Soul Food Friday (#36)

Bite Sized Wisdom & Wonder

Hi Friends,

Greetings from Los Angeles.

I’m still processing and integrating last weeks journeys, but one thing I know for sure: more work is to clearing allostatic load from the nervous system. Practically speaking, that means more body work, more cold plunges, more somatic movement exercises, more breath work.

Wishing you all a meaningful weekend,

David-

Weekly Torah Portion (Pinchas)

We left off last week as Pinchas (Aaron’s grandson) ended the plague that was devastating the Israelites after they were seduced into idolatry. Pinchas’ reward for his zealotry: a “covenant of peace” and “lasting priesthood”.

A census of the people counts 601,730 men between the ages of twenty and sixty. Moses is instructed on how the Land is to be divided by lottery among the tribes and families of Israel.

Moses confronts his own mortality and asks God to appoint a successor. Unlike with priesthood and kingship, the 'crown' of prophets and sages does not pass from father to son in the Torah.

There's 3 traits the Torah instructs are going to be essential for the man who will lead the people into Israel:

1. A leader ‘who will tolerate each person according to his individual character'

2. A mensch. Someone who cares about those that others ignore, "the fatherless, the widow, and the stranger.” A man who spends as much time with those on the margins as with the elites. Who is courteous to everyone equally. Who receives respect because he gives respect

3. A man "who will go out before them and come in before them, who will lead them out and bring them in". This leader must lead from the front - but no faster than the people can bear.

Born into slavery, the task of fighting battles and conquering land was too much for Moses' generation.

The man chosen for the job? Joshua.

Archetype: The Seducer

Archetypes are universal models of people, behaviors, and personalities. Carl Jung identified 12 that he believed were present in the collective unconscious of all humans. The psychic counterpart of instinct, archetypes are thought to be the basis of many of the common themes and symbols that appear in art, literature, and religion across cultures.

What defines The Seducer is his drive to get what he wants using charm. He understands his targets deepest fantasies. The Seducer then chameleons his way into the role of lover, mentor, or confidant. Whatever necessary for power and control.

Strengths: Persuasive, charming, charismatic

Weaknesses: Self-centered, immoral, disloyal

Goal: Uses his gifts to get what he wants

Fear: Loss of control/power

Example: Jack Vincennes (L.A. Confidential)

Nervous System (Soma)

🪨 Medusa 🪨

First and foremost, Peter Levine says trauma is a physical problem in the body.

And while the ‘T’ word has been bastardized, there’s a reason why Levine, Van Der Kolk, and Mate’s work are having a moment. The culture is not well. Trauma is complex. And the cognitive behavioral therapy + psychiatric medicine cocktail appears to be exacerbating the problem.

The state of being 'scared stiff' has been portrayed in cultural lore forever. In the Bible, Lots wife is turned into a pillar of salt for witnessing the destruction of Sodom & Gomorrah. Indigenous cultures have 'Susto' - a disorder leading to the loss of soul through terrible fright. Zeus & Pan were compelled to stop and invoke panic.

We're susceptible to the Medusa complex. The Greek Mythology bearing the name captures the essence of trauma and lays out a pathway to transformation.

Before setting out to vanquish this snake haired demon, Perseus sought counsel from Athena - the goddess of knowledge & strategy.

Her advice was simple: under no circumstances should he look directly into Medusa's eyes.

Perseus took the advice. He used a protective shield to reflect the image of Medusa back onto her. He cut off her head. By avoiding eye contact, Perseus escaped being turned to stone.

Two mythical entities emerged out of Medusa’s open gash: Pegasus, the winged horse, and Chrysaor, the one eyed giant.

The horse is a symbol of the body and instinctual knowledge. The wings symbolize transcendence. The one eyed giant has a golden sword which symbolizes penetrating truth and clarity.

Embodiment. Instincts. Transcendence. Truth. Clarity.

The archetypal qualities that a human must mobilize to heal the medusa that we call trauma. 

Quote I'm Pondering

"I think of mythology as a function of biology; the energies of the body are the energies that move the imagination. You might say mythology is a formula for the harmonization of the energies of life." Joseph Campbell