Archetype 4: The Child - The 12 Virtues of the Primordial Artist

This is part 16 in a series exploring the 12 virtues that can free artists from cultural enslavement.

ATTEND

We have now seen how the three facets of the Child enable renewal, breaking down of old forms, and provide the final freedom to the artist. Desire / Joy / Bliss enables connection with embodied way-finding toward what the path is now. Mischief enables the deconstruction of old forms that no longer serve you. Abandon enables true freedom – running free like the wind – by allowing the artist to let go of outcomes, and serve the Mystery. The Child is the one who can return to innocence, to find delight and joy again like in the garden. The Child can rest their actions and their fruit on the knees of the living god.

ENVISION

The Lover is key to the goodness of the Child. These facets, of desire, of mischief, of abandon, must be softened by the benevolence and abundance of love. Love provides, as it has done throughout this system, the foundation of kindness and benevolence that lifts all the virtues beyond themselves, softens the shadow, and allows authentic expression over cruelty.

Desire / Joy / Bliss is clear and sharp, yet benevolent in the arms of love for self, love for other, love for god.

Mischief becomes holy mischief when there is true love for other, love for reality. The breaking of false forms is part of a larger action of emergence and beauty. Coyote even in his most selfish moments was part of a greater force acting to let the Holy ones and Humanity rise to their next level.

Abandon with love means freedom. Abandon with love of god, love of self, love of other, means we can let go of that which we love, and let it fly free. We can let go of expectations, let go of fixed outcomes. We can let go of results and be free.

The Warrior plus the Lover gives the Child embodied strength, courage to act with truth and authenticity, and the sensitivity to listen and not just talk.

The Mystic plus the Lover plus the Warrior gives the child the link to god – the path to holy play, creation with freedom, art with joy.

The Child enables us to be free of human masters, our work is not attached to them, our work is grounded in our genuine delight, is able to discern true from false, enabling vs constricting. And in the end the Child lets us let go of our own persona, our own status, our own success, and be childlike and free again.

The Child as Archetype enables us to both end projects, and to commune with the rekindling energy to our beginner’s mind. As Artists, this is key. For us to let go of projects we have finished, to let go of audience response, and to discover again the new spark of joy, the new spark of interest that wishes to be expressed, that wishes to dance with us.

DIRECT

Solo

Foundation: The Centering Practice

Before engaging with any archetype, begin with this centering sequence:

Ground: Feel your feet on the earth, your body in space
Breathe: Three deep breaths, releasing control on the exhale
Invite: “I call forth my authentic creative self, free from human approval”
Set Intention: “I am here to serve the Great Mysterious through my art”

Reconnecting with Original Joy

Memory Journey: Recall yourself as a young child, before school, before criticism.

Invitation: “I invite my Original Joyful Self to come say hello.”

Dialogue:

“What did you love to create before anyone told you how?”
“What made you laugh until your belly hurt?”
“What would you create if you knew no one was watching?”
“What colors, sounds, textures call to you?”

Permission: Ask your Inner Child what it wants to do right now.

Action: Spend 10 minutes creating something purely for the joy of it.

The Sacred Mischief Practice

Permission Granting: “I give myself permission to break the rules that don’t serve my authentic expression.”

Rebellion Dialogue: “Inner Rebel, what rules need to be broken?”

“What ‘shoulds’ are strangling my creativity?”
“Where have I become too serious, too controlled?”
“What would I create if I didn’t care what anyone thought?”

Mischief Action: Do something slightly rebellious in your creative practice – use the “wrong” colors, break a composition rule, sing off-key on purpose.

Integration: “How can I bring more sacred play into my daily creative practice?”

The Abandon Practice

Persona Identification: “What mask am I wearing in my creative life?”

“Who am I trying to be as an artist?”
“What image am I maintaining?”
“What would I lose if I let this go?”

Abandonment Dialogue: “Inner Wild One, what wants to be unleashed?”

“What part of my creative self have I been hiding?”
“What would I express if I had no reputation to protect?”
“What wants to move through me without my control?”

Freedom Action: Create something where you consciously abandon control – let paint drip, let words flow without editing, let movement happen without choreography.

Integration: “How can I practice healthy abandon in my creative work?”

Advanced Integration Practice: The Council of Four

Once familiar with individual archetypes, practice this council meeting:

Setup: Visualize a round table or sacred circle.

Invitation: “I invite my Lover, Warrior, Mystic, and Child to council together.”

Presenting Issue: Bring a current creative challenge to the council.

Each Voice Speaks:

Lover: “How do we approach this with complete acceptance and love?”
Warrior: “What action needs to be taken? What boundaries set?”
Mystic: “What is the deeper wisdom here? What does spirit want?”
Child: “How do we keep this joyful and authentic?”

Synthesis: Listen for how all four voices can work together harmoniously.

Commitment: What will you do this week to honor all four archetypal energies in your creative practice?

CURTAIN

With the Child we have completed the final Archetype. The Omega and the Alpha. The child lets us end and lets us begin. The Child releases us and returns us to the beginning.
With the Child, especially as it interrelates with the Lover, the Warrior, and the Mystic, we get to be at play in the fields of the lord.