Michaelmas

On the 29th of September, we celebrated the beginning of the festival of the Archangel Michael. This festival will run for the next four weeks and is the first festival to mark the final quarter of the year. In the Manila Waldorf School, this is a festival of great "challenges" ranging from obstacle courses for the younger kids to more challenging activities for the highschoolers. In essence, there is a strong element of "confrontation" of some "adversity" or "challenge".

Images of Michael are full of these qualities. There is a serpent or dragon that looks sinister in its twisted, slithering appearance. It is usually at the feet of Michael who by contrast is a like a glowing light of serenity, his countenance a reflection of peace and balance. There he stands, just above this serpent, armed in different ways, sword, spear, or some other instrument of death. And yet this traditional scene does not hold any quality of death. Instead, it holds a strong quality of tension. This is a tension that holds and frames the general imagery of Michael and the serpent.

While the general scenery is often outdoors, I have often asked myself, is this really an outdoor setting? In many ways, it is possible to argue that it is. After all, whenever we are outdoors, tension must be present to allow vital processes to occur. Without a steady give and take, for example, growth would not be possible. In this setting, it is easy to imaging Michael and his confrontation with this serpent.

But if this confrontation is not outdoors, it could only mean that it must be elsewhere. If we, for a moment, imagine that this tension were within our very beings, then the entire scene will change in its dimensions and importance. Internally, we have our own serpents. They wend their way through our inner being, seeking that pot of gold, so to speak, that true inner me that it may have the chance to devour it, swallow it whole. And in this inner space, there too must live Michael. He builds warmth within us and brings light in the search for this inner serpent. Within our very beings, this struggle, this tension, this ultimate confrontation, eventually takes place. And then, the scene appears frozen; frozen in time, frozen in space. What next. we inevitably ask.

Perhaps there is a reason that this dynamic scene of Michael and the serpent is frozen in such a manner. Frozen in this way, as we see in paintings, statues, even gin labels; so frozen that there is almost an urge to press it on just to see what happens next. And yet, what happens next is basically up to us.

How will we eventually express this tension? If it remains tension, we will certainly be a bundle of nerves. On the other hand, as this tension passes from our inner selves into the outer world, there is the chance that in this movement from an inner to an outer world, a transformation takes place. Tension is creatively transformed into something we can share in the world outside.

For young kids, there is an energy within that is creating tension. It is an energy that lives and grows as part of their maturing. The transformation of this energy is the boundless energy that allows them to greet the obstacle course that confronts them. It is an active, creative way that allows them to confront this inner tension by converting it into excitement for the obstacle course. As they confront each obstacle, the same question is asked of them. And regardless of how they confront the obstacle, the opportunity for the creative transformation of this inner tension is there.

For those in high school, this inner tension arises from their every growing realization of who they are. They sense it is there even if not clear. Their challenges are more individual , one that involves them not only in confronting their fears, so to speak, but also to transform these into a fear they can show to the world and hold as their own.

Ultimately, it is the ownership of this tension, this fear that each of us have deep within that allows us to celebrate Michaelmas. With Michaelmas, each of us has the chance to literally stand before the reflection of our archetype, Michael and see what each of us are made of, to see who we truly are. This understanding of who we are is important in light of the next festival, Advent, the preparation for Christmas as we need to confront the question: Do we have room within our inner "inns"  for the Christ child who will be coming.

Let us creatively transform this tension then into the source of inner metamorphoses and strength for each of us to be who we are.