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Dancing in the Cosmos
A Parable of Transcendence
by Lonnie C. Crowe 2011
Act One
The Beginning
Scene One
The chorus is in place. On opening, the members of both Chorus One and Chorus Two speak together. Truth Seeker can be lying either on a bench or on the floor.
ALL: The sun awakened the heavens in a brilliance of cloud-reflected splendor. Truth Seeker’s heart stirred with the shimmering golds of the new day, stirred with the freshness of life, stirred with a strange desire to move forward. Shaking the sleepiness from her being, she felt a bit surprised and bewildered at her heart’s longing. She stretched her unawakened limbs into action. The heart sensation stretched as well, What was happening? Then she remembered the dream, the night vision, that she sensed had come from the throne of Eternal Hope.
TRUTH SEEKER: Purple-tinged cumulus rose above the mountains, rose higher and higher and send forth golden beams that kissed the mountain tops beneath. Some reached upward into the gold, some watched, fascinated. Some were fearful that moving toward the beams might bring evil, and others were simply uninterested.
CHORUS ONE: Now in the early dawn and her heart sensation throbbing within her, Truth Seeker yearned to know and yet was frightened by the possibility of coming revelation. Quaking in her ambivalence, she knelt and turned her eyes upward to beseech Eternal Hope for wisdom and understanding.
TRUTH SEEKER: Eternal Hope, our Creator, our Joy, our Life-giver, You have sent to me a night vision, a cloud that rises above and, yet, blesses all that is beneath. What revelation is to come forth? Where do I stand—on the mountain tops reaching upward? Does a fear arise within me that I am not aware of? Where is my place? I am stirred forward, but am unsure of the path.
CHORUS ONE: She waited in supplication. As she waited, her heart sensation stirred and throbbed almost violently inside her. Then it seemed the sensation exploded, erupted within her, and poured forth in a dazzling wildfire that overwhelmed and still, somehow, calmed and comforted.
Then, from the depths of the wildfire, Eternal Hope spoke to Truth Seeker, spirit to spirit, heart to heart:
ETERNAL HOPE; Arise, My beloved.
Arise, My child.
Spring to the heights with Me.
Soar in My liberty.
Ascend to My dreams.
Come out of your valleys,
Beyond the mountain tops.
Seek for the stars.
Reach for the cosmos.
Dance in the glory of now.
Dance in the promise of tomorrow.
Though ravaged by time
And the machinations of man,
The foundations born of fire
Still stand.
Build on the past.
Walk in the present
And aspire the eternal.
Come, My child,
Come, dance in the stars with Me;
Then even those who refuse to dance will be blessed.
Even those who are afraid to reach, those who do not respond
And those who slumber will be blessed.
Deny the call,
And none will be touched with this truth.
TRUTH SEEKER: (Whispering) I don’t know the way. I want to dance with You, Eternal Hope, but I don’t know the way,
ETERNAL HOPE: (Gently) I am your way. Prepare yourself for the journey.
ALL: Truth Seeker arouse, donned her woven cloak and girded it about her. She tightened her breastplate in place, slipped on her sandals, covered her head and picked up her sword and shield. The sun was fully over the horizon when she opened the door and stepped into the morning.
COMMENTATOR ONE: Was trepidation upon her?
COMMENTATOR TWO: Yes.
COMMENTATOR ONE: Did it overwhelm her?
COMMENTATOR TWO: No. It did not.
CHORUS ONE: In spite of her anxiety, a sense of peace pervaded as she set foot on the path that she could not sense with the eye but saw so clearly before her in the spirit.
COMMENTATOR ONE: Was the path smooth and easily followed?
COMMENTATOR TWO: No.
COMMENTATOR ONE: Was it too difficult for her?
COMMENTATOR TWO: Not really.
COMMENTATOR ONE: Did she sometimes consider turning back?
COMMENTATOR TWO: Yes. But the sensation in her heart propelled her forward.
CHORUS TWO: Though the dust of the road stung her eyes and smudged her cheeks, she trudged onward with no milestones or road signs to direct her journey. She walked onward compelled by the heart sensation throbbing within. She walked throughout the morning hours with no pause and no thought except fulling the vision.
(Joy enters carrying a basket and sits)
CHORUS ONE: Then, as the sun passed the zenith of its orbit, a gurgling sound caught the ear of Truth Seeker. The gurgling had come from a copse of cedar to her right. She gingerly inched forward to investigate. She couldn’t believe what was before her. Sitting in the midst of the trees, a small child happily gurgled and patted her plump hands together.
TRUTH SEEKER: (Laughing) Child, why are you here alone sheltered in the cedars?
(The child gurgles as Truth Seeker holds her close with one arm and with the other, finds a handwritten scroll sealed with a strange signet featuring what appeared to be a bud that blossomed into a flower with a sword above.)
Eternal Hope, is this from You? What does the signet mean? What am I to do with the child?”
ETERNAL HOPE: Open the scroll.
TRUTH SEEKER: (Unrolls the scroll and reads.)
“Blessings on you, reader of the scroll,
If you are willing to accept childlike Joy,
Accept her and
Nurture her,
She will grow, mature, blossom
And become a mighty weapon at your right hand.”
CHORUS ONE: Truth Seeker was puzzled, but in her spirit she knew that the scroll spoke a prophetic word from the heart of Eternal Hope. She carefully rerolled the scroll and placed it once more in the basket.
In the basket Truth Seeker found also bread and a flagon of water. She fed Joy and herself. Refreshed by the meal and an interlude of rest, Truth Seeker arose, picked up the basket, took the hand of Joy and together the two walked again the path seen only through the eyes of the heart.
COMMENTATOR ONE: Will their journey be without struggle and discomfort?
COMMENTATOR TWO: Not likely.
Scene Two
The Covenant
ALL: As the sun dipped beneath the horizon, Truth Seeker carried Joy into a cave near the path. She had not seen it until a beam of sunset had flashed across the entrance. It drew the two into shelter and rest. Rushes strewn over the floor made them a welcoming bed. The two ate the rest of the bread and finished the flagon of water. Truth Seeker carefully unrolled the scroll and read it once more before she and Joy dropped wearily into slumber.
CHORUS ONE: As the stars danced in the heavens, Eternal Hope once more sent a night vision into the heart of Truth Seeker. (Eternal Hope enters)
She saw herself dressed in white and standing under the hoopah.
ETERNAL HOPE: (gently) If you accept My kiss, it is forever.
CHORUS ONE: As she stirred, the sensation in her heart once more throbbed. She knew Eternal Hope had spoken of the kiss of covenant. But why would He speak the covenant sealing words to one such as herself? Certainly, she was not worthy to be dressed in white and stand under the hoopah with one such as Eternal Hope. Truth Seeker sighed deeply. Weary, confused and uncertain, she touched the cheek of Joy and slipped once more into the arms of slumber.
ETERNAL HOPE: (tenderly) If you accept My kiss, it is for eternity.
CHORUS ONE: Truth Seeker saw herself again standing quietly under the hoopah and waiting. She did not know for what she was waiting. Her heart sensation seemed ready to burst.
ETERNAL HOPE: If you accept My kiss, it is forever.
CHORUS ONE: Truth Seeker stood and turned in the direction of the voice. She raised her chin and felt the kiss, firm and sure, upon her lips. Waves of love, strength and power flowed over and through her. She swayed, and as she seemed to have lost her footing, Eternal Hope embraced her and lay her gently upon the rushes. (Eternal Hope exits.)
ALL: Morning Star peered into the cave as Truth Seeker awoke from the vision-trance. Never had she felt so rested. She sat up, clasped her arms about her knees, drank in the early morning dew and fixed her eye upon Morning Star. Something shiny appeared before her. It was small and round and seemed to have come from the Star. Truth Seeker reached out and found in her hand a silver engraved ring. She turned it in her fingers and read:
TRUTH SEEKER: I am my Beloved’s, and He is mine.
ETERNAL HOPE: (offstage) (stage whisper) Put it on, My beloved.”
TRUTH SEEKER: But, I am not worthy.
ETERNAL HOPE: I have made you worthy. Your worthiness is in Me.
CHORUS ONE: Trembling, Truth Seeker placed the ring on her finger and knew that she was forever one with Eternal Hope.
ETERNAL HOPE: What is Mine is yours, and what is yours is Mine.
CHORUS TWO: Though still throbbing, her heart sensation became something that could forever be a part of her and, yet, never overwhelm her. It was the beating of her heart in time with the heart beat of the Eternal One. She knew in her spirit that to walk in sync with Eternal Hope’s heart would bring her through the morasses and miseries of life, bring her through in strength and victory. She also knew in her spirit that to walk away from that heart beat would weaken, confuse and lure her into a quagmire of death and despair.
CHORUS ONE: Truth Seeker came fully awake to the chirping of birds and the scuttling of early morning creatures beginning their daily forage. She smiled, bemused, at the silver ring on her finger. She now knew with certainty that a vision from the Eternal One was more than a dreaming, a suggesting or an imagining. A vision from the Eternal One was a reality.
ALL: Truth Seeker brushed back the rushes covering Joy only to see that during their slumber, Joy had blossomed into the full bloom of maidenhood. Her cheeks flushed with the vitality of youth. She smiled at Truth Seeker.
JOY: Good morning, Sister. Are we ready to move on?” (She arises, and the two leave the shelter of the cave and dance stylistically Down Stage.)
CHORUS TWO: The morning sparkled with dew drops. Though they were hungry and thirsty, the two stepped forward onto that path that their hearts easily followed.
(Commentators move a table and two chairs to Center Stage. They place a flask, a blue robe and a white robe on a rock down left of the table.)
Around a curve, they came upon a table sheltered in a grove of date palms and spread in abundance. They cleansed themselves in the nearby stream. As they stood up from the water, luxurious silken garments unfolded before them. Truth Seeker donned the blue one, and Joy, the white. (Joy’s robe is a hooded cloak.) They anointed themselves from a flask of perfumed oil sitting near where they had found the garments. Soon the air was redolent with spikenard and myrrh. The fragrant oil of the olive soothed their spirits as it smoothed their skin. Comforted and restored, the two then sat down to feast on delicacies worthy only of those who belong to the King: barley cakes and breads still warm from an unseen oven, pomegranates, fresh and fragrant, figs and wine infused with honey.
CHORUS ONE: Truth Seeker saw in her spirit the pavilion of Eternal Hope’s love. She knew His love, His protection, His sheltering embrace. She and Joy sat at His banqueting table and His banner of love flowed over and about them. (Naysayer slinks behind the rock and watches Truth Seeker and Joy.)
In their delight, Truth Seeker and Joy were unaware of the baleful eyes watching them from behind the shrubbery. The eyes followed their every move. The eyes were the windows of an angry soul.
Rested and refreshed, Truth Seeker and Joy stuffed their bags with food and wine, picked up their armor and set forth once more. They picked up their armor, but they overlooked the basket with the signet and the scroll. (Truth Seeker and Joy exit.)
COMMENTATOR ONE: Oh, no. They’ve left the basket.
COMMENTATOR TWO: Oh, yes. They’ve left the basket.
CHORUS TWO: From a distance, the ominous eyes watched. Then sheltered by the foliage, the owner of the ominous eyes slipped the basket under his arm and retreated once more to his hiding place.
(Commentators clear the stage.)
Scene Three
CHORUS TWO: The eyes belonged to Nay Sayer, a nervous feline-like creature, strong, yet fearful of all; handsome, but sure that his mirror reflected only ugliness; intelligent, nevertheless convinced that he could do nothing worthwhile. The lies had come from the gods of the cavern who had enslaved him. When he had believed the first lie, he easily accepted the second, and then the others. He believed that all who walked with Eternal Hope were inferior to him. In fact, he believed that all who did not walk with Eternal Hope were inferior as well. He was ensnared by internal conflict. He thought himself to be worthless, yet superior to all others. He felt that he had no value and, yet, that others had even less value. To see Truth Seeker walking in the blessings of her beloved bewildered and enraged him. He skulked in the shadows and hissed his disdain for Truth Seeker and Joy.
NAY SAYER: I see these shes seek and find good things.
I see these shes march steadfastly with hope and toward hope.
I shall see these shes overcome, thwarted and disheartened
I despise these shes.
I read the scroll. I know the secret.
I understand what the silly she does not understand.
I will steal her Joy.
I will steal her Joy and with her Joy will come her blessing.
S-s-s-s-s-s.”
(Truth Seeker and Joy enter. Truth Seeker turns her eyes toward the hissing.
TRUTH SEEKER: It is only the wind rustling the leaves. (She touches Joy’s elbow and guides her forward.
( Fearfully hissing his hatred, Nay Sayer snakes through the shadows,)
NAY SAYER: S-s-s-s-s-s. I despise these shes. I shall destroy the shes. I shall destroy the shes as a she.”
COMMENTATOR ONE: Will Nay Sayer prevent the destiny of Truth Seeker?
COMMENTATOR TWO: Hush, we must wait and learn.
CHORUS TWO: Nay Sayer crept into a cavern on the edge of the grove and hastily built an altar of crumbled rocks topped with dry twigs. He built an altar to the phantoms of darkness that bound and haunted him. He loathed them, yet he could not free himself from them. He relished the rush of power that came with the loathing, the endorphin surge that sprang from his hatred. He had come to worship his bondage and his pain.
He lighted a fire on his makeshift altar and hissed and snarled his prayer into the fetid air of the cavern.
NAY SAYER: You spirits of sickness, pain and despair,
Hear me now.
I know that you, too, hate the shes
And wish to see them tripped up, defeated and destroyed.
Make me as one of them that I may join their ranks
And bring destruction from within.
I despise the shes. S-s-s-s-s”
CHORUS TWO: In a gut wrenching answer to his spiteful prayer, a burning sensation tore through his being. It threw Nay Sayer to the ground and nearly choked him on his own vomit. He felt as if his limbs were being torn asunder. Sweat rushed from his pores as cold chills shivered his being. He writhed in anguish, but he dared not cry out. He did not want to alarm the shes.
Then weak and drained, he lay before the altar and silently petitioned his gods for strength.
After a time, the burning ceased and the pain numbed. Nay Sayer stirred. (Nay Sayer dons a hooded cloak identical to the one Joy wears.) Something was different. His hands were gentle and feminine. He touched long, blonde curls, and smoothed a white skirt that now covered his legs and feet. What had happened? He ran to a shallow pool at the edge of the cavern and peered into it. Amazing. The face of Joy looked back to him. Amazing. Nay Sayer mimed his jubilation.
Nay Sayer dashed back into the cavern and folding his skirts about him, once more knelt before the altar.
NAY SAYER: Spirits of darkness, pain and despair.
Who am I here?
Surely, I am not Joy.
CHORUS ONE: The darkness poured forth an angry laughter that crescendoed into a gasping growl and send forth a gush of malodorous breath that sickened Nay Sayer and caused him to reel.
CHORUS TWO: Assuredly, you are not Joy.
You are Presumption masquerading as Joy.
Joy leads to victory.
Presumption, to destruction.
If you do not destroy Joy,
Presumption will destroy you.
CHORUS ONE: Again the hideous laughter resounded and the stench once more filled the cavern. Then all was silent. Nay Sayer’s rancor and anger sent drops of poison into his inward parts and left its bitterness on his tongue. The acridity invigorated him. He smirked, stood, straightened his garments and stepped toward the grove where Truth Seeker and Joy still rested soundly.
COMMENTATOR ONE: Should we waken Truth Seeker ? Can we save her from the coming disaster?
COMMENTATOR TWO: No, she must choose her own victory..
Scene Four
CHORUS ONE: Truth Seeker awakened to eyes peering deeply into her own. She was startled at the nearness of Joy who had not disturbed her slumber until this time. She felt an uneasy twinge in her spirit, but dismissed it as Joy pulled her to her feet.
NAY SAYER: (masquerading as Joy) Come, Truth Seeker, let us quickly commence our journey. I sense an uneasiness in this place, an urgency to move forward.
TRUTH SEEKER: Eternal Hope did not speak to me in any sleep visions as I rested. We must wait until He speaks. Perhaps He desires that we take a respite from our journey.
NAY SAYER: Oh, Truth Seeker, one cannot always expect a message from Eternal Hope. We can presume that if we keep following the path we are on, we will be on the right path. Come quickly.
CHORUS TWO: Thus, Joy urged Truth Seeker to move apace into the morning mists even before the sun had come over the horizon.
Travel become increasingly difficult in the half light of dawn. Nocturnal creatures shrieked their consternation as their last attempt at hunting had been disturbed. Twigs lashed sharply across the faces of the travelers. Truth Seeker’s eyes burned. Her limbs were unnaturally weary, and hunger stalked her.
TRUTH SEEKER: Wait, a moment. This does not seem to be the right path. This path tunnels through the foliage. Darkness is everywhere even though the sun shines.
Why would Eternal Hope take us on such a journey? I fear we have lost the path of Eternal Hope. We should have waited for a vision or a word.
NAY SAYER: Perhaps, Eternal Hope is not just the source of good, but the source of evil as well. Do not presume that His heart is always good toward you.”
CHORUS TWO: A strange, glimmer shown from the eyes of Joy as she spoke. It seemed to Truth Seeker to be the glimmer of blindness. She had seen that same blindness in the eyes of those who had been beguiled by the deception of worldly values and philosophies.
Yet, Truth Seeker’s soul reasoned.
TRUTH SEEKER: Eternal Hope is all powerful. Therefore, He must control all, even evil. Eternal Hope is omniscient. Therefore, He must know what is happening here. Eternal Hope is omnipresent. Therefore, He must be here. (frantically) Eternal Hope, what is happening? Why haven’t I heard Your voice?
CHORUS ONE: Truth Seeker, for the first time since she had commenced her journey felt fear rising within her. With fear, came anger. Her weariness and hunger nurtured that fear and that anger. She burst into tears.
TRUTH SEEKER: Eternal Hope, where are You? Why have You abandoned us? We are weary. We are hungry. You have provided for us before. Where is the provision we crave at this moment?” She fell to the ground, sobbing in her fear, her weariness, her hunger and her loneliness.
CHORUS ONE: The one assuming the guise of Joy gloated and chuckled inwardly. Eternal Hope seemed strangely silent.
COMMENTATOR ONE: If we cannot cry out, and Eternal Hope is silent, will Truth Seeker face certain doom?
COMMENTATOR TWO: Her salvation lies within herself for what is His, is hers.
CHORUS TWO: Weary, hungry, discouraged, Truth Seeker wept until she fell sobbing into a troubled sleep. (Truth Seeker LIES down) The guise of Joy watched.(Nay Sayer watches from Stage Right) The guise of Joy hoped. The guise of Joy presumed that Eternal Hope either would not or could not come to Truth Seeker when she was so far from the path. The guise of Joy attempted a chortle to dispel the sinking in his spirit that told him he might be mistaken.
CHORUS ONE: In her sleep, the soul of Truth Seeker quieted allowing her spirit to awaken, to become vigilant. It was to that vigilance that Eternal Hope whispered.
ETERNAL HOPE: (off stage) My beloved, you had ventured in triumph on the path. Listening to an errant voice has hindered your truth seeking. You have listened to the voice of the Nay Sayer. You have listened to the voice of one who seeks only your defeat.
My child, walk in My Spirit. Return to the path where you last sensed My Presence.
You are not out of the sphere of My Love,
Find again My Joy, My peace,
My strength to lead you forward.
Never doubt My kindness, My goodness, My faithfulness.
Fear not. Arise and return to Joy.
CHORUS ONE: Truth Seeker felt His gentle kiss upon her lips. She awakened to the sun rising. Her hunger remained, but she was rested and strong. The last words of Eternal Hope burned within her, “”Fear not. Arise and return to Joy.”
She saw the one pretending to be Joy lying close by. “Eternal Hope, see, my Joy is nearby.“
”My Dearest, do not presume. “
Truth Seeker watched as her traveling companion eyed her in the new light of dawn. Truth Seeker saw the eyes shining in their hatred of her. She saw the beguiled blindness in the one assuming the guise of Joy. She yielded to the vigilance of her spirit and bolted.
The guise of Joy was so startled at Truth Seeker’s sudden action that he could not follow immediately. She was well down the path before he tore after her. (He exits and returns wearing his original robe.) In his flight, his guise disappeared leaving him stripped and weak. He howled at the capriciousness of his gods. Just when he most needed their assistance, they withheld their favor.
Nay Sayer: “I despise this she. S-s-s-s-s-s.
ALL: His loathing, and only his loathing, goaded him onward.
COMMENTATOR ONE: Does Eternal Hope loath?
COMMENTATOR TWO: Only that which is loathsome. Even then, He loathes the loathing, but not the loather.
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