Change is the only constant. This same statement has been reiterated countless times. And yet we still keep parroting it without question, without further probing.

"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result." - Unknown (although many sources credit Albert Einstein)

If something is subject to change, then its nature is said to be temporal, finite, or volatile. A physical form is constantly shape-shifting. Earthly bodies initially appear to be solid, or fixed, and yet they're always undergoing transformation. Life springs forth, life grows, and life perishes. Change, which is motion, is tethered to the concept of the passage of time.

The word tempo comes from Latin, tempus, which means time. Tempo is synonymous with rhythm, pulse, beat, rate, speed, and pace. It is the rate, or frequency, of motion or activity. When an event occurs often in our life, we say that it happens "frequently". We toss these words around without being cognizant of their deeper, underlying implications.

"...all matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration." - Bill Hicks

So what happens when we adjust the tempo? When we alter the tempo, there is a change in state and appearance. All visible things begin as seed-thoughts or/of thought-forms (electromagnetic). When a particular idea appeals greatly to us, we say that it "holds a lot of weight" with us. We "gravitate toward" or are "attracted to" strong ideas. When something is desirable or attractive, it is said to be magnetic. Magnetic attraction (or repulsion) seems to inform, or pattern, the dynamism of boundless force.

Force (Will to Power) acts upon that which has been brought forth: Information, imagination, fantasies, desires, and emotional response. Action and reaction (response). And when we look deeper into the meaning of the word fantasy, we see how it relates to the feminine aspect of bringing forth the psychical phenomena of visible forms (i.e. mind-body). Fantasy comes from the Latin or Greek words, phantasia, which means image, imagination, appearance, or perception. To further break it down, we have phantos, which means visible. Even further we have, phaos or phos, which means light.

"Seeing is believing."
"Believe and you will see."

To see or to perceive is to take, to receive, to recognize, or to comprehend. A belief is the conviction, opinion, faith, or the trust in some principle. If we are to take life at face value, then we perceive only the ephemeral forms of things. Fortunately, our perceptions and opinions are also transient. Typically, we tune into only that which aligns with our personal belief systems. We selectively tune out whatever doesn't fit into our little picture of reality. But it's the very feeling of cognitive dissonance that we should take notice of if we wish to expand our horizons.

"What is real is not the external form but the essence of things." - Constantin Brancusi

"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye." - Antoine de Saint-Exupery

To focus is to narrow in on, limit, and define our field of attention. Without some definition, or limitation, nothing could be grasped or made tangible. And consequently, nothing could be sensibly known. To manipulate is to skillfully handle or control, and we are constantly manipulating our conditions by where and what we place our focus on. To behold something is to be captivated by it. We could even say that our mind has been possessed of it.

"Energy flows where attention goes."

You will notice that I have emphasized quite a few words in the last paragraph. I always do so intentionally: To grab your attention. When you get to the root of these words, you'll notice a pattern. They all relate to the hand of man and to the mind; which is ever-grasping and reaching for what's beyond. Manus is Latin for hand, and mental, -ment refers to the mind. Consciousness gives rise to, influences, and manipulates its physical circumstances. The body is the visible receptacle of the psyche. The psyche, itself, is yet another receiver.

The womb of the fertile imagination would remain in the dark without the fiery activity of unlimited potential. Limited is temporal, unlimited is eternal. To comprehend is to understand or to grasp a concept. The electrical seed-thoughts of new concepts are impressed upon the subjective mind so that they can further develop. We can liken this process to the photographic development of film in a dark room.

The subjective mind conceives of these seed-thoughts and then brings them back into the light of the objective mind as mental images. Additionally, the subjective mind also brings them into the light as actual objects and conditions. When a woman is pregnant with new life, she begins "to show". Our imagination "shows us" (reproduces) ideas and abstract concepts. Every event and every condition of our waking experience are brought forth by our own subconscious deductions.

From the Rider-Waite Tarot Deck

Here, I introduce an example of this Mother (as creative/reactive imagination) archetype, although there are countless. These same characters show up again and again because they are the constant, the unchanging, the fixed, and the eternal. The many masks we wear may change, but the underlying essence remains the same. And by recognizing these revolving archetypes, we reconcile the finite with the infinite.

The Unmoved Mover is Frozen in Motion

Potential plot spoilers up ahead.

The Childlike Empress from the Neverending Story. The Childlike Empress is a combination of the High Priestess and The Empress. Like the High Priestess, she is pure, untouched, and not yet mature. She represents the potentials (The Fool) of the imagination (The Empress), but must await her "new name" (symbolic of fertilization and regeneration) given to her by the Will to Power or Super-consciousness (Sebastian). Sebastian, as the Will to Power, also represents the masculine objective mind, which is the The Magician in tarot.

"Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Love is the law, love under will." - Aleister Crowley, author of Moonchild

Periodically, her powers to sustain Fantasia dim, reminiscent of the dark phase of the moon that we call the New Moon. She requires a child to willingly produce a "new name". Sebastian renames her the Moon Child, and the High Priestess (which represents the subconscious or subjective mind) is ruled by the Moon. We associate the subconscious with the night, with lunar cycles, and with the tides. The moon is like a mirror in that it's only visible to us as it reflects the light of the sun. Water, as well as consciousness, are also like mirrors -- receiving and reflecting back the quality of the solar vitality. Like the ebb and flow of the tides, our thoughts and emotions recur in rhythmic oscillations.

The corporeal body, too, is a mirror. It reflects, through embodiment, the relationship between the objective and subjective minds. A disharmonious relationship between these day and night modes of consciousness result in an unhealthy, degenerating system. This is what is happening in Fantasia (called Fantastica in the novel version of The Neverending Story by Michael Ende). Unless there be some re-animating spark to illuminate and penetrate the veil (the hymen) of the unconscious, the story would end. There'd be The Nothing left, which is the malevolent force threatening Fantasia. Without his Will to Force (Spirit), she would be unable to reproduce any new images or ideas, unable to regenerate the consciousness and body.

Robed entirely in white with snow white hair and pale skin, the Childlike Empress resembles a blank page. Without her, no beings in Fantasia could exist. And she gives life to each of them indiscriminately, loving them without condition -- just like any Mother would. She lives in an ivory tower that's crowned by an intricately-carved magnolia blossom that's reaching into the heavens. Her chamber is within this magnolia. During the full moon, the petals of the magnolia unfold to expose the Childlike Empress in the center. This brings to mind the alchemical magnesia, also termed the Magnet of Jah. Yet another topic for future discussion.

"Fantasy and imagination is a product of the body. The energies that bring forth the fantasies derive from the organs of the body. The organs of the body are the source of our life, and of our intentions for life." - Joseph Campbell