One of
the hottest peppers in the world is the Naga Bhut Jolokia pepper out of India
and its neighboring countries. In America, it’s called a Ghost Pepper, and it’s
the third hottest pepper in the world.
Within
the name of this forbidden fruit we find an interesting character: the “Naga,”
which is the Sanskrit word for “Serpent.” The Nagas of Indian and Southeast Asian
mythologies are extravagantly adorned beings who are half serpent and half
human.
The
mysterious, all-knowing, serpent woman behind the portable screen in the Eddie
Murphy movie, The Golden Child, is arguably our primary reference point for a
Naga in popular culture. Nagas have insight over the past, present, and future.
They grant prosperity to those whom they serve. Who exactly do they serve,
though? They serve those who adhere to the principle of providing others with good
Service. The Naga are often found near natural waterways.
These
serpents of wisdom are not talkers, but they are very effective communicators.
They are the Buddhist and Tantric equivalent of the Islamic “jinn,” those
pre-Adamic beings who come from a smokeless fire. Extremely hot peppers, like
the Naga Bhut Jokokia, is an edible form of smokeless fire. Eating hot peppers
requires an ability to withstand the intense burning sensation to get to the
distinct flavor behind the burn.
Nagas
Some
people say that they don’t like spicy food because the burn drowns out the
flavor in their meals. While this
assessment is understandable, it isn’t exactly true. Hot peppers actually ADD
flavor to your food, but you would have to have enough mental stamina to
withstand the burn, and then go beyond it, in order to taste this flavor. It’s
like the unforgettable kiss of a beautiful dark chocolate princess that you can
only receive once you’ve slayed the fire breathing dragon that stands between
you and her.
The
element of fire has burned its way into the earliest stories of my life. It all
started when I was about a year old. My mom was cooking in the kitchen while
holding me. She looked at my face and saw that I looked tired. Then she randomly
looked at my left hand, which is the hand that I write with, and saw that it
was on fire. She was immediately startled in large part because I never
screamed in pain, or so much as made a sound. I was just chilling in her arms
with my hand on fire. I was your typical toddler.
My mom
put the fire out, and immediately rushed me to the hospital for care. You can
still see the burn on my left hand if you look closely today. I take this as a
symbolic foreboding of how my spiritual life story, my own mythology, has unfolded.
Persevering under unfavorable circumstances only to thrive in the end has been
a familiar theme for me.
Patient
people with drive and intention are able to endure suffering in pursuit of a
bigger goal that awaits them just beyond their temporary discomfort. They don’t
tap out of the Camel Clutch at the first hint of pain. The agony pales in
comparison to what this competitor has the power to obtain. Unless a person is
patient and in control of their emotions, they probably would not have great
success working with the jinn. They probably won’t like their food too spicy
either. That’s a joke.
The
jinn will literally drive people who are naturally hot tempered and quick to
anger crazy. Power over the jinn is essentially power over your own primal emotions.
Having power over these emotions does
not involve suppressing them. It involves actually dealing with them as you
would deal with the unpleasant burn of a hot pepper. I have my own perceived
limits, but I’m working on expansion. Your spiritual power is measured by the
amount of Scoville Units that you can house in your heart.
Patience
is a virtue, and this virtue is the basis for the King Solomon archetype. “Solomon”
is actually an Anglicized version of the Hebrew name “Shlomo” which is derived from “Shalom” which
means “Peace.” A Solomonic Man is one
who can remain at peace even while standing in the smokeless fire that
emanates from his own heart. He may show traces of ash, but he will not wither
in the flame.
In the Bible, we are told that the
mythological King Solomon had many wives. Of course he did. This is because
Solomon is the central positively charged proton (projective/masculine) at the
center of a circle of revolving electrons with a negative charge (receptive/feminine).
Electrons are the wives of a masculine proton.
The
neutron is the stabilizing magnetic field that forms around the Solomonic Man
(the proton) who has neutralized his passions which he doesn’t confuse with his
core self, his central identity. Through the neutron the Proton balances it’s own projective force
with the receptive properties of the
electrons to hold the electrons firmly in orbit. Together Solomon, his wives,
and the jinn make up a single atom.
You
cannot rationalize your way into patience. It is a natural byproduct of
empathy, which is based on an inner knowing that we are all part of the same
body. Where’s that hot sauce?
Posts
