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readoldthingsThe Gospel of Matthew 5:5
The Who Shall Do What?
In order to understand this verse, we need to know the word being translated into English as "meek." Let's find out what it is; consider its meaning from a more-or-less orthodox or traditional perspective; and then see what additional light we can shed on it by the way of Occult Philosophy.
μακάριοι πραεῖς
Let's start with the translation. The Greek word here is πραεῖς "praeis." The word does indeed connote gentleness, but it has a larger meaning-- as usual. The word doesn't necessarily mean mere weakness, but, rather, the sort of gentleness that comes from self-control. Keep in mind that "gentleness" itself is only possible for those who also possess strength. Weaklings cannot be admonished to be gentle; they have no other choice.
Jesus is praeis, when he faces down his accusers in the Sanhedrin, and goes willingly to his execution. Mahatma Gandhi, who greatly admired the Sermon on the Mount, was similarly praeis when he faced violence and arrest at the hands of British soldiers and police.
Notice that Jesus could have fought, and Gandhi could have fought. Fighting, they might have won-- but what kind of victory would it have been? Only the victory that one dog gains over another when they fight for supremacy in a dog pack. The top dog in any dog pack is still a dog.
Tellingly, "praeis" was used to describe wild animals that had been tamed.
Psychic Anatomy, Again
As we've discussed more than once in these pages, the soul can be seen as having three parts, which we can call the nous, thymos, and epithymia.
The Nous is the reasoning part, but it's more than that. At its highest, the nous extends beyond mere discursive reason into the higher, spiritual realm, and interacts directly with spiritual reality. In fact, this is its proper function; when it is operating properly, the nous sees and knows directly, without any sort of intermediary. Proclus has it that nous has three parts: the highest is nous proper; the next down is dianoia, or discursive reasoning; the lowest is doxa, mere opinion.
The Thymos is the spirited part. We could think of it as the aggression, or the energy, or the will. I think the best translation of it is "heart," exactly as that word is used by (say) high school football coaches.
Finally, the Epithymia is the appetite. All of the base drives and desires, whether for food or for sex or for another quarter to put in a slot machine can be found here.
In the soul of the animal, only Thymos and Epithymia are present. An animal desires, and it moves towards its desires. In the natural man, the situation is exactly the same-- the difference is that he possesses a nous. He has opinions, he can understand language. In theory, he is capable of reasoning, and of that which is higher than reason-- but only in theory. In the natural man, Thymos and Epithymia-- the animal parts of the soul-- overwhelm the Nous and subjugate it. Insofar as reason is used at all, it is used only in service of desire and appetite; the higher nous is entirely clouded. (Modern Western languages have no proper translation of nous, and in fact deny its existence; this should tell us all we need to know about the degeneracy of our civilization.)
Taming the Beast Within
In the Phaedrus, Plato writes:
The charioteer is the nous; the noble horse is the thymos; the ignoble, the epithymia.
To gain mastery over the epithymia, to tame and gentle it and subject it to the rule of the nous, is the ultimate aim of philosophy and of the spiritual life. This is the definition of the virtue of Justice in Plato's Republic-- every part of the state performs its proper task; the rulers rule, the workers work, and the warriors submit to the rulers. The rulers, here, represent the nous; the warriors, the thymos; the workers, the epithymia. Every one of us has Plato's ideal kingdom within our souls. As it is said, the kingdom of God is within us.
The Divine Council
Jesus doesn't just tell his followers to be meek or praeis, he makes a specific promise. By meekness, they shall inherit the Earth.
What does this mean?
In one of the most important developments in the last decade, many American Christians have finally gotten around to noticing just how weird their Bible actually is.
This began-- as far as I can tell-- with the work of an Evangelical Protestant theologian named Michael Heiser. It's not really clear to me why it took until the 21st century for us to get here, but at some point Heiser, who is a very capable Biblical scholar, got down to reading passages like Psalm 82:1
Or Psalm 136:2
Or Deuteronomy 32:8
...and wondering who the "gods" that the Bible continually references are. They aren't the most high-- if so, it would say so, but it doesn't; they are described as "sons of the most high" and they are said to rule over the nations (that's the meaning of Deuteronomy 32. I had to go rather far afield to find an honest translation of that passage, by the way; it was traditional to translate it "children of Israel" and obscure the real meaning).
Once you see it, you can't unsee it. The Bible is full of references like this, which show an understanding of the spiritual world as basically henotheistic-- that is, many lesser deities under the one Most High God.
It is also full of references to a cosmic rebellion. According to this view, some number of the lesser gods-- perhaps a third, perhaps all of them-- have rebelled against YHVH, the true God, as we saw with Lucifer two entries back. These gods are now demons, ruling over the nations but doing it badly and for their own ends, so that, as Psalm 82 continues:
From here, it isn't a very long jump to the traditional Christian understanding of the saints. What are they, after all, but subordinate deities, who rule over particular matters (their "patronage") by the will and through the power of the Most High. As St. Athanasius said,
And the view of those who hold to "Divine Council" theology is exactly this: The ultimate aim of Christianity is the replacement of the Fallen Angels with Exalted Human Beings.
For the last year or so, a pair of American Orthodox priests have been discussing these issues regularly on a podcast called Lord of Spirits, which I'd recommend to anyone, Christian or otherwise.
Who Shall Inherit the Earth?
Let's bring the discussion back to meekness, or praeis. If we take this view, suddenly it all comes into focus. By taming and subordinating the animal parts of ourselves, we are already, in a sense, taking on the rule of gods. What are gods, but centers of conscious reason and spiritual power that rule over the material world and its lesser inhabitants? And this earthly work becomes a preparation for and an initiation to our ultimate destiny.
In the Phaedrus, Plato continues, concerning the soul and its proper nature:
By meekness, praeis, as Jesus understands it, we step on the path of divinization, through which our soul can regain its wings (in Plato's metaphor), return to its proper home in the Heavenly Realm, and take its own place in the Council of the Gods.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
In order to understand this verse, we need to know the word being translated into English as "meek." Let's find out what it is; consider its meaning from a more-or-less orthodox or traditional perspective; and then see what additional light we can shed on it by the way of Occult Philosophy.
μακάριοι πραεῖς
Let's start with the translation. The Greek word here is πραεῖς "praeis." The word does indeed connote gentleness, but it has a larger meaning-- as usual. The word doesn't necessarily mean mere weakness, but, rather, the sort of gentleness that comes from self-control. Keep in mind that "gentleness" itself is only possible for those who also possess strength. Weaklings cannot be admonished to be gentle; they have no other choice.
Jesus is praeis, when he faces down his accusers in the Sanhedrin, and goes willingly to his execution. Mahatma Gandhi, who greatly admired the Sermon on the Mount, was similarly praeis when he faced violence and arrest at the hands of British soldiers and police.
Notice that Jesus could have fought, and Gandhi could have fought. Fighting, they might have won-- but what kind of victory would it have been? Only the victory that one dog gains over another when they fight for supremacy in a dog pack. The top dog in any dog pack is still a dog.
Tellingly, "praeis" was used to describe wild animals that had been tamed.
Psychic Anatomy, Again
As we've discussed more than once in these pages, the soul can be seen as having three parts, which we can call the nous, thymos, and epithymia.
The Nous is the reasoning part, but it's more than that. At its highest, the nous extends beyond mere discursive reason into the higher, spiritual realm, and interacts directly with spiritual reality. In fact, this is its proper function; when it is operating properly, the nous sees and knows directly, without any sort of intermediary. Proclus has it that nous has three parts: the highest is nous proper; the next down is dianoia, or discursive reasoning; the lowest is doxa, mere opinion.
The Thymos is the spirited part. We could think of it as the aggression, or the energy, or the will. I think the best translation of it is "heart," exactly as that word is used by (say) high school football coaches.
Finally, the Epithymia is the appetite. All of the base drives and desires, whether for food or for sex or for another quarter to put in a slot machine can be found here.
In the soul of the animal, only Thymos and Epithymia are present. An animal desires, and it moves towards its desires. In the natural man, the situation is exactly the same-- the difference is that he possesses a nous. He has opinions, he can understand language. In theory, he is capable of reasoning, and of that which is higher than reason-- but only in theory. In the natural man, Thymos and Epithymia-- the animal parts of the soul-- overwhelm the Nous and subjugate it. Insofar as reason is used at all, it is used only in service of desire and appetite; the higher nous is entirely clouded. (Modern Western languages have no proper translation of nous, and in fact deny its existence; this should tell us all we need to know about the degeneracy of our civilization.)
Taming the Beast Within
In the Phaedrus, Plato writes:
Of the nature of the soul, though her true form be ever a theme of large and more than mortal discourse, let me speak briefly, and in a figure. And let the figure be composite-a pair of winged horses and a charioteer. Now the winged horses and the charioteers of the gods are all of them noble and of noble descent, but those of other races are mixed; the human charioteer drives his in a pair; and one of them is noble and of noble breed, and the other is ignoble and of ignoble breed; and the driving of them of necessity gives a great deal of trouble to him.
The charioteer is the nous; the noble horse is the thymos; the ignoble, the epithymia.
To gain mastery over the epithymia, to tame and gentle it and subject it to the rule of the nous, is the ultimate aim of philosophy and of the spiritual life. This is the definition of the virtue of Justice in Plato's Republic-- every part of the state performs its proper task; the rulers rule, the workers work, and the warriors submit to the rulers. The rulers, here, represent the nous; the warriors, the thymos; the workers, the epithymia. Every one of us has Plato's ideal kingdom within our souls. As it is said, the kingdom of God is within us.
The Divine Council
Jesus doesn't just tell his followers to be meek or praeis, he makes a specific promise. By meekness, they shall inherit the Earth.
What does this mean?
In one of the most important developments in the last decade, many American Christians have finally gotten around to noticing just how weird their Bible actually is.
This began-- as far as I can tell-- with the work of an Evangelical Protestant theologian named Michael Heiser. It's not really clear to me why it took until the 21st century for us to get here, but at some point Heiser, who is a very capable Biblical scholar, got down to reading passages like Psalm 82:1
God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.
Or Psalm 136:2
O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Or Deuteronomy 32:8
When the Most Highb apportioned the nations,
when he divided humankind,
he fixed the boundaries of the peoples
according to the number of the gods;
...and wondering who the "gods" that the Bible continually references are. They aren't the most high-- if so, it would say so, but it doesn't; they are described as "sons of the most high" and they are said to rule over the nations (that's the meaning of Deuteronomy 32. I had to go rather far afield to find an honest translation of that passage, by the way; it was traditional to translate it "children of Israel" and obscure the real meaning).
Once you see it, you can't unsee it. The Bible is full of references like this, which show an understanding of the spiritual world as basically henotheistic-- that is, many lesser deities under the one Most High God.
It is also full of references to a cosmic rebellion. According to this view, some number of the lesser gods-- perhaps a third, perhaps all of them-- have rebelled against YHVH, the true God, as we saw with Lucifer two entries back. These gods are now demons, ruling over the nations but doing it badly and for their own ends, so that, as Psalm 82 continues:
...all the foundations of the earth are out of course.
6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
7 But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.
God became man so that men might become gods.
And the view of those who hold to "Divine Council" theology is exactly this: The ultimate aim of Christianity is the replacement of the Fallen Angels with Exalted Human Beings.
For the last year or so, a pair of American Orthodox priests have been discussing these issues regularly on a podcast called Lord of Spirits, which I'd recommend to anyone, Christian or otherwise.
Who Shall Inherit the Earth?
Let's bring the discussion back to meekness, or praeis. If we take this view, suddenly it all comes into focus. By taming and subordinating the animal parts of ourselves, we are already, in a sense, taking on the rule of gods. What are gods, but centers of conscious reason and spiritual power that rule over the material world and its lesser inhabitants? And this earthly work becomes a preparation for and an initiation to our ultimate destiny.
In the Phaedrus, Plato continues, concerning the soul and its proper nature:
The soul in her totality has the care of inanimate being everywhere, and traverses the whole heaven in divers forms appearing--when perfect and fully winged she soars upward, and orders the whole world; whereas the imperfect soul, losing her wings and drooping in her flight at last settles on the solid ground-there, finding a home, she receives an earthly frame which appears to be self-moved, but is really moved by her power; and this composition of soul and body is called a living and mortal creature.
By meekness, praeis, as Jesus understands it, we step on the path of divinization, through which our soul can regain its wings (in Plato's metaphor), return to its proper home in the Heavenly Realm, and take its own place in the Council of the Gods.
