Hod is sometimes translated as glory, or splendor. But it is also thought of as surrender. Six days into the count, and while I continue to experience the resistance of the second day, I have also begun to surrender to the process. Just as an addict surrenders, admitting his powerlessness, there is a moment when the ego surrenders and the experience of the greater glory and splendor of creation is revealed for just a moment. The ego is a small cup. Held with love in a much greater cup.
Many gay men know surrender in a particularly intimate way. A physical way that challenges all the cultural norms and psychological structures put in place by our families. When we let go of all that, and open up to love in an expected way, well, I should note that Kliegman does point out that there is can be an orgasmic energy to Hod. When we give up that small ego, or society’s sense of how we can experience pleasure, in service of a truly greater love — well, that’s cosmic orgasm. May we all experience that moment.
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