Hello to everyone, Bumblebee that I am, I have touched in and out of the topics on this list since last year. Thank-you all! I also had the great pleasure of taking a facilitation course in Nanaimo with Chris.
Open Space fills in or offers a perspective that I found missing in Process Work with Arnie Mindell. Somehow...and I don't know how yet to articulate it...they complement each other. Or maybe they are on a contimuum of some sort. But I digress. I just wanted to offer up another book about this masculine/feminine discussion. It is "Eve's Seed" by Robert S. McElvaine. The subtitle is "Biology, the Sexes, and the Course of History"...a weighty thing indeed. I haven't completed it, and it is so full of material...and my life has been topsy turvy lately...so I won't say too much. Here's a quote... "Hell hath no fury like a man devalued" (opening page!) He proposes that the pendulum of patriarchy swinging over is a complex "interplay of our innate proclivities with changing, human-altered social environments." That is, human nature worked as is for a very long time as we evolved. With the development of agriculture, sweeping cultural changes created a "mismatch" between that nature and our social environment. Not enough time for us to change with the times. A devaluing of the masculine. It goes into much more depth and I wish I could say more. See if you can find the book and see if it opens something new. Thanks for the continued exploration of how to let go more. I just love the paradox! take care, > I'd also recommend > Mother Wove the Morning (the play on video or dvd, and the book) > http://www.clpearson.com/MWM.html > > "Intellectual awareness of the repression of feminine divinity > becomes experiential in this profound and poignantly human drama. I > strongly recommend this wonderful and powerful play." Jean Shinoda > Bolen, author of Goddesses in Every Woman > > "...an amazing experience; a passionate performance of theater at its > best. It makes us cry, laugh, and remember what we did not even know > we knew. I wish everyone could see it and be inspired by it." Riane > Eisler, author of The Chalice and the Blade > > Diane Brandon > Eliot, Maine > > > On May 23, 2006, at 7:48 PM, Eric Lilius wrote: > >> I read the following this morning and was struck by the >> synchronicity with what Harrison had written. Is this description >> of Memorial Day the common tale of origin? >> >> May 29 Memorial Day >> The customs of honouring and communicating with the dead around >> this time (See Lemuria (May 9), Pentecost (May 19) and Trinity >> Sunday (May 26)), suggest an ancient origin for this festival. The >> American holiday derived from an incident on April 25, 1866 when >> four young Southern women, after scattering magnolia blossoms on >> the graves of the men they had lost in the Civil War, walked over >> to the other side of the graveyard where the Union soldiers were >> buried and decorated their graves as well. Sympathetic reports of >> this act of reconciliation encouraged communities all over America >> to hold their own "memorial" services, usually including a parade, >> a patriotic oration and a community picnic. >> from: >> http://www.schooloftheseasons.com/maydays2.html#amb >> >> I found The Da Vinci Code to be an alternative history lesson with >> a plot thrown in. >> >> The evidence suggests to me that the shift to the masculine had >> happened centuries before the Christian era >> >> I would add two books: "The Woman with the Alabaster Jar" by >> Margaret Starbird for further exploration of Mary Magdalen and the >> Holy Grail and >> "The Alphabet Versus the Goddess" by Leonard Shlain to examine the >> role of alphabets and literacy in the shift from the feminine to >> the masculine in cultures around the world. >> Tom Robbin's wonderful novel "Skinny Legs and All" has some >> interesting things to say about all this. He suggests that the >> Temple in Jerusalem was at times dedicated to Ishtar as well as >> that old war god Yahweh. >> Martin Scorcese's "The Last Temptation of Christ" presents Mary >> Magdalen as a priestess of Ishtar. >> >> Eric >> >> Harrison Owen wrote: >>> I, along with many other folks, have just finished wandering >>> through "The Da >>> Vinci Code" in preparation for seeing the movie. Hardly great >>> literature, >>> but definitely a good read - exactly the sort of thing one needs >>> as a warm >>> up for the summer-lite reading. It is obviously marvelous fiction >>> in terms >>> of most of the plot, organizations and characters - but I was >>> surprised just >>> how deeply I became involved for reasons having nothing to do with >>> all the >>> plots and counter plots. >>> >>> Who knows how it happened exactly, but it is pretty clear that >>> sometime >>> around the 3rd-4th centuries the presence of the Feminine took a >>> distinct >>> nose dive in the West. A long time ago, when I actually thought I >>> would be a >>> REAL academic, I spent a lot of time reading and thinking about >>> the multiple >>> religious bodies in what used to be the Roman Empire. One of my >>> favorites >>> was Magna Mater - or the Great Mother, also known as The Earth >>> Mother, The >>> Goddess. Turns out, She was real popular with a number of folks in >>> the Roman >>> Legions along with many others. As such Magna Mater constituted >>> more than a >>> minimal threat to the Empire and the Emperor, who rather liked >>> being God >>> himself. It also turned out that the Great Mother was not quite >>> the nice >>> lady all of us might hope for, but that is a different tale. To >>> make a long >>> story very short, and oversimplified, The Great Mother was run out >>> of the >>> Empire, and although a lot of folks might blame the Christian >>> Church, I >>> think the truth of the matter is that those early Christians and >>> Christianity simply provided a handy alternative. If you couldn't >>> have The >>> Great Mother, what were you going to do? >>> >>> However it happened, the Feminine has been largely absent/ >>> repressed in The >>> West, an observation which is hardly novel at this point. Perhaps >>> one of the >>> best statements comes from Riane Eisler in her notable book, "The >>> Chalice >>> and the Blade." Which, incidentally, should be required reading >>> before >>> seeing the "Da Vinci Code." :-) I might argue that Riane had a >>> little too >>> much "Chalice" and not enough "Blade" - but that is obviously a male >>> speaking and for sure serious correction, even over-correction was >>> in order. >>> >>> So what does all this have to do with Open Space? Starting perhaps >>> a dozen >>> years ago I noticed that when we were doing training programs, a >>> significant >>> proportion of the participants were women. Initially the ratio >>> might have >>> been 3/1 (males to females), which might not seem like much now, >>> but even a >>> dozen years ago, professionals in the field (of OD, Facilitation >>> etc) were >>> predominantly male. More recently the ratio has switched almost >>> completely - >>> 3/1 females to males. I even had one program where the ratio was >>> 15/1! >>> Watching this tend I came to a conclusion - Women Get it! But what >>> about the >>> Guys? >>> Over the years it has become apparent the male of the species is >>> by no means >>> excluded, but I think there may be an extra loop of learning, at >>> least for >>> some of us. It is all about consciously accessing our Feminine. Of >>> course, >>> what is sauce for the gander is sauce for the goose, and I believe >>> that my >>> female colleagues improve their capacity to open and hold space to >>> the >>> extent that they consciously access their Masculine. Which brings >>> me to a >>> central point - Balance, or better yet, a dance of male and female >>> energy. >>> >>> Perhaps this could be part of the answer to the ongoing conundrum >>> - how >>> could something so simple (OS) be so powerful and simultaneously >>> feel so >>> good? In Open Space the continuing dance of male and female >>> insures that the >>> whole of humanity is present. Not just male. Not just female. But >>> both -- in >>> constant conversation. >>> There might also be another clue to a continuing mystery - How >>> could it be >>> that something with the track record of Open Space (easy, >>> economical, and >>> effective - with massive experience) still be perceived as weird, >>> far out, >>> "touchy-feely," and definitely not to be used HERE? The answer >>> might be >>> that, when seen from the testosterone laced executive suite (where >>> the >>> inhabitants are mostly male, but females are infected as well), >>> Open Space >>> becomes a definite threat. It is not just that the Feminine shows >>> up - but >>> she shows up as an equal partner in the dance. That would be >>> sufficient to >>> threaten any Emperor! >>> Now back to the Da Vinci Code! >>> >>> >>> Harrison >>> >>> Harrison Owen >>> 7808 River Falls Drive >>> Potomac, Maryland 20854 >>> Phone 301-365-2093 >>> Skype hhowen >>> Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com <http:// >>> www.openspaceworld.com/> >>> >>> Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org >>> Personal website www.ho-image.com OSLIST: To subscribe, >>> unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives >>> Visit: www.listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html >>> <http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html> >>> >>> >>> * >>> * >>> ========================================================== >>> osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu >>> ------------------------------ >>> To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, >>> view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: >>> http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html >>> >>> To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: >>> http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist >>> >>> >>> >> >> -- >> http://www.haliburtonfolk.com >> http://savethefrostcentre.ca >> http://www.environmenthaliburton.ca >> ---------------------------------------------- >> Eric Lilius >> Box 27 >> (1563 Eagle Lake Road) >> Eagle Lake, ON K0M 1M0 >> CANADA W78.34.12/N45.07.09 >> 705-754-9859 >> 705-754-9860 (fax) >> >> "Ultimately what we're touching is the invisible, all-pervasive >> Intelligence that surrounds us and penetrates us. It is grooming us >> to be able to tolerate its splendor. It can't just reveal itself >> openly because we would be forfeited; we'd never know what hit us." >> Terence McKenna >> >> * >> * >> ========================================================== >> osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu >> ------------------------------ >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, >> view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: >> http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html >> >> To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: >> http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist > > * > * > ========================================================== > osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu > ------------------------------ > To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, > view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: > http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html > > To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: > http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
