THIS MONTH IS THE 9TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CAMINO - SPAIN WITH YARO & ANDREW

 

 

CAMINO COMPOSTELA 2006

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JUST STARTING - ST. JEAN PIED DE PORT

 

 

 



WELL EARNED REST - MIDWAY

ALMOST THERE -  890K

 

 

 

THE CAMINO - A JOURNEY NOT TO BE FORGOTTEN!



 MY OWN JOURNEY ON THE CAMINO DE COMPOSTELA. 

“My own story is different, just like every pilgrim’s Camino is different on the same walk we make in life” reflected the old man. It is 7am at the ‘refugio’ de San Tiago, France. We have breakfast and begin walking up hill and onto the mountains. The weather is magnificent this August 31, 2006. We are lucky as it may often be cloudy and misty and difficult to see the road ahead. But we are having a magnificent view of the ancient country and of the French Pyrenees. “The angels are guiding me and Gemma in Castellon that loves me, she will meet me at the end of the Camino in San Tiago de Compostela to celebrate the end of the walk” thought the old man with a pleasant smile on his face and carrying a heavy, much too heavy pack on his back. The Camino of the heart is calling and we go! From Roncesvalles to Zubiri, a small town in Navarra province of Spain – we are only on the third day of the Camino we cannot find an ‘albergue’ to spend the night in so we improvise; I get a room at a small hotel for 6 Euros for myself. No snoring pilgrims and warm showers. This is a luxury but without the proper care of the body the souls cannot travel well. Next day I got to Pamplona and sent some unnecessary stuff to Gemma and felt relieved from the heavy burden (4K) in my backpack.

Notes from my diary: “My body aches all over, Andrew disappeared with a couple of girls One from NZ who lived at the ,Gold Coast Australia and now lives in London and Leanne 28, an Irish/Indian lass from Dublin. She finished her MA in Ecological engineering and her dark hair and very pleasant constitution AND not carrying much in her back pack inspired all of us – amazing!- I think Andy is in love.”

More writing: “I am tired and still 25 days or more to go. I have to pace myself better and have even less weight on my back. Take more ‘siestas’ during the hot midday period. Not worry about the next ‘refugio’ like many pilgrims who rush to the next stop like sheep. I am wondering how this will be for me in the next long days. Well I can always take the bus. Yet that is only in case of an emergency! So far the Camino is all forest and going downhill to Zubiri. I am exhausted and walked very slowly, I realize that I lost track of my companions. Suddenly I felt a presence in my back, thinking it is a pilgrim wanting to pass me by, I looked back and saw no one there. At that moment, I felt that an angelic presence was caring for me on that difficult trek.

Many small ‘miracles’ emerged along the way.  For example, I found a walking stick when my new one was lost. I was walking out of Pamplona early in the morning (Andy and friends were still asleep) and thinking that I need a stick to help me walk, suddenly in front of me dropped a stick! I was shocked as the streets were deserted and there were no wooden sticks around to be seen. “Here is a gift from San Tiago and the Angels” thought the pilgrim. “Thank you!”

Day 7 - week one - walking from Los Arcos to Logrono – 27K.The walk to Los Arcos in 35C was a real trial! Leanne, Andrew and I walked very slowly on a hot road. Finally I gave up and I rested in a shade of a big hay stack and there I met a young Iranian man Hushi. He lives in Sweden but now is working as a bartender in Alicante.

With another young man, Ed from London we made up a very interesting group of ‘yolo, yolo’ pilgrims. We came to Logrono, capital city of the Rioja province and the best wine in the country! The inner city is a typical medieval town with a huge cathedral and plaza. Very dark inside and outside a nice café where I had a tortilla and coffee. Dinner with my new group of friends with a lot of Rioja wine, this pilgrimage is turning to be a party every night. Oh how different and good we all feel!

The imagination flows on the Camino. Our group of five pilgrims, walking all day, gave us a sense of walking on the “yellow brick road” in the wizard of Oz folk tale. Leanne was like Dorothy, intelligent, cute; Andrew as the Tin Man, pursuing ‘Dorothy’ and wanting to get her in a private room somewhere, while she flirts and plays ‘not ready yet’. Hushi the young, bold, intelligent, critical and handsome Iranian – we called him ‘the munchkin’; the young Englishman writing his first novel as he walked, Ed, was named ‘munchkin two’; Yaro(me) was named ‘the lion with heart’ He kept connecting with lovely Gemma on the mobile. Their love is growing even on the Camino. This is one of her many texts:

“Your memories give me many emotions, our meeting is near. I love you without any conditions, in a profound way! How are you my butterfly?”

And  

“Closing circles in life- how good and also enjoying the walk! My love, I am so happy. I wake up with the vision/image of our contact soon!”

HALF WAY TO THE TOP

I AM HALF WAY TO San Tiago. Connecting with Gemma, my love on the internet at about 4pm each day and receiving her text messages. I think “how is that I deserve such a love? I answer: Because I was open to love and she came in. She was waiting for millennia” LOVE IS LIFE. Love is pain and happiness!

 I caught up with Andrew and Leanne and we had dinner celebrating her master’s degree. A man played a harmonica in the ‘albergue’ and I sang a Russian song - the ‘katiusha’ with him to the delight of all tired pilgrims. Miracles are small but they do appear on the Camino. After getting a walking staff in Pamplona, I was doing a very agonizingly hot walk to Estella and missed the yellow arrow. I lost 3kilometers and was exhausted before getting to the town. I arrived at a cathedral at 3pm and there was bus stop and a bus. The young female driver said that she is going to La Estella in five minutes and for only 95c I was in the refugio in about 5minutes. Ah a rest – thank you angels! At night, I imagine I am with Gemma, I close my eyes and feel her kisses, so gentle and passionate. I see her naked with me in bed and we make love. ….. I am on a magic carpet flying to her side. I wake up in the early morning and have to get going. They close the albergue at 8am. The Camino is calling me!

September 11/06. Walking at night from Najera to Santo Domingo (21K) It is full moon and the OZ group wanted to walk at midnight in moonlight. However, after much wine and late night, only I and Hushi were the only ‘volunteers’ to do the midnight walk. Hushi and I walked for six hours and did a lot of talking about life and women. I felt like Paolo Coelho on his Camino with his master. Except that I was the ‘master’ and Hushi the ‘disciple’. We passed by Santo Domingo at 4am and ended up in Granon, a medieval town, by 10am exhausted. Santo Domingo was also an old medieval town and had a very dark energy. We felt the many awful things that must have happened there. The old sculptures on the buildings reminded us of the Inquisition and its horrors. We were exhausted but did not go to the albergue at the church but slept on a bench in the plaza, like tow hobos. Later we walked on to Granon where a nice refuge greeted us. We slept in a church on Yoga mattresses and then went on to Burgos. I rested in a nice little hotel-posada where I had two days of blissful rest and got in touch with Reyes, Gemma’s cousin and her family. From Burgos to Leon a tough 30K walk. Here you have a bit of history of that fantastic city: BURGOS.

There are many human settlings dating back to the Neolithic period (4,500BC) especially on the hill of the castle that has a full view of the city. The city of Burgos itself was founded by Diego Rodriguez in the year 884. King Alfonso III of Leon trying to stop the advances of the Moors, ordered a building of a military castle surrounded by a vast wall.

After the re-conquest of the area, the warriors that were given land built houses and developed commerce. The city was not changed much until about 1071. Alfonso VIII establishes a court in the city and helps build the Monastery of Huelgas and rebuilds the city walls as they are today.

The XV Century brings Burgos into its full potential as the centre of the Catholic Kings: Fernando and Isabel the couple who financed Cristobal Colon that lead to the discovery of America. Howe3ver, in the following years, Burgos suffered disintegration due to wars in Flanders, the centralization of Spain in Madrid, diseases and a shift of economy to the New World.

The Spanish civil war (1936-39), placed Burgos in a special category. From its beginnings, the city decides to support the Nationalist Government and was well rewarded by the dictator Franco who became the leader and the head of state.

Now, in the 21st century, Burgos has evolved as a mayor centre of commerce and tourism. It has also become the main point of meeting of the pilgrims to Compostela. It is situated about half way Santiago.

SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA

According to ancient local tradition, on 2 January of the year AD 40, the Virgin Mary appeared to James on the bank of the Ebro River at Caesar Augusta, while he was preaching the Gospel in Spain. She appeared upon a pillar,( Nuestra Señora del Pilar), and that pillar is conserved and venerated within the present Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar, in Zaragoza, Spain. Following that apparition, St James returned to Judea, where he was beheaded by King Herod Agrippa I in the year 44.

The translation of his relics from Judea to Galicia in the northwest of Iberia was effected, in legend, by a series of miraculous happenings: decapitated in Jerusalem with a sword by Herod Agrippa himself, his body was taken up by angels, and sailed in a rudderless, unattended boat to Iria Flavia in Spain, where a massive rock closed around his relics, which were later removed to Compostela. The 12th-century Historia Compostellana commissioned by Bishop Diego Gelmírez provides a summary of the legend of St James as it was believed at Compostela. Two propositions are central to it: first, that St James preached the gospel in Spain as well as in the Holy Land; second, that after his martyrdom at the hands of Herod Agrippa I his disciples carried his body by sea to Spain, where they landed at Padrón on the coast of Galicia, and took it inland for burial at Santiago de Compostela.         

 

 

SPANISH TORTILLA RECIPE

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds russet potatoes (about 2 medium)
Extra-virgin olive oil, for frying (about 4 cups) See Cooks Note
2 medium onions, thinly sliced (1 1/2 pounds)
4 teaspoons kosher salt
10 large eggs
Serving suggestions: sliced chorizo, roasted pequillo peppers, or crumbled goat cheese or Sofritto, recipe follows
 
Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/spanish-tortilla-recipe.html?oc=linkback

Directions
Peel and thinly slice the potatoes. Soak slices in water for 10 minutes. Drain and dry completely in a salad spinner. Meanwhile, pour enough olive oil into a large saucepan so it's about an inch deep. Heat over medium heat until a slice of onion bubbles gently when placed in the oil, about 310 degrees F. Add the onions and fry, stirring occasionally until just golden, about 8 minutes. Scoop the onions from the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper-towel lined baking sheet.
 
Add about half of the potatoes, and fry until lightly golden and a little puffy, about 10 minutes. Scoop the potatoes from the oil, add to the onions. Repeat with the rest of the potatoes. Reserve the oil. Season the vegetables with 3 teaspoons of the salt. (The preparation of the vegetables can be done up to 2 hours ahead.)
 
Break the eggs into a large bowl. Whisk just enough to combine but not so much that they get loose and runny, about 15 times. Add the vegetables and remaining 1 teaspoon salt.
 
Heat a medium (10-inch) nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the reserved oil and heat. Add the tortilla mixture and stir briskly with a spatula to get peaks and valleys in the folds of the egg, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stop stirring and reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the eggs are set but still pretty loose, about 5 minutes. Lay a flat pan lid or a plate on top and invert the tortilla. Add more oil to the pan if needed, and slide the tortilla back into the pan, cover and finish cooking until set and lightly brown, about 3 minutes more. Slide the tortilla out of the pan to a cutting board to cool slightly.
 
Cut into cubes or thin wedges and serve warm or room temperature as is or with 1 of the suggested toppings.
 
Cook's Note: Yes that's a lot of oil. But you can reuse it for other tortillas and in sauces, dressing or salads. It has a wonderful onion-y flavor that is great tossed on roasted potatoes or chicken.
 
Copyright 2007 Television Food Network, G.P. All rights reserved
 
We love this as a topper to grilled bread, with cheese, or as an alternative to cocktail sauce with shrimp or other seafood.
 
Sofrito:
Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and sugar and half the salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and sweet, about 1 hour. If the onions begin to get really brown, add a splash of water to slow them down.
 
Meanwhile, cut the tomatoes, crosswise. Grate them on the cut side on the largest holes of a box grater into a bowl all the way down to the skins. Discard skins. Add tomato puree, pimenton and bay leaf to the caramelized onions, and continue to cook until quite thick and the tomato separates from the oil, about 10 to 15 minutes more. Season with the remaining salt or to taste. Serve warm or at room temperature.
 
Prep Time: 10 minutes
 
Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
 
From Food Network Kitchens
 
Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/spanish-tortilla-recipe.html?oc=linkback

PILGRIMAGE TO THE END OF THE WORLD

This book helped me to prepare for this amazing but long journey that millions of pilgrims walked over the past one thousand years. The other, much older book is THE PILGRIM'S GUIDE.It is a medieval book that still is useful to those who want to get ready for the walk. Conrad Rudolph was inspired by the "guide" and wrote his book about his personal journey. My personal journey is written here and it is meant to celebrate the walk with my two friends Andy Moffat and Hoshy Afzalan.

What is a pilgrimage?

From Tibetan Buddhists at Jokang to Muslims at Mecca for the hajj, pilgrims across faiths and cultures travel thousands of miles - often by foot - to reach holy sites. Such journeys are considered proof of ultimate devotion, the most important act of an individual's life. The intense mystical and physical aspects of pilgrimages have recently sparked a modern revival, leading travelers in search of spiritual growth and physical challenge to embark on these sacred adventures. Pilgrimage to the End of the World takes the reader, via Conrad Rudolph's able eyes and feet, to the holy site of Santiago de Compostela, believed to be the burial place of the apostle James. Discovered around AD 812, it became one of the most important pilgrimage destinations for Westerners (after Rome and Jerusalem) and has recently received an influx of renewed attention since being named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Today it is the second most popular Catholic pilgrimage center, having been visited by Francis of Assisi and Pope John Paul II, among others. Rudolph made this passage himself, traveling the two and a half months and one thousand miles along the ancient pilgrimage route from Le Puy, in south-central France, to Santiago, Spain. Offering his perspective as a medieval art historian as well as a veteran traveler, Rudolph melds the ancient and the contemporary, the spiritual and the physical, in a chronicle of his travels to this captivating place. From anecdotes to travel tips for "the wise pilgrim" (routes to take, physical training required, what to eat, where to stay, what to bring, and even recommendations of other publications), this book is at once travel guide, literary work, historical study, and memoir. Sincerely and engagingly written, it will appeal to travelers, religious scholars, and historians - and will have you wanting to embark for Spain as you close it.

ART MAKES US ALL RICHER!

 

 

 

 

ART MAKES US ALL RICHER!

by Alexander Green

Dear Reader,

Last week, some friends and I were in Vienna and visited the Belvedere, a magnificent Baroque palace that is now an art museum.

My publisher, Julia Guth, is a fan of Austrian painter Gustav Klimt, a turn-of-the-twentieth-century artist, who was once marginalized but is now considered a modern master. As some of his best-known work was on exhibit there, we decided to have a look.

The highlight was Klimt's most-loved piece "The Kiss," a remarkable 72-inch by 72-inch painting that depicts a couple, in various shades of gold and symbols, locked in an embrace and sharing a kiss against a bronze background. The painting - which now adorns everything from coffee cups to calendars - is one of the most recognizable icons of modern art.

I enjoyed the piece, but something else struck me. As our group stood admiring it, a young woman in the room turned and suddenly recognized the painting.

Her mouth fell open and she stepped slowly forward, her right hand curling up to her heart. She stood in front of the painting for several minutes, wide-eyed and speechless. When we left the museum half an hour later, she was still anchored there.

What is it about art that shocks, amuses, provokes or enchants us? Like language, art emerges spontaneously and universally across cultures, from the Palaeolithic cave paintings of Lascaux to the experimental art of today.

Art is a quintessentially human activity. It separates us from the rest of the animal kingdom. Sure, we have intelligence, but other animals do, too, even crows. We have complex language, but so do dolphins and whales. Even our use of tools is not unique. More than forty years ago, Jane Goodall discovered chimpanzees in East Africa extracting termites from their mounds with blades of grass. They were effectively "fishing" for dinner.

Only homo sapiens have an aesthetic sense, a need for expression in words, music, painting or sculpture, although no one really understands why.

Art objects are among the most opulent, extravagant, and glittering creations of the human mind. They expand our understanding of the world. They intensify experience and give us a sense of the sublime.

Art can be dangerous too. Plato feared that immoral art would steer people away from the virtuous and the good. In his Republic, he recommends that the state censor the arts for the protection of the citizens. (Not one of his better ideas.)

A museum is a cathedral of contemplation, a place to discover riches of imagination and insight. "Art teaches nothing," said Henry Miller, "except the significance of life." Proust said, "Thanks to art, instead of seeing one world, our own, we see it multiplied, and as many original artists as there are, so many worlds are at our disposal."

Art surprises you, makes you see things in new ways. A particular work can stretch your perceptions and expand your mental capacities. It can purge emotions, clear your mind, edify and enlarge the soul.

Art means different things to different people, of course. I don't agree with those who insist you need to appreciate a certain artwork for the right reasons. There may be wrong reasons for disliking a piece of art, but there can't be a wrong reason for liking one. You might easily enjoy a particular landscape painting not because it exemplifies some school or movement but because of its loveliness or realism. Or maybe it just reminds you of home. Interpretations are bound to vary.

We often see in pictures what we would like to see in our lives. We all enjoy beauty in nature and harmony in our relationships. Yet we can also admire pictures of war or tragedy or evil. These, too, are facets of life.

Some things can't be adequately verbalized. Art gives full expression to love, compassion, humour and delight in life, tenderness, self-sacrifice, and intimations of mortality, as well as confusion, alienation, terror or sadness.

Artists with extraordinary skill probe the content of life and articulate strong emotions. They create a feeling of recognition and communion with others. It is more than just the sheer wonder of seeing something beautiful or new. A great artist stimulates our imagination. The action takes place in the theatre of the human mind.

However, the raison d'etre of art is not to communicate emotion, but understanding. Indeed, art shares something important with science. Both are truth-seeking activities that attempt to probe the nature of reality and tell us about ourselves and our world. Success in each field depends on the creative originality of a few rare individuals who take imaginative leaps into the unknown. Is it possible to have a full understanding of life without some acquaintance with both?

Art expresses individuality - and not just the artist's. What you hang on the walls of your home or office reveals your interests, your passions. To a lesser extent, this is also true of clothing, jewellery and makeup. Why does it create an awkward moment when two women show up at a dinner party wearing the same evening dress? Because the event is an opportunity for personal expression. Clothes can represent our taste and individuality - but that isn't easy when someone else is wearing the same thing.

Art isn't always practical. It is meant for aesthetic enjoyment, often expressed as art "for its own sake." And while only a few fortunate souls are able to create objects of enduring beauty, most of us have some corner of our souls that yearn for it.

What is it that enables some men and women to create truly great works of art? Most artists want to receive market value for their work, but few are motivated by money. In Human Accomplishment, Charles Murray puts forward the idea that the greatest art was historically created against a backdrop of "transcendental goods" - a belief that real beauty exists, there is objective truth, and the good is a value independent of human culture.

He notes that when the great Gothic cathedrals of Europe were built, many of the gargoyles and other ornaments were carved high on cathedral walls and behind cornices. Why would stonemasons hide their work in places where they could not be seen? Because they believed they were carving for the eye of God.

This notion clearly inspired many of history's greatest artists. Leonardo da Vinci painted to the greater glory of God. Michelangelo's devotion is well displayed on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. French author Andre Gide once said, "Art is collaboration between God and the artist, and the less the artist does the better."

A true masterwork doesn't just relate to its time or our time but all time. It's this level of virtuosity that makes you stop and say, "I can't believe another human being did that."

Most of us enjoy being bowled over. In The Art Instinct, Denis Dutton writes that, "Standing before a masterpiece you are in the presence of a power that exceeds anything you can imagine for yourself, something greater than you ever can or will be. The rapture masterpieces offer is literally ecstatic - taking you out of yourself."

That feeling clearly affected the woman I saw standing before "The Kiss" last week. Her encounter was a life-enhancing moment, perhaps even a spiritual one.

How fortunate artists are to possess these talents, to create objects of beauty and meaning, to have the power to move us, to make us feel what that young woman felt.

They make all our lives richer.

 

 

ART THERAPY AND HAPPINESS

ART AND THERAPY

Art and Happiness - by Cathy Malchiodi, PhD, LPCC, LPAT in Arts and Health.

Can drawing, doodling, and painting lead to true happiness?

I am going on the road in the coming weeks to talk about art therapy and its interface with trauma recovery, mindfulness practices and resilience-building. In particular, audiences want to know, "Does the creative process of art making make us happier?" The connection between artistic creativity and happiness is a slippery topic at best. After all, what about all those less-than-happy ending stories about artists with depression or other emotional challenges? Doesn't art come from emotional pain? But there is a growing body of research that underscores the contrary, that art has a powerful effect on us in positive ways.

The connection between the creative process of art making and personal happiness is by no means a new idea. Back in 1996 Psychology Today published an article, "Capturing Creativity," by Robert Epstein who enthusiastically extolled the joys of artistic creativity, among other experiences. Epstein noted, "...greater creativity breeds greater happiness. The creative process is itself a source of joy for most people. And with new creative powers we're also better able to solve the little problems that beset us daily." And the more recent research of Semir Zeki, University of London, connects the mere viewing of art with an increase in dopamine and activity in the brain's frontal cortex, resulting in feelings of pleasure that are similar to being the throws of romantic love. What's more, positive sensations are almost immediate when viewing an enjoyable or stirring work of art.  

What I continue to find exciting are several aspects of art making that are much more commonplace and are pretty much available to all individuals. In a post in 2008 I explained the "effort-driven reward system" and its relationship to handwork and crafts. Repetitive satisfying art making may actually mediate depression and anxiety by stimulating the "accumbens-striatial-cortical" connection in the brain. It is perhaps connected to what psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi named "flow," an experience of complete concentration and absorption. Because flow is close to other mindfulness practices such as meditation and yoga, it may offer many of the same positive, attention-focused benefits through deep engagement in an art process.

The concept of flow points to two happiness factors that have enhanced human life for thousands of years via the arts. One is the capacity to find joy in creativity through the pleasure of invention and exploration. This capacity is based in evolutionary biology to ensure survival of individuals and communities through innovation. The other is the ability to get pleasure and relaxation from creating useful, yet aesthetic objects; this is a form of rejuvenation that is not only practical, but also health-enhancing.

Finally, I have had the fortunate opportunity to hear what clients of all ages consistently say during art therapy sessions about the intersection of art and happiness. Even when expressing what are obviously painful experiences and memories through art, people invariably report that art making is a source of joy for them despite what their art communicates. They report that they find comfort in art's ability to take them outside their personal struggles and refocus their attention to positive sensations of exploration, relaxation and stimulating challenges. There also is pride in mastery of new skills and in discovery of previously unrealized abilities. But most of all, there is "client consensus" that art making holds the possibility to transform that which is painful into something eventually positive. To me, that is the ultimate testimony that art and happiness are inevitably intertwined.

Published on September 27, 2011 by Cathy Malchiodi, PhD, LPCC, LPAT in Arts and Health

©2011 Cathy Malchiodi

THE ROOTS OF JEAULOSY - OSHO



ROOTS OF JEALOUSY - OSHO

Question:

	My partner acts jealous and it feels as if he makes me more important than I am. ANSWER
		“Not jealous – I think he feels that he is inferior. You are using the wrong word. He thinks that you are a goddess and he is worthless. Is that what it is? (she nods) Then it is not jealousy! “That too is a way of manipulating people – to make them very important. That’s a kind of strategy, a very parasitical trip. When you make somebody very high, you have power over the person because it is in your power now to keep him high or throw him down. If anybody – for example, [your partner] – puts you very high on a pedestal, you think he is making you powerful. But he is also becoming powerful, because only he can keep you on that pedestal, nobody else. And he knows that – that you will have to depend on him otherwise you will not be on the pedestal; you will be an ordinary woman. He has made a goddess of you! So it is a very, very subtle strategy to keep control over you. “By being dependent on you, he makes you dependent on him. And you enjoy the trip – that he is making you so high. When you enjoy the trip, you have to fulfill a few conditions. This is the trick; this is very ancient. [He] has not invented it; it is very ancient. “Man has always put woman on a pedestal so that she cannot come down. Man has either worshipped woman or condemned her. Either she is a worm crawling on the earth or she is a goddess, but he never makes her equal to himself; that is dangerous. Both are okay – either she is very high in the sky, untouchable, or she is very low, again untouchable, but she is never equal. When a woman is very low she can be repressed, punished for anything that the man feels is wrong. Or she is a goddess; then she can be thrown from the pedestal – that too is a kind of punishment. “But woman needs to be equal to man – neither low nor high – and for that man is not ready, because to make the other equal means you cannot control her any more. You cannot control an equal. Low and high can both be controlled but the equal person is free; the equal is equal. “So get down from the pedestal. Just tell him that you are a human being, not a goddess. Now what are you doing? – you must be pretending to be a goddess, so you are cooperating with him. Don’t cooperate! You simply tell him, ‘I am an ordinary woman as you are an ordinary man. I don’t want to be worshipped like a goddess. I have all kinds of desires as any woman will have. I am just plain ordinary.’ Get down from the pedestal rather than him throwing you; simply get down. You will feel good and you will unburden him also. “If he cannot love you, then he will find some other woman whom he can put on a pedestal and worship. He may be in need of a mother and not in need of a beloved; then that is his business. But you get down from the pedestal. Never allow anybody to put you on high, otherwise he will manipulate you. He will say, ‘I have made you so high – now you have to follow me. Don’t do this; that doesn’t suit you. Don’t do that; that is below you. Keep your status.’ “So you enjoy the status but then you feel petrified. You would like to be an alive human being. So you are trying to do two contradictory things. If you want to be a fully warm-blooded woman, a real woman, then get down from the pedestal. All pedestals are a kind of disease I call ‘pedestalitis’. “Get down and tell him that you are not going to become a goddess. Be natural and true and whatsoever happens has to be accepted. If he leaves you, that’s his business. If he remains with you, you will be more free; he will be more free. And this will be helping him too...because he is also wrong. He will never be happy. First you put a woman on a pedestal; then you cannot make love to her. How can you make love to a goddess? – it looks ugly. You cannot make love to your mother and you have put her up as a mother, a mother superior. Then you cannot make love to her, or even if you do, you feel guilt. He will not be happy, because he will continuously suffer from inferiority; he has made you superior. “Tell him ‘I am just an ordinary woman. I don’t want any other respect.’ That is the greatest respect we can pay to each other as human beings! That will help.”