Prophesy

"I chose nothing. I was born and this is what I am."

More and more people these days are making the claim, "I was born a
Witch." Which is a romantic idea left open for debate just as any
other. It is one of those things that is impossible to prove outside
of ones own head. Same holds true for the ancient souls/past lives
idea. Mysterious thoughts for a mysterious faith. Generalizations
made to explain what cannot be explained in our lives. No one really
wants to leave it open to mystery. It has to have a name or we are
not comfortable with it.

If someone was born a Witch or is the incarnation of some ancient
soul then is the idea of destiny outside of the realm of life as a
Witch or is it something that comes with the reincarnation package?
Could we prophesy our next life by mapping out our former ones?

Some people spend a lot of time in meditation or, sadly enough, a lot
of money trying to figure out exactly who they were "before" to help
give them some sort of insight into who they are now, who they might
become, or what they are capable of. And you will find some that will
swear to their ancient soul with a passion that rivals just about any
other argument. Witches tend to like the idea of spiritual age while
your average person dreads their next birthday. You see the same
factor come up about the time some young pup outshines a self-
appointed elder in the Craft.

Exactly who the hell do these youngsters think they are, being so
smart at such young ages?! Where do they get the knowledge that seems
to be beyond life experience? Could they be old souls as well,
somehow able to retain and recall a spiritual imprinting and
knowledge of life in ancient times that others cannot even relate to?
It seems the idea gives them an advantage when it comes to debating
all things Pagan. These are the ones who don't often lose a
philosophical or even metaphysical argument. Not out of study but out
of a kind of instinct. A voice inside that tells them what to say and
when to say it. An echo from the past that brings new light to the
future.

And odd thing is that we can claim to be anyone in history reborn. We
can pick the time, place, lifestyle, and past life that we want and
who can argue it beyond contest? If I choose to claim myself as a
legend or figure in mythology reborn all I have to do to back the
claim is tell people "I remember it". And as in anything some will
support the idea and some will laugh at it.

But if souls are reborn time and time again is it so unlikely that a
mythological figure would be walking around somewhere today? Not
really. It is possible that some of us are in fact those same souls
who were once known, and are still known thousands of years later for
our deeds in a past life that were recorded into the history of
mankind.

Some wondering soul out there might just be the reincarnation of the
world's very first "Witch". The first human to ever develop the idea
of "spirituality". The discoverer of the human soul. That one person
who was once walking along with their tribe when they witnessed an
eclipse of the sun. And when that one heavenly body that was always
there to depend on no matter where the tribe went to was covered, it
had to have a huge impact on the minds and hearts of those who saw it
and cowed in great fear. But as one of the tribe members screamed to
the sky the shadow lifted. Good timing, huh? And the one who called
to the heavens and brought back the sun now has great powers over
nature. At least in the eyes of the rest of the tribe.

Scream at the sky and the sky answers. Thus Gods, magic, and
spirituality are born. Developed out of some chance and the idea that
there is just no other explanation. If we saw it happen it had to be
real. Just like television! They would not have it on TV if it wasn't
real, by the Gods. Just ask the next "Charmed Witch" who comes along.

A couple of years ago there was even a Wiccan who appeared on
national news to advertise a new book on how modern-day Witches could
invoke "Buffy" for aid. Proving once again that in the realm of
modern Witchcraft there are no boundaries.

As influential as I am I can't decide who I was in any past life. I
know what my natural attributes are and those details of my being
could be applied to many figures, times, or places. I never spent too
much time asking myself about my soul past. I have however had a few
people who wanted to guess at it. Some even claimed to have known me
way back when but they always fail to give me some insight on who I
was in the world or in their lives. I don't seem to have developed
the notion of extreme hindsight yet. I have this really bad habit of
looking forward and not back.

If I was to write a prophesy today that I will be reincarnated 500
years from now would some wondering soul in that time claim to be me?
I wonder how they could prove it to the world.

If I was to create a time capsule that held a book of shadows, a
story of gods, monsters, great deeds of our world, and locked it away
for some future generation to uncover, would it be something that
would add to their history books? If my name and my gods were carved
in stone just as was done in ancient times, be it fact or fiction,
how would the discoverer interpret what had been written?

Look at how we have interpreted the same things from ancient
cultures. The ancients knew that it must be written in order to be
remembered. The gods, culture, and stories of the ancient world were
immortalized in stone or on parchment and that is why they are still
around today. Many ancient cultures were obsessed with the afterlife
and reincarnation. But King Tut is still King Tut. I don't think he
was reborn as Harry down the street. Or at least I couldn't convince
Harry that he was once King Tut.

I could, however, convince myself that I was King Tut. And I could go
out into the world and swear to it. Who could argue really? I could
probably even get a group of people who would swear to the Gods that
I am the one true incarnation of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. People
will believe anything if you spin it just right.

I don't think I am King Tut incarnate. I really don't think I have
the attributes of Buffy either. I think that just being me is enough
for the world to try and handle as it is.

My primary reference to my identity is a rather good one in my
opinion. I ask my two-year-old daughter who I am and she
says "Dadda". Now there is an incontestable and unbiased truth. You
just try and tell her different.



Copyright: Snowden-2005