The poet Wallace Stevens once wrote, “The final belief is
to believe in a fiction, which you know to be a fiction, there being nothing
else. The exquisite truth is to know that it is a fiction and that you believe
in it willingly.” For many years I have pondered Stevens’ meaning and through time,
my understanding of the phrase has shifted, adding various subtleties and
shades of meaning. I have wandered into a space in my life where I have adopted
this as a personal credo.
There are certain propositions about the world which I
assent to, which glue my world together, and that quite naturally, I hold
dearly. I recognize their empirical unverifiability, they are fictions, but for
me they are what James Hillman refers to as “healing fictions.”
The first is that there is a Way (perhaps Tao)
expressing itself continuously.
The second is that elements of the Way are potentially
knowable.
The third, that historically there are numerous
disciplines by which we may discern this Way.
Fourth, the practice of astrology is one of these disciplines.
Now I don’t mean the trivial astrology found in the sun
sign columns in the newspapers and magazines, nor am I interested in anyone
attempting to tell me what the future holds, the future can take care of
itself. I mean the kind of astrology that rather than providing answers to my
worrisome problems, generates questions about what it means to be living this
life here and now. It provokes new questions that lead off on adventures in
meaning, that help to create/discover shifts in understanding. In some ways, it
is astrology as spiritual practice. My only basis for believing these fictions
reside in the heart of my own experience. I do not doubt their veracity though
I could in no way prove them to you.
I think it is fair to say that astrology falls short of
empirical validity There is a blatant attempt by astrologers to move into the
neighborhood of science where most cultural validity resides, kind of like
gaining increased status by having rich and important friends, or they simply
know little about the workings of science. Astrology is an art form, an applied
poetics as writer Thomas Moore suggests. Like many good things in life it is
not to be taken literally. The painted portrait is not, nor does it necessarily
reflect, the literal person, the well told tale (Shakespeare, for instance)
does not need to be historically accurate to imbue its listeners with meaning
and value, the stories of the Christ or the Buddha do not have to be authentic
to carry power and import into our lives. These are mysteries and fictions with
the capacity to heal and move us into new spaces.
Fictions and fantasies do not reflect categories of
diminished value or useless inquiry, but have great consequence and that even
science and technology are expressively permeated by many fantasies. There is
no need to be locked into a monocentric view of things. There is no longer one
right way to approach life, no quest I need go on to find it, but many ways
now. I can also recognize that there are many styles of being in the world and
though mine may be right for me, it is not necessarily right for others. Each
person is a unique expression of life, a particular facet on this gem of the
world.
The astrological imagination is effulgent with
polycentric perspectives and respect for others. Almost by definition, it
includes tolerance and diversity with less need to pathologize the ways of
others. Every person is fitted perfectly into their lives with even the
struggle to fit, fitting.
To see the beauty of celestial rhythm reflected in the
everyday affairs of my life grants a certain feeling of serenity and
contentment upon which I can fall back in the midst of my own crises. I have said this before but I think it bears repeating, because my life at times
seems out of my control is not to suggest that it is out of control, there may be larger guiding factors in play. To engage
the fiction of astrology to acquire this learning is for me a worthwhile
endeavor.
Visit me at AstroCare.net
No comments:
Post a Comment