Archive for Thursday 20th June 2002 - The pole at the centre of the world

In the myths and cosmologies of all nations the dominant symbol is the pole of the universe. It is also the pole on which the earth revolves. According to modern thinking, there is no such thing as a world-pole. Yet everything that spins must spin around some fixed axis, so it is natural to imagine the pole as a symbol of, stability. It represents the order of the universe and the hidden laws behind it, which are always and everywhere the same. Around it turns the world of phenomena – our world – where nothing lasts for long and everything is forever shifting and changing.

The pole as a symbol has no definite location. At one time every district and village marked its centre with a stone pillar and called it the centre of the world. And it was said that the world-pole runs through every soul, guiding it by the same laws that govern the universe.

This is an ancient, traditional way of seeing things, and there is much to be said for it. It recognises the two centres within each individual, the greater centre and the lesser. The lesser centre is yourself. You naturally see the world around you from a central position. But if you leave it at that, you remain self-centred, which dooms you to a life of frustration. When at last you discover the greater centre, and realise you are directly linked to the whole universe and the power behind it, security and happiness come within reach.

That is why the ancients liked to have a pole at the centre of everything. It reminded them that behind the apparent chaos of existence there was something hidden that remains true for ever .

John Michell