delphic oracle Archives ⋆ Briana Saussy

iracles,

Learning is often seen as boring. Prim and proper, learning wears glasses and has its hair tied up in a neat bun and only speaks at library appropriate volume. This is the story many of us have been told and bought into. So what would you say if I told you that one of the greatest figures in philosophy was guided by the Delphic Oracle and an inner voice? Or that the theory of relativity came to Einstein in a dream? That chemistry not so very long ago was in a vibrant conversation with its wild sibling, alchemy?

In my experience within our community of soulful seekers, school has been a mixed bag – either you loved it or hated it and not much in between. But across the board the sense that there is something more, something other, that not everything worth believing in can be empirically seen or justified, can sometimes make the entire process of learning feel alien; as if it is something for others but not for us. (This is part of the motivation behind the “get out of your head and into your heart” speak that you all know I find very unhelpful). I am here to tell you differently. Under the New Moon in Gemini on Thursday, let yourself come back into a wild and loving relationship with learning and the seedbed from which all learning springs up from: Wonder.

Here is a blessing to keep you company as you do.

Blessed One(s) in whom we live, move, and have our being.
You have been called by many names: Daimon, Genius, Brilliance, Intelligence, but we know you as Wonder.
As we embark on new discoveries and seek to increase our knowledge and wisdom hold us fast to your starry visage.
Remind us that learning is not measured by how much is known but rather by the quality
and depth with which we know any one thing.
Call to our minds keen-eyed Attention and sharpened Discernment so that we are fully able
to pierce through misleading illusions and see things as they truly are.
Teach us that wisdom begins not in having all of the answers but rather in asking the
one needed question.
Help us remember that this journey is not one we must make on our own but that we are
joined to a community of souls who have gone long before us and who will come long
after we are gone, and that within this community it is safe not only to know, but safe also
to admit when we do not know.
Fill us with Wonder, Blessed Ones, keeping foremost in our minds and hearts, bodies and souls,
that it is not what we know but how we live within that knowledge that shows best who we truly
are and all that we are capable of achieving…
These things we ask in the heavenly and earthly and always blessed names, may it be so.

magic, miracles: receive my lunar letters

ARRIVING on full moons each month.

ear Miracles,

The first time I met Thorn was in 2000 at a Black Heart of Innocence workshop she led deep in the heart of Texas. I knew then that she was a teacher with deep intellect matched only by her very real compassion and dedication to her craft and path. I have really enjoyed watching her continue to grow and teach others how to do the same thing. Thorn has written three books, teaches her spiritual path all over the world, and produces some of the most lucid writings in the Pagan community today. I respect her work deeply and am delighted to share some of her fantastic insights with Milagro Roots readers!

In her own words:

T. Thorn Coyle is a magic worker. Author of the “Make Magic of Your Life: Passion, Purpose, and the Power of Desire,” “Kissing the Limitless,” and other books, she blogs on spirituality and politics for Patheos and Huffington Post and at her own blog: Know Thyself. Her work reaches people all over the world through her spiritual direction, vibrant workshops, webcasts, and online classes. Pagan, mystic, minister, and social justice activist, she lives by the San Francisco Bay.

1.) You work with the saying of the Delphic Oracle, Know Thyself. How does magic help us know ourselves?

Magic is the marriage of breath, will, and desire. When we shift our relationship to breath, to life force – the vitality that flows through everything – we shift our relationship with ourselves. When we allow ourselves to open to desire and find the places where want meets a need, and follow that thread, we are confronted with our deeper selves. We come to a place where we face fear, insecurity, hope, anger, deep longing, and love. That work helps us to set our intentions and put them into action because we have more clarity about who we are. Working magic helps birth our desires into the world. To step into the flow of magic, we have to know ourselves. To know ourselves brings us more deeply into magic.

2.) You are a well-respected voice in Paganism today and I know you have studied with Sufis and Catholic Workers as well. One of the topics that I am hearing more and more about is the relationship between Paganism and/or Earth-based religious systems and other religious traditions. What kind of relationship would you like to see develop between them? What should we be putting our energy towards?

A relationship that cultivates both a sense of Nature as sacred and self as part of Nature is a healthy and fruitful one. Nature as sacred means that the cosmos is alive; Divinity flows through the stars, the trees, the rivers, the insects, the black holes, and every human being. Coming to recognize that, we can learn to better love ourselves, one another, and the world. We enter the flow where healing is possible. Recognizing the sacred helps us toward a deeper sense of service, which is very important: we have to help one another or we are lost. Helping one another includes honoring this gorgeous planet. The mystics of all religious traditions had a deep sense of connection. They loved humanity. They loved animals. They loved holy Nature. They drank wine and gazed at the stars. We can foster this mystical connection by starting at our core and moving out from there.

3.) Your latest book is Make Magic of Your Life–which I read and enjoyed. Why this book and why now? What was driving you to write it and share it with the world?

In working with spiritual direction clients and students, I noticed that people were hesitant to manifest what they wanted and felt very conflicted about desire. They felt unworthy, or selfish, or confused. There was a strong sense of disconnection from what their heart and soul wanted and needed. That drove me to write and teach more deeply about the power of desire and how passion can lead us toward our purpose.

Our purpose is often simple: it is the thing we gravitate toward or just the thing we find ourselves doing. It often feels quite ordinary to us! It is easy to make desire and purpose into something that feels overwhelmingly huge. This stops us in our tracks. Make Magic of Your Life walks us into desire and purpose one step at a time. It provides entry points for the tentative and deepening for those who feel well on their path. Sometimes we get stuck. My hope is that this book will help activate us once again.

4.) You write and you speak but you also teach. Tell us about your teaching programs: Who are they for? What do they teach? How can those interested learn more?

In my teaching, I attempt to pass along techniques to know ourselves better, to integrate all the parts of self and soul – even those that feel unacceptable – so we can come into greater internal alignment. The better aligned we are within ourselves, the easier it is to be in alignment with the sacred around us. When we align with the sacred around us, we grow in beauty, strength, and service. We open up the world and help create something new.

I welcome sincere seekers from many paths.

5.) If you could give one piece of wisdom to my readers today, what would it be?

Don’t forget to listen. Drop into your center – over and over – and find the silence there. Listen to your soul. Listen to the cosmos. Then speak. We need your voice.

Find her on the web:
website
Twitter: @ThornCoyle
Facebook
Youtube
And for the love of deep desire, get her book!
Book Trailer!
Patheos Book Club Reviews

magic, miracles: receive my lunar letters

ARRIVING on full moons each month.