Three blind mice. Three blind mice,
See how they run. See how they run,
They all ran after the farmer's wife,
Who cut off their tail with a carving knife,
Did you ever see such a sight in your life,
As three blind mice?
Remember singing this rhyme as a kid? The music and a version of this rhyme was published in Deuteromelia or The Seconde part of Musicks Melodia in 1609 by Thomas Ravenscroft, an English musician, theorist, and editor. He was notable as a composer of rounds and catches, and especially notable for compiling collections of British folk music. He was a teenager when he wrote Three Blind Mice.
The original lyrics are:
Three Blinde Mice,
Three Blinde Mice,
Dame lulian,
Dame lulian,
the Miller and his merry olde Wife,
she scrapte her tripe licke thou the knife.
I always thought this was a rhyme about three poor mice who got in the way of some crazy lady with a big knife who had it out for rodents. The origin of words to the rhyme are actually based in English history. The farmer's wife refers Queen Mary I, the daughter of King Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. Mary was a staunch Catholic and her violent persecution of Protestants led to the nickname 'Bloody Mary.' The reference to 'farmer's wife' apparently refers to the massive estates which she and her husband King Philip of Spain owned. The three blind mice were three noblemen who adhered to the Protestant faith and were convicted on plotting against the queen. Mary did not have them dismembered and blinded as referred to in the rhyme, rather she had them burned at the stake, along with 280 others over the course of her five-year reign from 1553 until 1558. A chip off of her father's block.
The course of human history is fraught with stories about the persecution and death of those who rebelled against the rulers and ruling paradigms. These stories are encoded in our cultural memory through story telling and, I believe, are encoded in our DNA.
We have within us both the drive to speak out, even rebel. We also have within us the fear of the consequences. The drive moves us forward, the fear slows us down. We feel guilt if we don't move forward and shame if we do. We have been living within this dynamic at least since the time of Jesus and probably before.
If you do not believe this dynamic applies to you, ask yourself the question, "How many times have I wanted to do something I knew was right for me but did something different because I was influenced by the opinion of others? More simply, "Do I care what other's think?
By Mayan calendar timeline, spiritual prophesy and because we say so, the new era was birthed on December 21, 2012. The shift was very subtle, imperceptible by most. Like raising a child we must carefully care take our new earth into deeper manifestation. This cannot be done if we continue to be influenced in our decisions using the compass of what other's think about us. We must allow the stories of the past to fade away and develop the courage to roll shame and guilt over the cliff. In taking the brakes off our voice the truth spoken will set us free.
Our new compass is our own inner voice. It is that still, small voice within speaking to us in every moment that will guide the way. There will be times when our inner guidance is to move in a direction that opposes popular opinion. And it will be at these times that we must breathe deeply and go forward. We can't rely on the Internet, our mother or father, our friends, our boss, etc. to provide accurate information for our choices and path. Ultimately it is our own inner voice and spiritual compass that will show us the way.
If we behave like three blind mice, we will get our tails cut off.
Play with Matrices #42 and #23.
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