PicoBlog

Welcome back to The Inklings Option.

Taking a hiatus from more "serious" writing around the time leading up to Holy Week has provided me with valuable mental space for contemplation, reading, and reflection. I'm thrilled to share these reflections with you all and to see where they lead. Considering its potential, I'm thinking of making this accessible to everyone as it offers an excellent entry point into what some refer to as The Symbolic World. In essence, this exploration aims to assist you in understanding how symbols operate in the world, thus helping you discern deeper meanings.

Now, let's venture beyond our time in Rivendell and delve into the significance of celestial spheres. With the guidance of The Inklings, who serve as a conduit between the pre-modern and modern realms, we can begin to unravel the meanings behind phenomena such as eclipses and lunar events, examining whether they hold profound significance.

Let's embark on this journey of exploration.

I wish to express my deep gratitude to C.S. Lewis and Michael Ward for their profound influence on my intellectual journey. Lewis’ seminal work, "The Discarded Image," among several others that I engaged with during 2019-2020, has significantly shaped my worldview. Ward’s enlightening exploration in "Planet Narnia" unveiled Lewis's corpus in a manner akin to Dante's illuminations.

More recently, Owen Barfield's "Saving the Appearances," along with Landon Loftin and Max Leyf’s insightful introduction "What Barfield Thought: An Introduction to the Work of Owen Barfield," has further enriched my understanding of Barfield's contributions to The Inklings. I am eagerly looking forward to incorporating Barfield's ideas into my ongoing series. However, I have yet to fully explore the enigmatic allure of Charles Williams, whose appeal I find comparable to that of Barfield.

With this preamble, let us now delve into the subject at hand: the significance of the moon, or "luna," as understood during the medieval era.

In the Bible, the sun and moon are referred to as “the greater light” and “the lesser light” (Genesis 1:14). During the medieval period, there was a prevailing notion that Luna, ruling only the night while Sol (the sun) ruled the day, harbored envy towards her perceived lesser role. This sentiment finds resonance in Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" (1595), where he writes:

“Arise, fair Sun, and kill the envious Moon . . . Her vestal livery is but sick and green.”

Luna is endowed with feminine characteristics because she waxes and wanes approximately every 30 days, a cycle closely mirroring a woman’s menstrual cycle. Her influence over the tides of seas and rivers tied her to the concept of fluidity. Since water lacks solidity, Luna was believed to govern change, doubt, and liminality. This association befits her placement on the boundary between mutability and immutability. In ancient times, everything above Luna’s sphere was thought to be perfect and unchanging, while everything within and beneath it was subject to change.

This liminality associated Luna with travelers and those between places—figures embodying states of confusion or "lunacy," a term etymologically linked to her name. Lewis once likened the desire for absolute egalitarianism and the dissolution of hierarchy to “moonshine,” encapsulating the idea of losing one’s wits to envy, leading to the dominance of the lesser light over the greater light, symbolically speaking. In “Mere Christianity,” he wrote:

“What I do mean is that all that thinking will be mere moonshine unless we realize that nothing but the courage and unselfishness of individuals is ever going to make any system work properly. It is easy enough to remove the particular kinds of graft or bullying that go on under the present system: but as long as men are twisters or bullies they will find some new way of carrying on the old game under the new system.”

This quote from Lewis underscores the notion that striving for societal reform without addressing underlying human qualities like courage and unselfishness is futile — merely "moonshine" if these essential virtues are not embraced and embodied by individuals.

Dante's work similarly portrays the moon as embodying characteristics of doubt, change, and liminality. In his “Paradiso,” Luna serves as the abode for souls who took religious vows but were compelled to break them. In Canto III of “Paradiso,” Dante and Beatrice encounter Piccarda, who was a sister of Dante’s friend Forese Donati who died shortly after being forcibly removed from her convent, who explains why she is found on the lowest of the heavenly spheres:

“Our charity will never lock its gates against just will; our love is like the Love that would have all Its court be like Itself.

Within the world I was a nun, a virgin; and if your mind attends and recollects, my greater beauty here will not conceal me,

and you will recognize me as Piccarda, who, placed here with the other blessed ones, am blessed within the slowest of the spheres.

Our sentiments, which only serve the flame that is the pleasure of the Holy Ghost, delight in their conforming to His order.

And we are to be found within a sphere this low, because we have neglected vows, so that in some respect we were deficient.”

This excerpt illustrates the reflection of Dante's moon symbolism, where the souls in the realm of Luna represent those who faced dilemmas concerning their vows and commitments.

The exploration of Luna’s significance, intertwined with literary and theological reflections, unveils a profound symbolic world encapsulated within the medieval understanding of celestial bodies. From Shakespeare’s portrayal of Luna’s envy to Lewis’s “moonshine” to Dante’s representation of souls within her sphere, the moon emerges as a symbol of change, doubt, and liminality — mirroring the transient and mutable nature of life beneath her domain.

Transitioning from these reflections, we now turn our gaze towards the concept of "moon rust" and its relationship with the mutable and changing aspects of the moon, alongside the complex symbolism of eclipses.

Moon rust, seen through an ancient lens, symbolizes the mutable and ever-changing nature of all that lies beneath the celestial sphere of Luna (the moon). Rust, typically observed on metals exposed to moisture and air, embodies the concept of change and mutability. For example, when silver tarnishes, it takes on a dull or blackened appearance, mirroring the symbolic qualities associated with the moon.

Eclipses present a more intricate phenomenon, involving the dynamic interaction between the moon and the sun, each symbolizing distinct concepts within medieval cosmology. The sun, residing in the realm of immutability, embodies nobility and enlightenment. It is often linked with gold, the noblest of metals, and represents divine illumination in the philosophical and theological minds of the era.

Considering this perspective, we can infer how The Inklings and their medieval predecessors understood eclipses. In medieval thought, an eclipse symbolized Luna obstructing the light of Sol. This celestial occurrence was interpreted as the temporary dominance of doubt and lunacy over faith and logic—a fleeting triumph of the "lesser" over the "greater." In Lewisian terms, it epitomized "moonshine"—the dissolution of hierarchy. In the realm of Dante, it might symbolize the breaking of religious vows prevailing over faithfulness.

It's crucial to recognize that this celestial event is fleeting. We inhabit a world where the sun reigns supreme over the moon, symbolizing the victory of the "greater." An eclipse serves as a sobering reminder that although doubt, lunacy, and the "lesser" may momentarily prevail, they are transient. The sun will inevitably shine again. Ultimately, faith, logic, and immutable principles will prevail, restoring the proper order and hierarchy in God's realm, where that which is mere "moonshine" will be vanquished.

In essence, an eclipse serves as a profound symbol. It points towards Christ's harrowing of hell, where He momentarily endured death and darkness, only to rise triumphantly, conquering death itself.

As we reflect on the profound insights explored here, particularly delving into celestial symbolism and medieval perspectives on the moon and eclipses, I trust that today's discussion has cast a brilliant light on these timeless themes. Guided by The Inklings' approach, we are not merely spectators but active seekers, urged to gaze into the heavens and unearth deeper meanings within these cosmic phenomena.

This perspective offers a harmonious balance, steering clear of the pitfalls of astrology, which assigns undue control over our destiny to celestial forces; fanaticism, which interprets everything as a sign of an impending secret rapture; or nihilism, which dismisses the heavenly spheres' significance altogether.

Just as an eclipse symbolizes the fleeting triumph of doubt and the "lesser" over the "greater," it also serves as a poignant reminder of the transient nature of such moments. In our world, where the sun, embodying nobility and immutable principles, reigns over the moon's transient influence, we witness the enduring victory of faith, logic, and divine order. This echoes Christ's triumphant harrowing of hell — a testament to the eternal triumph of light over darkness.

May this perspective ignite a fire of further contemplation and exploration into the profound symbolic world, fostering a deeper appreciation for the intricate interplay between celestial bodies and human understanding.

Thank you for embarking on this enlightening journey with me. I look forward to going further up and further in together!

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