Nostradamus Speaks - Tradecraft I

Tradecraft I - The Deep End of the Pool

"The time has come," the Master said, "To talk of many things: Of rules -- and codes -- Of trade and craft -- And how a man should live." "I speak of the craft of the trade we have chosen, the Prognosticator, the Path of the Seer."

"Sensei, you are the man, the walrus man," I said, "This is exactly what I signed up for."

"Indeed, Grasshopper," Doctor Michel de Nostradamus said, "It's what I signed up for too, many long years ago." 

"So this isn't your own thing?" I asked.

"No," Dr. N said. "The way of the prognosticator has been around so long no one knows where or when it started. Or if where and when even matter. The wisdom of the path is such that should all traces of it disappear from the earth and all practitioners be long dead, the core of the path would reemerge on its own in the minds of men who want to see. And should there be distant worlds with life that can think, the path will spring forth from those minds too."

The Great Prognosticator then began:

"The First Principle is this: 

He who would see must be grounded in the natural world. 

The natural world is everything that is, was, and ever will be -- From the quarks that make up the atoms to the distant galaxies -- And everything in between -- Including all the creations of the mind of man -- Everything that has ever happened and ever will happen."

"Okay," I said, "That's heavy, but I'm good."

"We've just begun, Grasshopper," the Maestro said, "Now we dive into the deep end of the pool. It is here most applicants lose heart and back away. Some flee."

"Go for it, Sensei," I said, "I'm all in."

The Maestro went for it. "The jewel that lies beneath the surface is the Holy Grail, the Philosopher's Stone, the Great Mantra, the Code that awakens and liberates all who touch it." 

"Now you're talking, Sensei," I said.

"Those are metaphors, Grasshopper," Dr. N said, "But the real thing is the genuine article, so powerful and regarded as so dangerous that for centuries Seers kept their understanding disguised and hidden for fear of their lives. 

"You're killing me now, Boss!" I said, "What is it?"

Michel de Nostradamus paused for a long time and then spoke, "There is no supernatural."

Silence. 

I waited. 

Silence. 

"That's it?" I finally said, "That's it? That there's no supernatural?" 

"That's it, Grasshopper," the Maestro said, "There is no supernatural. Period. Full stop. There never has been. Nothing is beyond the laws and processes of the natural world; there never will be, ever. Not even a fingernail's worth, not even the hair on a gnat's ass worth, not even a subatomic particle's vibe worth. Nada, zilch, nothing, squat."

I protested. "What about faith and belief? People hereabouts take their religion seriously. Religions and beliefs, even those of the supernatural and fantastical, contain narratives that bind and hold societies and tribes and cultures together. They're not going to give them up; they ain't changing. Human nature ain't changing. You are asking people to do, I don't know what, step into the unknown? Just because you say so?"

"Look Dungbeetle," Nostradamus said, "I'm not asking anybody to do anything, I'm teaching tradecraft here; for those who want to see the forest and the trees and the branches and twigs, the leaves and the grass and don't have their head up their ass fearing imaginary forest creatures. You can drop the class any time."

"Chill, Boss, I'm not going to drop the class," I said, "But I can see why many do. My bet is your numbers are going to take a dive. No pun intended. This is going to scare the shit out of some, assuming they even make it this far."

"It is time to put away childish things and think as a man, young Grasshopper," Dr. N said, “Do not underestimate the potency of what I have just revealed. Those who understand this truth in their bones and marrow will see how the slimmest notion of the supernatural has crippled and imprisoned the mind of man since the beginning of time, and they themselves since childhood. Fear is the currency of the supernatural." 

"Let it go. Let fear of the supernatural go. There is no God or gods or goddesses or supernatural boogeymen of any kind whatsoever; never has been. No supernatural powers or forces whatsoever. There is no there, there. There is nothing supernatural to fear or respect or obey. You have got to let that sink into your thick skull and chew on it until you get the taste. Then chew some more until the bullshit falls away."

"Here is the last point for today: While there is no reality to any supernatural anything, people's belief in the supernatural, their belief in the unreal, is very real, and magical thinking has real world consequences. The Seer, grounded in the natural world, plugs that fact into his equations, stands apart, and clearly sees."

"Enough for today."

Dixi