June 2017 – Gelson Rocha

SEALs Ethos. Warrior Gold.

Am I religious? No. Am I irreligious? No. What am I? I AM.
A man by nature, and a God, supernaturally. Imago-Dei.
“… beyond the range of human categories.” J. C.

THE UNITED STATES NAVY SEALS ETHOS
Values that every man should live by.

In times of war or uncertainty there is a special breed of warrior ready to answer our Nation’s call. A common man with uncommon desire to succeed. Forged by adversity, he stands alongside America’s finest special operations forces to serve his country, the American people, and protect their way of life. I am that man.

My Trident is a symbol of honor and heritage. Bestowed upon me by the heroes that have gone before, it embodies the trust of those I have sworn to protect. By wearing the Trident I accept the responsibility of my chosen profession and way of life. It is a privilege that I must earn every day.

My loyalty to Country and Team is beyond reproach. I humbly serve as a guardian to my fellow Americans always ready to defend those who are unable to defend themselves. I do not advertise the nature of my work, nor seek recognition for my actions. I voluntarily accept the inherent hazards of my profession, placing the welfare and security of others before my own.

I serve with honor on and off the battlefield. The ability to control my emotions and my actions, regardless of circumstance, sets me apart from other men. Uncompromising integrity is my standard. My character and honor are steadfast. My word is my bond.

We expect to lead and be led. In the absence of orders I will take charge, lead my teammates and accomplish the mission. I lead by example in all situations.

I will never quit. I persevere and thrive on adversity. My Nation expects me to be physically harder and mentally stronger than my enemies. If knocked down, I will get back up, every time. I will draw on every remaining ounce of strength to protect my teammates and to accomplish our mission. I am never out of the fight.

We demand discipline. We expect innovation. The lives of my teammates and the success of our mission depend on me — my technical skill, tactical proficiency, and attention to detail. My training is never complete.

We train for war and fight to win. I stand ready to bring the full spectrum of combat power to bear in order to achieve my mission and the goals established by my country. The execution of my duties will be swift and violent when required yet guided by the very principles that I serve to defend.

Brave men have fought and died building the proud tradition and feared reputation that I am bound to uphold. In the worst of conditions, the legacy of my teammates steadies my resolve and silently guides my every deed. I will not fail.

The Divine God-Energy that flows in our veins

As I’ve been pondering on how we’ve been raising most of our boys and on how many systems have seemed to be designed or are evolving in manners and directions that are antithetical to how boys are naturally wired, I’ve been thinking about how is imperative that we should reevaluate and redesign those systems in ways that honor the natural flow of life within the masculine psyche. Why is this so important? Because our external structures, including the political structures are a reflection of our inner structures, and vice-versa.

“Keep watch over your heart with all diligence, because from it flow the springs of life.” King Solomon | Book of Wisdom

There are, perchance, many young and older men feeling [ not an emotion ] like they have to run or hide because they know they have a multifaceted golden nature, but most don’t know what to do with it, or perhaps they live surrounded by cultural norms and organizations that are not aware of or are suppressing the healthy ontogeny and expression of the different aspects of the fully integrated masculine essence. The fire, passion, energy, needs to be harnessed, not sought to be extinguished, which leads to internal convulsions. | “Do not quench the Spirit.” Paul | 1 Thess. 5:19

Last week, I recollected a Tim McGraw song I first heard about a decade ago, written by Brett James, Chris Lindsey, Troy Verges, Aimee Mayo, that clearly illustrates and vocalizes the experience.

“In my home town / For anyone who sticks around / You’re either lost or you’re found / There’s not much in between / In my home town / Everything’s still black and white / It’s a long, long way from wrong to right / From Sunday morning to Saturday night / Everybody just wants to get high / Sit and watch a perfect world go by / We’re all looking for love and meaning in our lives / We follow the roads that lead us / To drugs or Jesus … / My whole life, I’ve tried to run, I’ve tried to hide / From the stained-glass windows in my mind / Refusing to let God’s light shine down on me, down on me …” Drugs or Jesus

“Religion can’t sozo you because to enter God’s Eternal Kingdom [ Sacred Order ] you need the new birth.” Book of John 3:1-7. Irreligion can’t lead one on the path of the new birth either. It doesn’t have a blueprint for the rediscovery of the inner temple. “The place that Solomon made to worship in, … Every part of it is intelligence and responsive to every other … This heart sanctuary does exist, but it can’t be described.” Rumi

There’s an old saying in the Sacred Scriptures that people perish for lack of knowledge and understanding. Gentleman, there is a third road! The Initiatory Masculine Sequence [ IMS. ] It begins with red, it goes to white, and then to black. Particularly, I believe the red and the white should be cultivated in parallel to each other, even when the energies seem to be more overwhelming during different stages, which makes my understanding more inclined to the King, Warrior, Magician, Lover [ KWML ] archetypal theory proposed by Robert Moore in his researches. To know more about it, study some of the teachings from Robert Bly and Robert Moore and you’ll better understand the flow of the energies, including the king energy, which seeks to establish internal and external balance and order.

The meaning of the IMS colors are not the same as the Spiral Dynamics Integrated [ SDI ] color scheme, but if you study both concepts, plus the KWML, and if your mind can grasp and cognize it, you should be able to notice how the theories overlap and can be fused, assimilated and organized into an integrated matrix — a quadrant around a spiritual core, the heart of hearts, which is connected to the invisible world; the other world.

“… They go form red to green and so I just drive into the night …” Take Me Dancing | “… I got a cure for the country’s ills … I been thinking ’bout, thinking ’bout …” Sacred Love | Sting

I haven’t checked the latest statistics on this, but results from a research published around the year 2014 showed that about 6,400,000 children between ages of four and seventeen have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. By high school, nearly 20% of all boys, while in their more naturally reddish [ rubedo ] phase, will be diagnosed with ADHD. Their natural aggression needs to be honored and developed under the supervision of mentors and elders, not suppressed or medicated.

“According to manufacturers of ADHD stimulants, they are associated with sudden death in children who have heart problems, whether those heart problems have been previously detected or not. They can bring on a bipolar condition in a child who didn’t exhibit any symptoms of such a disorder before taking stimulants.” Esquire Magazine

It’s really sad when we use our sophisticated scientific knowledge, separate from wisdom, to increase our senseless depravity, when it should be used the other way around. That is not how we build the Eternal Kingdom from the inside-out, totally missing and bypassing one of the main components — our hearts.

The individuals who’ve suppressed their red energy, who’ve had their sacred warrior energy not blessed, unrecognized, underdeveloped, shamed, medicated or misdirected, … which comprehensively includes most people, will have to bring the suppressed or incorrectly used energies to a more conscious surface, in an appropriate environment [ Liminal Space, ] in order to be healed, cultivated and then used as contribution to the hearty and vigorous betterment and protection of our civilization.

Below is an excerpt from one of my favorite presidents, as he was positively and in a blessed manner, recognizing and making reference to the value of our great warriors:

“Winston Churchill said of those he knew in World War II they seemed to be the only young men who could laugh and fight at the same time. A great general in that war called them our secret weapon, “just the best darn kids in the world.” Each died for a cause he considered more important than his own life. Well, they didn’t volunteer to die; they volunteered to defend values for which men have always been willing to die if need be, the values which make up what we call civilization.” Ronand Reagan | May 31, 1982

Rochambeau: a swift kick to the groin.

The Gettysburg Address

Lincoln at Antietam October 3, 1862 “In The Darkest Hour”

“I have felt His hand upon me in great trials and submitted to His guidance.” Abraham Lincoln

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
November 19, 1863

On June 1, 1865, Senator Charles Sumner referred to the most famous speech ever given by President Abraham Lincoln. In his eulogy on the slain president, he called the Gettysburg Address a “monumental act.” He said Lincoln was mistaken that “the world will little note, nor long remember what we say here.” Rather, the Bostonian remarked, “The world noted at once what he said, and will never cease to remember it. The battle itself was less important than the speech.”

While he may have had the intention to elevate the importance of the speech, the Senator, in his faulty rationalization, completely missed the point that people live to write speeches because battles are fought and won. Words fall short when it comes to conveying the depth of the meaning of the sacred deaths of those who offer up their lives to fight for a noble cause, which is part of the very core idea of Lincoln’s speech.

There are five known copies of the speech in Lincoln’s handwriting, each with a slightly different text, and named for the people who first received them: Nicolay, Hay, Everett, Bancroft and Bliss. Two copies apparently were written before delivering the speech, one of which probably was the reading copy. The remaining ones were produced months later for soldier benefit events. Despite widely-circulated stories to the contrary, the president did not dash off a copy aboard a train to Gettysburg. Lincoln carefully prepared his major speeches in advance; his steady, even script in every manuscript is consistent with a firm writing surface, not the notoriously bumpy Civil War-era trains. Additional versions of the speech appeared in newspapers of the era, feeding modern-day confusion about the authoritative text.

Bliss Copy

Ever since Lincoln wrote it in 1864, this version has been the most often reproduced, notably on the walls of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. It is named after Colonel Alexander Bliss, stepson of historian George Bancroft. Bancroft asked President Lincoln for a copy to use as a fundraiser for soldiers (see “Bancroft Copy” below). However, because Lincoln wrote on both sides of the paper, the speech could not be reprinted, so Lincoln made another copy at Bliss’s request. It is the last known copy written by Lincoln and the only one signed and dated by him. Today it is on display at the Lincoln Room of the White House.

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate — we can not consecrate — we can not hallow — this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Abraham Lincoln
November 19, 1863

Nicolay Copy

Named for John G. Nicolay, President Lincoln’s personal secretary, this is considered the “first draft” of the speech, begun in Washington on White house stationery. The second page is written on different paper stock, indicating it was finished in Gettysburg before the cemetery dedication began. Lincoln gave this draft to Nicolay, who went to Gettysburg with Lincoln and witnessed the speech. The Library of Congress owns this manuscript.

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived, and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle field of that war. We come to dedicate a portion of it, as a final resting place for those who died here, that the nation might live. This we may, in all propriety do.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate we can not consecrate we can not hallow, this ground The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have hallowed it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here; while it can never forget what they did here.

It is rather for us, the living, we here be dedicated to the great task remaining before us that, from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here, gave the last full measure of devotion that we here highly resolve these dead shall not have died in vain; that the nation, shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Hay Copy

Believed to be the second draft of the speech, President Lincoln gave this copy to John Hay, a White House assistant. Hay accompanied Lincoln to Gettysburg and briefly referred to the speech in his diary: “the President, in a fine, free way, with more grace than is his wont, said his half dozen words of consecration.” The Hay copy, which includes Lincoln’s handwritten changes, also is owned by the Library of Congress.

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived, and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met here on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of it, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But in a larger sense, we can not dedicate we can not consecrate we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but can never forget what they did here.

It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they have, thus far, so nobly carried on. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain; that this nation shall have a new birth of freedom; and that this government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Everett Copy

Edward Everett, the chief speaker at the Gettysburg cemetery dedication, clearly admired Lincoln’s remarks and wrote to him the next day saying, “I should be glad, if I could flatter myself that I came as near to the central idea of the occasion, in two hours, as you did in two minutes.” In 1864 Everett asked Lincoln for a copy of the speech to benefit Union soldiers, making it the third manuscript copy. Eventually the state of Illinois acquired it, where it’s preserved at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived, and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting-place for those who here gave their lives, that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

It is for us, the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here, have, thus far, so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotion that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Bancroft Copy

As noted above, historian George Bancroft asked President Lincoln for a copy to use as a fundraiser for soldiers. When Lincoln sent his copy on February 29, 1864, he used both sides of the paper, rendering the manuscript useless for lithographic engraving. So Bancroft kept this copy and Lincoln had to produce an additional one (Bliss Copy). The Bancroft copy is now owned by Cornell University.

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate, we can not consecrate we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Source for all versions: Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, edited by Roy P. Basler and others. | Lincoln speech text is in the public domain; the organization, remaining text, and photo on this page are copyright 2017 Abraham Lincoln Online.

Video clip from the Saving Lincoln Movie.

Father’s Love Letter

My Child,

You may not know me, but I know everything about you. Psalm 139:1 | I know when you sit down and when you rise up. Psalm 139:2 | I am familiar with all your ways. Psalm 139:3 | Even the very hairs on your head are numbered. Matthew 10:29-31 | For you were made in my image. Genesis 1:27 | In me you live and move and have your being. Acts 17:28 | For you are my offspring. Acts 17:28 | I knew you even before you were conceived. Jeremiah 1:4-5 | I chose you when I planned creation. Ephesians 1:11-12 | You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book. Psalm 139:15-16 | I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live. Acts 17:26 | You are fearfully and wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14 | I knit you together in your mother’s womb. Psalm 139:13 | And brought you forth on the day you were born. Psalm 71:6 | I have been misrepresented by those who don’t know me. John 8:41-44 | I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love. 1 John 4:16 | And it is my desire to lavish my love on you. 1 John 3:1 | Simply because you are my child and I am your Father. 1 John 3:1 | I offer you more than your earthly father ever could. Matthew 7:11 | For I am the perfect father. Matthew 5:48 | Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand. James 1:17 | For I am your provider and I meet all your needs. Matthew 6:31-33 | My plan for your future has always been filled with hope. Jeremiah 29:11 | Because I love you with an everlasting love. Jeremiah 31:3 | My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore. Psalm 139:17-18 | And I rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17 | I will never stop doing good to you. Jeremiah 32:40 | For you are my treasured possession. Exodus 19:5 | I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul. Jeremiah 32:41 | And I want to show you great and marvelous things. Jeremiah 33:3 | If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me. Deuteronomy 4:29 | Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 | For it is I who gave you those desires. Philippians 2:13 | I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine. Ephesians 3:20 | For I am your greatest encourager. 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 | I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 | When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you. Psalm 34:18 | As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart. Isaiah 40:11 | One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes. Revelation 21:3-4 | And I’ll take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth. Revelation 21:3-4 | I am your Father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus. John 17:23 | For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed. John 17:26 | He is the exact representation of my being. Hebrews 1:3 | He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you. Romans 8:31 | And to tell you that I am not counting your sins. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 | Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 | His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you. 1 John 4:10 | I gave up everything I loved that I might gain your love. Romans 8:31-32 | If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me. 1 John 2:23 | And nothing will ever separate you from my love again. Romans 8:38-39 | Come home and I’ll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen. Luke 15:7 | I have always been Father, and will always be Father. Ephesians 3:14-15 | My question is…Will you be my child? John 1:12-13 | I am waiting for you. Luke 15:11-32

Love, Your Dad.
Almighty God

The Story of Iron John

I

There was, once upon a time, a King, who had near his castle an enormous forest, in which wild animals of all sorts lived. One day he dispatched a hunter into those woods to take a deer, but the hunter did not return. “Something went wrong out there,” said the King, and the next day he sent two more hunters out to search for the first, but they did not return either. On the third day, he called all his huntsmen in, and said, “Scour that entire forest, and stay at it until you’ve found all three of them.”

Not a one of those hunters ever returned, and moreover, the pack of dogs that went out with them never came back either.

No one after that dared to enter the forest, and let it be in its deep stillness and solitude. Only now and then an eagle or a hawk flew over it.

This situation went on for years, and then one day a strange hunter appeared who wanted some work to do, and he offered to set foot in the dangerous woods.

The King however refused to consent, saying, “It is not safe in there. I have the feeling that you will end up like the others, and this is the last we’ll see of you.” The hunter replied: “Sire, I’m well aware of the risk, and fear is something I pay no attention to.”

The hunter took his dog with him, and walked into the forest. It wasn’t long before the dog picked up the scent of game and went in pursuit; but he had hardly run three steps before he stood at the edge of a deep pool and could not go farther. A naked arm reached out of the water, grabbed hold of him, and pulled him down.

When the hunter saw that, he went back to the castle, got three men, who came with pails, and they bucketed out the water. When they got down to the ground, they saw a Wild Man lying there, whose body was as brown as rusty iron. His hair hung down from his head over his face and all the way to his knees. They tied him with cords and led him back to the castle.

At the castle there was great astonishment over this Wild Man; and the King had him locked up in an iron cage that he had placed in the courtyard, and he forbade anyone, on pain of death, to open the locked door. He gave the key into the keeping of the Queen. Once that had been done, people could go safely into the forest once more.

The King had an eight-year-old son, who one day was playing in the courtyard, and during that play his golden ball fell down into the cage. The boy ran to the cage and said, “Give me my golden ball.” “Not until you’ve opened the door for me,” the man answered. “Oh no,” said the boy, “I can’t do it, the King won’t let me,” and he ran away. The next day the boy returned and asked for his ball again. The Wild Man said, “If you open the door,” but the boy would not. On the third day, while the King was out hunting, the boy came once again, and said, “Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t open the lock because I don’t have the key.” The Wild Man said, “The key is under your mother’s pillow; you can retrieve it.”

The boy, who really did want his ball back, threw caution to the winds, went into the castle, and got the key. The cage door was not easy to open, and the boy pinched his finger. When the door stood open, the Wild Man walked through it, gave the boy the golden ball, and hurried away.

The boy suddenly felt great fear. He shouted and cried out after him, “Wild Man, if you go away, they will beat me!” The Wild Man wheeled around, lifted the boy onto his shoulders, and walked with brisk steps into the forest.

When the King returned, he noticed the empty cage, and inquired of the Queen how the Wild Man had gotten loose. She knew nothing about it, went to check the key, and found it gone. She called the boy, but got no answer. The King sent a search party out into the fields, but they did not find the boy. It wasn’t difficult to guess what had happened; and great grief and mourning settled on the royal house.

II

When the Wild Man had reached the dark forest once more, he took the boy from his shoulders, put him down on the earth, and said, “You will never see your mother and father again, but I will keep you with me, for you have set me free, and I feel compassion for you. If you do everything as I tell you, all will go well. I have much gold and treasure, more than anyone else in the world.”

The Wild Man prepared a bed of moss for the boy to sleep on, and in the morning took him to a spring. “Do you see this golden spring? It is clear as crystal, and full of light. I want you to sit beside it and make sure that nothing falls into it, because if that happens, it will wrong the spring. I’ll return each evening to see if you’ve obeyed my order.”

The boy sat down at the spring’s edge. Occasionally he glimpsed a golden fish or a gold snake, and he took care to let nothing fall in. But as he sat there, his wounded finger was so painful that, without intending to, he dipped it into the water. He pulled it out instantly, but he saw that the finger had turned to gold, and no matter how much he washed it, the washing did no good.

Iron John came back that evening and said, “Anything happen with the spring today?”

The boy held his finger behind his back to keep Iron John from seeing it, and said, “No, nothing at all.”

“Ah, you’ve dipped your finger in the spring!” said the Wild Man. “We can let it pass this once, but don’t let that happen again.”

Early the next morning, the boy sat again at the spring watching over it. His finger still hurt and after a while, he ran his hand up through his hair. One hair, alas, came loose from his head and fell into the spring. He immediately reached down and pulled it out, but the hair had already turned to gold.

The moment Iron John returned, he knew what had happened, “You’ve let a hair fall into the spring. I’ll allow it this time, but if it happens a third time it will dishonor the spring, and you will not be able to stay with me any longer.”

The third day, as the boy sat by the spring, he was determined, no matter how much his finger hurt him, not to let it move. Time passed slowly, and he began gazing at the reflection of his face in the water. He got the desire to look straight into his own eyes, and in doing this, he leaned over farther and farther. All at once his long hair fell down over his forehead and into the water. He threw his head back but now all his hair, every bit, had turned gold, and it shone as if it were the sun itself. Now the boy was frightened! He took out a kerchief and covered his head so that the Wild Man wouldn’t know what had happened. But when Iron John arrived home, he knew immediately. “Take the kerchief off your head,” he said. The golden hair then came tumbling down over the boy’s shoulders, and the boy had to be silent.

“You can’t stay here any longer because you didn’t make it through the trial. Go out into the world now and there you will learn what poverty is. I see no evil in your heart, however, and I wish you well, so I’ll give you this gift: whenever you are in trouble, come to the edge of the forest and shout, ‘Iron John, Iron John!’ I’ll come to the edge of the forest and help you. My power is great, greater than you believe, and I have gold and silver in abundance.”

III

Then the King’s son left the forest, and walked by beaten and unbeaten paths ever onwards until at length he reached a great city. There he looked for work, but could find none, and he had learnt nothing by which he could help himself. At length, he went to the palace, and asked if they would take him in. The people about court did not at all know what use they could make of him, but they liked him, and told him to stay. At length the cook took him into his service, and said he might carry wood and water, and rake the cinders together.

IV

Once when it happened that no one else was at hand, the cook ordered the boy to carry the food to the royal table, but because the boy did not want his golden hair to be seen, he kept his cap on. Such a thing as that had never happened in the King’s presence, and he said, “When you come to the royal table you must take your cap off.” He answered: “Ah, Lord, I cannot; I have a sore place on my head.” The King called the cook up, scolded him, and demanded how he could have taken such a boy as that into his service; and told him to fire the boy and get him out of the castle.

V

The cook, however, had pity on the youngster and exchanged him for the gardener’s boy.

Now the boy had to set out plants in the garden, and water them, chop with hoe and spade, and let wind and bad weather do what they wished.

Once in summer, when he was working in the garden by himself, it got so hot that he pulled his head covering off, so that the breeze would cool his head. When the sun touched his head, his hair glowed and blazed out so brightly that beams of sunlight went all the way into the bedroom of the King’s daughter, and she leapt up to see what that could be. She spied the boy outside, and called to him, “Boy, bring me a batch of flowers!”

He quickly put his cap back on, picked some wild flowers for her, and tied them in a bunch. As he started up the stairs with them, the gardener met him, and said, “What are you doing bringing the King’s daughter such ordinary flowers? Get moving and pick another bouquet, the best we have and the most beautiful.”

“No, no,” the boy answered, “the wild flowers have stronger fragrance and they will please her more.” When the boy walked into her room, the King’s daughter said, “Take your headthing off; it isn’t proper for you to wear it in my presence.”

He replied, “I don’t dare do that. I have the mange, you know.”

She however grabbed the cap and yanked it off; his golden hair tumbled down around his shoulders, and it was magnificent to look at. He started out the door at a run, but she held him by the arm and gave him a handful of gold coins. He took them and left, but put no stock in them; in fact he brought the coins to the gardener and said, “I’m giving these to your children—they can use them to play with.”

The next day the King’s daughter again called the boy to her and told him to bring her some more wild flowers. When he walked in with them, she reached for his little hat and would have torn it away, but he held on to it with both hands. Once more she gave him a handful of gold coins, but he refused to keep them and gave them to the gardener as playthings for his children.

The third day things went the same way: she couldn’t manage to get his hat off, and he wouldn’t accept the gold coins.

VI

Not long after, the country was swept up in war. The King gathered his forces and was not positive that he could succeed against the enemy, who was powerful and retained a large army. The gardener’s boy said: “I am quite grown now, and I will go to war, if you’ll just give me a horse.” The other men laughed and declared: “When we’ve gone, you go look in the stable—we’ll certainly leave a horse behind for you.”

When they had all gone, the boy went into the barn and led a horse out; it was lame in one leg, and walked hippity, hoppity. He climbed on it and rode to the dark forest.

When he came to its edge, he called three times: “Iron John,” so loud that it echoed through the trees.

In a moment the Wild Man arrived and said, “What is it you want?”

“I want a strong war-horse because I intend to go to the war.”

“You will receive that, and more than you have asked for as well.”

The Wild Man turned then and went back into the woods, and not long afterwards, a stableboy came out of the trees leading a war-horse that blew air through its nostrils and was not easy to hold in. Running along after the horse came a large band of warriors, entirely clothed in iron, with their swords shining in the sun. The boy turned his three-legged nag over to the stableboy, mounted the new horse, and rode out at the head of the soldiers. By the time he neared the battlefield, a large part of the King’s men had already been killed, and not much more was needed to bring them to total defeat.

The boy and his iron band rode there at full speed, galloped on the enemy like a hurricane, and struck down every one that opposed them. The enemy turned to flee, but the boy kept after them and pursued them to the last man. Then, however, instead of returning to the King, the boy took his band a roundabout way back to the forest, and called Iron John out.

“What do you want?” the Wild Man asked.

“You can take your horse and your men back, and give me again the three-legged nag.”

So it all happened as he requested, and he rode the hoppity hop back home.

When the King returned to his castle, his daughter went to him and congratulated him on his victory.

“It wasn’t me,” he said, “who managed that, but a strange knight and his warrior band who arrived to help.”

The daughter asked who this strange knight was, but the King didn’t know, and added: “He galloped off in pursuit of the enemy, and that’s the last I saw of him.” The girl applied to the gardener and inquired about his boy, but he laughed and said, “He is just now arrived home on his three-legged nag. The farm help made fun of him, shouting: ‘Guess who’s here? Moopygoop.’ Then they said, ‘You’ve been under a lilac bush, eh? How was it?’ He said back to them, ‘I fought very well; if I hadn’t been there, who knows what would have happened?’ They all fell over themselves laughing.”

VII

The King said to his daughter: “I’ll arrange a great festival that will last three days, and you will be the one who throws out the golden apple. Perhaps the mysterious knight will appear.”

After the announcement of the festival had been made, the young man rode to the forest’s edge and called for Iron John.

“What do you need?” he asked.

“I want to catch the golden apple the King’s daughter is going to throw.”

“There’s no problem: you virtually have it in your hands right now,” Iron John replied. “I’ll provide you more: red armor for the occasion, and a powerful chestnut horse.”

The young man galloped to the field at the proper time, rode in among the other knights, and no one recognized him. The King’s daughter stepped forward, and she threw a golden apple into the group of men; and he was the man who caught it. However, having caught it, he galloped off and was gone.

When the second day arrived, Iron John had him fitted out with white armor, and provided for him a white horse. This time also the apple fell into his hands; once more he did not pause for even an instant, but galloped off.

That made the King angry, and the King said, “This behavior is not allowed; he is supposed to ride over to me and report his name.”

“If he catches the apple the third time, and gallops off again,” he told his men, “chase him. What’s more, if he refuses to return, give him a blow; use your sword.”

For the third day of the festival, Iron John gave the young man black armor and a black horse. That afternoon the young man caught the apple also. But this time, when he rode away with it, the King’s men galloped after him, and one got close enough to give him a leg wound with the end of his sword. The young man escaped; but his horse made such a powerful leap to do so that the young man’s helmet fell off, and everyone could see that he had golden hair. The King’s men rode home and told the King everything that had happened.

VIII

The King’s daughter the next day inquired to the gardener about his boy. “He’s back at work in the garden. The strange coot went to the festival yesterday, and only got back last night. He showed my children, by the way, three golden apples he had won.”

The King called the young man in, and he appeared with his cap back on his head. The King’s daughter, however, went up to him and pulled it off, and his golden hair fell down over his shoulders; his beauty was so great that everyone was astounded.

The King said, “Are you the knight who appeared each day at the festival with a different color horse, and each day caught the golden apple?”

“I am,” he said, “and the apples are here.” Taking the apples from his pocket, he handed them to the King. “If you need more evidence, you can look at the wound that your men gave me when they were chasing me. What’s more, I am also the knight who helped defeat the enemy.”

“If you can perform feats of that magnitude, you are obviously not a gardener’s boy. Who is your father, may I ask?”

“My father is a notable King, and I have a great deal of gold, as much as I will ever need.”

“It’s clear,” the King said, “that I am in debt to you. Whatever I have in my power that would please you, I will give.”

“Well,” the young man said, “I’d suggest that you give me your daughter as my wife.”

Then the King’s daughter laughed and said, “I like the way he doesn’t beat around the bush; I already knew he was no gardener’s boy from his golden hair.” And so she walked over and kissed him.

The young man’s father and mother were among those invited to the wedding, and they came; they were in great joy because they had given up hope that they would ever see their dear son again.

While all the guests were sitting at the table for the marriage feast, the music broke off all at once, the great doors swung open, and a baronial King entered, accompanied in procession by many attendants.

He walked up to the young groom and embraced him. The guest said: “I am Iron John, who through an enchantment became turned into a Wild Man. You have freed me from that enchantment. All the treasure that I own will from now on belong to you.”
Translation by Robert Bly of the story by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm in Grimms Marchen (Zurich: Manesse Verlag, 1946). Parts of this translation may be found in the chapters noted in parentheses.

Love Without End, Amen | George Strait

I got sent home from school one day with a shiner on my eye.
Fightin’ was against the rules and it didn’t matter why.
When dad got home I told that story just like I’d rehearsed.
And then stood there on those tremblin’ knees and waited for the worst.

And he said, “Let me tell you a secret about a father’s love,
A secret that my daddy said was just between us.”
He said, “Daddies don’t just love their children every now and then.
It’s a love without end, amen, it’s a love without end, amen.”

When I became a father in the spring of ’81
There was no doubt that stubborn boy was just like my father’s son.
And when I thought my patience had been tested to the end,
I took my daddy’s secret and I passed it on to him.

And I said, “Let me tell you a secret about a father’s love,
A secret that my daddy said was just between us.”
I said, “Daddies don’t just love their children every now and then.
It’s a love without end, amen, it’s a love without end, amen.”

Last night I dreamed I died and stood outside those pearly gates.
When suddenly I realized there must be some mistake.
If they know half the things I’ve done, they’ll never let me in.
And then somewhere from the other side I heard these words again.

And They said, “Let me tell you a secret about a Father’s Love,
A secret that my daddy said was just between us.
You see, daddies don’t just love their children every now and then.
It’s a love without end, amen, it’s a love without end, amen.”

Aaron Barker

Psalms 139 | A David Psalm

God, investigate my life;
get all the facts firsthand.
I’m an open book to you;
even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking.
You know when I leave and when I get back;
I’m never out of your sight.
You know everything I’m going to say
before I start the first sentence.
I look behind me and you’re there,
then up ahead and you’re there, too—
your reassuring presence, coming and going.
This is too much, too wonderful—
I can’t take it all in!
Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?
to be out of your sight?
If I climb to the sky, you’re there!
If I go underground, you’re there!
If I flew on morning’s wings
to the far western horizon,
You’d find me in a minute—
you’re already there waiting!
Then I said to myself, “Oh, he even sees me in the dark!
At night I’m immersed in the light!”
It’s a fact: darkness isn’t dark to you;
night and day, darkness and light, they’re all the same to you.
Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;
you formed me in my mother’s womb.
I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking!
Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
I worship in adoration—what a creation!
You know me inside and out,
you know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
how I was sculpted from nothing into something.
Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;
all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
The days of my life all prepared
before I’d even lived one day.
Your thoughts—how rare, how beautiful!
God, I’ll never comprehend them!
I couldn’t even begin to count them—
any more than I could count the sand of the sea.
Oh, let me rise in the morning and live always with you!
And please, God, do away with wickedness for good!
And you murderers—out of here!—
all the men and women who belittle you, God,
infatuated with cheap god-imitations.
See how I hate those who hate you, God,
see how I loathe all this godless arrogance;
I hate it with pure, unadulterated hatred.
Your enemies are my enemies!
Investigate my life, O God,
find out everything about me;
Cross-examine and test me,
get a clear picture of what I’m about;
See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—
then guide me on the road to eternal life.

Genuine Authority Is Not Authoritarianism

Authentic leaders exercise their authority to empower others; firmness is tempered with compassion. Without the leadership of legitimate wise-kings [ with healthy inner kings connected to the Invisible/Sacred King, ] the hero/warrior energy in a culture becomes self-destructive.

Young heroes/warriors who’ve experienced destructive leaders, if committed to wholeness, will have to spend precious time/energy restoring internal/external damage. That golden time/energy could have been spent building the “Eternal Kingdom,” which encompasses the healthy growth, maturity and glory of all the nations.

Whole: “. . . containing all the elements properly belonging; complete; undivided; in one piece; . . . pertaining to all aspects of human nature, especially one’s physical, intellectual, and spiritual development.”

Young individuals who’ve been affected by destructive leaders will also have to take responsibility to repair their ability to reconnect with older wise-kings and sages, as they reclaim their connection to the Eternal/Solar King. Otherwise, they may end up becoming exactly like the malevolent individuals who’ve affected them negatively during the fundamentally important stages of their growth process.

When one shines brightly, it doesn’t mean another can’t shine. One’s greatness and glory doesn’t diminish the splendor of another. When one becomes magnificent, that one is overtly and subliminally giving permission to others to pursue their own greatness.

Ronald Reagan put some of his thoughts into words in regards to this concept when referring to the USA: “America is a shining city upon a hill whose beacon light guides freedom-loving people everywhere.” | “… The eyes of the people are upon us.” — Kennedy

Many times, insecure leaders are not encouraging and nurturing of the ‘shining’ and growth of their own self and of others, under the disguise of false humility. Young individuals are doing right for themselves and for the ‘greater whole’ when making the decision to distance themselves from unhealthy leadership and from places and alliances that attack, discourage or do not support their multidimensional growth.

The King archetype in its fullness possesses the qualities of order, of reasonable and rational patterning, of integration and integrity in the masculine psyche. It stabilizes chaotic emotion and out-of-control behaviors. It gives stability and centeredness. It brings calm. And in its “fertilizing” and centeredness, it mediates vitality, life-force, and joy. It brings maintenance and balance. It defends our own sense of inner order, our own integrity of being and of purpose, our own central calmness about who we are, and our essential unassailability and certainty in our masculine identity. It looks upon the world with a firm but kindly eye. It sees others in all their weakness and in all their talent and worth. It honors them and promotes them. It guides them and nurtures them toward their own fullness of being. It is not envious, because it is secure, as the King, in its own worth. It rewards and encourages creativity in us and in others. …

This is the voice that affirms, clearly and calmly and with authority, the human rights of all. This is the energy that minimizes punishment and maximizes praise. This is the voice from the Center, the Primeval Hill within every man.

Moore, Robert. King, Warrior, Magician, Lover: Rediscovering the Archetypes of the Mature Masculine

Definition of the word WHOLE extracted from Dictionary.com

THE UNITED STATES NAVY SEALS ETHOS Values that every man should live by.