What does it truly mean to be safe?
Theme: Magicians Reporting for Duty
Week 34: What does it truly mean to be safe?
Beautiful Magicians,
Has this happened to you? A symbol or being or creature or idea arrives on your doorstep, uninvited and unannounced, moves into your house, starts singing in the shower and rearranging the furniture.
And there you are, standing in the middle of your life wondering what just happened. What does this mean? Am I safe?
You have a choice, of course. You can banish the creature, the new understanding, the tantalizing idea, all the fragrant possibilities. That’s the response our patriarchal beliefs and norms expect of us. Remember your training. Obey the rules. Be aware of the dangers. Don’t listen. Cover your ears. Tell that interloper: Begone.
But what if there’s something intriguing about this arrival?
Even though you don’t understand what it all means, and you don’t know what will happen, and you certainly can’t control the outcome, you also realize you are feeling something...new. Something you have not felt before. And you like it. You feel more alive. More aware. And way more curious.
And so the stranger stays.
And day after day your life shifts and expands in ways you could never have anticipated or even imagined. It may take months or years, but the day comes when you look back at your before—before the stranger started singing.
And you realize you could only have this beautiful after because you let this creature into your life.
I guarantee you’ve had this experience. We all have.
And that’s a very good thing. Coloring within the lines gets boring pretty fast. A life without eruptions and arrivals and discoveries is a static dreary life.
I still revel all these years later in my strange arrivals, starting in 1997 when deep soul writing literally burst onto the page in the midst of a scary divorce. The arrival of my “extraordinary voice within” in the mystical theta brainwave state changed me utterly.
Janet before deep soul writing is unrecognizable to Janet after deep soul writing. And I much prefer the latter version.
But the arrivals didn’t stop.
I think that’s the way the mystical life works. There is no final destination. Only more and more astonishing and beautiful arrivals. Three big life-changing arrivals have been: Prayer Artist, Mystic Witch, and Fire Keeper. I love them. I am them.
But—this is important—none were my idea.
Not conscious anyway. But it’s clear to me now that my heart was longing, my mind was itching, and my soul was begging me to dive deeper and deeper into the mystic where the real magic dwells.
This exact thing happened to Tony Goncalves, Cathy Stevens Pratt’s and my collaborator in the Praying in the Dark series. The creature that barged into his house was, and is, and always will be the Minotaur.
personal photo of Tony at Art Basel several years ago
Perhaps you heard Tony tell the eye-popping story of his initiation with the Minotaur in ART 6 after we visited Minoan Crete. Or in the prequel to ART 7, when we explored what Minotaur, Lucifer, and Dragon have in common.
(Short answer: All three are portrayed by patriarchy as male and evil and must be killed with a sword by the conquering hero. All three stories are lies. Full prequel is a bonus in Praying in the Dark)
If you were in the first Praying in the Dark intensive or read about it in these newsletters or visited the registration page, you got a taste of the pre-patriarchal Minotaur because he’s one of our four guides for the series.
And even if you did none of these, you still know the Minotaur's Greek patriarchal story. You know: he's a half man-half bull monster, trapped in a labyrinth under King Minos’ palace, where he eats children until the brave warrior arrives to kill him.
It’s an awful story. Full of holes. And replete with lies. Really big ones. Because the Greek myths were passed down orally and eventually written thousands of years AFTER the Minotaur first appeared on Paleolithic cave walls. On those walls, the Minotaur is dancing with other feral creatures, celebrating the fertility of spring and the sensual joys of life.
So, which is true?
Is Minotaur a monster or a magician?
Tony got close enough to ask the Minotaur directly.
In the upcoming Praying in the Dark: When People Feel Safe, Patriarchy Falls Apart intensive, Tony will tell the whole story of his complex, multi-part, breathtaking initiation into the shamanic wisdom of the Minotaur. And we will meet the Minotaur for ourselves as we step into the center of the ancient labyrinth.
But for now, here is a taste of what Tony learned not just about the Minotaur, but about us, and the true nature of safety.
Tony writes:
“When we first began working with the Minotaur, I don’t think any of us realized that Minotaur would lead us into such a profound exploration of safety. We thought we were entering the labyrinth to encounter a being whom we had been taught to fear—a creature patriarchy had turned into a monster.
But the Minotaur we encountered was no such monster. He revealed himself as something much more mysterious: a shaman, a shapeshifter, and a sacred being with an entirely different story to tell.”
Then Tony tells us what happened:
“The first time I met him, he would not allow me to touch him. Looking back at that encounter, I think the Minotaur was beginning to show us what it means to wear safety.
That boundary became one of his earliest teachings.
- I could not just enter his space assuming I knew what he needed.
- I could not force connection or decide what healing should look like for him.
- If a relationship was going to form between us, it would have to begin with trust
- And trust would have to unfold at his pace.
In that first encounter, he planted a question that has continued to grow its roots throughout this Praying in the Dark journey.
That question is: What does it truly mean to be safe?
- Not simply feeling protected from harm, but safe within ourselves
- Safe in relationship
- Safe enough to speak the truth
- Safe enough to establish boundaries
- And safe enough to remain present without abandoning ourselves"
It was such a profound experience that Tony began deep soul writing with Safety as if safety were a living presence. I know how powerful it is to address the voice by name.
Tony didn’t tell us what Safety had to say. And that’s the way it should be. Because in our discovery gatherings we will have direct conversations with Safety, with the Minotaur, and with the Labyrinth, so that each of us can hear and receive what is unique and important to us.
So much mystery and magic ahead!
Tony ended his writing with this invitation which I now pass on to you with his blessing:
“We will release the story that named Minotaur and the original sacred masculine a monster. And listen for the story our Minotaur guide is unfolding within each of us. And we will explore what becomes possible when we approach the labyrinth without conquest, without assumptions, and with a willingness to encounter what the Minotaur is revealing at its center."
Tony wrapped up his message with this:
"I don’t fully know where this journey will lead us. But that is part of the invitation. Something is surely unfolding through this work—something that feels both timeless and urgently necessary for this moment we are living in.
The Minotaur is waiting.
The Labyrinth is open.
And Safety—is asking us to enter.”
Praying in the Dark: When People Feel Safe, Patriarchy Falls Apart is now open for registrations.
We gather for four Tuesdays at 6pm with Thursday Watch Parties at 1pm and two discussion cafes on Sundays at 1p and 6p, so everyone around the world can come to gatherings.
We open September 15. Follow the link for full schedule and details.
I'm sending the big Welcome Email on Tuesday. When you register, you will have access to all Tony wrote and much more. I'll also open our private Facebook group.
When you go to the registration and information page, take a moment to begin a conversation with the magnificent Minotaur.
Notice what you see.
What you feel.
Ask him what he wants you to know right now.
Life is fragile, handle with reverence
And safety. For everyone.
Janet
PS: There is ONE great book on the Minotaur in the Paleolithic but it's out of print. I found one copy online for $1400! So I'm going to read the chapter on the Lair of the Minotaur and post it in increments on our Resource Page.
PS2: If you haven't, please take the first intensive, Praying in the Dark: How Visionaries Pray in a Time of Collapse. On-Demand at a crazy-low fee of $88. Take it so you get comfortable with the radically different theology-free prayers on this rosary, learn the couplets, the five crimes of patriarchy and the Five Blooms that heal them, get to know the real timeline of human history, and get a first taste for our guides: Hecate, Minotaur, Corn, and the Bees.
The only other pre-requisite is an open heart and a deep desire to bring more joy and safety into the world—starting with yourself!
Questions? Write to me janet@janetconner.com
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