I figure I've been around long enough to leave some people confused or curious about my beliefs. So, if you have any questions about my theology, this is the place to ask.
I'll start by posting some of my terminology:
Rhys:
Rhymes with hiss when whispered. Plural, rhys. If you can say it loudly, you're saying it wrong.
1)The divine consciousness
2)The divine seed of mortal consciousness, not seeming (my rhys; our rhys)
Seeming:
Life is a spectrum, the infinitely complex interaction of rhys and divine matter. The seeming is that interaction, the incarnation.
This is vastly oversimplified, but it might help: matter -> biochemistry -> cells -> organs -> brain -> psyche -> spirit -> rhys. It can also be described as a wheel, with the One joining matter and rhys.
Everything from biochemical processes to spirit is the seeming, and ultimately mortal. Only matter and rhys continue after death.
Spirit vs. psyche:
The psyche is intimately connected to the brain. Our emotions, memories, speech patterns, and unconscious habits. It's only slightly less biological than spiritual. Drugs can affect it, as can injury. Likewise, it can affect the body: emotional trauma translating as physical symptoms, or the placebo effect.
The spirit, however, is something else. Our ideals, reason, willpower, personality traits. You can't give someone a pill to make them a Democrat, or change their sexual orientation. The spirit is still part of the seeming, and therefore mortal and connected to biology, but much less so than the psyche.
Universe, cosmos, and roth:
The cosmos is the simplest: the physical reality explored by modern science. Cosmos is what an atheist would consider to be the universe.
Roth (short O.) is the true reality of God. The 3 elements of roth are arn, rhys, and divine matter. Roth, to my estimation, includes many things that are commonly considered 'supernatural,' but these are simply things we do not yet understand.
The universe is everything. It is entirely possible that the One is one of many. If that is the case, the other divine beings have/ are their own roths, which are part of the universe.
The One:
God. The divine being which is the roth. Not necessarily unique in the universe. Literally immature. The purpose of life is for rhys to gain wisdom through experience.
The Becoming:
Existence (as we know it) as the process of the divine being approaching maturity.
Arn (ahrn):
The life force. Chi, magick, the element which binds rhys to matter to create life. Arn supersaturates the roth, and I believe it's intimately linked to electromagnetism. Sadly, I lack the scientific acumen to pursue that hypothesis.
Kaleria (kah-LEE-ree-ah):
A moment of overwhelming awe and wonder at the glory of life. You can find it in a sunset, a child, atrocity, compassion. To me, the definition of enlightenment is to attain a state of constant kaleria.
The bright shadow:
The awareness of divinity and the interconnectedness of all things, also the state of kaleria. Used as a blessing: May you walk in bright shadow.
Elders:
Those individual rhys who have fully Become. Guides and teachers for their younger siblings (us). Somewhat akin to the bodhisattvas of some Buddhist sects.
Avatars/Elders incarnate:
Elders can incarnate to teach important lessons directly; these incarnations are Avatars. Avatar refers specifically to the mortal vessel, whereas Elder incarnate refers to the rhys. The hallmark of Avatars is that their lives illustrate the message they taught. This isn't a definitive trait, but it is a very reliable clue. Examples of Avatars include the Buddha, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Hitler (not all lessons are pleasant), and Jonathan Larson (the author of the musical RENT).
I believe that Jesus was also an Avatar, and Judas as well that they were working together. For this reason, I sometimes refer to Judas Christ.
Sidhe (shee)/Others:
Beings that we don't understand. Earth spirits, angels, demons... I believe they exist, because the diversity of life seems to demand it.
Put it this way: I believe that there is advanced alien life 'somewhere out there, ' because the idea of humanity being the only intelligent species in the cosmos is ridiculous to me. The cosmos is just too big. Likewise, I don't think that biological life is the only form of life, because the roth is even bigger.
That doesn't mean that I believe aliens are sodomizing our cattle, or that your average medium or TV psychic is anything but a charlatan.
But I do believe that the sidhe exist, and share our planet. Most likely some of them have interacted with humans from time to time, and may even have inspired some of the deities of ancient days.
World Mother:
The sidhe-deity whose body is our planet. Highly revered, but not worshiped. Referred to in the feminine only as a nod to my neopagan background.
Os (OHSS):
There is no duality of morality. No Good, no Evil - there is only God.
However, anyone who isn't completely naive knows that there are things in this world for which no other word but 'evil.' Genocide, child abuse, torture, terrorism.... so much atrocity. These things are os.
Droichan (droy-KHAHN):
Os seemings. Serial killers, despotic dictators, Osama bin Laden.... droichan.
Droichan, however, are NOT to be regarded as damned, or despised on a spiritual level. They are not even 'unenlightened.' To be droichan is the most difficult stage of the Becoming, one we will all go through sooner or later: the true understanding of os.
They are a crucial part of life. They give us something to struggle against and become strong. Something to horrify us, that we seek a better way. They are the goad to evolution, and the bringers of balance.
Revile and denounce their actions, stop them if you can, but remember that they are necessary, and respect them as such. Hate the seeming, but pity the rhys, and remember that you, too must face this lesson eventually.
