A mythic life requires trust in the path
Mark 6:7-13 (Fifteenth Sunday in ordinary time)
The mythic content of this gospel passage can’t be overstated. The key line is “He instructed them to take nothing for the journey... .” This reading touches the core of the mythical experience:
Trust.
A mythic life requires trust in the path. In The Art of War, Sun Tzu instructs his reader to literally rely on the circumstances of battle to provide victory. This is truly strong medicine. Applied to life, this approach contradicts pretty much everything the western mind is trained from childhood to do: be in control and leave nothing to chance.
On deeper scrutiny, however, and with the mythical dynamics of life in mind, it becomes clear that this is exactly what Jesus and Sun Tzu are counseling: leave nothing to chance. In their view, we are more at risk of something going wrong if we try to control things, rather than letting the path lead us, require choices of us, and provide the necessary information to handle those choices.
It depends on your motive. Are you trying to get through life safe and sound, with no cuts or bruises, in a manner that is predictable and secure? Are you trying to be as comfortable as you possibly can until you die? Or are you trying to surrender yourself to participation in your life’s purpose, willing to undergo gaps in security and periods of mental anguish? If the latter, then you leave all to chance by trying to control your situation. You stifle the workings of destiny. You curtail the natural flow of your life.
“Just a walking stick,” Jesus says. That’s all you can take with you. A simple, practical tool for the road. He wasn’t naive, after all. His disciples had a lot of walking ahead of them. “And if they won’t receive you, shrug it off and move on.” In other words, sound judgment. Trust in the path has nothing to do with blindness or wishful thinking. It’s hard, nuts-and-bolts work and a daily grind. But a grind with purpose. Apart from a few simple tools, trust and sound judgment are pretty much it.
In his novel Damien, Herman Hesse tells his reader “your destiny loves you and wants you to achieve it.” This is the wisdom both Sun Tzu and Jesus reveal to their adherents. No matter how difficult things get, no matter how scary, allow the path to lead you. This is the core value of the mythic perspective, and the organizing principle of a mythic life.
The mythic content of this gospel passage can’t be overstated. The key line is “He instructed them to take nothing for the journey... .” This reading touches the core of the mythical experience:
Trust.
A mythic life requires trust in the path. In The Art of War, Sun Tzu instructs his reader to literally rely on the circumstances of battle to provide victory. This is truly strong medicine. Applied to life, this approach contradicts pretty much everything the western mind is trained from childhood to do: be in control and leave nothing to chance.
On deeper scrutiny, however, and with the mythical dynamics of life in mind, it becomes clear that this is exactly what Jesus and Sun Tzu are counseling: leave nothing to chance. In their view, we are more at risk of something going wrong if we try to control things, rather than letting the path lead us, require choices of us, and provide the necessary information to handle those choices.
It depends on your motive. Are you trying to get through life safe and sound, with no cuts or bruises, in a manner that is predictable and secure? Are you trying to be as comfortable as you possibly can until you die? Or are you trying to surrender yourself to participation in your life’s purpose, willing to undergo gaps in security and periods of mental anguish? If the latter, then you leave all to chance by trying to control your situation. You stifle the workings of destiny. You curtail the natural flow of your life.
“Just a walking stick,” Jesus says. That’s all you can take with you. A simple, practical tool for the road. He wasn’t naive, after all. His disciples had a lot of walking ahead of them. “And if they won’t receive you, shrug it off and move on.” In other words, sound judgment. Trust in the path has nothing to do with blindness or wishful thinking. It’s hard, nuts-and-bolts work and a daily grind. But a grind with purpose. Apart from a few simple tools, trust and sound judgment are pretty much it.
In his novel Damien, Herman Hesse tells his reader “your destiny loves you and wants you to achieve it.” This is the wisdom both Sun Tzu and Jesus reveal to their adherents. No matter how difficult things get, no matter how scary, allow the path to lead you. This is the core value of the mythic perspective, and the organizing principle of a mythic life.
posted by ptc at
10:43 AM
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