We are Legion
We are all legion … We hold to the myth of the ‘one’ self, the idea that we are each a person, an autonomous, distinct and unique whole, a singular line, a thread, because it seems easier to traverse this reality wearing that suit. But if we are not careful, it becomes a straitjacket.
In reality, we are many selves, a multiverse of selves. Ifa knows this. Kalinda knows this. Hinduism knows this. Indigenous peoples know this.
Western civilization, in its relentless construction of empire, its insatiable thirst for expansion and acquisition, has tried to stamp this knowledge out. How can you conquer peoples who stand in the fullness of their many selves? How can you mold them into cogs for the machine when they shape-shift, limbo, wine and bend down low? The woman who embodies Oshun and Oya. The man who is Eshu and Shango.
I have been struggling to own up to and own all that I am. I must admit that there are parts of myself that terrify me, parts that I am still ashamed of (some unlearning to do around that). But in dusting them off and hanging them out for air and light, I realise that they are also necessary to my wholeness. This lesson, I suspect, will take a lifetime to learn. But here we are, walking the path.
May we all live in the fullness of our selves.