Neither God nor Satan
Created this world
and held the power
after gold
Some people would think that equating God with Satan is sure
blasphemy. But how about the blasphemy that can be done in poetry? Poetry is
most of the time figurative, so accusing the author of trying to be literal in
a verse is a stereotype we must get away from. They suffer from censorship pure
and simple. If the majority tries to tell the poet to change the verse because
it does not suit their 'religious' or philosophical taste, they are violating
the author's freedom-- much like holding press captive. If the poet have in to
the whim of the majority, he becomes a sell out to them. Yes, he may gain fame,
but in the end, he sacrifices his convictions and principle. Fame is just a
question of being favorable.
When a writer finds himself in a dilemma, he is caught between
himself and the collective. Choosing the collective is like deciding to do
business with them. But no learning is achieved when we, the writers, say yes
to the collective. If we sell ideas to them, the reactions would be a yes, no
and 'wait, that's something else'. There is no growth on the side of the reader
when he says yes. They already know those things so they would not bother to
scrutinize the idea: but still, other mainstream writers offer mainstream ideas
to keep their names 'mainstream'. That is the anatomy of being a sell out. A
no, on the other hand, reflects only one thing and that is the passivity of the
reader; his mind would not grasp the new idea. Perhaps, due to the shackle of
mainstream market, he is preoccupied with the prevailing notions that is why he
would not process new ones. The 'wait, that is something else' is an
intellectual answer to the 'no' part. Because he scrutinized ideas, he would
give time to examine a text, understand it, make it his own(or reject it) and
in the end, the written words serve their purpose.
This is the case of the verse above mentioned. It suffered
censorship from the religious bigots who think in literal terms. But try to
examine the verse and a multitude of meaning will arise. First, the polarity of
God and Satan may be questioned: no one equates God with the Devil. But what
does the word God imply? Purity, justice, good, holiness and sanctity. But one
can also draw implications such as restrictions and laws. God and all that He
implies may draw a conclusion that in order to achieve freedom, one must be
permitted to do something. On the other hand, Satan implies corruption,
injustice, evil, vile and death. But he could also symbolize hedonism: a form
of freedom. See the contrast? Restriction and freedom. Neither restriction nor
freedom creates this world because they both shape all the affairs that make
man move. And to achieve the power to grant freedom, one must have gold:
treasure. No power in this world is not shaped by gold. But this is just my
take; let the purity of its meaning solely to its author and the interpretation
to the wise reader. Most especially to the reader whose mind dictates his yes,
no and 'wait, it is something else'.
The reader's reaction upon a text reflects his intellectual
level and understanding. Acceptance of words in literal level is a proof that a
man does his thinking in a shallow way; preferring God and Satan to be. . .
Literally God and Satan. The metaphor fails to serve the purpose. Perhaps,
ignorance is founded on two ideas: the absence of initiative to think and
playing with words on literal level. The crime most of the time is not upon the
writer but upon the reader. They become neither God nor Satan, preferring the
passive way.
But on the part of the writer, being questioned is better than
being accepted or rejected. He does his job well by stirring the mind of the
reader, and he provokes a discussion. Again, this is the concept of 'wait! it
is something else'. There is neither controversial nor questionable article,
just people who could neither accept nor analyze something. They become gods in
imposing their sets of right and wrong but at the same time, a satan to the
writer.
The writer, in all his honest judgment and integrity must keep a
firm feet upon his ground, or else, when the torrent of rain-- or the whim of
the collective-- swept over him, he would be washed away. One more thing: only
dead fish swim with the current.
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