The spring has returned:
Spring has returned
and bringing new life
with the quiet urgency it makes lovers
mad with their passions
causes flowers to grow tall
and lavender to sing songs
as its’ blooms scent the garden

In a closed rose garden
a maiden sits spinning
fine purple wool of lordly texture.
She listens as voices approach,
she loves but One, none other will
do as she looks up she smiles.
She of noble temperament and gentle
birth awaits her Lord
the golden horned unicorn.


Note : another of my mystical poems.. do not look at the exterior.. look for the inner meaning. In the myth of the 'Hunt for the Great Unicorn' only a pure, gentle maiden can attract the unicorn by her own self for He is drawn to her purity (whether it is of the body or heart or both the myth does not tell us. ) It is Christ, himself, who is the Great Unicorn !
The tapestry above can be either called 'sight' or "My one true desire" or "My One desire."

Description:
Oh, my God, you have to ask? imagine heaven. This is what the angels eat and they don't gain weight.
Serve with lots of French bread and a small salad with Vinaigrette.
You need a good fondue server for this - one that takes about 3 cups of liquid... or you will have to keep the excess on the stove, heating.
Your table should be completely set and your family waiting as you prepare this dish - it is served instantly and they must be prepared to eat it instantly - you might even suggest they eat salad while waiting for you.


Ingredients:
2 cups white wine
2 cloves of garlic (can be more)
4 cups of Gruyere cheese or swiss or combination of both. Don't cut corners on the cheese - this is an expensive dish to make.
4 tablespoons of cornstarch
2 tablespoons of cherry brandy (Kirsch)
1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg, freshly grated
1/2 teaspoon of salt and pepper
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (very, very important!)
3 loaves of French bread cut up in reasonable sized cubes and allowed to air dry for at least an hour ahead of time.


Directions:
Prepare the cloves of garlic. One should be large so you can half it and grab it - use it to rub the size of a good size sauce pan & your fondue pot, coating both with the garlic oils.
Place white wine in pan and heat slowly at a low setting. Never bringing it to a rolling boil -
add the other cloves of garlic.
While the wine heats grate and prepare cheese with 4 tablespoons of cornstarch added to the grated cheese and mixed in so the cheese is coated with it.

Slowly add the cheese mixture to the white wine, being careful that the wine is warm enough to melt it but not boiling. Stir constantly as you do so. It should take a while for the cheese to melt but be patient. Add lemon juice & nutmeg as you stir. When the cheese mixture begins to thicken and becomes smooth, add Kirsch (cherry brandy) about 3 minutes before you remove the pan from the stove and stir it in.
It should be ready about 2 -3 minutes later, at most. Pour cheese mixture into your fondue pot and serve.
Very little else is needed in this dinner. I always serve salad. I suggest a light dessert, such as cookies and fruit.

Ah, the fool's day ! I am no good with surprises - sorry - My husband is a little better at the practical joke.. he's better at EVERYTHING ! 
I could say that I woke up this morning and realized I had grown two inches --- I WISH ! Now, that would be a joke !!!!!!!!!!

The Fool (The foolish one, the practical joker, the seeker, the class clown, the town fool, etc...) is a sacred image. Very few people understand this, today. We make fun of people calling them dorks, jackasses or naive fools, or 40 year old virgins. etc.. - but the fool is actually a sacred person set apart from the rest of us - in the tarot card above he is directly and clearly identified with the Seeker after Truth. The Native Americans (who in my head will always be Indians no matter how much they insist on the longer name, they were not native to this shore, alas,guys, we are all immigrants - the difference is when !) treated mad men with respect.. there were several incidents in the 19th. century when they left a white man alone because they thought he was crazy. They knew what for I speak - that the mad are holy.

The Fool - (And I am not talking about people that actually believe in global warming or the movies of Michael Moore, 9/11 conspiracies or the aliens eating their homework dreams or what ever you are personally for or against!)  Is  the Seeker -  he is also called the Mystic. He is crazy - mad, actually - he really, honestly, completely believes that there is something more to life than mere matter, dancing atoms, hormones, science, Brittany Spears, Name that Jackass, latest fashions,  diamond rings and communism -- he believes that there is another reality behind this reality - the realms of spirit and soul - and they are the TRUTH behind appearances. and - by all that is Good & Just - He is going to go searching for that other reality, even put his well being, perhaps his life on the line - or over the cliff, because he really believes there is something more to life. No one can stop him - his little dog is trying - (that is actually is body and mind barking its meaningless drivel - it is  also that Lord and Master of this era --- REASON demanding the man's worship but he is ignoring it...)  but He is going to jump off the cliff of Matter (material realm) into his dreams, visions, intuitions, hopes, prayers and desires... he may crash to the ground far below - or he may soar to the heavens on the wings of spirit - towards that brilliant sun behind him, perhaps - is that the sun or is that God that blesses him with warmth &  life?   It doesn't matter. He has made his decision and is committed, he's even put what earthly things he thought might help him on the journey in a little sack that he carries on that stick - which looks like a magician's staff, doesn't it?  you can see his decision to just JUMP, it is the white flower he carries in his hand... white symbolizes innocent desire and purity of purpose. The number of the card is important, also - "0" that moment just before we take an action... scientists even have a name for it - the singularity - that moment before birth, that moment before all things began - the zero point of creation... he is ready to jump - shall he soar to the stars, to God, to the Divine ONE  or is he really the stupid fool, the nonsensical one that refused to believe that "This (the earth, matter) is all there is.."

And it doesn't matter if he does fall and fall until his life ends on the rocks below... it is the intention with which he set out that really matters. He is NOW and Forever  On the Path - next lifetime he will be born again and will again try that cliff - He will someday soar, no matter how many times he crashes to the rocks. The Seeker, once he begins seeking, never gives up.

I use the Fool to great effect in the novel I am writing - May Day the herbalist James chooses one of the young pages or servants in the castle and gives him certain herbs that dislodges him from his normal consciousness. He is the FOOL, incarnate - he can do anything he wants that day - he can sing silly or nasty ditties, dance along the allures, pull the veils off ladies, stand upside down in the throne room for an hour, treat even the king and his family with disrespect, bow to servants as if they were kings and queens and demand that nobles fetch his dinner ...  (there are certain limits but we won't mention those in polite society, will we? ... ) and he can predict/utter prophecies, also .. anyone can walk up to him and ask for a prophecy of the coming year... the fool because his feet are in both worlds will and often, in my novel, does give a prophecy, in fact, several. He wears the traditional outfit of fools everywhere - funny clothes, silly hat of conflicting colors, two colored hose and carries a rattle.

Some of my favorite  FOOLS throughout history & literature :
The first walking fish that left water, First human to say "what's that thing?" and got burned by fire. The first man to go over that distant hill, the first man to leave Africa, Socrates, Moses, David, St. Francis of Assisi, Ramon Lull,  Joanne of Arc, Giordano Bruno, Cyrano De Bergerac (from the play, scene 2, not history!) Frodo Baggins and his Uncle Bilbo and of course, don't forget that great master of the foolish, Don Quixote.
And this is the short list !!
So, be a fool, my friends. It will irritate those who worship their own self important egos, it will get you called all manner of names by scientists and religious people,  it will drive your friends to wrath and disregard, the insults to you will become unceasing amusement to your spirit, and, yet, that cliff still awaits you -- will you step off into the unknown or not? 

And, no, I didn't mention FAITH >>> but you have good sense - or is that foolish sense -its implied, people, isn't it ?
 
 

I think it should be said and emphasized that each person’s spiritual life, i.e. the mystical path of each person; their biography, attributes, well, everything about them, is individual and unique. Your life, your gifts, your intellect, and therefore, your mystical life, will follow a different path from both my life and mystical life. This should be apparent but it needs to be said. The way I understand the East is that once you have awakened you choose a teacher or a teacher chooses you and you do your best to imitate the Master. (this was portrayed very nicely in ‘Star Wars’. )

The only Master we have, as Christians, though, is Jesus Christ. He is a spiritual man who comes to each person separately when the time is correct and communicates through dreams, intuitions, a few words(heard with the heart.) and visions. He alone can truly give the person what is needed for them to progress on their spiritual Path. When I first experienced His presence I was totally shocked how real he really seemed. As they said, he is no ghost. He is not material in the way we are but neither is he a formless ghost or spirit.

You cannot use me as a road map, Master, or template. I am not any of those things. I am only a fellow Grail Knight or seeker, though I may be more experienced, more mature than another, simply because my awaking was many years ago. I can tell you what I did, what I studied, why my inner urge to seek Truth, God, spiritual growth and emotional maturity grew so strong that I began to awaken spiritually in a very natural way (without a lot of effort), why I could never accept anything but the TRUTH etc. – but that does not mean if you do exactly the same things I did, felt or said! You will NOT be me. (And, trust me, you don’t want to be me!) I think if there is one thing that truly separates Western mysticism from Eastern, beyond the interior-exterior religious dichotomy, it is that Western mystics work their hardest to become true individuals; this process even has a name, individualization - it is a term from modern psychology but it also applies to the processes of mysticism.

At the very beginning, the mystical path is through your own psychology and you may find that you need a therapist to help you through that phase of the process.

Also, the metaphors in the East are often somewhat-to-totally different. Buddhists speak of become a drop of milk in the pool of milk that is all consciousness and a complete loss of self hood in the universal consciousness. Buddhism does not concentrate on God hardly at all, while Hinduism and Yoga concentrates on gods and goddesses and spiritual union with, I think, Shiva (my, how ignorant I am!) ... but, as Christian Gnostics, We speak of union through Jesus Christ with God and falling in Love with God, with a final step – union - i.e. spiritual marriage. For every Christian mystic Christ is the bridegroom of the soul and we do not lose our identity as much we gain an enhanced identity in Christ. Our relationship becomes a true marriage; two opposites that become one never to parted again and through Him we are also One with God. It is one of the reasons that marriage is such an important human institution; it points to the supreme mystical experience a human can have while still in the flesh.

While the East speaks of ending the wheel of rebirths, Gnostics speak of living endless lives of intense love & service, retiring only when all of human history is over – or, as Christ said, he offers more life, more abundantly.

There are several myths, images and metaphors that have enhanced my spiritual life:

1. The New Testament is the story of Christ's life. Reading it carefully it is possible to see in its pages our own Path, struggles, defeats and victories. We each must follow Christ to the cross. As Christ said, it is enough for the student to become like the Teacher.

2. The search for the Holy Grail and spiritual Knighthood. The Grail is that which we search for, the nexus between God and us and it is the place where spirit meets flesh = is Jesus Christ =is the Cup that was the first communion between God and man = is the heart of the mystic when Christ becomes the Lord of the Heart Chakra.

3.Another is the Image of the Rose – (it has the same meaning as the Lotus in the East.) The rose has its feet in the clay of the earth, is mortal but it opens its heart, mind and soul to the warmth of the sun or SON and blooms because of its/His heat/light! Also: we are a rose on his rosebush ‘I am the vine, you are the branches.' This refers back the 'Song of Songs' in the Bible : "I am the rose of Sharon, the lily of the valleys." The 'Song of Songs' is a set of poems, very ancient, and refers to our relationship with the Divine as well as the love in a human marriage.

4. This metaphor comes from a vision I had of the meaning of my own spiritual awaking. I saw myself climbing a spiral stair case that looked like DNA – I walked up it and repeated time after time were similar experiences in the shape of colors, the spiral stair case lead me to a tall tree, branch to branch I jumped, in the tree were lights 7 in number (after the seven main charkas) and, then, reaching the highest branches of the tree, I could go no further. I was distressed until a hand reached down from a cloud and pulled me up beyond the tree. The hand was the hand of Jesus Christ. I interpret this vision to mean first, physical evolution, then, the psycho-spiritual-consciousness evolution of progressing through the Chakras via the Kundalini, and, then, finally, union with Him through love.

4. "Mysticism" by Evelyn Underhill is a good history and description of traditional Christian mysticism. 'Mysticism' the book is free here. For those of us who have divorced ourselves from the organized churches, it has it's drawbacks, but it is still quite worth studying.

5. The Tarot is a good guide for the Christian gnostic if it first understood that the Tarot is religion neutral. It is the user who puts meaning into the Cards. They are a tool with symbols so general and universal that they can be used in many ways and by people of many traditions. Also, please, always do a cleansing and dedication when you use the cards so no evil or mischievous spirits/entities can bother you! Study and read several books as you learn the meaning of the cards. I used it for quite awhile and still return to it when I need to think about the Path. I suggest a deck that is both traditional and positive. The cards that mean the most to me are: the Ace of Cups (the holy Grail), The Hanged Man ( both Christ and the mystic) Resurrection, Death(transformation) and the World (Unity) If you ever want to amuse yourself look through the cards and see how many of the images refer you back to 'Star Wars' or 'Lord of the Rings' ( thus, the meaning of archetype!)Once you know the Tarot you will recognize the archetypes in many places, and, yes, even in popular culture.

Oh : here is a little test : What does "the Fool" card mean? What am I trying to say? Can you, with your imagination, study the card and understand its implications ? If you need some help watch the first half hour-1 hour of Star Wars !

This is going to be a bit rough going; there is a lot to say and it is difficult to put all my thoughts in some kind of order. I would suggest that if reincarnation, spirituality and mysticism have some sort of basis in the material realms, beyond my own personal beliefs in them, then, there must be nexus points between spirit and flesh, places that seem to be a mixture of both; where spirit and flesh meet and blend. One of these is, of course, the worldwide report of Ghosts and all kindred manifestations of such things, which have been reported world wide, for centuries.

But the nexus that more personal and has greater importance to what I think is the fate of the world and each soul is Prana, which is the life force that flows through all matter and the Kundalini energy, also, called serpent energy, which once aroused, soars to the higher chakas and brings about enlightenment and spiritual awaking. I have experienced the Kundalini for several decades and it seems to me to be a definite nexus point, a place of meeting that implies so very much about our basic nature.

One of the things that I find fascinating about science is its concept that both energy and matter are pretty much ONE thing and atomic theory, which describes smaller and smaller worlds that we cannot see – the realm of neutrons, electrons, quarks and neutrinos. The incredible energies of even one atom seem beyond my understanding. I think that the meeting place (nexus) for spirit and matter is at the very smallest bits of matter, the realm ruled by the laws of quantum & particle physics. The problem is I am a mystic, not a physicist, so I will not be able to do any work to find the nexus point or points from that direction. But, someday, I would suggest, we will be able to understand what Prana and Kundalini energies are in the scientific sense of the word and I suspect they must be natural energies and/ or particles that are inherent to the nature of the universe. If this is true it is logical to believe that they will ‘discovered’ by science, someday.

I know, though, without a doubt, that mysticism – the experiences that mystics the world over have been reporting for centuries: higher states of consciousness, Oneness with the ALL, experiences of bliss, light, love, sublime surrender and increased understanding & comprehension of the universe do happen, are real and are caused by energies that seem to be – are- ubiquitous – for they flow through all matter, including all living creatures and in doing so effect our consciousness. They seem to have a physical component; I must emphasize this so you will understand that they seem to be matter and energy but they effect spirit and soul.

I think one of the greatest problems facing mankind is our lack of understanding of our basic nature. Our words fail us. We don’t know basic things. Some say that we are just upright apes, others, that we are sons and daughters of God. Few accept that we are both and that modern science reveals the realms of flesh, matter and energy, while religion and spirituality reveal the deeper realms of consciousness and soul. There is an intellectual war going on in our times. We have the testimony of generations of mystical mankind and we have modern science and scientists and never the twain may meet – or, may they? My suggestion is that they can and someday, will. Science will never prove or disprove God. They can only say they can not detect Him. Religion and spirituality can not say that science is entirely wrong when it speaks of evolution and the forces and energies of nature. Every time we turn on a light bulb - or, for that matter, a computer, science is again proven right.

I remain forever curious about the nexus point, the meeting of flesh and spirit and I also hold that the universe is far more mysterious than any modern human being suspects.

In the East, both Prana & its Chinese equivalent, Ki (or qi) (pronounced Chee) are well known. It is defined as the energy of life, the breathe of life and it is literally the life force that courses through the body, seems electrical or electric-like, and vitalizes the body. It has a great deal to do with health, well-being and consciousness. Mystics the world over speak of it in some fashion but usually with different words so it must be known and understood before it is recognized in some writings. It has been known and spoken of in the East for many centuries, but is considered extremely esoteric and is entirely hidden here in the West. In the East Acupuncture, martial arts, Meditation, Yoga, Philosophy, all refer back to the basic concept of a life force that everyone and everything shares and it is basic to the Eastern understanding of what life is. a basic website that explains acupuncture If the above website proves to be poorly done, please search these words for yourself. There are people who understand eastern philosophy far better than I do.

I seriously think that "The Force" that is spoken about in Star Wars is the same thing and Lucas got the idea from studying eastern philosophy. I also understand that the Ninja use Ki or Chi as part of both their art and discipline (perhaps the origin of Mr. Lucas' Jedi warriors!) Here in the West you can only find hints of it -- I think the Celts may have had some idea of it & reincarnation in their spirituality but I don't know the details. The Jews in their spiritual philosophy, known as (the) Kabbalah (there are a variety of spellings) are definitely describing it in their "Tree of Life", and, also believed in reincarnation. The Tarot, the mysterious playing cards of the West, has the Tree of life as part of its philosophy, along with reincarnation and astrology. There was even an attempt to, in the High Renaissance, adopt the Kabbalah to Christianity which was more or less pretty successful at the time, though such books are very hard to come by, today. Some are still available and I suggest you search them out. Alchemy seems to have hints of the existence of Prana in some of its books and in Hermeticism, the Renaissance philosophy, also, we see references to all these concepts and more, besides. The Hermetic books seemed to have been written in Egypt during Roman Times and were only translated during the early Renaissance, hence their identification with that era.

Even in the more restrained Church based forms of Christianity we see references to the Saints and others healing the ill, Halos, lights appearing, energy passing between people… all I would suggest, referring to Prana and it’s close relation, the Kundalini Fire. As you see, a great deal of the human race takes this subject very seriously and it is accepted in many widely different spiritual disciplines and religions.

Why do I believe in Reincarnation? My experiences have taught me the immortality of my own soul. As a teen of 17, I was very unhappy, but, instead rebelling in an external manner through drugs, alcohol and sex, I became a very internal person, beginning a life long search for truth, reality and, most of all, God. I found myself meditating naturally, even performing some natural yoga, something, I suspect, now, that I knew in my past lives. One night, meditating before a burning candle that stood on my dresser, I looked up and saw in the mirror a long line of individuals, both men and women, they wore clothes of past ages, were true, living individuals & through each of them near the middle of the chest a golden strand of light passed through until it left them & came out and passed through me. I was in what is called a very high state of consciousness or awareness. I remember touching the mirror and whispering "They are in me and I am in them!"
This vision lasted only last a short time. I felt a hand my shoulder, someone was behind me. A man, a spirit, stood behind me. He was hooded and cloaked like a monk.
"You should not have done this, you are too young, child!"
" I had to know the truth, to understand! " I answered in my mind.
"Yes, but you are not ready for this, later, later, you will know everything you wish to know. Rest now and do not do this again until you are far older!"
He directed me to my bed after I blew out the candle. I climbed into bed and pulled the sheets up. I was not afraid, I was indigent that anyone would presume to tell me what to do.
"Why?"
"Too young, Grow up. You will be told when you are old enough."
I suddenly knew him to be a friend - a guide that I had known before.
I nodded. I would wait, grow and mature but I never forgot that night.
I was always a mystical person - someone who walked in both the world of spirit and the world of flesh. I saw ghosts, had visions, intuitions of the future. It wasn't unusual in my family for the women to have gifts... my mom and one sister, my grandmother all were psychic to some degree, in fact, I was considered myself the least psychic in my family! It is, sometimes, very difficult for me to imagine what it must be liked for those who only see one world... for me, it isn't, well, natural. For all of you who see only one world, all I can say is that you blind to the fullness of life and that I pity you as I would pity anyone who could not see all of the beauty in the universe - the entirety of existence is far more pleasurable!
(There, I've finally said that in a public place! )
I did not know of Hinduism, Buddhism or Western Gnosticism. I was a young, quite innocent teenager from a strict Italian Roman Catholic family. In the 196o's children were still allowed to be children... all the prodding & demanding that our society does today to force children to leave their innocence behind was in the future.
I was intensely religious but my faith was suffering under the burden of a difficult life. I won't go into what was causing the pain, but there was a lot of pain both physical and emotional. I wanted to stay in the church, strove to stay there for several more years, but I was disillusioned, and yes, broken hearted. By the time I left my Catholic High School graduation I knew that my faith was dead. I no longer believed. I grieved as a person does for the home they left behind and which, for them, no longer exists.
Such a vision effects the heart, mind and spirit. What did it mean? Of course, it meant the obvious : I had lived before, something, that my life had hinted before, though, I did not recognize the hints for many years. Somehow during this time, I grew to believe that my life was a punishment for what I had in the past... that God was angry at me for past sins and this life was a discipline to teach me to do the right thing. I struggled to be a good person. I even tried to believe for a time that there was no God and the universe was just a balance of forces.. but, knowing the existence of my own soul, I was not comfortable with atheism in any form. No, one week only could I bear it!
It is possible to deny the spiritual realms when you are blind, deaf and dumb to them but when you see, hear and feel them, no, it is not possible to deny their existence. I had seen ghosts throughout my youth, living, as I did, in a haunted house.
One of the great questions in my life was the nature of God. Did he exist, if he did what was his nature? Did he love mankind or hate us? Was he kind or punishing or both? How would I find out exactly Who and What God was - what was his nature, his relationship with me, my relationship with him? I had to wait for my early 30's to find begin that aspect of the journey.

So did my 20's pass. I discovered ancient philosophy & religion. Read everything I could about ancient Egypt and Greece. I did not go to college because of family difficulties so my education was never quite what I wanted it to be, not complete or whole, I have always been disappointed that I did not complete my education, while doing everything I could to educate myself. I cared for my parents who were already in their 40s at my birth, by the time I graduated High School they were nearing retirement. In the next few years I came up with the concept of God that I would describe as God the distant and ineffectual- perhaps, loving or not, but it did not matter because he could not help us one way or other. He was the source of all life and energy and it was through his will that everything began in the Big Bang, but he could not influence life, otherwise.
It was our responsibility to make life better on earth, to help and serve one another and make life less painful, troubling and difficult. Karma was our responsibility. We needed to stop complaining and take the discipline of karmic law and learn our lessons.
I married, at the age of 24, the same dear man I am married to today. Some time in those years I discovered Buddhist philosophy and Hindu philosophy, yoga and, most of all, Taoist Philosophy. In my 28th year my spiritual life reawakened. The doors to my soul began to open and I, with excitement, acknowledged the cracks of light that I saw in their opening. Since that time I have been living a truly mystical life, one foot in the realms of light, one here on earth. It is not always easy to do. I have learned a great deal about my past lives : names, dates, images, episodes - much of it is very personal information that is hard to distill and describe to others - even, to WANT to describe to others.

I know why I am the person I am. I know what my faults are, what my virtues & strengths are. I know why I fear certain things, why some things terrify me beyond all reason, and, most precious, how to grow more mature as a soul - exactly what must be done if I am to evolve into the person I can be, and, yes, evolution happens, on all levels, not just the physical: Human consciousness & human souls are evolving. We are all becoming something far different and more beautiful than what we are today!
Within the history of the past 27 years of my life are the reasons why I am a Christian, why I believe what I believe, how my love of Jesus Christ balances with my understanding of reincarnation and the nature of the universe, but at the center of the past 27 years is my self discovery - my soul's biography.

As a gnostic Christian my belief system and world view are different than those who believe in classical Christianity. Both have been influenced by other sources most of all the secret (Occult, hidden) traditions of the West, including hermeticism* and the religious view of gnostic religious societies such as the Albigensians (Catherism)but also the Eastern religions particularly Buddhism,Taoism and Hinduism. While this may seem a mess of philosophies and religions to the uninitiated, it truly is not ... there are certain principles and concepts that cross the divides of culture, place and century.
It should not be thought that Jesus Christ is not at the center of all I believe and love - He is the Lord and king of my heart, mind and soul; but I see the universe as far more complicated than traditional Christians do and my studies have encompassed not only the Bible but the works and thoughts of many centuries and peoples. One example of this is my understanding of the creation of the universe. I agree with the those who comprehend "the ONE is all, the ALL is ONE." and I see nature and spirit as a whole fabric, not separate or divided. Creation happened from the top down - matter being the most solid and most unrefined concrete aspect of the entire creation. I see spirit as a form a matter, matter as a form of spirit; made up of nearly the same atoms but one less sublime than the other. One writer compared matter to the product of a chemical reaction laying at the bottom of a glass. It is thicker, more gross but still part of the whole of creation. I speak of realms - and 'dimensions' is another fine word for what I am trying to describe!

In God (the ONE) there is but ONE and there is no contraries or opposites - in God everything is light, love, goodness, sublime beauty & creation... God holds in himself all opposites, also, so he is both Father & Mother of the human soul, the source of our being and existence. He is the energy, force of creation, beauty of the universe and he is also a personal God who seems to have a personal opinion and love for the human race. Though He is unified with the universe, being its source and creator, its end will not His own - He is that which is the source of all universes. We can not as mortal creatures ever truly understand all that IS God - he is the ALL and He is the ONE. He will always seem to us a contradiction of terms, a mystery wrapped in layers of contradictions & impossibilities that are beyond our definitions and understanding. I think the old Buddhist tale of blind monks trying to understand the whole nature of a elephant is very near the truth when it comes to humans trying to comprehend the whole of God.
Ultimately, We do not need to fully understand, we can only SEEK to understand.
In the realms both physical and none physical there are opposites, sometimes these opposites are at war, sometimes they hold as tension like the poles of a magnet so in creation there contraries - the Tao, the balance is just the way the universe works. Like the laws of nature, gravity and the such, they are undeniable. At this point I would like to also add that the point of all spirituality and mysticism the world over is to become more like God: a unified whole person, united with God. The differences that are seen as profound in the various religions are often just a matter of nomenclature,how this unification is achieved and what it means - there maybe levels of unity as one passes through different initiations or awakenings (I do not know!). In Christian Mysticism it is believed that without help from God & Jesus there can be no final success or unity - Christ is the perfectly unified man-God and only with his help and presence can each of us achieve the same. Mysticism is always a private path, a private achievement and has almost nothing to do with organized, public religions. Love and surrender to God is the path of the Christian mystic.
As I said an important aspect of my philosophical world view is Balance, contraries, Tao, yin-yang, dharma, ma'at***, Logos, Wisdom- there is an underlying structure, form, law, rightness to the universe, a way of being, a duty and the balance of the universe must be maintained in both the person and in the larger cosmos. Imbalance means chaos, loss of goodness/ wholeness and union with the Divine and therefore is to avoided. Examples of these opposites are man-woman, good-bad,light-dark, right brain-left brain,conservative-liberal, joy-sorrow, hot-cold, action-inaction, hope-despair, science-religion, rational-irrational... The list is nearly if not completely endless. Most of the time, but not all the time a human being trying to walk a spiritual and mystical path tries to balance these contraries in him or her self. No one will be fully good or fully bad, No one is fully inactive or fully active, or fully hopeful and loving or completely despairing and full of darkness (very few humans are truly & completely evil!) ... the balance is all - in some cases, it can be observed that being loving and hopeful is better than being despairing and full of darkness... then we concentrate on what we desire to become and examine our lives (through meditation, prayer and therapy) to see why we stray . The point is to become WHOLE, balanced> fully and completely human. I would suggest for those who want to study this further to also research the Kundalini**** fire as the Hindus describe for it has a great deal to do with is theme of balance in both the human being and in the cosmos.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermeticism
**http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albigensians
***http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ma%27at
****http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kundalini