Firing Intention

AziMuth

The most valuable unpublished work I’ve ever come across was a short essay by the poet Charles Olson titled “Notes on Reading Frobenius.”  I was honored to receive permission to publish it about eight years ago in a small literary zine I had created, also titled AziMuth.  It was an honor because the accomplishment of the publication relied on the insights within the essay.  The whole premise using the analogy of an African hunting ritual: “To put one in shape for action.”

One draws a ‘picture’ on a bare spot on the ground, 4 palms size.  Just as the sun rises you fire an arrow into the picture.  After you have then duplicated the success in the hunt you come back and put hairs of the animal [you took away some grass or tuft to make the spot bare] and some of its blood onto the drawing.  Having done this as carefully as you did the preparation you then rub it all away.  And then you are free to go eat the animal or anything else, to go about your business until another time when you may, and there isn’t any question that you will, have to do like again in order to do anything as meaningful at all.

There is one catch that Olson makes clear: the importance of not explaining what you are doing. He continues,

“There isn’t but this one way, and with each of its exact steps included [and taken, including not mentioning that that is what you are doing.  That is you can say anything which is itself part of doing whatever is sought to be done, but above all & never dare you let that become a knowledge other than its own written evidence, itself as an ability.  Or you loose then…”

The danger of talking ‘about’ for any ‘action’: it is how energy gets diverted, siphoned away, depleted.  To talk about is to talk around; action, the firing of energy, the release of self into the intended image.  Much of the ritual in our lives is directed toward collective spiritual ends, far removed from individual action.  Does this serve us?

(image cc via Wikipedia)