Ithaka
BY C. P. CAVAFY
TRANSLATED BY EDMUND KEELEY
As you set out for Ithaka
hope your road is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Laistrygonians, Cyclops,
angry Poseidon—don’t be afraid of them:
you’ll never find things like that on your way
as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,
as long as a rare excitement
stirs your spirit and your body.
Laistrygonians, Cyclops,
wild Poseidon—you won’t encounter them
unless you bring them along inside your soul,
unless your soul sets them up in front of you.
Hope your road is a long one.
May there be many summer mornings when,
with what pleasure, what joy,
you enter harbors you’re seeing for the first time;
may you stop at Phoenician trading stations
to buy fine things,
mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
sensual perfume of every kind—
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
and may you visit many Egyptian cities
to learn and go on learning from their scholars.
Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you’re destined for.
But don’t hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you’re old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you’ve gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.
Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you wouldn't have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.
And if you find her poor, Ithaka won’t have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,
you’ll have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.
Ithaka is a famous poem, one of the most wonderful and beloved poems by Greek poet C.P.Cavafy. It describes one of the wisest attitudes towards the journey of life, one that combines deep philosophical understanding as well as emotional fulfillment.
Ithaka in reality is a beautiful Greek island, the birthplace of Odysseus, who represents the archetype of the brave, adventurous and cunning ancient Greek warrior king. “The Odyssey” is Homer's epic poem of Odysseus' 10-year struggle to return to his Ithaka after the Trojan War. Longing to return to his idyllic homeland and his family, he had to endure disasters, the loss of his ship and companions, overcoming his own passions and lowest temptations, fighting against his mistakes, misfortunes, and the rage of Poseidon (Greek God of the Sea and Emotions). He sailed through the darkest night of the soul, down to the land of the dead and back, wandering the Mediterranean Sea for ten years, fighting against other men for his wife and wealth, before he actually succeeded in his coming home.
Ithaka in this poem symbolizes our individual dreams, aspirations, our ideals and goals in this life. Ithaka stands for the deeply personal destination which inspires and creates the journey of our life. What keeps you going on? What is the dream you have for your life? What is it that you want to accomplish? What is it that your soul is longing for? This is Your Ithaka! On a spiritual level Ithaka is the ultimate destination of the Soul, the Magnum Opus in Alchemy. The freedom of the soul from the endless wheel of reincarnation and the return of the Personal Psyche to the Transpersonal, being one with Spirit, merging in the eternal bliss of the Divine Source.
Whatever destination we choose, whatever Ithaka we have, in this journey we all tend to carry a lot of baggage and heavy burdens. Some of them we are aware of and deliberately carry them around. These we consider to be our identity and that they are useful for our success.
Beliefs, fears, childhood abuse and the stories we tell ourselves as to who we are and what we can and can't do, all these are in our baggage. Most of them we are completely unaware of, such as karmic burdens from past lives, ancestral stories and bonds, heavy energy from emotional turmoils, subconscious promises we make to protect us from trauma, and so on. The old and obsolete stories we keep telling ourselves, causing pain and suffering along our Sacred Journey back to Ithaka.
Most of all we carry our shadow parts well hidden, which eventually become enormous monsters in order to be acknowledged. They rise as .. “Laistrygonians, Cyclops, wild Poseidon (man-slaying monsters, uncontrolled emotions) —you won’t encounter them, unless you bring them along inside your soul, unless your soul sets them up in front of you…”
You carry inside all the obstacles, all the fears, all the hindrances you will encounter on your Journey back to your Ithaka.
Cavafy encourages us, “don’t be afraid of them: you’ll never find things like that on your way as long as you keep your thoughts raised high, as long as a rare excitement stirs your spirit and your body.”
Raise your vibration; refine and choose positive emotions to nourish yourself (mental, emotional, energetic and physical body) along the Journey.
So here you are, in Rhodes, one of the most beautiful Greek Islands, with powerful, energetic ancient temples, amazing medieval monuments and exquisite natural beauty. You can enjoy the sea and the sun, the forest and the springs, the tasty local food, all that benefits and nourishes your physical body and that is wonderful.
Deep inside you though, you may hear another powerful call, that it is time for you to transform, to evolve, and to heal.
If you feel that call here and now, it may well be an act of Karma - which means that your Soul has lived one or more previous lives in Rhodes in various timelines. You came back to Rhodes to be healed! Mother Land of Rhodes is attending to your evolution, as part of the healing of humanity. Rhodes is the island of Helios and Apollo, the SUN’s most powerful energy inspiring you to a higher vibration, calling you to shed your past. The SUN's energy allows every shadow part - any part of your Self that is hated, diminished and shamed - to become complete, conscious, accepted and loved.
In shamanic personal healing we can act on the energetic level, transmuting karmic or ancestral obstacles and heavy energy of all kinds. This brings changes in all aspects of our life. Originating from the shamanic energy healing tradition of the Q'ero Indians of Peru (as they were brought by Dr. Alberto Villoldo), the basic shamanic healing "illumination" brings instantaneous changes within a deep energy field, accelerating the process of self-improvement and evolution. Shamanic medicinal ally plants and journeying can also assist to your rapid transformation.
What better place than here, what better time than now?
Rhodes could be the place for your healing on every level!
Now is the only time we have a choice to act…
I am Maria Ariadne, shaman healer and yoga teacher and I will be honored to stand by your side assisting you with your healing journey. Experience shamanic healing this summer and surrender to the power of Mother Nature, so that you can rediscover your connection with the joy and love within you! Call me now on 6937340090 for your own personal release and healing!
