Allegory and symbol

Henry Corbin, Alone with the Alone: At this point we must recapitulate the distinction, fundamental for us, between allegory and symbol; allegory is a rational operation, implying no transition either to a new plane of being or to a new depth of consciousness; it is a figuration, at an identical level of consciousness, of what might very well be known in a different way. The symbol announces a plane of consciousness distinct from that of rational evidence; it is the “cipher” of a mystery, the only means of saying something that cannot be apprehended in any other way; a symbol is never “explained” once and for all, but must be deciphered over and over again, just as a musical score is never deciphered once and for all, but calls for ever new execution.

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Chocolate gravy was a success! My uncle mentioned it recently. When he was an older teen he was not required to go to Saturday night church (like he was on Sundays) so he would sneakily make himself chocolate gravy while the family was away, all for himself. A luxury in a family of nine children.

Finished reading Ann the Word by Richard Francis. The writer was a bit snarky in places but it was an engaging biography. I’m a bit sad it’s over. I’m done with Shaker reading for the moment but I wouldn’t be surprised if I come back to it. There’s plenty more.

It’s been a really good year for goldfinches here. Multiple daily appearances as they chow down on coneflowers. Beautiful little critters.

I think that about sums it up.

Sometimes I follow a link over to Mastodon and see the insane way people talk on social media, or I read an article about cash drops and other trends, and I thank all the powers that I am blessedly out of touch. I may be online a lot, but I spend that time very differently.

I still really like this post from three years ago, in which I did some investigating/speculating into the impact “new” highway 37 had on our town.

I’ve been having fun researching a Civil War letter written by my great-great-great grandfather on my dad’s side. Also, in preparation for a possible road trip, I’ve been researching my mom’s family’s migration from Kentucky to Indiana. So expect some blog posts of interest to no one but me!

One of my epiphanies when I left Big Tech social media in 2020 was how the timeline had come to dominate my mind. The (little) writing I was doing at the time was dictated by the topics discussed in my timeline. Freedom from the timeline meant freeing my mind, in some small way. Writing for engagement can feel, in the moment, like writing about the most burning issues of the day–and to some degree it is. At the same time, writing for engagement is self-limiting. “Hot takes” feel a bit less hot when you realize you’re only thinking about those things because the timeline told you to. The best way to gain perspective is by being irrelevant.

To repurpose a familiar line: be not conformed to technology, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.