Only eight weeks in and I found myself struggling for a topic. That's a little worrying, I guess - I think I got further last year before having a hard time. It would bother me more, though, if inspiration hadn't come to me yesterday in a thread on the Cauldron.
Last week I talked about some of the faces of the Dark I've worked with. It's true of pretty much all the Powers that there are multiple archetypes within them that the gods can fall within. I think the differences within Order are the most decisive, but this week I was reminded of a face of the Dark I'd completely overlooked.
Darkness has a great many associations across cultures, and in this thread, Donal was addressing several specific associations - hidden wisdom, water and specifically wells, and so on, and it was like a light bulb went off. Well, maybe a dark bulb, because instead of thinking of Kuan Yin or Xuan Nu, I thought of Mimir.
(I know, I know, you're probably saying "duh" right now. But it's new to me.)
There are some archetypes that just don't reach out to me - Lords of the Ocean in the vein of Manannán or Poseidon, or Lords of the Underworld like Wesir or Hades. Not that Wesir and Hades are the same god by any stretch of the imagination, mind you, but it's like dubstep. All dubstep doesn't sound alike, but none of it does it for me.
Mimir is, of course, a dead god. It's not surprising that the kinds of things he knows would be... different, though he was always considered wise. It's a different kind of wisdom you find in the dark.
I've gone to Mimir before, never for long or anything. Not to ask questions. This is going to sound kind of silly, probably, but when I was doing journeywork in the nine worlds, I thought maybe he might like the company. So sometimes I go by and just sort of... talk to him.
I always think better when I think out loud. I assume that he doesn't mind; he hasn't told me to fuck off or anything yet, anyway. He doesn't say much at all, but it seems to me he's listening. Have you ever had a friend you thought was smarter than you, that when you went to them for advice, all you had to do was ask and you saw the answer for yourself? He's like that.
There are people who sit with Sigyn, keeping her vigil, allowing her to rest. I wonder if there might be something gained from making it a regular practice to sit with Mimir? Not seeking, no - I like my eyes where they are, thanks. But just, you know, keeping the guy company for a bit.