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Persepolis - And its sacred geography 07 The Lion and the Bull
Identifier
022407
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
The Bull is a symbol of virility. It is incorporated into the symbolism of the Bull and cow – Creator and Created, and is used extensively in Hindu iconography. It is also a subtle symbol that the sex based methods are being used – not always but in the right context. The Bull is seen as a more highly charged animal sexually than, for example, the male lion.
Occasionally one sees the Bull being subdued, meaning that in order to obtain a spiritual experience lust and testosterone charged activity has to be replaced by control and management of the sexual impulses, not repression, but the withholding of semen and the control of orgasm inherent to the sexually based methods.
In order to do this one needs to use one’s intellect a little and we think that the symbolism here is a reminder to those on this path to remember to tame the Bull. It is an extremely interesting use of symbolism, as in numerous systems one also has to tame the lion – keep the intellect under control.
The alternative may be simply a statement – too much intellectual activity crushes the sexual urge – which is also true, so the symbolism works a number of ways
A description of the experience
