The Path to Freedom

When we discover that the cages that we are in are of our own making, even when we know it, it can be difficult to leave them. The things that are familiar are comfortable, and we as humans struggle against the unknown. Again with the struggling instead of the trusting in the universe, instead of taking the reigns, or being forced into making a lock-pick if you are unable to locate a key.

The path to freeing ourselves from ourselves is a tricky one! First we have to see that we're trapped, and then we have to make ourselves care enough to do something about it. This could be as easy as valuing Truth above all else, and living in a way that strives to make us better and stronger people. Or it could be a convoluted mess of tangles and snarls; like a long string of yarn that after years of being unnoticed, is suddenly discovered in a terrible knot under the sofa. You discover it when you need it, and then it becomes a problem you have to fix.  Such is life.

We may have to drag ourselves, kicking and screaming until a solution is found to untangle the mess of our own lives. In my case, loving someone and knowing when to let them go has been a huge challenge. It doesn't matter how much you read the tarot, throw your runes, or ask the universe for prophetic dreams- matters of the heart, and how these tie in with our stability, our safety, and our sanity, can never be fully predicted, nor fixed with the burning of a candle, or the wave of a wand.

The "right" path becomes the path that we chose for ourselves. This I think is Karma. We walk the path of life, make our choices, and understand that there will be both positives and negatives to our choices.  But these things are our choices. We can choose to leave a poor situation, to run away without looking back, possibly hurting others in the process... but this shouldn't be the only option other than "stay in a poor situation"  As a Hermeticist I have to ask, what is the middle path? It may not seem like there is one at first, but my philosophy has always been "there is always a way, you just have to find it" and so life for the longest time in my mind was a struggle to find "the way" for every single thing that I felt I needed.While the philosophy was good, my reaction to it has been poor.

Choices have to be weighed, evaluated, and processed before the situation as a whole can be digested. What does this have to do with magic? Everything. It has to do with our Will, and understanding the universe and ourselves. Balance...temperance, is important in all things. Just as harsh choices should be avoided, if you're running on a time limit, hemming and hawing over what to do about a situation could be worse than choosing what appears to be a poor option. This understanding is a part of mastering the self, mastering fear of fear, and ultimately knowing yourself and taking control of your life.

Fear of fear is the door to self-doubt, weakness, and ultimately the downfall of the self. Sometimes you have to take that leap into the unknown. Use what trust in yourself you have, and the trust in the universe, and pray you'll fly. Sometimes you will, sometimes you'll fall anyway...but in nearly all cases, you'll always be able to get up again, no matter how many times you fall.

If you find yourself caught between extremes, take a break, and look for the middle way. You might be surprised at what you find. If I keep doing this, maybe I'll find a way out of the pit I've dug for myself, and maybe I won't hurt anyone when I claw my way up, and out to the light of freedom. Sometimes people can't help hurting others, sometimes situations mess with a person's mind... but sometimes despite that, you have to leave, you have to find a new sanctuary... because home is where the heart is, and if the heart is gone, then what remains of the home?