The Heart of Water

 Teaching 8, The Heart of Water, has been a source of consternation and confusion amongst both adherents and people outside our faith for a few specific passages. Today, I would like to give out my hermeneutical approach to the text, and specifically passages 32-46.

The Teaching begins with instructions, of putting one's trust in Spirit and God Herself. To be virtuous in humility and love, to keep one's love and heart flowing like water. Contrasting to one with a heart of ice, one who is hard, unfeeling, or worse, tyrannical, means that one should strive to follow the path of love. Our hearts and souls seek to achieve closeness to the Spirit, the spiritual waters of Dea, as it says in Teachings 10:39; Every soul is athirst for the waters of Life... As water is vital to life on earth, so the waters of Life are vital to our souls.

Verse 15 is the start of where many people get unsettled or confused by the Teaching: The heart of water is in all obedience, nor hardens against her lady. Obedience is a contested word in this age; we will return to it soon.

Our faith has many lessons within the Scriptures that are oft repeated, and if we look at the Teachings as a whole, we see the lessons repeated often. That one should live virtuously, in humility and love, and temperance in actions and thoughts. Being disciplined is a constant effort though, as we all know. How often do we find ourselves pulled into negative thinking or poor choices in the current state of the world? But as in Teachings 3:61-62; Yet calm the mind and bring it to the garden of thy Lady: to the peaceful garden to rest by gentle streams. By long training is it brought to contemplation: is it bridled that it may tread the heavens. Disciplining your mind to refrain from negative actions is a skill that has to be cultivated, and resting your soul near the gentle streams, water of Life are an utmost spiritual goal. Our Mother does not chastise you for the difficulties of trying though, You that are weary with the world, you that are lonely, you that have suffered hardship, that have suffered hurt, come, gather about Me and be you enfolded in My mantle. (13:1) Being human is difficult, but we should be striving for betterment, and we are not alone as She is always with us, sheltering us.

Having this foundation, let's return to the passages in The Heart of Water.

Who lives in true obedience is free, for Her service is perfect freedom. But the disobedient are slaves; puppets of the passions and the senses, with no true will. Those who do evil are the slaves of evil, their freedom is but illusion.

 This can certainly cause a knee jerk reaction - obedience is a maligned term these days, and how can one be free in obedience? How does one reckon with this passage?

I start with the meanings behind the terms, to see what Scripture is getting at. In looking at obey, we find it is derived from the Latin obedire. This source tells us "...that it means literally "listen to," from ob "to" (see ob-) + audire "listen, hear" (from PIE root *au- "to perceive")." When we get to the root of the meaning, we see that we are being guided to listen deeply, to perceive Truth and Spirit. When we pay attention to the inner temple of our hearts, we seek to approach closer to Truth, to the Spirit of our Mother. By listening to our Lady, we can see past illusory and temporary matters, past the deceptions and 'untruths' of the world and better see the reality of our selves.

The next passages are the ones viewed as the most troubled:

Let the brother obey the sister, and the younger sister obey the elder. Let the child obey the mother and  the husband obey the wife. Let the wife obey the lady of the household. Let the lady of the household give obedience to the priestess; let the priestess give obedience unto Me. Let the maid obey the mistress, let the pupil obey the teacher. Thus shall all things be in harmony and harmony be in all things.

Fear not the way of obedience, for in that way art thou wholly secure. Let thy mistress direct thee and thou shalt be led into the perfect garden of Avala.

At face value, these instructions are distressing as one can easily see how they can be construed to create a system of authoritative control.* However, if we interpret as above, we can rather understand it to be instructions to listen to those who have more experience than ourselves. Those who are our elders, our teachers, our partners, all have different experiences than our own and we can broaden our own knowledge by listening to their wisdom and knowledge, listening in love and with an approach of gaining understanding.

Receive with love the seed of Truth ...(4:47)

The next passages continue the discourse of obedience (listen to) and warning one to not listen to the 'passions', those whims that lead us down dark paths. The following is the other most troubled:

A golden chain of love doth link each maid with her mistress, from the humblest of them that love Me unto the very Geniae of Heaven; a golden chain from the summit of the mountain unto the deepest depth. And it shall lift up each soul to the golden land of Avala, and to the yet more beauteous lands beyond.

Another confounding passage; chains immediately bring to mind restriction and bonds. Read string instead of chain: like the concept of strivate, wherein every being in the universe is connected to one another, as described in the fragment:

Hail Mari: Thou art the life that runs through a star, an apple, and a human child. Thou art the Sun, Whose rays bind us all like jewels upon a string.

All of life is inextricably linked, forming a beautiful and fragile tapestry. We are therefore directed by the words of our Lady to live in love, with a heart flowing like water, and to remember that we are all absolutely connected. The rest of this Teaching continues to remind one not to travel the path of ice, hardening your heart and choosing poorly as it means strife, falsity, and pain occur. But even though evil may have prominence, love will always eventually win out.

The sun shall rise and scatter the darkness hence. And after the long and wearisome night-journey, thou shalt behold the light of the golden dawn.

Our Lady wishes us to seek Truth and Wisdom, and studying the Scripture to look for their layers helps us in this task. We should be questioning and looking to their true meanings, and striving for hearts of water, the waters of Life, to guide us in our searching. May this writing of mine give peace and assurance to seek deeper and ask questions, always.

*Note: be wary of any religious group who stress authority and stringent hierarchy. If you need assistance or further information, visit internationalculticstudies.org