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At the great primitive gothic cathedral of Laon, the nine arts are the subject matter of the North Rose window and also the Idea behind the geometry of the East and West Roses. (The South is primarily concerned with pi.) |
| 1. At the center, of the northern
mandala, is "Philosophy" personified, Love/Wisdom in its most developed
state, which corresponds to the Prime Mover. SHe is portrayed holding a
ladder of nine rungs, the nine arts, the nine elements of Conscious order.
Whether the imagery is Greek or Christian this space is the sphere of the
Prime Mover, the Sourceless Initiation. The images (Ideas) in the two central
spheres of the east and west roses, when superimposed, produce the central
medallion of the north rose. This superimposition is symbolic of the Self-creative
act of being both one of the rungs of the ladder which SHe supports and
at the same time being totally beyond the ladder and its supporter. Crazy
wisdom at its best!
At center is the idea which is to become manifest. |
| 2. Around the center
are arranged eight spheres, the other eight arts. Geometry is represented
by the dodecahedron (the 12 pentagons) in the east and west roses.Geometry
is the invisible blue-print of the Prime Mover (the King's new clothes).
It becomes visible through - |
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3. Arithmetic. The first of the 6 shells surrounding the dodecahedron is the sphere of arithmetic, the function of Order and Number. The trinity thus far presented has a basic quality, a resonance, which may be heard as |
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4. Music. This is a clue to the power of Sound as Music and its importance in the church. However this reference is not so much to music as it is to sound. The sound of any space, audible or inaudible, is underlain by a form, the geometry of which contains the Primary Idea. Through/by this form the shape of the space is seen. And because the space contains the order, all the knowledge making up the space is also present. The Sound can be translated as the enfolded Knowledge which exactly defines the parameters of how to operate within the given space. The trinity comprises the components of sound. By hearing the sound of a space, one may become synonymous with it; one is therefore said to understand the space. |
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When the sound is heard it may
be extrapolated further through speech as
5. Grammar. Because of the structure available within grammar, and also because it was once the science of transmitting knowledge using the arrangement and articulation of sound, traditions of a religious nature and esoteric schools strive to synchronize themselves with this aspect of Art. By virtue of the effects of grammar, it becomes the obvious transmitter of the Teaching. |
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6.Astronomy places this Teaching's function in relation to the universe. It studies the stars (2) in order (3) to understand (4) the Prime Idea (1) so that the work (5) may be in harmony (6) with the universe-still-forthcoming (7 8 9). Through astronomy, the universal relations, is established the |
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7. Dialectic, the communion called communication which further extrapolates the sphere of astronomy. Here are the questions and the answers, the formulating of the principles that have unfolded from the primal. This is the eternal dance, perpetual motion, the question and answer "Who Am I" ?!. Through dialectic the interchangeableness of parts is realized, the wholeness is apperceived, and there results a healing, through |
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8. Medicine. In actual medicine, the physician can only suggest a particular form of help after having made the correct diagnosis (two united by knowledge). One can only do this if one is able to put oneself in another's place, to trade shoes with one's patient. Because one does so as an embodiment of wisdom, one can see the situation in order to begin a dialectic with the patient that returns itself to wholeness. |
| It must be noted that there is no way to make any sphere more significant than any other sphere. The spheres are all portrayed as equal and co-existing simultaneously.The whole of these Arts, when enacted, can be presented through |
| 9. Architecture, the vessel which holds the mystical body (represented by the stone rim which holds the window intact). A structure always transmits a message: through its proportions, its orderliness, its sound, its guidelines, the relationships of its parts, the inspiration it arouses, the well- being it restores. The message and the primal idea are the same, seen through its own aspects. |  |
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