Wisdom or Insanity?

The Hierophant
From: www.tarot.com

Personal Card
This Deck: Ukiyoe
Theme: Use your inner knowledge to lead.
Astro Association: Taurus

General Meaning: Traditionally known as the Hierophant, this card refers to a Master and the learning of practical lessons from the study of Natural Law. This energy of this card points to some agent or resource that can reveal the secrets of life, the cycles of the moon and tides, the links between human beings and the heavens.

Because monasteries were the only places a person could learn to read and write in the middle ages, a Hierophant was one to whom a student would petition for entry. He was the one to set the curriculum for the neophyte's course of study.

Often pictured with the right hand raised in blessing, the Hierophant is linked with the ancient lineage of Melchezidek, initiator of the Hebrew priestly tradition, the one who passes on the teachings. All shamans of any tradition draw upon this archetype.

I must admit, as much as I love the tarot and as beautiful and mysterious as some of the images can be, it's not often that I do a reading or pick a card for the day. How ironic, then, for this of all cards to make an appearance on a day when I've been rambling on about spiritual matters to three different people.

Oh, but don't think for a moment that I don't sit back after all is said and done and question everything I've shared about how the human experience and the spiritual experience intertwine. I often wonder, "Did that make any sense to anyone other than myself?"

Tonight, while I was questioning my own insight, I thought of something I hadn't before. I thought about the theoretical physicists on a program I watched on the Science Channel. It was a program about String Theory and Membrane Theory. This group of three physicists were riding on a train on their way to see a play. As they were riding along, they began throwing ideas out to one another, all kinds of wondrous, seemingly improbable ideas, until one of them said something that made them all stop and think. That's when M-Theory was born.

Then it occurred to me -- that's how we make sense of this crazy experience of life. We join together and throw out all of our brilliant, hair-brain ideas and, if we're lucky, we occasionally stumble across something that resonates with our own, personal experience. Maybe it's only one word or a single idea, but that word or idea sticks with us -- almost haunts the back of our mind. Then one day, perhaps when we're in the shower or while driving to the store, we'll be "in the moment", not thinking about anything in particular, and we will have a sudden epiphany. Then that one word or idea will make perfect sense to us and we will understand the connection it holds to even bigger and bolder ideas.

So, while I may not make sense to others all the time, it's comforting to think that even a madman eventually says something profound if you listen long enough. I hope my friends are patient. :-)