Labour 4: Cancer (21 June to 21 July).
The Capture of the Doe or Hind
The story of Hercules’ labours has been interpreted by Alice Bailey in terms of the twelve signs of the zodiac. Hercules represents the seeker within each of us.
We follow Hercules’ experiences and exploits as he passes through the twelve signs of the zodiac, and gradually we realize that each sign represents a part of Hercules’ character that he now needs to transform so that he can travel further along his path. Each story, if pondered deeply, can give us insight into our own natures, and offers guidance in what we can do to be stronger, clearer, wiser and more powerful creators of our lives.
This month is the story of Hercules’ task in the sign of Cancer.
The presiding One spoke to the Teacher standing by his side: “Where is the son of God? Provide a test which will evoke his wisest choice. Send him to labour in a field wherein he must decide which of all the many voices will arouse the obedience of his heart. Let him proceed with the fourth test.”
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In the third labour of Gemini (21 May – 20 June), Hercules learned about the duality within him – that of soul and personality, and of soul and spirit.
In this fourth labour Hercules begins to learn about the inner side of life, wisdom and the power to choose.
“Hercules stood before the fourth Gate in silence deep. Beyond the Gate the landscape stretched in contours fair and on the far horizon stood the temple of the Lord, the shrine of the Sun-God, the gleaming battlements.
Upon a hill nearby stood a slender fawn. Hercules watched and listened and heard a voice. The voice emanated from the bright circle of the moon which is the home of Artemis. She spoke words of warning to Hercules.
‘That doe is mine, so touch it not. For ages long I nurtured and tended it. The doe is mine and mine it must remain.’
Then into view sprang Diana, huntress of the heavens and daughter of the sun. Leaping on sandalled feet towards the doe she also claimed possession.
‘Not so Artemis. The doe is mine. Too young until today, it now can be of use. The golden antlered hind is mine, not yours, and mine it shall remain.’
Hercules, standing between the pillars of the Gate, listened and heard the quarrel, and wondered much as the two maidens strove for possession of the doe.
Then he heard another voice which said: ‘The doe belongs to neither maid, but to the God whose shrine you see on yonder mount. Go rescue it and bear it to the safety of the shrine, and leave it there. Being a son of God, you thus can seek and hold the doe. Go forth.’
Artemis goddess of the Moon, and Diana huntress of the woods watched as Hercules began to follow the doe. They watched the doe carefully and when due cause arose, they each deluded Hercules, seeking to foil his efforts. He chased the doe from point to point.
For a whole year, Hercules followed the doe, catching swift glimpses of its form, only to find that he had lost it in the woods until close to a quiet pool he saw the doe lying, sleeping, wearied from its flight.
With outstretched hand and steadfast eye, he shot an arrow towards the doe and wounded it in its foot. As he drew nearer, the doe did not move. As Artemis and Diana looked on he clasped the doe in his arms, close to his heart.
‘The search is over,’ he chanted loudly.
‘Not so, O Hercules,’ came the voice of one who stands close to the great Presiding One within the Council Chamber of the Lord. ‘The doe belongs to no man. Carry the doe to that distant shrine where dwell the sons of God and leave it there with them.’
‘Why so? The doe is mine by long search and travel and because I hold it close to my heart.’
‘And are you not a son of God, although also a son of man? Is the shrine not your abode also? Do you not share life with all who dwell therein? Bear to the shrine of God the sacred doe, and leave it there, O son of God.’
Hercules bore the doe to the holy shrine of Mykenae and there he laid it down noting the doe’s wounded foot made by his arrow. ‘The doe is mine by right of skill and prowess,’ he said.
But Artems said, ‘Not so.’
The Sun-God spoke from the holy place. ‘The doe is mine O Artemis. Its spirit rests with me from all eternity, here in the centre of the holy shrine. You may not enter but the fair huntress Diana may enter and tell you what she sees.’
For a brief moment passed the huntress and saw the doe’s form as if dead. In distress she said: ‘But if its spirit rests with thee, O great Apollo, noble son of God, then the doe is dead, slain by the man who is a son of man even though also a son of God. Why may he pass within the shrine and we wait the doe out here?’
‘Because he bore the doe within his arms, close to his heart, and in the holy place the doe finds rest, and so does man. All men are mine. The doe is likewise mine, not yours, nor man’s but mine.’
Hercules returned from the test and told the great Presiding One that he had returned the doe to the holy place.
‘Go look again, Hercules,’ replied the great Presiding One.
Beyond the gate the landscape stretched in contours fair and on the far horizon stood the temple of the Lord, the shrine of the Sun-God, whilst on a nearby hill stood a slender fawn.
‘The fawn is back on the hill,’ exclaimed Hercules.
And from the Council Chamber of the Lord there came a voice: ‘Again and yet again must all the sons of men, who are the sons of God, seek the golden antlered fawn and bear it to the holy place.
To Hercules the Teacher said: ‘The fourth labour is over, but this search is frequent. Forget this not and ponder on the lesson learnt.’”
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In Aries Hercules learned about the power of the mind, in Taurus he finds the flash of spiritual light and in Gemini he discovers his immortal aspect. Now in Cancer Hercules labours to understand about being a human being in its truest sense.
Cancer is said to rule the mass of humanity but the individual learning the lessons of this sign gets a sense of the universal, the higher aspect of the mass consciousness. He is challenged to stand on the shoulders of his instinct, once useful but now ready to be substituted for the intuition.
Instinct has to be lifted up, transmuted into intuition symbolised by the doe. But this can’t be done until he has learnt wise use of the intellect which takes place with the help of the intuition.
The intuition is the instantaneous recognition of truth and reality. The doe, sacred to Artemis represents the instinct; Diana the huntress represents the intellect; while Apollo the sun god is the intuition.
The instinct, intellect and intuition are varying aspects of consciousness and there is really no sharp distinction between them as we express them to varying degrees in ourselves at different times.
The animal part of us is our instinct and we are conscious of our bodies and emotions (as different from love and feelings) via the brain. Animal instinct is, in its correct place, as divine as intellect and intuition. As a human, we also possess intellect which is rational, analytical, and critical, providing awareness of thought and ideas via the mind.
Once Hercules was able to think intellectually, the Teacher indicated another world to him – the intuition. This was what Hercules sought for in the doe. When he captured it he found a whole vision of opportunity, contacts and a new world of being.
The battle between Artemis, Diana and Apollo goes on within us as the three parts of us vie for supremacy. The two goddesses show us the challenge in learning how to use the instinct correctly in its proper place, and also how to use the intellect to think clearly formulating ideas. Then we learn to transmute both these into intuition and through this expanded consciousness, we become aware of the unseen realms and spiritual realities which neither instinct nor intellect can reveal. As Hercules showed us through is struggle and triumph, this is an ongoing journey of standing on the shoulder of intellect to tap the intuition through deep thought and meditation.
1. Adapted from Labour 4. For the full story refer The Labours of Hercules, Alice Bailey, Lucis Press, 1974. (p. 77-94).
June 2010