Law of Three /(78) Russia, Ukraine and the Third Force (1)

 

 

LAW OF THREE (78)

RUSSIA, UKRAINE, AND THE 3RD FORCE (1)

Two things are clear, first, the enemy is not one side or the other. The enemy is not Russia. or China, or Communism, or Castro, or Krushchev, or capitalism, or imperialism. The enemy is both sides. The enemy is in all of us. The enemy is war itself, and the root of war is hatred and fear, selfishness, lust... We must avoid two extremes: seeing all good on our side and all evil on their side, or, on the contrary, dismissing both sides as totally evil..."

Thomas Merton (1962) "Christian action in World Crisis."

The Law of Three states that every phenomenon or event in creation requires the presence and joint action of three independent forces. No event can take place with the presence of two active and opposing forces alone. Two opposing forces cancel each other: "For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction."

(Newton's third law of motion.)

Life´s movements require the joint action of three absolute and equally active forces converging at each point in time.  In the conflict between Russia and Ukraine we can easily identify the presence and action of two irreconcilable forces. However,  no phenomenon can arise without the participation of a third, and equally active force, which brings the two "contraries" together.    Thomas Merton states that what brings two irreconcilable forces together is hatred, fear, selfishness and lust.

Triadic configurations are neither good nor bad. They are maps that unable us to discern the three forces at play at any given moment. A triad configuration simply points at the direction toward which an action may lead us. The direction depends on the nature of the "reconciling or relating" third force. It is easy to see that a triad led by love will lead us in one direction and a triad led by hate and egoism into another.

Ordinary awareness is blind to the motivating force that governs the urge for power and control in individuals and nations We often justify our actions by "our moral need" to take sides.  A closer reflexion may show us that  both sides justify they actions by claiming to fight for the Good for Justice or for God.  Blindness (the human condition) make wars inevitable.   

The only viable alternative to reactional behaviour - attraction and repulsion - is Love. A. Blake

LAW OF THREE (77) Instability. What causes Covid?

 LAW OF THREE (77)

INSTABILTY.   WHAT CAUSES COVID ?

No thing may be revealed to itself without contrariety. If it has no thing that resists it, it always goes out from itself and does not go into itself again. If it does not go into itself again, as into that out of which it originally came, it knows nothing of its cause. 

J. Boëhme 

What is the cause of Covid?  Our ordinary thinking is lineal, it links causes and effects. We quite naturally attempt to eliminate the causes of undesirable effects. After two years of living with the pandemic, science has been unable to eliminate the causes of the virus.  Will the Covid go without us finding its cause?

What is the point of the virus?  Is there a purpose to Covid beyond ordinary thinking?   The Law of Three emphasises the importance of resisting force in our lives (i.e. the virus) which enables the arising of new information to face new situations. It is common knowledge that great technological advances take place in each war.    

In the previous blogs I tried to trace the possible reconciling force (3rd force)which might arise out of a prolong period of uncertainty.  I have reflected on the link between uncertainty and evolution.  On the positive side I have considered the possibility accessing to a deeper understanding of ourselves and increasing our sensitivity and ableness to respond to the energies of faith, hope and love; the three positive ingredients necessary to planetary evolution. 

 

The possibility of loving or even welcoming the negative is a major jump in the evolutionary process.

LAW OF THREE (76) The Point at the Centre of our Being

LAW OF THREE (76)

THE POINT AT THE CENTRE OF OUR BEING.

“At the centre of our being there is a point of nothingness which is untouched by sin and by illusion, a point of pure truth... it is like a pure diamond, blazing with the invisible light of heaven. It is in everybody, and if we could see it we would see these billions of points of light coming together in the face and blaze of a sun that would make all the darkness and cruelty of life vanish completely ... ” Thomas Merton

A point has no dimensions; it contains all dimensions. Between heaven and earth there is the point that interferes neither with heaven nor with earth, but relates and reconciles them both.

The point is the place where all the forces of creation centre; it is the place where the creative power of the Word resides; vibrating, expanding, generating in all directions, yet remaining still.  It is "... the still point of the turning world. Neither flesh nor fleshless. Neither from nor towards, at the still point there the dance is" T.S. Elliot

The Centre is not a fixed place: the centre is everywhere. It is the present moment, the point where our being eternally resides. We are structured to live in the present moment; if we cannot live in the present moment we cannot live anywhere.

 

LAW OF THREE (74) Coronavirus and The Law of Three (4)

CORONAVIRUS AND THE LAW OF THREE (74)

"Without Faith in one's heart it is impossible to attain Hope, and without one or the other we can never attain Gnosis, the living knowledge that makes Love accessible. Faith, Hope and Knowledge (Gnosis) are consecutive stages in the progressive Revelation of Love." Boris Mouravieff 'Gnosis'

HOPE

In blogs 71 to 73 the evolving third force was: (71) Coronavirus; (72) Uncertainty; (73) the Unknowable.   Coronavirus has been a most challenging test for humanity which has lead us to the abyss of the Unknowable.  Where can we possibly go from that?  In the present blog I have chosen as a reconciling of Hope.

The Unknowable, the Absolute Nothingness, the Abyss or the Void, is the point toward which all contemplative traditions lead us.  It is the point of total surrender, where the fear of death of the sense of self is surrendered the Spirit. The death of Christ in the cross was the condition of resurrection and the entering of the Spirit; the Sufis understand that the secret of Love is in the death of self by way of humiliation and abandonment; the Void is expressed in the Buddhist doctrine of annihilation and liberation.

The total surrender of our 'selves' to the complete emptiness of the Unknowable is exemplified in the Christian teaching, when Jesus gave up even his Sonship with the words: My God, my God why have you forsaken me? (

FAITH-HOPE-LOVE

Hope is part of the triad faith-hope-love.  In this triad the three theological virtues come together.   

In Boris Mouravieff quotation there is a preceding triad to the arising of Love: Faith-Hope-Gnosis.  Boris three-fold configuration of love helps us to understand the Proverb: "Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." Proverbs 9:10

Facing the Unknowable (Lord) with Fear (Awe) is the beginning of Wisdom (Gnosis), three steps necessary to the Revelation of Love.

The resisting force of fear, if it prevails, prevents the arising of a new reconciling force. Julian of Norwich was struggling with fear of judgement, sin, and punishment, when she heard the comforting voice of Jesus: "It was necessary that there should be sin; but all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well."  Julian's fear was transcended by love and hope, and the acceptance (wisdom) that "it was necessary that there should be sin"

LAW OF THREE(73) Coronavirus and The Law of Three (3)

LAW OF THREE (73)

CORONAVIRUS AND THE LAW OF THREE (3)

"I must admit that all ultimate questions cannot have final answers,

but that we can at least be aware of the problem we have presented.

I have touched the limits of my understanding and must stop here.

The Tree of Knowledge again and again tempts one at the cost of

neglecting the more important tree, the Tree of Life."

"How can human thinking grasp the destiny of life itself, when we are

not its owners"  

Ramon Panikkar, 4 September, 2009.

THE UNKNOWABLE

In the last two blogs I identified two reconciling forces:  "Coronavirus", in Blog 71, and "Uncertainty", in Blog 72.     In this blog,  the reconciling forces the "Unknown" or "Unknowable".  The three successive triads are leading us deeper into our Self. 

The Unknowable transcends or puts a stop to the permanent irreconcilable binary forces: certainty-uncertainty.   The urge for certainty feeds on uncertainty. Both forces must eventually face the Unknowable that transcends Certainty and Uncertainty.  

In this triad the urge to Certainty is active (+), and the resisting force is Uncertainty (-). Certainty and Uncertainty are two independent forces brought into a relationship by the reconciling power of the Unknowable (=).

Socrates refers to Certainty in Uncertainty and Uncertainty in Certainty: I know that I know nothing* A humbling and implicit recognition of our powerlessness and utter dependence on  a knowing beyond knowing.  

St. John of the Cross: "saber no sabiendo toda ciencia transcendiendo"  (to know without knowing, all science being transcended)

The overwhelming urge for certainty at the present time, equals, according to R. Panikkar,  to the addiction to the Tree of Knowledge at the expense of the Tree of Life. 

There is an oriental story in which an old sage who had spent all his life in a room surrounded by piles of books,  in a rare awakening at the end of his life,  he raised his gaze to look at the mirror in front of him. He saw the presence a beautiful woman standing behind him. 'Who are you,' he asked? 'I am your wife', she answered, 'I have been beside you during all your life. Who do you think that during all these years has been feeding, and caring for you?'

THE LAW OF THREE (72) Coronavirus and The Law of Three (2)

LAW OF THREE (72)

CORONAVIRUS AND THE LAW OF THREE (2)

"Unto this Darkness which is beyond Light we pray

that we may come,

and through loss of sight and knowledge

may we see and know That Which

transcends sight and knowledge,

by the very fact of not seeing and knowing;

for this is real sight and knowledge."

Dionysius (c.500 AD), Mystical Theology

UNCERTAINTY.

In the previous blog (71) I identified Coronavirus as a reconciling force in so far as the Nations culture of blame and confrontation (man divided) is temporarily suspended, while the human family is deeply engaged in defending itself from a common threat. 

A vaccine has not yet been found.  The virus expands.  A global feeling of uncertainty unfolds.  Coronavirus is now an active force;  science research resisting force i;  and prevailing climate of uncertainty is bringing both forces into a relationship.  

The urge for certainty exposes our own vulnerability to Universal Forces which we habitually ignore as it challenges the human illusion of power and control over our programs for happiness. 

The pandemic will naturally come to an end.  The question is, will its present impact bring a significant shift in global human behaviour?  Will the same old shortsightedness prevail?