Daily Devotional: October 13th

Daily Prayer III

O noble progeny of All-father, Jove, and Being,

Benevolent rulers under his command, foreseeing.

Guide us with justice, in your esteemed reign,

As we follow laws, right and dear, not in vain.

May our obedience align with your noble decree,

Laws divinely crafted for humanity to see.

O gods, illuminate our path with celestial light,

Straighten our minds, fashioned in nature's delight.

Grant us the harmony of well-ordered living,

As we celebrate great Jove, eternally giving.

In reverence, we seek your guiding grace,

O divine offspring, in this mortal space.

Daily Meditation

"Jove is the first and last, high thundering king,

Middle and head, from Jove all beings spring.”

—Orpheus

Orphic Rhapsody to Jove

Jove is the supreme being in the cosmos. He is the first and the last, the alpha and the omega. All beings are from Jove as he is being itself and intellect itself. He contains the law of the cosmos, and all things bow to him. He is the paradigm of all beings and the father of all.

Monthly Ascesis: Breath and the Pneuma

“In the Western classical tradition, the words for spirit and soul - pneuma, psyche, anima, and spiritus hold profound significance. Interestingly, each of these words also carries the meaning of breath or to breathe. This linguistic connection underscores the belief that breath is the essence of life. In the myth of Prometheus, for instance, it was Minerva’s breath that animated the clay figures of man, giving them life.”

The breath is one of our most powerful tools for spiritual practice and is directly linked to our souls. When we speed up our breathing, our mind speeds up. When we slow it down, our mind slows. Controlling our breath is a leap forward for control of the self and our passions.

“Once you have fixed your breath, you can start to focus on it and use it as an instrument to still the mind. With each breath, there will be a slight pause at the top of the breath and a slight pause at the end of each exhalation. To increase stillness, we will let our minds come to rest in the pause following the exhalation. Breathe out and rest in that moment between breaths. When you feel the need to breathe in again, then do so and come back around to the rest point of the next exhalation.”

-Excerpts from, Ascesis: the Handbook of Platonic Practice

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