Journal An Owl's Observations, Meditations, and Nonsense

[IllusiveOwl]

“The universe is no narrow thing and the order within it is not constrained by any latitude in its conception to repeat what exists in one part in any other part. Even in this world more things exist without our knowledge than with it and the order in creation which you see is that which you have put there, like a string in a maze, so that you shall not lose your way.” Blood Meridian, Cormac McCarthy

This quote puts words to a feeling I've had for some time. Existence is chaos, formless, eternal, incoherent to anything within it to a large degree, random and unpredictable. By definition it's the greatest adventure, and the most terrible nightmare, the ultimate bore and the finest novelty, because all of them take place within it, there's nowhere else for this shit to happen, because then it would be a part of existence, regardless of dimension or vibration. Order exists within it, and Chaos is it, so where does that leave us?

Spiders, spinning fragile webs of delusion, priests building dead stone temples of morality that weather from the winds of time and are smashed by barbarians. It's mad and pathetic, but noble in a sense that most of us can't do any better.

Pay mind to how you see the world, know that you've constructed that perspective, and that you're responsible for whatever you believe, there is always choice, and you're always participating in reality whether you like it or not.

 

[IllusiveOwl]

There is an incredible difference between wanting Power over the world, and wanting the Power Of the world.

Meditate on this difference, analyze your priorities.

 

[IllusiveOwl]

The Earth spins and moves around the sun in a locked gravitational orbit. We use this to hypnotize ourselves, to organize our time in days and years, but that is just a psychic-box we keep ourselves in and use to anthropomorphize the universe, to force it into our context. In our hubris we measure the age existence in years, and relax in that certainty. Take your perspective out of this orbit and watch, you'll find nothing but eternity all around you, no time, only an endless arising and transformation of cause and effect, without beginning or end, a constant immortal rebirth that includes the totality of everything.

 

[IllusiveOwl]

 

[IllusiveOwl]

These are collections of the God Emperor's musings from book 4 of Dune. To write a genre-defining and enduring body of literature, you have to know a few things, and I think that Frank took the opportunity to share a few of his opinions here in the hidden journals. Here are the most interesting ones I jotted down:

"The realization of what I am occurs in the timeless awareness which does not simulate nor delude. I create a field without self or center. A field where even death becomes only analogy. I desire no results. I merely permit this field which has no goals nor desires, no perfections nor even visions of achievements. In that field omnipresent primal awareness is all. It is the light which pours through the windows of my universe."

"Most civilization is based on cowardice. It's so easy to civilize by teaching cowardice. You water down the standards which would lead to bravery. You restrain the will. You regulate the appetites. Fence in the horizons. You make a law for every movement. You deny the existence of chaos. You teach even the children to breathe slowly. You tame."

"In all of my universe I have seen no law of nature unchanging and inexorable. This universe presents only changing relationships which are sometimes seen as laws by short-lived awareness. These fleshly sensoria which we call self are ephemeral, withering in the blaze of infinity. Fleetingly aware of temporary conditions which confine our activities and change as our activities change. If you must label the absolute, use its proper name: temporary."

The last quote is of highest importance, I find. Existence is a single ever-changing, ever-blossoming flower. Where do you think you are within that? What do you think you are?