Why "Mazeppa"?

In an unjustifiably obscure essay ("the Risen Lord"), D. H. Lawrence argued that the great religious symbols "are only images of our own experiences, of our own state of mind and soul." Tolstoy made a similar observation in his "The Law of Love and The Law of Violence." There, Tolstoy lamented the "evils" which result from a "lack of religious conception corresponding to our epoch." These evils would "disappear," he wrote, "after the adoption of a religious principle that would correspond to our epoch." Lawrence argued that the "Great War" smashed the religious images that had helped Europeans make sense of their lives. He claimed that the image of the "Risen Lord" was the symbol for the future. But not a "Lord" risen to a life of ethereal, supernatural existence but, rather, one risen to a life lived "full in the flesh." Lawrence went on to detail exactly what he meant by this notion of a full life in the flesh--in a way that could not help but scandalize many (if not most) of those who consider themselves Christians. But those of us who recognize the Zarathustran provenance of the notion of resurrection that is shared by Christians, Muslims, and Jews discern within it the palimpsest of the Iranian prophet's celebration of life in the body. This is the lost dogma of Irano-Semitic prophecy--or, rather, the doctrine hidden by the bureaucratic routinizers (Weber) of religion who are always everywhere engaged in supressing the liberating message of the prophets. Those who truly believe in resurrection, hear the call to "Rise up!"

For me, the figure of Mazeppa is a religious symbol that corresponds to our epoch: a youth who runs afoul of the prerogatives of wealth, age, and power, Mazeppa is punished by being stripped of his possessions--even the clothes on his back--and strapped to a runaway steed and sent into the wilderness to be devoured by wolves. This is his "crucifixion"--only he does not die. He survives because the horse finally tires of its flight and wanders into a "Tartar" village where Mazeppa is found, cut free, dressed, fed, and nursed back to health by the villagers who eventually make him headman of their tribe. He is like Rumi's little lame goat who appears to be the "runt of the litter," only to surprise the observer by emerging as leader of the flock.

Lord Byron saw the Romantic potential of the Mazeppa figure and wrote a somewhat operatic poem about it. Since Byron, a Mazeppist is someone who is suspect, subversive of the status quo. He lives, "dies," and rises--not to ascend to an ethereal realm but to struggle yet another day.

Ghaffar Khan Society

Lately, I have been devoting what blogging time I have to the Ghaffar Khan Society blog. You are cordially invited to peruse its contents. I will return to the Mazeppist from time to time. Sincerely, Mazeppa

Vernet's Mazeppa aux Loups (1826)

Elvis Perkins

I saw Elvis Perkins in Dearland perform last night. That's his real name, by the way. Their debut disc is "Ash Wednesday" and I listen to it every chance I get. Really mature, intelligent, Dylanesque folk/rock/pop with little Beatles-like twists.

There were only about 15 people at the gig--in a smoke-choked dive that my wife, incidentally, played with a travelling minstrel show back in the early 1990's. Elvis's father was the actor Anthony Perkins (who played Norman Bates in Hitchcock's "Psycho" and died of AIDS in 1999). His mother, Berry Berenson, was an actress turned photographer who had the misfortune of taking an American Airlines flight out of Boston on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001. "Ash Wednesday" reflects Elvis' meditations on loss and love that his personal brush with two of the great tragedies of the last quarter century have inspired. There are also touches of the peculiar circus or carny sensibility that must come with a New York to L. A. and back lifestyle. But, through it all, he seems to have emerged a poet. He has a wonderfully resonant voice and a kind of Robbie Robertson persona--charismatic but not concerned about the limelight. His guitar and harmonica playing are distinctive and accomplished. He is the real thing.

We Begin By Renouncing Violence

The latest issue of FOR's magazine concerns the efforts of those who are dedicated to finding ways to disestablish the MIC. Go there and check out the link to the map entitled "Global Expansion of U. S. Military Involvement." Study that map and then tell me, with a straight face, that we are not facing a huge problem. The Neo-Fascistic MIC has turned this country into an armed encampment and is enagaged in spreading its tentacles throughout the world. Who can blame the Chinese for increasing their military spending? The arms race is our doing and it is ours to undo.

Here Were Our Hopes

More of the Genius of Tom Tomorrow

What could I add to this?

Theatre of the Corrupt

I will admit that it is difficult to repress a smirk at the news of Scooter-boy's conviction on 4/5 counts, but it is a hollow victory. The real culprits, Karl Rove and Dick Cheney, remain outside the law's "long arm" and, truth be told, so does Scooter. Recall the fate of Elliot Abrams, indicted in the Iran-Contra affair for giving false testimony to Congress while Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs under President George H. W. Bush. Abrams copped a plea and was later pardoned by ol' Poppy. He is, today, Deputy National Security advisor under usurping President George W. Bush. We are not witnessing the wheels of Justice turn; it is only the latest scene in the Theatre of the Corrupt. Democrats will be popping corks and high-fiving, but that is just more self-delusion. The moral rot that has infested our government is non-partisan. The enemies among us, the MIC and the House of Bush and its allies, continue blithely on their way, reaping huge profits and remaining outside the reach of legal process.

Why We Fight

This film should be required viewing for every American. We must take our country back from the MIC that has seized the reins of power. We must dismantle the American war machine by any means possible. Our nation has been hijacked by those who tell us, mafiosa-like, that they are protecting us; like any other crime syndicate, the U.S. military and its corporate and political allies collude in the form of a "protection racket." It is perhaps the oldest form of criminal coercion in the world.

I am reminded of the remarks a Moroccan friend made to me when we were discussing the history of his country. When we got to the period of the French "Protectorate," a mischievous smile stole across his face. He sighed. "Yes, the French told us they were coming to protect us; who they were coming to protect us from, I don't know...The only people we needed protection from were the French."

The only people WE need protection from are in the Pentagon. We pay these people billions of dollars each month to go around the world making enemies to threaten us so that we will turn to them for protection. It is a scam, my friends. A simple scam. USA, Inc. George Bush, President. Jesus Christ, CEO.