What is culture?
Culture derives from the word “cult”, and the true meaning of “cult” means “adoration of God”. So, culture is when the human being expresses his gratitude to God. Cult is to recognize that we all are dependent of the Great Creator, the one who possesses the immense love for each and every being and who has given so generously to our life. One can see so called culture houses in many places, but in these places we find things that in no way have anything to do with God, but rather are work of persons who think them themselves to be the creators of the art.
Let us now analyze the words logos and mythos. Logos means logic, human intellectual assimilation. And mythos, what is that? The atheists have made mythology out of mythos; everybody talks about the Greek mythology, the Roman mythology, Andean mythology, native mythology, Indian, German, Scandinavian mythology, etc. And with this type of concept we are supposed to understand that it is all about fairytales that man have created to justify and explain the phenomena that logic cannot explain. But nowadays we have gone further than this; we disregard mythology, rationalize everything and transform it to science, to logic, and in this way man have distorted truth by atheism.
If we go the Greek language to analyze the word mythos, we find that its meaning is “revelation”, which means that a Higher Dimension is being visible, it is revealed in an inner dimension, in other words this is when God becomes visible in this world – in one way or the other. So mythos is universal revelations that in no way have anything to do with statements or manifestos from some particular group, that, by using a sophisticated language and extracts from the philosophy, want to expose their own greatness and try to embrace their own provincial interests. This is not mythos, since mythos is the Truth.
The Mystical Cross
In order to accept something as mythos, revelation, it has to be:
1. revealed
2. the truth
And to know if something is the truth, we have to add logos. Let’s look at it this way: This which is descending, mythos, is a vertical line (|), and logos is a horizontal line (-). These both form a cross (+), and this is the Mystical Cross, the Original Cross, in different cultures also called “la cruz andina”, “chacana”, etc. Logos and mythos necessarily have to cross each other, because logos has to appreciate mythos. And to be able to perceive mythos, it is required different material senses (sight, hearing, feeling, taste and olfactory sense), as well as the subtle senses (mind, intelligence and ego).
Atheistic thinking
The tendency to want to eliminate humanity’s sources of illumination and to exclude them, to pretend proposing that God does not exist and that all kind of revelation simply is an invention of the human intellect mixed with lies – this shows atheism. This indicates a desire for self-assertion, moved by the purpose of taking advantage of people who don’t have the capacity to notice this, to exploit them.
For this kind of atheistic thinkers, the mystic is something mundane or some kind of psychological sickness. They think, like Justance Smith, the famous theologian from USA explained, that man in this moment is the maximum of existence, that logos, mans’ intelligence, the technical and sociologic development, etc., is the maximum one can get in this world, the maximum one can aspire for, and that everything that has anything to do with the cult of God, the myths distorted to mythology, are expressions from primitive people.
And this atheistic reality has infiltrated the educational ministries; media, communication and trade are used as justification to introduce the system on the free market. This can also be called “the law of the strongest”, which tries to impress the idea that there is no higher rule or order in this world, that nobody exists whom we have to obey, and that there is no authority, nothing “absolute”.
The absolute
The word “absolute” in Greek, means “no forgery”. Absolute is the Truth, it is unalterable. For instance, you exist, this is true. We have consciousness, this is true. It is true that the planet is in its orbit and that the sun shines. But the atheists say: “There is no absolute truth, everything is relative, it depends of the point of view one has”. But reality is that the absolute is what continues to exist when the terrestrial, the relative, disappears. That, which is your absolute, will be seen when you die, because what will be left is the soul, and this is your absolute. The body will be burned or buried, and thus it is not your absolute; it is soon relative, food for worms.
So, how can we affirm that there exists no unalterable absolute separated from duality? If we cultivate a mentality that eliminates the possibility of separation from duality, it means that duality is the supreme ruling. But the fact is that duality is observed by the being, and not the being that is observed by reality. This proves that duality is part of the mundane and that we therefore have to transcend it.
At this point the presence of mythos is necessary, to know what revelation there is about the Absolute Truth, what information there is about that level which is beyond the relative, manifested in the mundane terrestrial physics, the carnal, of earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego. What is beyond this? Nothing? Are we just a product of earth? Will we dedicate our veneration just to a potsherd? Or can we recognize that there is a consciousness which by nature necessarily is superior? And that by being superior, it must belong to a superior dimension and as such we need to make contact with this level, this superior dimension?
Spirituality and science
Of course logos is a gift from God and it manifests through doubt and faith. Fist comes doubt, and then faith can come. If doubt did not exist, this would mean that you had to accept the first that came into your way, as the maximum. So, God has given you the doubt so that you would be able to investigate with your logos, with your capacity of assimilation and discrimination, what is duality and what is not. This point is very important, because when logos searches mythos, this is the central question; when logos does not search mythos, everything will pass by, and that which affects can pass above the centre or on another side of the line, but it is only in the cross that we can find the Truth.
Therefore logos and mythos are the origine of chacana deva, the mystical cross, which is in the centre of the Vedic yantra (altar for invocation of superior powers). Studying the life and work of all mystics from different epochs and currents, we find that they ratify that without mythos, logos would be chaos. So science without spirituality is purely dry speculation, and on the other hand, spirituality without science usually becomes sentimentality.
Actually, the cross has not such an importance in itself. The only thing of true value in the cross is its central point, because if that which descends does not find anyone who receives, it becomes not useful. For instance, a flash descends from heaven down to the earth, but if it is not canalized, then it ends in the moment it makes contact with the earth. But if this ray of energy, which materially is very powerful, is canalized in a particular way, it can even kill a person.
It is a fact that the Supreme Power that descends is immense, but if there is no receiver, if there is no land that is cultivated, if there is no Brahmin culture (persons who dedicate themselves to the Truth and accomplish to the responsibility of spiritual advisers for society) that investigates what is Truth; if there is no philosophical culture or initiation school, there will be no humility which is required to really be able to enter the level of rejecting what is futile. It is only where logos and mythos is, that one can reject the futile and accept the valuable, and it is here that man can accept to be useful and valuable.
So how about you? Are you ready? This change, this crossing of two lines is the central point, and in our life it is manifested through the meeting with the spiritual master and his or her acceptance of being a spiritual guide. Here begins avaroha panta, the path of revelation, which purifies us, which also is the point of continuity, because through this point the being ascends in her appreciation of reality.
Conscious art is the culture of the soul
When we enter the process of Krishna consciousness, we rediscover and appreciate again the “cultures”, and not in the atheistic anthropological term, but from the point view of the theist; by in different ways and levels glorifying God, to submit ourselves to His will and offer all talents to Him who has given them to us. This is manifested in complete magnitude in the Holy Expressive Arts from India, where in temples and public places they dedicate holy dances, poetry, architecture of buildings, flower arrangements, delicious dishes, music and theatre to the Supreme Lord. In this way, in the meeting between mythos and logos, all art is transformed into Conscious Art, an art that brings a true field of illumination and inner awakening to people.
Conscious art is the culture of the soul, because it is born from the Supreme Soul, from the Infinite Artist, Vrajesvara Govinda Gopala. From His flute emanates the spiritual music that calls all souls to meeting with mythos, a transcendental revelation which invites us to rejoice and to claim to conquer the plane of egotism, which means all attempts to live happy without God. This is something that men have tried to do for thousands and millions of times, and it has never given result. Therefore the most intelligent is to accept that “without God I am nothing. Without God I cannot marry, without God I cannot be an artist, without God I cannot be a doctor, without God I cannot be a parent, without God I cannot be happy, and without God I cannot learn to know the Truth”. He is your Father, the one who maintains you and who has created you. And to know Him, to know exactly who He is, one worships Him and evokes His mercy.
Humanity’s experience teaches us that atheism is unbearable. A life without God leads to something psychopathic, to traumata and sicknesses, depressions, chaos and total immorality. This is reality, and therefore we see that all great saints and devotees of the Lord, during all epochs and circumstances, have approached to the Supreme Lord to worship Him and ask Him for support and help. And this is what we also, each one of us, have to do before the phenomena of irreligiosity and deviation: we have to pray.
And the Conscious Art is a prayer. The art of cooking prasadam is a prayer. The art of dancing before the Deity is a prayer. The art of composing music for Krishna is a prayer. The art of writing a book with a spiritual message is a prayer. The art of culturing ecological vegetables to offer pure products to Krishna is a prayer. The art of opening wells of water to give people water which is not polluted is a prayer. Artik (the ceremony of worship) where one offers the five elements: earth, fire, water, air, ether and the three subtle elements: mind, in form of mantras, intelligence by listening to the Scriptures, and finally, the false ego through obeisances; all this is a prayer. Conscious Art is the recognition that all elements and acts form part of the infinite mercy of God.
Time for consideration
The suffering of your being will accompany you life after life, until you are ready to bow your head before God and thank Him for everything He has done for you, and until you before Him promise to accept that He has given you your criterion and intelligence to do something wonderful on earth, and not just to rush through the world and exploit its resources and make humanity to cry and bleed through the frugal purpose of an atheistic mentality.
This is the moment of consideration, because it is in one moment that man realizes himself and becomes conscious. It is in one moment that we give and can change direction of life towards perfection. And this is the direction I wish, so that all of you will understand the art of Conscious Art and be able to find the necessary blessing in order to be able to see the wonderful Divine Hand, which is always behind everything and which guides us.
Sunday16th of Januari 2005
Varsana Ecological farm, Granada, Colombia
Translation: Manah Siksa Devi dasi
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