On Bowing Before No One

[f4f3]

A long day, and a rewarding one, for the most part, and yet I'm left now with night thoughts.

Nothing wrong with that, but I'm aware tonight of being cut off, in distance and time, from where I'd like to be. But here I am. 

I started reading Roger Zelazny's "Lord of Light" again, when I couldn't sleep, and, as ever, the words of Yama, the Death God, stopped me early on:

They sat in Yama's chambers, having taken a light meal there. Yama leaned back in his chair, a glass of the Buddha's wine in his left hand, a half-filled decanter in his right.

"Then the one called Raltariki is really a demon?" asked Tak.

"Yes—and no," said Yama, "If by 'demon' you mean a malefic, supernatural creature, possessed of great powers, life span and the ability to temporarily assume virtually any shape—then the answer is no. This is the generally accepted definition, but it is untrue in one respect."

"Oh? And what may that be?"

"It is not a supernatural creature."

"But it is all those other things?"

"Yes."

"Then I fail to see what difference it makes whether it be supernatural or not—so long as it is malefic, possesses great powers and life span and has the ability to change its shape at will."

"Ah, but it makes a great deal of difference, you see. It is the difference between the unknown and the unknowable, between science and fantasy—it is a matter of essence. The four points of the compass be logic, knowledge, wisdom and the unknown. Some do bow in that final direction. Others advance upon it. To bow before the one is to lose sight of the three. I may submit to the unknown, but never to the unknowable. The man who bows in that final direction is either a saint or a fool. I have no use for either."

Comments

[jen-c-w.livejournal.com]

Oh gosh.

I have just caught up on all your news. So sorry, hope things are a bit better now.

I think you'd really like the highline in new york btw.
http://www.thehighline.org/

[f4f3.livejournal.com]

It WAS you who told me about the Highline :)

[f4f3.livejournal.com]

Hey, it's all right. Better than all right. Some things do seem to be out of whack, and I hope they will get better, but they are most of them things I can't make better. All I can do is deal with them as best I can.

I will definitely look into the highline - especially if I can hire a bike and do bits of it.

[jen-c-w.livejournal.com]

It's only 13th-30th so very walkable. Although talking of bikes, our NY friends went to Governors Island and loved it.

[f4f3.livejournal.com]

I'll definitely give it a look.