Self-Compassion

“Self-compassion is simply giving the same kindness to ourselves that we would give to others.” - Christopher Germer

The seeds of self-hatred are planted early in life. In our drive to be accepted by the one's we love, we often develop negative feelings about ourselves. This self-hatred is reinforced by social institutions, especially religious, who insist that we are fallen and are in need of salvation.

It can be hard to overcome those negative feelings about the self. Sometimes one can find help in sources that one least expects.

Next to social media, YouTube is one of the favorite subjects for people to beat up on. You would think that YouTube is nothing but cat videos. While there certainly are those, there’s a lot of good stuff as well. One of the excellent YouTube channels is The School of Life.

The School of Life channel defines its mission as “devoted to bringing you calm, self-understanding, better relationships, deeper friendships, greater effectiveness at work and more fulfillment in your leisure time.”

They have several excellent videos about self-compassion. I’ve linked to two that I’m very impressed with.

Akitu

March 20, 2023, marks the Spring Equinox called Ostara in the Wiccan Wheel of the Year. The festival Ostara, named after the goddess Eostre, is very popular in Neopaganism, as evidenced by all the bloggers and website owners writing about it.

This blog post isn’t about Ostara.

I’ve posted before that my Patron Deity is the Sumerian goddess Inanna, known to the Babylonians as Ishtar. Akitu was one of the highest festivals in Babylon and marked the beginning of the New Year. While the Babylonians celebrated it in the Spring, the festival occurred during the Autumn Equinox in Sumer. 

The Babylonian Akitu festival was a twelve-day event that began on the first New Moon following the Spring Equinox. The first four days consisted of reciting the Babylonian Creation myth and manufacturing two statues to represent the demons of Tiamet, who were defeated by Marduk. One statue would have a viper in its left hand, while the other would have a scorpion. The rest of Akitu would consist of parading the statues along with their decapitation, the king proving his humility, and concluding with the sacred marriage of the king to the goddess Ishtar 

Scholars theorize that the Akitu festival served several purposes within Babylonian society. One was for the king to reassert his position of power. The other was to ensure a prosperous New Year for the people.   

While I don’t follow the letter of Akitu, I strive to celebrate its spirit. My personal celebration includes rituals to remind me of my sovereignty. I also include rituals to aid in the prosperity and good fortune of myself, my friends, and my family.       

Vive La Différence

“Strength lies in differences, not in similarities.” – Stephen Covey

The three pounds of mostly fat we call our brain evolved to interact with our physical reality. We are bodies embedded in a material world. A consequence of our physicality is a solid division between us and the outside world. My fingers typing these words are distinct and apart from the keyboard. 

However, the gods are different in that they’re spirits. Spirits are, by definition, non-corporeal beings. Because of their non-corporeal nature, they are like nothing that exists in our world. This difference makes it difficult for us to truly understand the nature of the gods.

While I consider myself a Hard Polytheist since I believe that the gods are individuals, each with their own agency, I understand that they aren’t exactly like us. As mentioned, gods are non-corporeal beings. This characteristic makes them different than any phenomenon we’ve ever seen. It also makes them difficult to understand.

Our individuality and autonomy are intimately tied to our physicality. Oh, there are changes to our bodies that come with age. Plus, we can modify our bodies with surgery and other procedures. But we’re unable to divide our bodies or merge with others. Our bodies are locked into place.

Hard Polytheists must remember that the gods are not the same as us. However, the Archetypists and Soft Polytheists need to understand that those of us who have had contact with the gods will testify that there are attributes that we share with the gods. 

Let’s avoid hubris, where we think we completely understand the nature of the gods. The gods are much more complex and mysterious than we can begin to imagine.

Big-Headed

 “If you let your head get too big, it’ll break your neck.” – Elvis Presley

Note: I’m highly indebted to the excellent YouTube channel The Living Philosophy, which was a resource for this post.

One of the popular whipping boys of contemporary spirituality is the ego. According to some, the ego is the source of all evil. If we could just eliminate the ego, they say, all would be right with the world.

They’re wrong.

The problem isn’t the ego but a phenomenon called ‘ego inflation.’

The term ‘ego’ was introduced to the modern world through the work of Sigmund Freud. Freud used the German phrase ‘Das Ich,’ meaning ‘The I.’ When his work was translated into English, ‘The I’ was considered clumsy. So the translator chose ‘ego,’ the Latin word for ‘I.’

According to Freud, the ego is the Self and mediates between the individual and the world. The ego is the seat of judgment, tolerance, memory, and intellect. One major job of the ego is to balance the demands of the individual’s Id and the Superego. The ego allows us to restrain the Id through practices such as delayed gratification and judgment. It also separates the Superego’s toxic influences from the healthy. A healthy ego is, so to speak, the grown-up in the room.

Like anything, the ego can get out of wack. One way is for the ego to become inflated. When someone has an inflated ego, we sometimes say, “That person is ‘big-headed.’” 

Individuals with ego inflation are easy to spot. We see a particular CEO of an electric car company who acquired a social media service not long ago, with obvious ego inflation. Also, a certain former U.S. President who refuses to acknowledge that he lost his bid for reelection definitely has ego inflation. 

Where does this confusion of ego with ego inflation come from? It’s essentially the product of Westerners who misunderstand Freud and Jung as well as misappropriate certain Buddhist concepts. The result of this toxic combination is a misplaced attack on the ego.

Let’s stop beating up the ego because the ego is a necessary and essential part of a healthy personality. Instead, let’s focus our criticism on ego inflation. There’s no need for anyone to get big-headed.