Socrates and the One

I am made to think of Socrates today whom was put to death in 399 B.C.E. for the crimes of corrupting the young by way of causing them to question authority and for a form of heresy; he had his own set of beliefs which though they still honored the Olympian Gods, they were not sanctioned by the polis of Athens. In his trial Socrates compared his fate to that of Achilles.

Achilles was born the son of Peleus, King of the Myrmidons and Thetis the immortal sea nymph whom when Achilles was but a baby dipped him in the river Styx to endow upon him as many the qualities of a god a mortal could have. Where she held him was by his ankle creating the one vulnerable spot on his body, thus the term “Achilles Heel”, but I digress. Upon announcing to Thetis that he was leaving to battle in Troy, his mother prophesized that Achilles would never return, he would die in Troy. This gave Achilles a certain sense of purpose. When later betrayed by Agamemnon, Achilles refuses to fight. How could he die for a cause he no longer believed in? It wasn’t until Achilles own blood was felled that he chose to join the fight and drive the Trojans back into the city. It wasn’t until later when they entered the city that Achilles was hit by an arrow from Paris, the man who started the war.

This was the point of Socrates; he was willing to fight and if need die for what he believed. He wasn’t willing to live if he had to lie to save his life. Though not the same; smaller struggles such as those come up in my day to day. What battles are worth my fighting for and if I no longer believe in the cause is it even my fight?

How I’ve come to weigh that is interesting these days. I see in the world around me two types of people; those who ask how they may better serve the world and those who ask how the world may better serve them. Why I bother with the former is really a matter of confusion for me at times. These are the vampires who fed on the energy of others. Some are so brazen as to offer that as their power; that faux voice of authority that believes if it speaks the loudest it is the more correct. Still others are more subtle. They move in shadows and disguise their form using manipulation to curry favor of those that hold what they desire. It’s like a comment I read the other day, “We are not here to earn God’s love. We are here to spend it!”

So tell me dear reader how do you think? Do you see the world around you as a cornucopia to be feasted upon without putting something back in the basket? You cannot live on credit alone, eventually the Universe is going to want its due. It comes in the form most mistake for being Karma.

That’s the issue too. We are all connected; no matter how remotely we all share a common thread. Think of it like the game, “The six degrees of Bacon.” According to this any actor in Hollywood can be traced back to Kevin Bacon by six degrees; someone was in a movie with someone else who was in a movie with Kevin Bacon. Thus the connection. It’s theorized anyone in the world, living or dead can be connected by the same means.

Here’s my own example; I went and saw the remains of the Pharaoh Ramses when the Egyptian government allowed his tomb to be exhibited in the United States. It was in 1986 I believe. Ramses is believed to be the Pharaoh who forbade Moses from leading his Exodus; maybe you’ve heard of it? It was in a big book called the Bible or something like that. Either way this would put me two degrees from Moses, perhaps one of the most important figures in Judeo-Christian history.

I also attend Weber State University. A professor there at the school had the opportunity sometime back to meet and even shake hands with Queen Elizabeth who when but a mere princess met Adolf Hitler at a party thrown in his honor by her family. Seriously, prior to that whole Final Solution hysteria, he was widely supported by the western world. So I met this professor. I shook his hand. I am three degrees from Hitler. Having that connection between the two is kind of funny to me, a nice paradox.

Would you like a bit more? How about this one? My father worked at the Pentagon at the time it was hit by American Airlines flight 77. When he worked there he met with Donald Rumsfeld. Of course Donald Rumsfeld has acted in some capacity to every President since Carter and there is even video of him shaking hands with Saddam Hussein. I think you get the point.

So don’t just look at the rabbit hole; jump in already. I say this to illustrate a point; whether you like it or not we are all in this together. We are all a part of the One and what more, it’s time to face it; the Universe has you surrounded, and you might as well surrender. Now come out with your hands up; look to the sky and say, “Thank You.” This day was made for you.