An Honourable Obsession

Its a Promise

In common practice … a mind applies itself to facts and reason … in its relation to the passions. This straightforwardness is apparently not received well by the passion … why? … is it wrong? Certainly its not any of the baser instincts on the part of the passion to reject intelligent discourse … the passion is far too wise for that … and yet .. it appears to the mind that it does … doesn't it? Curious!

Herodotus reports in his journals that … on his visit to Egypt … in 460 bc … women will piss standing up and men in a crouching position. I wonder what if any that might have to do with … the obsessions of the passions in these times. No doubt the passions … had a major lead over the development of mind in early history … and considers itself … the origin of the mind itself. Would that imply anything about the obstinacy of the passions … in its responses to mind … I wonder.

Well … okay … a greater libido function … would that have a stronger impact on the prostate? I guess …  science puts out quite a bit of research on it. And pissing standing up … would take a strong prostate to push the water out … wouldn't it? Okay … its possible then that there's more to the way the passions … contributed to the development of the mind … in terms of attitude I mean. And if that's divided in a man's faculties … into mind and passion … and then by social decorum … men and women … I expect that it may have grown into a bigger issue than we realize.

Today … in the evolving nature of the times … and in the way that the gender relations … have opened itself up to many possibilities … it encourages me to think that a woman … in the wisdom of her passions … is in contact with mind and reason. However the way in which the two sexes apply it in their lives … creates the appearance of a difference in their abilities. The man engages the mind … in a simple straightforward manner … creating an integration with the physical nature of experiences.

A woman on the other hand … engages the mind in relation to life itself … and applies herself to the intent of creation … and the reproduction function. We are getting better at these all the time … and I have no doubt that we will someday perfect our understanding regarding these matters … and bring ourselves to relate to the opposite sex … in an honest and true manner … perhaps for the first time.

It is the desire of the creative endeavor … to do its best … and that might mean … bringing together … our understanding as love and as mind … as the optimization of our experiences as man. We saw it as a dream before … and perhaps well see it again as a reality.

I went back in history … to read a little more … about gender development … in the past … particularly in the Indic tradition. I was especially looking forward to seeing the lifestyle … and the daily activity of the people. In the period following 500 bc … the Indics began the unification of the sub-continent … under the rule of the Mauryan King … Chandragupta. The initiative represented thoughts about family … society and nation. Hmm … I moved on …

The grandson of Chandragupta ...King Ashoka … considered a blood thirsty conqueror … had a sudden change of heart at the Battle of Kalinga … and thereafter … renounced all violence … and led himself into a life of Buddhist ethics. Hmm … the question that arises in my mind … is … was that change brought about by the wisdom based attitudes of women … about life and progeny? How much influence does a man therefore … bring to his reasoning mind … that includes elements of family … relations … and social development?

Ashoka's mother was a concubine in the harem of his father … King Bindusara. She was not considered part of the ruling class elite … and Ashoka faced considerable challenge from his step-brothers … over the issue of ascending to the throne after his father. But he proved himself able as a statesman and leader … and he finally succeeded to the throne … and extended his empire … to every part of India … with the exception of the southern tip.

How big an influence? …. biiiiiig! … is what I am seeing in this episode of social leadership and responsibility. I'm inclined to think therefore … that any obsession the mind encounters in its meeting with the instruments of the passion … it'll do well to moderate its own edge … and to accept the possibility … of a bigger world view about life and our futures. It would be an affirmation of intelligence.

Herodotus referred to another practice of the early Egyptians … that draws on my curiosity. They viewed themselves as partly of God and partly of Man … and will prepare food separately … for the consumption of each of these propensities in them. Food for the divine qualities was not cultivated from their farms. It was foraged … perhaps hunted … in its procurement. It says a little about our obsessions these days … and the way its prepared us … to value independence … in all our ways. A woman may expect that a man ought to stay that way … perhaps even obsessively.