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The LostStories Mystery (Cont'd)
If you've ever gone to a museum, a courthouse, a library, or a cathedral, chances are you probably had to walk past some sort of threshold guardian—whether it was in the form of a pair of crouching lions or resting gargoyles or reclining gods. Whatever they were, they were there as a silent and solemn reminder of the price that was paid to bring mankind the gift of wisdom located in the building you are being granted access to. What you're about to encounter in this place was brought to you only after some courageous hero endured their own terrifying ordeal with the threshold guardian.
"Again and again in ancient art," states Shirley Park Lowry in Familiar Mysteries: Truth in Myth, "a pair of monsters guard some great source of life—the tree of life, the gates of paradise, the Ark of the Covenant, a temple's entrance. In the Book of Ezekiel, the cherubim guarding paradise combine the characteristics of men, lions, oxen, and eagles."
Since time immemorial, mankind has sought to unlock the secrets of the Universe. Sometimes, the results are a blessing to the World and sometimes, quite regrettably, they turn out instead to bring an awesome curse. Even more regrettable is the fact that once these gods and monsters have escaped, they can never be returned to their ancient prisons. That is why, since the first journey to unveil life's great mysteries, there have always been guardians standing at the thresholds of these arcane vaults.
Ms. Lowry continues: "Despite their association with destruction and chaos, monsters do not always symbolize pure evil. In the ancient Middle East, monsters often represented creative energy, the brute life-force that both blesses and curses the stability of organized life. In the early stories of Mesopotamia and Egypt, guardian spirits as well as demons might take monstrous forms, and the guardians and demons are often scarcely distinguishable in appearance and behavior. Blurred is the distinction between gods and monsters, guardians and destroyers. The apparent contradictions dissolve when one perceives the ancient Middle Eastern monster as symbolizing the life-force. The monster is this single life-destroying, life-renewing force."
So the next time you stroll casually past one of those grim statues on your way into some great hall of truth, justice, or beauty, remember that the path you are treading was not always such a tranquil one. For once, long ago, in some remote place and time, great warriors risked life and limb to gain the prize you have also come for. And never forget the price that was paid to vanquish and tame those awesome guardians, which now happily protect your privilege to wander these hallowed halls, free to embrace their long vanquished prize for as long as you please.
(to be continued ...)
