Nourishing my Inner Aphrodite
There are multiple emotions during this break from work. Not to mention it is a period of transition, one where my hyperactive mind is desperately seeking for its next big project. What will it be? A job or a hobby? An overseas trip or a love story?
I am finally reading the well-known mind doctor Deepak Chopra, and enjoying his concept of ‘Synchrodestiny’. One of my favourite sections so far has been the selection of three archetypes for oneself, with a list of sorts provided. I choose Aphrodite for love and sensuality, the Hindu goddess Saraswati for knowledge and refinement, and Buddha/Jesus for worldly compassion. It then struck me how my self-image is so caught up in the Saraswati model, with most of my friends and ex-boyfriends recognizing the erudite version of my mind (and often only that). I take the Buddha/Jesus attributes for granted, while the Aphrodite in me often hides herself due to fear of compromising Saraswati’s ostensibly higher social stature.
Aphrodite is clamouring not just a better showing now, but also greater nourishment. It wants love, and that too in vintage packaging. I am being drawn to lovey-dovey songs and films like never before, albeit of the offbeat kind. Even in the midst of drafting academic CVs and cover letters this week, I managed to make time to watch (500) Days of Summer. It isn’t the best film I’ve seen in the romance genre, but a non-linear narrative, a soundtrack boasting Regina Spektor and The Smiths, and a refreshingly realistic take on love make it worth one’s time. It also co-incidentally coincides with Chopra’s aforementioned views on synchronicity and destiny. How wonderful!
As always, there is a real-life twist. A new man who took me out for a lunch that he paid for apparently has a girlfriend he doesn’t wish to talk about. Until mutual friends find out. Another one bites the dust. So I come home and listen to La Roux’s ‘Bulletproof’ to steady Aphrodite and impart her some of Saraswati’s resolve and resilience. Hence, these two archetypes, contrary to popular opinion, are not in conflict. They can not only co-exist but also, I believe, help water each other’s sprouting seedlings (with a benevolent Buddha overlooking of course).
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