d to find
a way to end suffering.
While meditating under the tree for 49 days, he was presented with countless obstacles. The Cthonic Mara sent countless numbers of his beautiful daughters to tempt him from this meditation, and even sent hoards of monsters who also couldn’t penetrate his contemplation. Mara himself visited Siddhartha in his desperate attempts to derail him, and asked “Who speaks for you????”
Siddhartha responded by touching the ground, in which the Earth itself replied “I bear witness!”.
It was on the next day that the morning star rose, and he reached enlightenment becoming a Buddha.
This story always spoke to me on a spiritual level, because it's a testament of his own determination. The demons attempting to dissuade him showed Siddhartha the reality of things, and though Mara tried as he could, Siddhartha triumphed over this.
49 days he spent, all while fasting, finding the nature of suffering and how to release yourself from it. Countless discomforts and direct transgressions did not move him, and his holy mission was achieved. He could have easily stopped this endeavor and returned to his life of royalty, but that would have been the easy way out. The beloved Buddha chose the difficult means of attainment, and has humbled us all.
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The story of Hercules is also another that comes to mind.
Her
cules, be
ing the p
rofound w
arrior he
was, was driven into a frenzy in which he slew his own family in his own rage.
In his own grief, he spoke to Apollo, who informed he must serve King Eruystheus to atone for his actions.
The King was given the idea to give him 12 impossible labors for him to complete, to which everyone believed he would die trying.
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