A Sophisticated Sadness- 8th February 2001

THE characters of any good window into Faerie portray creatures and beings that are innocent as the childlike that might see them. In raw splendor, in primary substance, there exists a joyful candor and a jovial sense of their world - whether intense or plain curious, lighthearted and easily drawn from one delight unto another, whimsical or even perhaps quite frightful.

The nature-spirits have such a love and experience of place, that they seek their own natures outside of themselves and are ever fascinated by what they find!

There is a phenomenon present and paramount within the thinking of the modern soul today, which has not hitherto been before; not in any of the past cycles that we can recollect, not in ages or periods which even inspired great debate or design; nor after wars, nor after wealth or loss of wealth. There is a mood which some entitle 'realism' and others 'cynicism', a depression of the very spirit within, which in aspect afflicts all men currently - loathe-fully - acknowledged and incorporated defeatism.

This is not to criticize modern thinking, but to rather begin with an insight into change, and also to a sadness which moves like a heavied slug around the collective consciousness of the 'refined' and sophisticated intellect. Those who knew the world only half a century ago will readily remember the innocence in public life, in perspective, in expression … an innocence by which there was a freshness, a simplicity and a clear joviality underscoring even the harshest of circumstance. Men and women were not indifferent or removed (although some may well have lacked conscience). They were not resigned to sadness; they were as the fay, quite innocent to this contamination.

Of course the moors and hollows of the etheric realm do know lamentation and deep sorrow. Further still in living mythologies we come to tragedies that are suitably played out as a memorial to courageous events and noble acts - an elaborate journal to the world in sensitive retrial. Spiritual beings often celebrate or (perhaps better said, commemorate) occasions and individuals who have been valiant, forthright and true; yet their stories treasured would not be sealed with unhappy endings. Though loss, grief and struggle is known to even the most joyous of the Golden Kingdom, there are not presentations of utter defeat or determined disaster as part of the telling. The horrors of such fears are not perpetuated or even comprehended. For the Sovereign Host is never so doubted, and death is a mystery and to some another gate to find, and the beauty which thrives in true merit is ever obvious and supremely comforting at all times.

The Elements are not agents of terror either. They are missionary spirits from a higher angelic realm, who through the dramatic climatic expression of season, manifest with voracious glamor the great wisdoms of the air, fire and waters divine.

When electrical activity increases or when the Moon's song permeates the outer sphere, tugging on the sensibilities, contesting the new with the old … when armies of thought-forms assemble and take war upon each other (as does daily happen); when the Earth readjusts herself, reorganizes herself, for every ounce newly carried; when the agents of evility scurry ever away from the light into the few dark places which remain (and their hurried anxious patter can be heard as far away as Mars); when lovers quest for the same providence they have once known (yet only by love again will they find it), and as in a musical interlude all souls wander seeking their true partner in lonely compromise; when perpetuity falters; when madmen hear the conversations of the gods ever more loudly than thoughts of their own; when qualification no longer implies a value but rather an established entitlement; when a superstition appeals to the pool of paradigm infecting its waters with jumbled innuendo deemed as realism; when a deep magic enfolds the little magic but a deeper one yet presides - CHRIST IS PRESENT.

Even the simpleton nowadays presumes over himself a veil of sophistication in respect to worldly knowledge and point of view. Rarely does an individual carry his words with the humility of his true position. How infrequently do we convey between us, and particularly in decided moments, simple and frank dialogue which is untainted by an assumed credibility that is false and irrelevant to the experience at hand.

It is difficult to unlearn these behaviors, but quite necessary when we come to the threshold of spiritual endeavor. In all respects the greatest tonic for the dear folk who suffer these modern consternations (i.e. all of us) can be of that entering into a realm where we can temporarily relax out from self, and the tensions so caused in the ordinary life. This relaxing cannot be artificially contrived. In other words a narcotic or some other magic will actually stimulate and sophisticate the sclerotic mind (and personality) all the more. Whereas, true mutuality, creativity, prayerfulness, and respect for our Father, return us to ourselves.

Just as the nature-spirits seek out their identity amongst their paradise around them, we may find our Christ-identity in the spirit of thankfulness, genuine and fulfilled. Some of our occupation needs be not duty-bound or with the resignation of the saddened 'realist', but that which takes us into fields of happiness, conspiring with our spiritual self enlivening joy and subsequent gratitude.

The spiritual path has recently been regarded (or accepted) as arduous and fretful, disciplined to the point of discomfort (rather than pertaining to healing); denying and difficult. There is a certain pride in some that this is so. Yet many higher beings do not even comprehend human suffering. It is our conviction that Christ does not determine suffering to be prerequisite to His Love or to finding our Father and His Home.

Lucifer would not ask us to suffer either … although the entrance into his sphere takes from us the many joys we might have known, had we retained our pain as well and gone to Christ to relieve its tension within us.

The difficulty is that if you do not find a measure of great excitement, desire, passion fulfilled, happy expectation, mystery, wonderment, enjoyment and an involvement with life, then your circumstances (spiritually or otherwise) are dangerously wanting. Sadly, defeatism has veiled the thinking with its damning perspective stripping the possibility of a joyous spiritually imbued life from credence, and therefore actuality.

There is no need to 'grit your teeth and go on' in such attitude for all of the hours of the day. The ego will not permit a development that is reluctant, and the soul's perspective shall not be forthcoming without a pertinent love.

It is our prayer than men find ways to regain their greatest of joys and their highest of passions, relearn the pathways to inspiration and come to true sophistry through a love of subject which is eager, well-humored and most certain of great goodness.

Amen