17. White Horsing It
We all want a hero - and the hero can be you
Show Notes
Big 3 Ideas from this episode:
Recap: Plato’s Allegory of the Soul (from Phaedrus) : The “soul” is a chariot driven by a charioteer (Reason), drawn by two horses - let’s call them Yin (dark) and Yang (light).
Fun facts about imaginary horses:
Plato’s winged horses fly, fall, lose their wings, then grow new ones, and fly again.
This is a fascinating way to think about the creative process
Are you “White Horsing it”? Have you noticed when you are in the state of waiting for that (fill in the blank: prince, princess, cowboy, savior, hero) to come and save you? (‘cuz I have).
Eugene Delacroix, Horse Frightened by Lightning, 1824-29
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Episode 17: White Horsing It
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[00:00:27] Last time we talked about Plato's allegory of the soul.
[00:00:30] Plato sees the soul as a charioteer who's driving a chariot, with a light horse on the right that represents all of it as good and noble. And a dark horse on the left that represents the wild appetites. The charioteer himself is reason.
[00:00:48] Last time I talked about the dark horse. As the id, the yin, the shadow, the wild creative force that needs to have room and time to run free and be nurtured. Otherwise this horse can become exhausted and deformed and just plain sad. I'm sure you've all experienced this. I know I have. This horse wants to run free.
[00:01:09] But if you nurture this wild horse, it can help you. It will come back. It will direct all of its creative energy towards service of the creative project. The white horse on the other hand. Can be a snob. This horse is the do-gooder, the moral, the noble one. This horse can be the passive aggressive mean girl, if not appreciated.
[00:01:29] In ancient Chinese thought the idea of yin and yang came from. Agricultural society. The image was about. Uh, hill the sun hits one side of the hill and the shadow is cast on the other. Or a stick, a sundial, a gnomon.
[00:01:43] The sun hits the sundial. But that sun doesn't exist without its shadow. Together the shadow and the light are one. They are yoked together. Like these two horses.
[00:01:54] Plato goes on to say that the gods have two noble and well trained horses. Which take them straight to heaven. And in heaven, there's a divine field where these horses can eat the best grass.
[00:02:10] And enjoy the sun.
[00:02:12] the gods have two beautiful horses that are well-behaved and well-trained .
[00:02:20] Plato says, but humans are troubled indeed by the steeds. Not having an understanding of the mysteries of true being. They yearn and struggle to drive the chariot to the defined pasture of safety and abundance.
[00:02:34] So there are different levels. First. The soul takes off and the winged horses. Did I mention these horses have wings. This is probably something I should mention at the beginning. Winged? Yes, Kevin, I'm supposed to say winged.
[00:02:50] They're different levels. And first these winged horses. Take off and they fly. But as they fall because of this struggle between the two different horses they [00:03:00] fall and their wings fall off. So when their wings fall off and then they come into this mortal existence.
[00:03:06] Some of them are born on the first level. The first level is a philosopher, a true poet, an artist or a musician. So I want you artists out there to just know that. you are in Plato's top level. The second level. When they fall further down. Is a warrior or a righteous king. The third degree down.
[00:03:27] When the wings fall off.
[00:03:29] politician or a merchant The fourth level is a lover of gymnastic toils, or a physician.
[00:03:36] And in his time, physicians were very practical people. They were cutting people's gangrenous legs off and things like that. So it's not a glamorous position. The fifth level was a prophet. or a hierophant someone who keeps the secrets of the culture.
[00:03:51] the sixth level is a poet or imitative artist. So he saw two levels of poets. The true poet. Or the imitative artist, which was just imitating nature. And that's a pretty low level. That's sixth level bullshit right there. Then the seventh level is an artisan or husbandman and these are very practical day-to-day workers.
[00:04:11] The eighth level is a sophist or demagogue. Someone who is spreading. Their viewpoint around to all the people and demanding that they believe it.
[00:04:20] the ninth level is the tyrant. he is very abusive to his horses. the wild horse forces, the chariot to draw near to the beloved again. And this charioteer doesn't know what to do. So he thinks his job is to.
[00:04:34] Tame these horses.
[00:04:36] the charioteer quote, drags the bit out of the teeth of the wild Steed. forces him down on his haunches. And this is like Freud's. Idea of the ego and the super ego and the iid. So the, ID is the wild horse. The ego is the desire to be with culture and with others and to be praised. So that is the noble horse. And then the superego. Would be the charioteer that sort of mediates these Different horses.
[00:05:06] when we repress that orange horse, it's only going to come back more strongly in unhealthy ways.
[00:05:13] So if we're not taking care to find balance, We're taking our baby steps and we're, you know, just trotting along. And then sometimes that wild horse wants to just take off.
[00:05:24] That winged horse has been restrained and taking these little baby steps. All along and instead of taming them, beating that horse down. I suggest. That you become a horse whisperer to yourself and to your wild horse. That we love that wild horse That if we feed them both the noble. And the wild. That, that wild horse. Then go running out in their pastures. And will return to the chariot. And to the noble horse to find balance between the two horses and the two sides.
[00:05:59] [00:06:00] And this is what Plato says that you can regrow your wings. when you're in heaven, your horses have wings. Then they fly, then they fall.
[00:06:11] The wings fall off, you become a
[00:06:12] different person, and then you grow your wings back on and you can fly again. It's the cycle of.
[00:06:20] Recognizing your own divinity. Recognizing your own power. And nurturing that as it changes throughout your life.
[00:06:40] The light horse sometimes gets all the glory being in the spotlight. Literally. So in that light of day, this horse is all about heroic energy all of our stories and movies, the hero, the prince, the cowboy rides in on a white horse with a white hat to save the day.
[00:06:56] And this is where we can fall into the trap of the white horse.
[00:06:59] If the light beautiful energy of the noble sun is our ideal. Then the chaotic, mysterious, yin energy sometimes. Makes us feel like we're stuck in confusion or discomfort.
[00:07:11] We think the white horse is going to save us.
[00:07:13] The hero might come when we're sitting at our canvas. When we think that another class or another mentor, another teacher or another podcast or another YouTube video. Or a husband, boyfriend, girlfriend, client will come along to save us and make us feel better. We are waiting for the white horse. So, this is what I call white horsing. It.
[00:07:35] And here are three ways, you know, you're white horsing. It.
[00:07:38] Number one. You indulge in confusion and indecision. This usually happens when we have a decision to make. But we just don't know the right thing to do. So we sit and indulge in this confusion rather than just going ahead And making a decision.
[00:07:53] Even if it may be the wrong one.
[00:07:55] Number two, waiting for approval.
[00:07:58] This may affect you if you're trying new things, but you really don't feel good about them until you see the likes on Instagram or your teacher says good job, or you sell a painting. And number three, procrastinating.
[00:08:12] When you really do know what to do, and you do know what is the right thing, but fear, anxiety, and non-action can drive us to analysis, paralysis, or procrastination.
[00:08:23] You are white horsing. It. So the solution to these three problems are. Number one, create a habit of making decisions. And allowing the consequences and discomfort of failure.
[00:08:37] I talk about this in the episode called making decisions.
[00:08:40] Practice making decisions and being okay if you made the wrong one.
[00:08:44] Number two seek your own approval. What would it look like if you allowed yourself to love and approve of your art and your own words? Think about how much easier and calmer you would feel if you could of yourself. [00:09:00] This is available to you. if you choose to create the thought I seek and find my own approval. I love myself no matter what I have my own back.
[00:09:09] And the third solution to white horsing. It is. Develop a habit of doing it anyway. If you have fear and anxiety about painting or writing, do it anyway. If you want to make a podcast. But you just don't know how to do it. Or you're really afraid of how it's going to come out. Do like I did and do it anyway.
[00:09:30] Believe me, this has been a terrible experience. And a wonderful one. I've learned so much. And I love developing these ideas for myself and for other people. Doing it anyway is like the horses. They have a job to do these reins are. Of our own choosing. We have made this decision. And once that rein is on the race is started, we have to get to the next town on the map. Let's go. Let's just do it anyway.
[00:09:57] So these three challenges, number one, indulging in confusion and indecision, Two, waiting for approval And three procrastination are all examples of white horsing. It.
[00:10:08] There may be other ways you may see this in your own patterns. But we can get up on our own white horse and be ourself savior. The hero in our own fairy tale. If we can practice making decisions, having our own back. And developing the habit of doing it anyway.
[00:10:26] So now. Here is the state. Of our chariot. The dark horse, allow it time and space to Roman run. So it can come back to you and bring that wild, creative energy. We've allowed ourselves to see when we are white, horsing it, waiting for someone else to save us and what we can do to become that hero for ourselves.
[00:10:46] Next time. I'm going to talk about the horse of a different color. what happens when things really change and how we can adapt to that change with our own spectrum of belief.
[00:10:59] ----If you're an artist who wants to sell and market your work more effectively, join us in the Metaphor Mindset Studio, an online program for artists who want to love their business as much as they love their art.
[00:11:24] Metaphor, mindset, studio. Think like an artist, work like a boss.
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