Welcome to the Jungle #002

After navigating the murky depths of paranoia and leaping through various false starts, today's story finds Oba free at the top of the tree. How did this come to be? In simple terms the bear liked to dance Forro and Oba was more of a Techno person herself. So with much love, and a good serving of relief, the two parted ways. They remain the greatest of friends and not a day goes by that Oba does not give thanks for the wisdom and protection of the bear, despite whatever hurt he may have caused with his great weight and dirty dancing days.

Meeting a gaggle here, a pack there, Oba carried on her merry way through the jungle. But the glorious jungle creatures she encountered could be as cruel as they could be kind and the call home became stronger by the day. Although it didn’t show, she was still healing many old wounds and nursing a fair few new ones and was in desperate need of a little time and space for self-care.

It only took a few moments of tending to her wounds for the fire to lick up from her heels to her ankles and tickle at the back of her knees so she struggled on, thinking only on getting home. How this could become a reality proved a complicated situation and she realised she just might not be ready yet. As this realisation settled in and the flames turned up a notch, a merry barn owl began knocking on her window.

So persistent was the owl that Oba was immediately mistrustful. Past experience had taught her that when many things are offered, many things are expected in return and it is not always clear just what is expected.

One day, when all the lights in the jungle had gone out, the owl returned, this time riding on the head of a gentle deer. The deer appeared to be agitated and sat down in front of her. She began to soothe the deer and the deer began to speak with the voice of her brother. He spoke of the jungle creatures and higher forces and told her everything would be just fine.

The next day, as she was meandering through the trees thinking on the meaning of all this and singing to herself of the tides of life, the clouds gathered and crashed open to unleash a great rain. She danced naked in the dry river bed before taking shelter under a hanging rock, whispering to the mighty Xango her love and gratitude. All of a sudden her skin prickled and she lept up onto the rock above her head just as a deluge of water poured into the dry river bed below, thundering down the rock face to fill the lilac cavern. And so it was, the birth of the Jaguar. She gave thanks to the Earth Mother for the gifts of intuition and another day to rumble in the jungle.

And with the special talents of the jaguar available to her she was ready to finally confront the owl. It wasn’t long before they discovered they already shared many loves and many lives and Oba was thrilled to dance again to the beat of her own tribe. The owl imparted a few seeds of knowledge and guided her to a particularly lush part of the jungle, all the way to the top of the highest tree. From here she could watch the rolling tides of life unfold; past, present, future and interplanetary.

The owl did not ask anything in return for his troubles. He claimed it was his mission to pass on his knowledge to those young cats that fit the bill. And Oba, with her fresh jaguar coat, definitely fit the bill. They shared what they could and Oba began her customary cleaning of the space and sorting of the past. Meanwhile the owl set his first assignment; find out with whom you are talking. Before too long she uncovered a long and sticky shared history between them and retreated to the top of the tree to mull it all over.

Episode #1; Twin Souls

Twin souls created in perfect harmony. The sun and the moon, the light and the dark, black and white. Both complete in their own right however each completely reliant on the other in order to exist. The twins, the lovers.

They were given a magnificent gift from the powers that be. And with this gift a magnificent responsibility, as it is so that one cannot exist without the other. As a reward and also for their protection they were placed in a wondrous garden in which all the foods they would need to survive grew naturally and the glories of nature inspired their song day and night. They had only to take care of all life equally.

And in this way the forces of light and dark were constantly equilibrated and the entire world flowed on in harmony. They also danced, the lovers. O how they loved to dance! Sometimes they danced for days and nights without end. And as they danced they felt a certain growth in their abilities and energy levels.

One day, as they were deep in the dance trance, a brilliant serpent adorned with all the colours of the rainbow appeared to them. The serpent spoke to them of their strong and eternal connection to the powers that be and invited them to come along and see for themselves. Yang said let’s go and Yin didn’t say no. So they went along and oh the wondrous knowledge they received!

The secret knowledge; that they had the power within them to transform into gods and pass from their world into another.

And with this knowledge a certain dissatisfaction entered their disposition. You see they had been created to seek perfection in order to carry out their harmonising duties however this new knowledge moved the pinnacle of perfection just beyond reach and they began to neglect their earthly duties in the quest to get a little bit higher.

It wasn’t long before the lush garden grew wild and overgrown. The creatures of the Earth soon realised that the lovers were not fulfilling their duties and came to eat of the fruit of their garden, and the lovers too if they didn’t high tail it out of there.

So the lovers took to the road.

They were completely unprepared for the realities of the world they had let grow wild. They had no knowledge of the practical world. And so it came to be that they began to use their special abilities however they could to survive in the world they had cultivated.

Episode #2; Exile

The days grew long and a cool breeze blew through. Initially the lovers were well received amongst the creatures of the land, on account of their gifts. It wasn’t long, however, before they felt the terrifying power the gifts brought and snarlingly hurried them on their way.

The nights grew long and the breeze blew icy cold as they pushed on in search of a place to call home. Along the way Yin and Yang multiplied and divided and their gifts were separated. Divided and separated it was hard to keep the elements harmonised and with so much focus on their survival, Yin and Yang found little time to dance. And so it was that they forgot they needed each other equally and with so much division and multiplication it became hard to distinguish the truth of the matter.

Yang took the lead as they pushed through the long night and Yin supported him as she too was hungry. Eventually the ice melted away and they found themselves in a lush, cool grove. Delighted they quickly set about making themselves at home. You see amongst those special gifts were teaching and learning and the twins had learned many a thing on their journeys throughout the creatures of the land. Slowly and carefully they began to construct their new garden.

Each had their role and took on the responsibilities needed to maintain their fragile hold on life. You see their new home was nothing like their original home and much work was required in order to survive. Just as the time for celebration arrived the cold winds blew in to remind them of the work to be done and, without time for practice, the pure cultivation of their special skills died away. The harsh conditions also allowed Yang to keep his foot on the pedal and Yin took on the responsibility of care. A cavern quickly opened between them.

As Yang erradicated Yin from his physical form, he demanded that Yin erradicate Yang from her form, so as to maintain the balance. But try as she may it was not possible to eradicate Yang from her being, so he began to use his gifts to align her with his vision. She became very ill and as a result he too became ill, as the two are eternally bound and one cannot be well without the other.

So it was that the sickness festered until it reached the mind and the special gifts were locked away in a desperate effort to rectify the situation. Without their gifts Yang and Yin became lost. Cultivate as they may they were tormented outside and in until one day Yang had enough.

‘I can’t take this anymore’ said Yang. ‘I must take back what is rightfully ours.’

‘Sounds fantastic’ said Yin. ‘Lets go!’

‘Obviously you can’t come along’ said Yang. ‘It’s far too dangerous for your frail form and your responsibility is here caring for my sons.’

So Yin accepted her inherited responsibility and Yang set off to get back their paradise.

Yang’s journeys took him far and wide and he soon found his time in the harsh hinterlands had made him strong and powerful. He also found that there were many glorious lands over the horizon. He remembered how the creatures of the lands had treated him when he was desperate and weak and, without Yin there to remind him of the nature of all things, he thought nothing of removing any creature that got in his way.

Meanwhile, back on the home front, Yin was forced to re-cultivate her personal Yang, since he was no longer with her and the harsh winds made her responsibility grave. Although she was afraid, she maintained her responsibilities with grace and courage.

One day Yang arrived home from a particularly long journey and saw that she had changed, for the veil of deception had been lifted from her eyes. After all his Yang behaviour all he really wanted her to be was Yin. She, however, had received a good dosage of reality and Yang had settled firmly in her breast. Yang was not at all pleased and quickly cut her in half. That way Yin’s Yin and Yin’s Yang would be too busy balancing each other out to be worried about what he was doing. Not to mention the added bonus of having his pick of the Yin Yin or the Yang Yin.

And so it was that the land became rife with unbalance and the earth soon became as ill as it’s cultivators.

Episode #3; The Last Dancers

The time has come to teach your sons to dance and your daughters to wield the sword. For dance they will, the pricks of those swords at their heels as they move together through the flaming crucible of the world they have been left. The world we all have cultivated. The cost of unconditional arrogance can only be squared off with unconditional love. It is the only way for harmony to be restored between all living things.

To Be Continued…

xoxo - @_gitanna