Let the Living look after the Living and the Dead look after themselves!
To some degree we do this in that our ability to care for others generates Life ahead of Death. It might even seem that in our urgency to generate life living is like a race against dying, however, we know we cannot beat Death and the ancients believed we couldn't cheat it! Their meaning of Life was gained through living it honourably. A good life was reflective of a good death. Death therefore had as much purpose as Life and as the living did look after the living, the Dead were cared for by an overseeing god like Gwyn ap Nudd!
Gwyn is one of many examples of Death that have been personified in roles to explain the cessation of life. As a psychopomp, he conducted souls of the recent dead onto their afterlife. Because death and birth were major events, Gwyn’s role as a death deity would have been extremely powerful. He would have been a model of respect as death, hailed as the final outcome, was honourably greeted. Those who died were taken to dedicated areas like Glastonbury for the purpose of being collected for their final journey.
Therefore as Death was not feared but expected, an altered perception of what death may mean to us could reduce our fears in exchange for something we can live with more effectively.
As you proceed with this part of the Gwynvyd Method you will work with Gwyn, the Lord of Death to discover what finality means to you. To begin, you will:
1. complete a task with no assistance.
2. answer a series of questions honestly.
As the work you do is personal to your development it must be undertaken personally. The questions that are asked of you must therefore be asked of yourself.
The Task:
The making of a labyrinth:
In a garden
or field using new mown grass
On a beach
using sand (scratched with a stick or your foot), stones
or shells
In an open
space using sticks or ropes
At night
and in either of the above locations using jam jars
containing lit small candles.
The labyrinth you can see above was made in 10 minutes by firmly dragging a foot in the sand. It was about 9 inches wide, was just large enough to walk with one foot in front of the other and was great fun to create, walk and rewind ourselves back from. Now it is your turn!
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
Congratulations you have created a 7-ring classical labyrinth. Associated with the famous Cretan labyrinth, this design was used by the Hopi Indians in America and there are stone carvings in various European locations, including Rocky Valley in Cornwall.
The ancients created labyrinths for various reasons, one of which was to symbolise the birth of life, its death and renewal. This may suggest that the ancients were considering an afterlife in their context of the term ‘renewal’ but if we apply that term to our change in growing stronger, more confident and becoming more aware, we will be effectively renewing ourselves with every effort.
Standing or sitting comfortably within your labyrinth, begin to consider the following questions:
The Questions:
1. What does death mean?
Do you think it is something that happens to others? Do you take risks with your own life?
If you do then you may be trying to remove yourself from the fact that you are mortal and that those things that cause others to die will not happen to you. We cannot imagine what it is to not exist and therefore may explore theories of alternative explanations. However, if we can consider that finality may be just that, it can enable us to regard life more highly. Can you consider death as being the completion of something well done? Can you value your life efforts as sincere contributions?
Life makes us separate but in death we are the same.
2. Am I afraid of dying?
Do you fear of doing anything that might risk your life? Do you worry the affect your death may have?
It is unreasonable to expect anyone shouldn’t be afraid of dying, however, as fears can trap us in a state of misery a sense of freedom can be gained from accepting that death is unavoidable. If our fear is that of leaving others we can help to prepare them and by doing so help ourselves. Could you prepare yourself for death by writing a Will? Could you talk about your feelings to whom you fear losing or who may fear losing you?
To lose a life is a great loss, to not live life is another.
3. Have I known death?
Did you lose someone close to you when you were a child? Did you lose a loved pet?
When we begin to think of death it can almost seem imminent. We can become fearful of our own mortality or morbid in our thoughts of dying. Could you allow yourself time to mourn for a lost one? Could you allow time each year to remember their memory?
The absence of someone’s presence can be filled with thoughts and love.
4. Have I wanted to die?
Have you thought of ways of dying? Do you think of death as escape?
When we are low, without comfort and unable to look ahead we may desire death as a release from pain. It may not be that we really want to die but that we want to end a difficult moment in living. However, if we feel helpless we could see our lowest moment as one we can rise from. Could you change your life to affect your outlook? Could you anticipate what you may yet do if allowed the time to do it?
We know ourselves from what we do, but what we could do is our mystery.
5. Do I have enough time to live?
When you are young you can think you have all the time in the world and often get told so, but children die too. As our health can determine our longevity so can our conduct and the behaviour of others. Could you consider the quality/amount of food/drink you consume? Could you discourage a friend from driving if they have consumed alcohol?
If we found more time to live would it be lived more wisely?
Well done! You may continue to phrase your own questions or if you wish, return to this area again later. Alternatively you could experiment with creating different labyrinths and if you have the space try planting one with seeds.
If you are willing and ready, you can now enter another area of the Gwynvyd Method.