Broken Open
The genius of the heart,
as it is possessed by that great hidden one,
the tempter god and born pied piper of consciences,
whose voice knows how to descend into the underworld of every soul,
whose every word and every glance conveys
both consideration and a wrinkle of temptation,
whose mastery includes an understanding of how to seem
– not like what he is but rather
like one more compulsion
for his followers to keep pressing closer to him,
to keep following him more inwardly and thoroughly:
– the genius of the heart,
that makes everything loud and complacent
fall silent and learn to listen,
that smooths out rough souls
and gives them the taste of a new desire,
– to lie still,
like a mirror that the deep sky can mirror itself upon.
–the genius of the heart,
that teaches the foolish and over-hasty hand
to hesitate and reach out more delicately;
that guesses the hidden and forgotten treasure,
the drop of goodness and sweet spirituality under thick, dull ice,
and is a divining rod
for every speck of gold that has long been buried
in a prison of mud and sand;
–the genius of the heart,
that enriches everyone who has come into contact with it,
not making them blessed or surprised,
or leaving them feeling
as if they have been gladdened or saddened by external goods;
rather, they are made richer in themselves,
newer than before,
broken open, blown on,
and sounded out by a thawing wind,
perhaps less certain, more gentle, fragile, and broken,
but full of hopes that do not have names yet,
full of new wills and currents,
full of new indignations and counter currents . . .
Beyond Good and Evil, by Friedrich Nietzsche, trans. by Judith Norman, aphorism 295
This Saturday morning is glorious. Notwithstanding I felt a state of resentment, a smoldering resistance to the slaughter of the residents of Gaza. I know, I know: empires are not benign. We delude ourselves to imagine ourselves as “good guys,” America that is. The role fate has assigned us, entails supporting the open-ended sacrifice of innocents in order to sustain what really is a walk-on part in the full blown story of humanity. I’ve always felt antipathy toward the bully. A bully is dangerous to everyone, impetuous, blinded by ego, shame and rage.
This passage from Beyond Good and Evil was remembered, compelled review and further thought. The writer addresses a divine force, Dionysus, the god of wine, fertility, dance and reverie. His words are precisely what I needed to read, a medication to promote a healthy state for a sometimes fevered mind.
To be alive is an awesome exception in the vastness of the universe. Life is complex, violent, a cross-fire of wills, conflicting purposes.
Still, there’s a genius of the heart that offers renewal…
