I was watching a movie the other day and two of the characters were discussing a moral dilemma. One of them said, “Now, we both know my moral compass doesn’t always point due North, but…” and this statement got me thinking. North had me thinking of the Earth element and I figured, “That makes sense. Having a moral compass that points North is an admirable thing as the North is associated with deep thought and introspection, such thought before action is noble and one is less likely to make “bad” choices.” North is also associated with calmness and with wisdom, even experience; what a nice direction for ones moral compass to point toward. North is “good” North is up and up is also good, that is after all, where heaven is right? Where “god” lives? People who are good are nice, UP-standing citizens, up, north, good, right? I suppose, good, but also limiting.
In many traditional religious practices or even with a lot of not so traditional spiritual paths there is this black and white dichotomy that doesn’t take variables into account. There is good and there is bad, there are no in-betweens and no special circumstances. There is black-white, good-bad, Heaven - hell, nothing else, ever, no exceptions. As I sat contemplating this, the curtains were pushed around by a chill fall breeze coming in through the window. The air moving the curtains brought to mind the East. Not "the" east, as in geography, rather the direction of East, just as I had been ruminating on North. I thought, what if ones moral compass is pointing East? East is associated with feeling and intuition and often moral choices are made from that place, a place of instinct and intuition.
There might be a challenge to ones morality that comes in like the wind. One where you have to call on that part of yourself that's a bit “fly by the seat of your pants” and deal with the consequences later. When the moral compass is pointing east it is for those times when a decision must be made quickly, no time for deep introspection, explain later and allow the universe to do the same. The East is also associated with the Maiden and with youth. In youth we are energetic and idealistic. We think we can actually affect lasting change in the world as a macrocosm. We are likely to take up a cause, or several causes and “fight the power” in an attempt to make a better world. When our moral compass is in the East we really aren’t thinking about others, we are thinking about our cause. Even if said cause is to help others the actual people might become obscured by the cause itself.
Still, there is value in quick decisions even if that means not taking the time to contemplate all the possible outcomes. Will Rogers once said, “Even if you’re on the right track you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” And I agree. If one is restricted by the idea that their moral compass should only and always point due North they might end up feeling guilty when they make decisions from the Eastern point in the compass. In one of the theologies where one is expected to have a perpetually northern pointing compass there is potential for feeling guilt or regret from the Eastern pointed decisions and that is the limiting factor. Pagans are allowed to accept and even explore the Eastern point of the compass without guilt or regret. I suppose whether or not one feels regret or guilt is a personal choice no matter what their religio-spiritual mentality or morality might be but if one is trained to feel guilt, they will feel it.
The South is another story. The South is associated with action. There is the passion of Fire here; these are actions that could result in a really extreme outcome and are often in response to extreme situations. The Mother aspect is represented here. Think of a mother’s love for her children, there is no greater passion, and that kind of passion is extreme. Think of a fierce mother bear. Extreme. For a Pagan there is no commandment that states one must not kill and the irony in that commandment, the long list of wars fought in the name of god, is not lost. The closest thing a Pagan has to commandments is the Witches Rede. Within that set of guidelines the statement that opens the door to not turning the other cheek is, “Lest in thy self defense it be, ever mind the rule of three.” The key words in that statement of course are, “Lest in thy self defense…” And defending oneself includes defending ones family.
The West is associated with water. Maybe these decisions are the wishy-washy watery ones. The word “fickle” comes to mind, when one just can’t make up their mind or keeps changing it. In traditional Paganism there is no aspect for the West. I mainly bring it up because I have been including the aspect, Maiden, Mother and Crone, with all the afore mentioned directions. The aspects relate somewhat to moral reactions and the decision making process when the compass points a particular direction. The passionate Maiden, the quick to act and fiercely protective Mother and the wise introspective Crone. There is a practice called Bohemian Mysticism where the aspect of Woman is used for West. I think that makes a good deal of sense since one doesn't go from mother directly to Crone, much happens between those two aspects.
From the way it is explained it seems that what's taken into account is the stage of life when the nurturing of others has run its course and after years of living for others, the person is free to go back to allowing the focus to be on their own journey rather than the journey's of others. The plus side is that while to a degree a person in this aspect of life gains back the sense of freedom they had as 'maiden' the naivety is replaced with wisdom. In many traditional Religions there is still a sense guilt followers are trained to accept as the result of this train of thought since spirituality is left in the hands of god. We hear it often, “It’s in god’s hands,” one isn't meant to give oneself such focus. Perhaps that is why so many followers of traditional religions have such admirable faith, such amazing strength and conviction is inspiring no matter what path you're on.
On the other hand, in general Pagan thought, giving oneself time and opportunity to grow spiritually is not just accepted but expected, including accountability. For a Pagan, spirituality is not in the hands of god, it is in one's own hands. I suppose decisions coming from this aspect are the ones that inspire sayings such as, "Follow our heart." It's about trusting both instinct and experience. This is knowledge tempered with experience creating wisdom. It isn't always about knowing what to do, sometimes it's about knowing whether or not to do it and that is where this type of knowing comes in. There is faith in the path itself and there is also faith in oneself without guilt.
I suppose to come around full circle, back to North and Earth, would be the Pagan thing to do here. North is where the wise old Crone is the aspect. In terms of aspects and associations I'll be clear that this is the difference between being older and being an Elder, wise and esteemed. The North is associated with introspection and grounding, it's element is Earth, it's all about knowledge having become wisdom through experience.
A quick nod to the Center as many pagans hold that the center, which often represents Spirit, should be taken into account. I suppose moral decisions inspired by the Center are the ones that have run the entire compass before making it to that Center point. If ideas that will eventually become actions with morally weighable outcomes begin in the East and make it through the entire moral compass it stands to reason that all that can be taken into account has been and that the known variables haven't only been considered but have been considered from all aspects, meditation is encouraged.
There might be a challenge to ones morality that comes in like the wind. One where you have to call on that part of yourself that's a bit “fly by the seat of your pants” and deal with the consequences later. When the moral compass is pointing east it is for those times when a decision must be made quickly, no time for deep introspection, explain later and allow the universe to do the same. The East is also associated with the Maiden and with youth. In youth we are energetic and idealistic. We think we can actually affect lasting change in the world as a macrocosm. We are likely to take up a cause, or several causes and “fight the power” in an attempt to make a better world. When our moral compass is in the East we really aren’t thinking about others, we are thinking about our cause. Even if said cause is to help others the actual people might become obscured by the cause itself.
Still, there is value in quick decisions even if that means not taking the time to contemplate all the possible outcomes. Will Rogers once said, “Even if you’re on the right track you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” And I agree. If one is restricted by the idea that their moral compass should only and always point due North they might end up feeling guilty when they make decisions from the Eastern point in the compass. In one of the theologies where one is expected to have a perpetually northern pointing compass there is potential for feeling guilt or regret from the Eastern pointed decisions and that is the limiting factor. Pagans are allowed to accept and even explore the Eastern point of the compass without guilt or regret. I suppose whether or not one feels regret or guilt is a personal choice no matter what their religio-spiritual mentality or morality might be but if one is trained to feel guilt, they will feel it.
The South is another story. The South is associated with action. There is the passion of Fire here; these are actions that could result in a really extreme outcome and are often in response to extreme situations. The Mother aspect is represented here. Think of a mother’s love for her children, there is no greater passion, and that kind of passion is extreme. Think of a fierce mother bear. Extreme. For a Pagan there is no commandment that states one must not kill and the irony in that commandment, the long list of wars fought in the name of god, is not lost. The closest thing a Pagan has to commandments is the Witches Rede. Within that set of guidelines the statement that opens the door to not turning the other cheek is, “Lest in thy self defense it be, ever mind the rule of three.” The key words in that statement of course are, “Lest in thy self defense…” And defending oneself includes defending ones family.
The West is associated with water. Maybe these decisions are the wishy-washy watery ones. The word “fickle” comes to mind, when one just can’t make up their mind or keeps changing it. In traditional Paganism there is no aspect for the West. I mainly bring it up because I have been including the aspect, Maiden, Mother and Crone, with all the afore mentioned directions. The aspects relate somewhat to moral reactions and the decision making process when the compass points a particular direction. The passionate Maiden, the quick to act and fiercely protective Mother and the wise introspective Crone. There is a practice called Bohemian Mysticism where the aspect of Woman is used for West. I think that makes a good deal of sense since one doesn't go from mother directly to Crone, much happens between those two aspects.
From the way it is explained it seems that what's taken into account is the stage of life when the nurturing of others has run its course and after years of living for others, the person is free to go back to allowing the focus to be on their own journey rather than the journey's of others. The plus side is that while to a degree a person in this aspect of life gains back the sense of freedom they had as 'maiden' the naivety is replaced with wisdom. In many traditional Religions there is still a sense guilt followers are trained to accept as the result of this train of thought since spirituality is left in the hands of god. We hear it often, “It’s in god’s hands,” one isn't meant to give oneself such focus. Perhaps that is why so many followers of traditional religions have such admirable faith, such amazing strength and conviction is inspiring no matter what path you're on.
On the other hand, in general Pagan thought, giving oneself time and opportunity to grow spiritually is not just accepted but expected, including accountability. For a Pagan, spirituality is not in the hands of god, it is in one's own hands. I suppose decisions coming from this aspect are the ones that inspire sayings such as, "Follow our heart." It's about trusting both instinct and experience. This is knowledge tempered with experience creating wisdom. It isn't always about knowing what to do, sometimes it's about knowing whether or not to do it and that is where this type of knowing comes in. There is faith in the path itself and there is also faith in oneself without guilt.
I suppose to come around full circle, back to North and Earth, would be the Pagan thing to do here. North is where the wise old Crone is the aspect. In terms of aspects and associations I'll be clear that this is the difference between being older and being an Elder, wise and esteemed. The North is associated with introspection and grounding, it's element is Earth, it's all about knowledge having become wisdom through experience.
A quick nod to the Center as many pagans hold that the center, which often represents Spirit, should be taken into account. I suppose moral decisions inspired by the Center are the ones that have run the entire compass before making it to that Center point. If ideas that will eventually become actions with morally weighable outcomes begin in the East and make it through the entire moral compass it stands to reason that all that can be taken into account has been and that the known variables haven't only been considered but have been considered from all aspects, meditation is encouraged.