Iapetus, interpreted

By beagarth on April 1, 2008 • ( 0 )

Note: this topic was originally posted
January 13, 2008 – 5:47 PM
by Steve Arntson on Tribe.net

Well, it’s a planet – or rather a moon of Saturn’s – it’s also a name for the father of Prometheus, the bringer of light – more of this later – now, this moon is very special – when one of our space probes got close and took pictures, we were able to see clearly at last – a good portion of the surface is very dark-colored – the rest is quite bright – like a spherical version of the Tao symbol – it is speculated that dust is being brought to this moon from another satellite in the Saturnian system – one side of Iapetus perpetually faces Saturn – it is the leading edge of this moon that is dark – another strange feature of Iapetus is a ridge that girdles the entire moon, approximately 10 miles in height, very striking – its origin a mystery, like everything else about this moon – I chose this moon as an object of meditation, and to honor the father – he whose issue was to illuminate, and raise out of ignorance, all humankind – the father also embodies dualism – his world is a symbol – the transformed Tao – circle to sphere gone – with the contemplation of this heavenly body comes a synthesis, a Whole – and, additionally, not only is Iapetus both dark and light, but those opposites are seen as a contrast to a sense of this Whole, for yet another duality.

From the Mithraic past, in Persia, right on through Shakespeare’s visions, duality shines forth – continually, in Shakespeare especially, two extremes are presented and are the source of all dramatic tension – our own life and death, as a people, a nation, a world – by concentrating on dualism the opposites unite, in the same way we are drawn to the forbidden if constantly advised to walk the staright-and-narrow – and so, paradoxically, a unity is achieved and the mind and soul set free to create – our art flourishes in the spirit of the Synthesis, the third condition, the blessed flow of thought and feeling itself.