esson 17a: Investiture of the Sword

he path twists and turns and I find myself again in the company of Dee. (From the dark mystery of the Lady of the Lake to the bright innocence of the Sword Maiden.)

   "Merry meet! It's so good to see you again--and to be back on high ground after trudging through the swamp! I was at Jungendfest and lost that bracelet you gave me, but I found it, fixed it and put it on again.¹
   "Yes, most people are bound to 'lose it' from time to time," she says, chuckling. "It's inevitable to occasionally get mired in confusion, but that's when one *most* needs to lean upon one's strengths and helpers--not to let them fall away, and wallow in madness!
   "Here," she says, "this will help you maintain clarity." She gives me a palm-sized crystal, but it's *not* clear--it's misty! As I gaze into it, the mist fades to reveal the Sword.
   "This is almost like a compass," I tell her. "Hold it steady and it will point the way."
   "Exactly!" she replies. "May it always point you in the right direction, Moonchild!"
   I give her a triple kiss, thanking her, and depart.

   I continue on through Sword Two, where the path is clear under the bright sun. Where the snake crawled in the grass before, I now find his shed skin. It's strong, and I keep it for making a scabbard. Coming to Sword Three, I see that the bridge is still out. Someone has tied many ribbons around loose stones to warn travelers of this fact. Looking closely, I see that these are made from shreds of my winter coat, which I lost here months ago. One particularly long piece attracts me, and I add it's mauve length to my pouch.

   Days pass [five of them] like years as I wander around avoiding the glade of the White Hart. Finally, I tire of being lost, take Dee's gift to orient myself, and step up.
   I see that the man isn't quite sure how to approach the woman. Her goals and interests are so different from his. But that is precisely why they need each other! She carries the yoni-vase of watery emotion, and he wields the bow and lingam arrows. He gazes, enraptured by her physical form, while she looks to the H(e)art. The man hunts for food, for flesh. Maybe he will never turn his head and see the White Hart. But that's okay, because if the woman follows the White Hart, he will follow the woman. She realizes that she can pursue the White Hart, but alone she will never catch up to it. She needs a partner. She turns to the man, focuses all her attention on him . . . and as their eyes meet, the White Hart approaches *them.* The man stands and takes the woman in his arms. As they embrace, becoming the whole world to each other, they are quietly bound together by a golden chain.²
   I am blessed to see and understand this, and I move away to give the happy couple their privacy.

approach Sword Four and all is peaceful--no seeking, no struggling, no distractions. I remove my clothes and enter the chapel. Outside, it begins to rain.

   The altar is covered with a white cloth, with four white candles burning, one on each corner. I lie down on the altar, giving myself over to peace. As I rest, my disjointed fragments of thought assimilate through dream, and my soul neither rocks nor rows, rather simply floats along the stream of being.
   I arise, and notice that a strip of the altar cloth has been torn or cut away. I reverentially fold it up and put it in my pouch with the snakeskin and piece from my coat.

   Moving on to Sword Five, I see men just finishing the building of a new (and nicer) hut. The head of the house approaches me and invites me to join them in the blessing of their new home.
   "You are an angel," he says. "You brought a message of light when all seemed dark. Now it is light again, and here you are!"
   They have woven a red ribbon, and use it to make a magic circle around the house, tying it across the front door. We circumambulate (i.e. walk around) the new house, as a Hierophant calls goodness up and down.
   Coming again to the front, each participant adds their own personal blessing or wish. "May this always be a house with enough provisions to provide warm hospitality. 'Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.'" (Heb. 13:2; see also Gen. 18)
   The man has a brand-new sword, which he uses to cut the ribbon over the door. As we file inside for the feast to follow, he cuts the ribbon into equal pieces and gives one to each guest, tying his own piece into a circle and hanging it over the inside of the door. We have a wonderful celebration, and I stay overnight. They really are excellent hosts!

   Early the next morning, I set out, and soon meet Colin, the Sword Knight. We have a conversation [which, because of his accent, is too much for me to transcribe]. Basically, he's happy that I have my own sword now, and offers to give me training whenever I like. He takes a yellow stone (perhaps topaz) and mounts it in the hilt of my sword--for intelligence and mental power and discernment as fresh as the morning air and as balanced as the sun on the rim of the east.

1) Six years ago, I made myself a beaded bracelet with bells on it. A young girl asked me if I wore it so "God could find you if you get lost." I've (almost) never taken it off since then. It broke at Jungendfest, but I found it a couple of days later. {back}

2) The golden chain from around the neck of the White Hart. {back}