The Philosophy of Golf - the Spheres of Power

an essay on my philosophy

This long essay is not just about golf, but also my personal philosophy of spheres, circles, and angles, and how these concepts relate to reality, even to golf or other sports. I released an audio essay that explains this philosophy, though in different words and context.

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Brief History of Golf:

Here is a two hour documentary called “the Story of Golf” which I highly suggest watching if you have trouble sleeping at night. It is slow, pleasant, and simple.

Variations of the age-old game of “hit a thing with a stick” are probably as ancient as warfare and human interaction, with examples showing up in China, the Pontic-Caspian Steppe, and ancient Rome. However, the modern game of golf has its origins in 14th century Scotland - the first time the game was recorded on paper was when King James II had to pass a law restricting golf among the elite, because it was getting in the way of necessary war and social training, specifically archery training. Over the ages, rules changed, courses changed, and equipment changed. Everything adapted to the needs of the players, and the perfection of the game, the game evolved to find its final form, perfected after centuries of playing, perfected to completion.

The Old Course, Scotland, oldest official golf course in the world

The word golf, or in Scots gowf, is probably related to the Dutch "colf" or "colve" meaning "stick, "club", "bat", which itself originates from Proto-Germanic *kulth- further related to Old Norse kolfr meaning "bell clapper" and the German Kolben meaning "mace or club". The Dutch sport Kolven is a related sport played with a mallet, a ball, and a hole, where the lowest number of strokes determines the winner. Kolf is clearly the spiritual predecessor of modern golf.

The clubs have changed throughout history, and these clubs constitute the “applier of force” within the game, and they are controlled through the power of the strike, the angle of the strike, the angle of body positioning, and the angle of hand positioning. The first clubs were all made of wood, later to be made from metal alloys, until the modern aluminum clubs.

Wikipedia nods towards two games as being possible sources for the sport - Dutch Kolven and French Choule, leading one to think that this Scots game was somehow a combination of both foreign games. However, I think it is much more likely that this Scots game developed out of the combination of Dutch kolf “kolven” and the native Gaelic hurling. That would make more sense, due to the Scots being more Gaelic and with closer cultural connection to the Northern Germans than to the French. I can easily imagine some hurley players getting their hands on a kolven set, then sending the ball soaring down a grassy field, inspiring the creation of modern golf.

The golf ball may be the most important element of the game. I think a good chunk of a game is spent looking for missing golf balls from bad shots. Like golf clubs, golf balls have changed throughout history and have become more refined and specialized for their unique purpose.

For obvious reasons, golf is associated with Scotland - but there is an interesting case of many skilled golfers coming out of Texas. Three of the best golfers in history are from Texas. My father’s family lived in Texas for a significant amount of our time in America. Scotland may be the European origin for my clan (and for golf) but Texas is like the American homeland for my clan, and the great golfers who were produced by that great state are testaments to the spirit of the game, and the spirit of the highlands. My own father quite enjoys golf, and even made a small poorman’s course on his farm, which we use often.

How is golf relevant to my philosophy on life? I will explain below, although fair warning, it may seem odd.

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The Spheres of Power:

I have developed my own theories on reality based on inspiration found in various mythologies, philosophies, sciences, and art. The theories which I have developed are not purely mine, but are instead inspired developments made through lived experience, enticing literature, and ancient philosophies and religions. When I speak about these topics, I am being both literal and allegorical since I am dealing with reality and human existence.

This is a maxim of mine: “The truth can’t be known, but it can be discovered.” - meaning truth in its entirety is a mystery, while truth as an experience is readily available to discovery. Men can know true things, but they cannot know all things which are true - men can interpret things however they choose but that does not equate to truth, and this is simply my interpretation, which is apt to change according to lived experience.

The French philosopher and nuclear physicist Jean-Emile Charon wrote a book called “The Spirit: That Stranger Inside Us“ and I will not lie, most of the book goes right over my head since he is working using the maxim: “As above, so below,” which he then combines with complex mathematical research on stars and atoms, attempting to show that stars and atoms work using fundamentally similar systems. The theories contained within the book are truly fascinating, but far above my pay grade to prove or disprove on the level Charon was working from - he was a trained nuclear physicist while I am a farmhand who reads historical texts, who writes poetry and music. Still, his observations on spheres and their domains have captured my attention and led to various observations and inspirations which ring true to my perceptions. I was already aware of the tetrahedron and the related circumsphere concepts in mathematics, but Charon goes way beyond that.

Charon theorizes that if there is such a thing as the spirit, then it must have a handful of agreed upon qualities:

1. It must reside inside every physical thing within life, since the spirit is the foundation of life.

2. It must have the quality of eternity or infinity.

3. It must be capable of partaking in the mechanics of physical reality while retaining the ability to access that infinity, so that it may act outside of the material domains.

Charon’s novel idea entails that the electron, one of the few integral components to the formations of atom, is the physical representation of the spiritual plane here in the material plane. He uses many different visual analogies to try and describe how this would work: electrons are like bubbles, pockets or portals which carry or facilitate the passage of energy between the fundamental domains of reality, they serve as the boundary or the crossing-point between the material world and the spiritual world. He observes that electrons contain massive reservoirs of information required to create the various components of life, and that electrons “speak” to each other, or at least transmit information across incredibly vast distances, and that they do not expire but only change location and purpose during very specific and rare events. He posits that the electron is the “carrier” of the spirit, but he also posits that the electron could simply act as a doorway into the infinite Otherworld, or a passageway of energy from the infinite Otherworld.

The electrons of a stone remain a stone after destruction, and even if fully shattered they eventually find their way back into stone again. Charon claims that the same is true for humans and their electrons, that these are evolutionary systems which are tied to their source, these are unique passageways allowing for our specific energy or spirit to manifest itself into the material domain. Everything has a balancing point, a harmonious flow, according to the laws of nature and the expended willpower of the living beings within nature. This would help to explain the ancient concept of reincarnation and karma, and also help explain the fundamental workings of evolution and hierarchy.

I began to observe reality through this perspective and found there to be some poetic, esoteric merit to Charon’s ideas, so I spent a considerable amount of time exploring this new mental-sphere with gusto. I remembered this scene from “the Mask of Zorro” which depicts the younger Zoro being trained by the older Zoro within what is known as a Master’s Circle.

the Master’s Circle from the “Mask of Zorro”

This Master’s Circle was actually designed using the techniques of the Spanish sword-fighting tradition known as “La Verdadera Destreza” which developed a strict adherence to an instinctual knowledge of various spheres involving movements of the body, the blade, and extending out to their placement in their surroundings. The tradition was markedly different compared to its contemporaries, purported to be universal to all fighting styles and useful in various scenarios. The hallmarks of the style include:

• Visualization of an imaginary circle between the opponents to conceptualize distance and movement

• Use of off-line footwork to obtain a favorable angle of attack

• Avoidance of movement directly toward the opponent

• Extension of the sword arm in a straight line from the shoulder to obtain maximum reach

• Profiling of the body to increase reach and reduce target area

• Use of an initial distance that is as close as possible, while remaining out of reach

• A conservative approach, using the bind to control the opposing weapon

• Preference for downwards motion and natural movement in all fencing actions

• Use of both cut and thrust

• Use of a particular type of closing movement to disarm the opponent

The techniques only work when there is a combination of spheres and angles, force and resistance, natural formations and finely manicured reality, and lastly - patience and willpower. This is a discipline that requires fast thinking concerning angles and circles, bordering on instinctual, and it is very defensive and counter-offensive, with the ability to fight multiple enemies if the environment is suited for the task and if practitioner is skilled and armed enough for the task. The defensive part requires patience, and the countering requires sudden speed and ferocity, so there is a dual-component required to mastering the tradition. In some ways, the tradition is considered unorthodox, in other ways revolutionary due to the utility afforded to the skilled practitioner.

Above all else, it required a natural flow between angles and positions, a mental mapping of the environment to visualize and actualize movements within the spheres and circles of the world, to find the “Zone” and act within the domain of the tradition. The idea here is that just like electrons, there are specific movements, angles, and mindsets which must be mastered if one is to complete their circuit, if one is to find victory.

This fighting tradition of spheres and angles made me think of another fighting tradition: Bushido, which is filled with esoteric circle and spherical concepts. In particular, there is the famous Book of the Five Rings, which covers different mindsets and fighting techniques based on the five main domains - Earth, Wind Water, Fire, and Void. Mastering the domains will allow one mastery of self, therefore mastery of the battlefield. The Japanese were also influenced by Buddhism and Taoism, including the art of Zen. The ensō, or the circle-form, is an artistic depiction of the perfect mind, the enlightened mind, the balancing of Void and Life, the harmony of action and stillness. Just another circle.

The ensō

I thought about other religious spheres and circles and how they could be related to this esoteric concept. The Indo-Aryan religion is full of circles, but the two that most garner my attention would be the kalachakra, the Wheel of Time, and to a lesser extent with the chakras of the personal body, the inner wheels, which are often related to physical body parts - the Kalachakra is the Domain of Time, and the chakras are internal domains of our spirits and being.

the inner-wheels, the chakras

The Wheel of Time, the kalachakra

The Kalachakra “Wheel of Time” reminds me of Guido von List’s interpretation of the Germanic religion, primarily his concept of “arising, becoming, and passing away” another cycle, another circle. Furthermore, I am led to believe that the term “eucatastrophe” or “good-destruction” coined by J.R.R. Tolkien is deeply connected to this concept. This is because Tolkien viewed eucatastrophe as being “that happy turning point in the story” like a “broken limb snapping back into place” as though true perfection and completion finally entered the story to create the next cycle, because the story never ends, as Tolkien explains. The road goes ever on and on, and we must follow, if we can - that is eucatastrophe.

This all seems to relate to the Ouroborous, the primordial snake eating its tail in an endless display of cyclical nature, of the cycle between life and death, the cosmos and the void, which shows up in many mythologies and religions. Here we find another cycle, and another circle.

Of course, there are also the Gaelic Cauldrons, which are superficially similar to the chakras. These three cauldrons are the Coire Goiriath (Cauldron of Warmth), the Coire Ernma (Cauldron of Vocation), and the Coire sois (Cauldron of Knowledge). Although technically not spheres, these cauldrons are poetically depicting the internal wellsprings or containers (electrons?) which control the various aspects of the being depending on their orientation and contents. These cauldrons are gifts to mankind from the Dagda, the Creator and All-Father, and they must be balanced and honored, observed and perceived, and then utilized to sub-create and ascend. The idea here is that the internal electrons are wellsprings, sources and pathways into the Otherworld, fundamental components which make up our very being on every interlaced level. They are our internal domains, and are unique to us.

From the poem “the Cauldron of Poesy” by Amergin:

The Gods do not apportion the same to everyone --
tipped, inverted, right-side-up;
no knowledge, half-knowledge, full-knowledge

Pagan Germans, Gaels, and Celts also believed in reincarnation along genetic lines, perceiving that the spirit of the deceased body is likely to return in a similar body - the electrons of any given thing are tied to that thing, and will continue the evolutionary process until finding full-balance and fulfillment of being. This is due to the fact that all things belong in their own domains, separated from each other by their natural boundaries. All things belong with their relations, and this is like a ring that cannot be escaped, no matter how much one tries to escape from it. This is the familial ring, the household, the clan, and it was the primordial foundation of all Indo-European religions.

From “the Indo-European Household” by W.E. Hearns:

The Household, as I have attempted to describe it, has a natural limit, which is soon reached… Like the primary cell in organic nature, it divides into a number of distinct cells. Each new cell goes through a similar process, and all these cells are related both to the parent cell and to one another. Thus whatever may be the rate of this development, a homogeneous body, after attaining a certain bulk, spontaneously divides, as we might expect, into several similar bodies, and among these cognate bodies a relation exists. The aggregate of these related bodies is called the kin, or clan.

This motif of reincarnation was also tied to the idea of the tripartite soul, which is a spiritual concept that shows up in the mythologies of the Indo-European Indo-Aryan, Gaelic, Celtic, Germanic, Nordic, and Greek pagan systems and could be visibly represented by the much more ancient pre-Indo-European Neolithic triskelion. The interlocking swirling rings of the triskelion were adopted into Indo-European culture, and this was likely due to its deeper esoteric representation of completion - attainment - balance - movement - stability.

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I could go on and on about spheres and angles and the various esoteric concepts they entail, but that is not the purpose of this already very long essay.

I began to combine all of these ideas into a philosophy - not a religion, but a way of life. My religion is my ancestral household cult and I swear by the gods the majority of my ancestors swore by - but my philosophy includes this esoteric and philosophical understanding of spheres, electrons, and willpower, as a sort of rational attempt at explaining some of my experiences. I formulated this philosophy and began to feel at peace with various aspects of the world because everything acted within its own domain, and these domains are interlaced and may be filled with some level of constructed chaos, but that laws and rules existed - angles and spheres - and therefore all living things have a place within the domains, and all living things can enact their willpower on reality according to their standing or measure within the domains.

If I die in evolutionary honor, I live again, or I ascend, so I find victory no matter what, so long as I die progressing my natural standing within my domain. To find victory, all I have to do is correctly place myself within the over-lapping spheres and boundaries of reality, and find the right angle to approach any given thing within the spheres. In other words, if I act within my natural place in the hierarchy, I can move up the hierarchy, or at least strengthen my position and the position of my household, my clan, my tribe, and my nation. Victory is available to those who best understand the rules of nature. Victory goes to the one who supplicates to the Gods, the ancestors, and assists kindred by increasing the household in number and glory.

Nature is inter-dependent upon its constituent parts, each part of nature is reliant upon another part, and this expands outwards until the entire cosmos is connected in a web of overlapping and interlacing spheres - spheres of electrons, of atoms, of cells, of planets, of suns, of solar systems, of galaxies. Within nature, there are clear hierarchies or domains, such as the domain of the forest and the hierarchy of trees over shrubs, or predators over prey, and yet there are systems of inter-dependence within this hierarchy. These hierarchies are based on complex systems of relation, physical and non-physical relation of an interlaced and dynamic nature. Nothing exists in a purely fixed vacuum, devoid of connection to another thing within nature.

The Spheres of Power are the interlacing, interlocked, ever-growing domains of living things, therefore the Spheres of Power denote a perception of reality, of the cosmos. These domains are set in a evolutionary and involutionary hierarchy, going from the highest consciousness and spirit, to the lowest living being, going from galaxies and solar systems with the accompanying suns and planets, all the way down to cells and atoms with the component electrons and neutrons. The various domains which are contained within the Spheres of Power are spaces where time and space are warped according to the measure of the living beings within the domains. This warping is done through the observance and willpower of any given being - the perception and action of a living being shapes reality according to its measure of spirit and willpower. The strength of will, the will to power, warps reality around the actions of the living being, due to the presence of their living spirit and the will that it contains.

The physical self is a part of a grand interconnected dance of atomic spheres cast within a cosmic stage of celestial spheres. In other words, the physical self exists within many spherical domains, overlapping each other and growing or diminishing based on their interactions, and the self is capable of gaining authority within these domains based on actualized willpower. The self can climb the ranks of the hierarchy, so to speak, through an evolutionary process of struggle, attainment, and purification or enlightenment. The self can descend the ranks of hierarchy, through an involutionary process of an opposite nature. Your electrons are either on their circuits and in harmony with greater reality, or they are free radicals causing issues for your life.

Furthermore, the self is tied to the ancestral body - its electrons are tied to closely related electrons, for reasons of natural expediency and familiarity, for all things are tied to each other based on relation to each other. Energy cannot be destroyed, it can only be repurposed or redistributed. You do not die, you are only reborn - death is only the passage from one mode of being to another. This knowledge gave our ancestors the ability to accomplish great deeds, to face death without being plagued by the fear of defeat.

The goal of life incarnation is to retain independence within inter-dependence, to become an integral, foundational, required member of the cosmos, who retains full self-identity within their own foundational domain. To become akin to water, fire, earth, air, space, time, and all other great domains, to become their kindred so that you can ascend into a higher domain with self-purpose and join divinity in its entirety. This is how the ancestors ascended after long cycles of reincarnation, by attaining full independence within inter-dependence, by realizing their place in the Spheres and establishing their own domain within the Spheres. This sentiment is spoken most clearly by this ancient Aryan stanza:

The beings known as the Gods are truly divine personalities, primordial supreme spirits who rule the Spheres and the domains with their natural willpower, being so interconnected with their domains that it would be hard to speak of the personality without speaking of the celestial, planetary, natural, physical body. They are not just cosmic or planetary, but are related to the foundational domains of the spirit, of the energy that animates reality, they are natural emanations of the spirit and are primordial and everlasting. In other words, the electrons within a person constitute the animating force for their physical bodies, but the same goes for the electrons within ancestors, within storms, mountains, rivers, oceans, planets, stars, and so on until you reach the entirety of creation and the All-Father himself.

Many of the Gods are invested in our lives, and we either struggle against them or follow their lead, but some Gods do not have much reason to be focused on us and our affairs. Some of the Gods are known to many peoples, but only understood by those few who enter into respectful concourse with them. Many Gods dwell within specific domains and are known only to some peoples, based on their shared spiritual relation (hence, various unrelated gods from the various races). They live inside physical reality, but their greater parts exist within the Otherworld, within real space and mythic space, within real time and mythic time. Tribal, planetary, and cosmic gods exist, like a hierarchy based on natural relation and actualization of willpower, based on their eucatastrophic or catastrophic qualities.

The Gods are dynamic and apt to minor changes, but they are primordial and express themselves to peoples in their tribal states. This is why some Gods are available to some tribes, while other Gods are only perceived in others, it is due to the shared spiritual relation livings beings share together within the Spheres of Power. They are beings who must be observed and respected before a relationship can be formed, for they are the primordial caretakers of the cosmos, of the Spheres, and they control the domains we all dwell within.

The Gods want mankind to ascend and join them in the Otherworld - they want a relationship with us - but we must exercise our willpower on reality in accordance with the ideals of arete, evolution, life-affirmation, and eucatastrophe.

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How the two are related:

Navigating the Spheres of Power and their interlaced evolutionary domains can be difficult, taxing, and confusing at times. That is why golf helps:

1. To instruct on simple philosophical concepts such as spheres and angles.

2. To allow for quiet contemplation to replenish the mind.

3. To instruct on patience interspersed with calculated action.

Golf is all about hitting a small ball into a small hole from a distance with a club. The game only works when there is a combination of spheres and angles, force and resistance, natural formations and finely manicured reality, and lastly, patience and willpower - just like the sword-fighting tradition La Verdadera Destreza, but with a club and ball instead of a sword and buckler. Both of these traditions are basically based within spheres - if you are balanced in your spheres, then you will find ultimate victory and achieve a state of harmony, that mythical “zone” spoken of by athletes and warriors.

Patience and relaxation go hand-in-hand. The heart rate must be slow and steady, the body must be loose and ready, the mind must be fertile and dynamic. The body must be positioned correctly within the natural domain, the club must be angled to strike the correct part of the tiny ball to land in another part of the physical domain, and the strike must come down like a smooth U, a perfect half-circle swing. This is all to create a quick moment of correctly applied force, a wise amount of action, a reasoned angle and trajectory, and a moment of exhilaration. Correct position, correct angle, correct force, and correct mindset - the mythical “zone” commonly associated with athletics and battle - that is golf in a nutshell, a very spherical nutshell.

This “zone” occurs when you are physically experiencing the domains in their entirety, if only for a brief moment. It can occur during warfare, sports, lovemaking, competitions, meditation, and when you make music - when the three cauldrons are in perfect balance, and the Void and the other domains are flowing through you instinctively, then the mythical Zone is reached. It is a true moment of eucatastrophe, a happy turning point in the story, a completion of a cycle, the good destruction and the elevation within hierarchy. Golf, among many other activities, can assist one in learning to access this evolutionary space.

Of course, golf is simply relaxing and that is reason enough to play the old game. My father’s property has a small poorman’s course for practicing short game, the “Links of MacMillan” we like to call it, and I play whenever I get the chance. It gives me a moment to collect myself before or after my day, a moment to observe my surroundings and remember my forefathers - of course, I also get to practice my patience, willpower, and hand-to-eye coordination.

There is something special about active meditation, it allows for smoother transition into a different state of mind, one where the line between life and death, victory and defeat, is much more distinct. The “Zone” can be attained actively, and I therefore perceive that it will continue to evolve alongside us, and we will one day consciously live in this “keyed in” headspace, where every angle and dimension is available to our balanced minds, where every action follows intuition, experience, and reason. We exist within reality and are therefore members of a grand and complex whole, and I like to view reality using interlaced domains, spheres, and circles. It helps me rationalize certain esoteric concepts, as well as enjoy deeper contemplation during golf.

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Hail the Spheres, and good-end! o///