Myth

I do not approve of myth & ritual
For their own sake, divorced
From the dynamics of this world,
Hearkening to pastoral past.

Myth is at best a social consensus
So that the ritual embodies reality -
At least as we ken it so far -
Asserting value passed to the young.

Myth and ritual can stagnate
Fail to incorporate new order
And cause adherents to bang heads
Against unyielding golden altars.

To accept a myth because it is taught
By your parents is to accept that the idea
Fits this era without questioning,
Without the Truth Saying all teaching needs.

To reject myth is to step naked out
Under Serengeti stars and live by wit alone;
Yet it is not enough; not merely comfort,
Survival itself demands systems of belief.

So we pause, stare from our campfire
At sparks flying up, turning nuclear with speed,
And fit the world into new meanings.
We live in a time waiting for its idea to come.

LMC 13 November 2010