Post by me on May 7, 2008 5:45:14 GMT -5
oldsoul's brilliant talk on the law of attraction shines light on another aspect of polytheism.
law-of-attraction-info.com/ the universal law of attraction states: we attract whatever we choose to give our attention to--whether wanted or unwanted. african religions have always intrinsically embodied the law of attraction. the law of attraction is a subset of african spiritual knowledge. we'll follow two paths, to see how the principles are incorporated... multiple deities the law of attraction is embodied into the deities themselves. the deities represent and embody divine forces that have been isolated; given a unique name & image; and given specific symbolism/imagery and coloration.
the history of deities; the stories about them; and their personalities; expand on the nature of how they operate; this governs how they are conceptualized and identified with. the concept here is that focusing on a particular deity will incorporate that energy into one's life.
for a general goal, focusing on a deity that represents that particular goal, whether it be wealth, prosperity, fertility, health, is the key to incorporating that energy/force into one's life. this includes: making offerings to that deity incorporating the symbols, images and colors associated with that deity/force in one's life/home/clothing...etc. these actions of devotion will attract that energy. the specific colors, symbols and images that are associated with a particular deity creates a fully immersive experience that would constantly speak to the subconscious mind. the higher purpose and symbolism of that deity is always kept in mind.
in the yoruba tradition, eshu is [almost] always the first deity that is fed when offerings are made. eshu is the opener of doors, governs crossroads...eshu is the deity that creates oportunities. thus, before any requests are made to any other gods, the opportunity for those requests to be realized is created first, by feeding eshu. in kemet, inipu/wepwauet serves a similar role, as opener of ways.
devotion to a particular deity is one of the original mechanisms to incorporate a particular energy into one's live, and to attune one's self to that energy. divination (ifa) divination techniques are utilized to solve more specific problems with greater immediacy. with divination the diviner identifies a problem; the diviner uses questioning...etc to hone in on the specifics. each odu (symbol representation) has a series of stories associated with it, that illustrate a particular problem. the person would identify the story that best represents their situation, that story embodies both a specific representation of the problem as well as the necessary solution. at this point the person can accept the reading and then follow the prescribed solution. the solution may entail making a sacrifice, a particular lifestyle change, and specific instructions with actions to perform.
here is a sample (ose yeku) reading: ajisegiri anikansekosunwon divined ifa for ose who was asked to sacrifice in order to become popular and not poor. he was asked to sacrifice: a calabash of palm oil, a calabash of shea butter, thirty-two hundred cowries, and ifa medicine (pound the bark of the root from the iroyin tree with the inside of aridan (type of fruit); mix the compound with black soap; place a bit of palm oil and shea butter at the bottom of the soap in a calabash). the medicine should be used for bathing. he heard and performed the sacrifice. (the sacred ifa oracle) within the ifa system we see the concept of sacrifice for gain; while that life energy is dedicated to the deities; psychologically the purpose of the sacrifice is associated with the outcome of the reading; which was prosperity. additionally the bathing with the herbal soap mixture will psychologically always be associated with the higher purpose of the reading; in addition to any spiritual significance.
among the yoruba orisha there are: eshu - opener of ways, creator opportunities. associated with unbridled, uncontrollable passion & also mischief. eshu is messenger of the gods who translates prayers to the language of the gods. (in kemet, medu is considered the language of the gods). oya - is associated with cemeteries, spirits of the deceased and sudden changes ogun - is a hunter & warrior, untamed...etc. obatala - represents purity & morality. obatala always wears white, his color is white, so white beads, white clothing, white jars...and cleanliness as well. orunmila - associate with fertility, birth & child rearing; orunmila is also a herbalist and associated with healing and medicine. yemoje (yemaya) - yemoje is associated with the seas, maternity & pregnancy in terms of the law of attraction, you want to be able to separate out aspects like pregnancy and fertility; from aspects like death, war and possibly mischief. with a monotheistic system, one deity encompasses all aspects of existence. by seperating out divine aspects polytheistic systems have always been able to apply the law of attraction, for thousands of years.
you can read this essay in context here: www.inipu.com/essays/section/no_secret
law-of-attraction-info.com/ the universal law of attraction states: we attract whatever we choose to give our attention to--whether wanted or unwanted. african religions have always intrinsically embodied the law of attraction. the law of attraction is a subset of african spiritual knowledge. we'll follow two paths, to see how the principles are incorporated... multiple deities the law of attraction is embodied into the deities themselves. the deities represent and embody divine forces that have been isolated; given a unique name & image; and given specific symbolism/imagery and coloration.
the history of deities; the stories about them; and their personalities; expand on the nature of how they operate; this governs how they are conceptualized and identified with. the concept here is that focusing on a particular deity will incorporate that energy into one's life.
for a general goal, focusing on a deity that represents that particular goal, whether it be wealth, prosperity, fertility, health, is the key to incorporating that energy/force into one's life. this includes: making offerings to that deity incorporating the symbols, images and colors associated with that deity/force in one's life/home/clothing...etc. these actions of devotion will attract that energy. the specific colors, symbols and images that are associated with a particular deity creates a fully immersive experience that would constantly speak to the subconscious mind. the higher purpose and symbolism of that deity is always kept in mind.
in the yoruba tradition, eshu is [almost] always the first deity that is fed when offerings are made. eshu is the opener of doors, governs crossroads...eshu is the deity that creates oportunities. thus, before any requests are made to any other gods, the opportunity for those requests to be realized is created first, by feeding eshu. in kemet, inipu/wepwauet serves a similar role, as opener of ways.
devotion to a particular deity is one of the original mechanisms to incorporate a particular energy into one's live, and to attune one's self to that energy. divination (ifa) divination techniques are utilized to solve more specific problems with greater immediacy. with divination the diviner identifies a problem; the diviner uses questioning...etc to hone in on the specifics. each odu (symbol representation) has a series of stories associated with it, that illustrate a particular problem. the person would identify the story that best represents their situation, that story embodies both a specific representation of the problem as well as the necessary solution. at this point the person can accept the reading and then follow the prescribed solution. the solution may entail making a sacrifice, a particular lifestyle change, and specific instructions with actions to perform.
here is a sample (ose yeku) reading: ajisegiri anikansekosunwon divined ifa for ose who was asked to sacrifice in order to become popular and not poor. he was asked to sacrifice: a calabash of palm oil, a calabash of shea butter, thirty-two hundred cowries, and ifa medicine (pound the bark of the root from the iroyin tree with the inside of aridan (type of fruit); mix the compound with black soap; place a bit of palm oil and shea butter at the bottom of the soap in a calabash). the medicine should be used for bathing. he heard and performed the sacrifice. (the sacred ifa oracle) within the ifa system we see the concept of sacrifice for gain; while that life energy is dedicated to the deities; psychologically the purpose of the sacrifice is associated with the outcome of the reading; which was prosperity. additionally the bathing with the herbal soap mixture will psychologically always be associated with the higher purpose of the reading; in addition to any spiritual significance.
among the yoruba orisha there are: eshu - opener of ways, creator opportunities. associated with unbridled, uncontrollable passion & also mischief. eshu is messenger of the gods who translates prayers to the language of the gods. (in kemet, medu is considered the language of the gods). oya - is associated with cemeteries, spirits of the deceased and sudden changes ogun - is a hunter & warrior, untamed...etc. obatala - represents purity & morality. obatala always wears white, his color is white, so white beads, white clothing, white jars...and cleanliness as well. orunmila - associate with fertility, birth & child rearing; orunmila is also a herbalist and associated with healing and medicine. yemoje (yemaya) - yemoje is associated with the seas, maternity & pregnancy in terms of the law of attraction, you want to be able to separate out aspects like pregnancy and fertility; from aspects like death, war and possibly mischief. with a monotheistic system, one deity encompasses all aspects of existence. by seperating out divine aspects polytheistic systems have always been able to apply the law of attraction, for thousands of years.
you can read this essay in context here: www.inipu.com/essays/section/no_secret