Paganistan: Notes from the Secret Commonwealth
In Which One Midwest Man-in-Black Confers, Converses & Otherwise Hob-Nobs with his Fellow Hob-Men (& -Women) Concerning the Sundry Ways of the Famed but Ill-Starred Tribe of Witches.
The Pagan Paradox
You and I are both standing in the temple, gazing upon the face of the god.
You are really tuned in. For you, the god is entirely present. You're seeing the god himself.
Me, though, not so much. For me, I'm just seeing the statue: a masterwork, true, but still only a statue.
Two worshipers, standing side by side: for one, the god is present; for the other, not.
Call it the Pagan Paradox: in the same image, at the same time, the god is both present and not present simultaneously.
I can only shake my head. Come next year, I'll have been doing this for 50 years.
Sometimes, though, I still feel like a beginner.
Above:
Chryselephantine Apollo (detail)
Ivory and gold leaf
Delphi, Greece
ca. 550 BCE
Comments
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Tuesday, 01 September 2020I'm reminded of a story I once heard about Orthodox Icons. Most of the time they are just painted wood, but sometimes there is the feeling that someone is behind the image looking out at the viewer.
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Mr. Posch,
It's my belief that a tiny bit of divine essence is refracted through the agalma (holy image). Failing to sense that god-power is like refusing to open your eyes on a sunny day, and trying to convince yourself that the sun no longer exists.