Minotauromachy

I smile because the universe has a delicious sense of humor. Several weeks ago, I had a very realistic dream in which I followed a dream guide into a hole in the ground and we traveled superluminally through its many twists and turns. I'm not sure if it was a wormhole or not, but it seemed to possess the same qualities as one.

In its beginning, the guide and I were standing across each other -- the hole was between us -- and he was encouraging me to jump into it and follow him. It took some coaxing and some hesitancy on my part before I leaped into the unknown, feeling, of course, a little like Alice in the process.

I could see him ahead of me in the hole (he had jumped first) and I worried that I wouldn't be able to catch up -- we were moving so quickly. But, I called out to him for his help and he lingered, grabbed my arm and suddenly we were on board a pretty little sailboat in an unknown sea.

Because it was such a powerful and personal dream, I am choosing to withhold much of the detail for now. However, I've been back to visit him on board that little ship two other times and I feel he has become a great teacher.

In my second visit to him, I found myself back at the hole; however, it was now guarded by a minotaur. The minotaur tells me that I should not pass without my guide present, but I tell him that I'm comfortable with the travel and am confident that I can reach my guide without help. He reluctantly allows me to pass but gives me an ominous warning.

***

I've been meaning to write about this encounter and some of my other dreams lately but find that proper time to sit and ponder has been elusive. It has been a rather busy yet exciting week filled with unexpected twists and discoveries. Best of all? Incredible cases of synchronicity and serendipity which have left me giggling and amazed.

The above Picasso sketch is one such example but how I arrived to it is rather serendipitous in its own right. As many of you know, my summer has been one spent falling in love with the writings of Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell (yes, they ARE my literary boyfriends!). I'm trying to read everything both have written and currently I am working my way through Campbell's "The Hero With A Thousand Faces." In it, he describes the creation of the minotaur (pp. 8-11) and the well-worn path of the hero.

"Furthermore, we have not even to risk the adventure alone; for the heroes of all time have gone before us; the labyrinth is thoroughly known; we have only to follow the thread of the hero-path. And where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god; where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves; where we had thought to travel outward, we shall come to the center of our own existence; where we had thought to be alone, we shall be with all the world (p. 18)."

A resulting search for the descriptor "Minotauromachy" led me to the 1935 Picasso etching by the same name. In it, there is a brave young woman who approaches the minotaur without fear. She is a traveler and carries flowers as an offering and a man follows her down into the place where the minotaur lives. There is much about this image which matches my dream.

Still, even I almost missed the small sailboat in the background.

The small sailboat that is to the left of the minotaur's body.

The small sailboat which perfectly matches the one upon which I traveled in my dream.

I could only marvel.

I could only giggle.