Blessings of the Cosmos: Wisdom of the Heart from the Aramaic Words of Jesus by Neil Douglas-Klotz

Author:Neil Douglas-Klotz [Douglas-Klotz, Neil]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Religion/Christian Life Prayer
ISBN: 9781591798750
Publisher: Sounds True
Published: 2006-02-28T23:00:00+00:00

Textual Notes

When Jesus talks of speaking “well” of someone, he uses a word from the Aramaic shaphira, meaning that which is bright, clear to the eye, dealing with beautiful appearances. Taking a long view, we find that both Old Hebrew as well as the Aramaic language of Jesus distrust outer appearances and prefer to deal with sound rather than sight, with what is enfleshed rather than with the image of “bodies.” Metaphorically, what is important in this way of viewing life is the tune a string makes, not how it looks. Form is not an empty shell or container but is capable of resonating with and responding in a living way as a conveyer of the divine breath-spirit. So in this case, shaphira testifies to the Western notion of “thirty seconds of fame,” the outward sensation that is over as quickly as it arose.

Jesus warns one not to become addicted to this condition of being surrounded by positive projection—the “yes-person” syndrome. It is one of the most difficult conditions from which to escape. We see this story constantly played out around the rich and famous, as well as powerful politicians. A “false prophet” (nabiya dagaluta) in the Aramaic view is not one who doesn’t foretell the future correctly. It means people who allow their true divine image to become so covered with the projections of others that they can no longer look honestly into the mirror of their own hearts for a true reflection. The voice that desires fame is tyrannizing their inner self. In this sense, the roots of the word dagaluta show an action of heaping or piling up something, as well as of deceiving oneself or denying one’s nature.

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